Pompano Beach Lady Bird Deed Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to my Lady Bird Deed if my condominium is terminated?
This is the question that matters most for older Pompano Beach buildings, and the answer surprises people. A Lady Bird Deed conveys a specific piece of real property. If the condominium is terminated and the whole property is sold, your unit stops existing as a separate parcel of real estate. What you hold instead is a right to a share of the sale proceeds, money, not real property. The deed’s subject matter is gone. If that happens while you are alive and nothing else is done, those proceeds sit in your name as an ordinary asset and can end up going through probate at your death, which is exactly what the deed was meant to prevent. It is fixable, but only if someone notices.
How many owners does it take to terminate a Florida condominium?
Under Fla. Stat. § 718.117, optional termination generally requires approval by at least 80% of the total voting interests, and the plan cannot proceed if 5% or more of the total voting interests reject it. If a plan is rejected, no new termination plan may be considered for 24 months. Individual declarations can set different thresholds, and older declarations sometimes require a higher percentage, so your own documents have to be read alongside the statute.
What protections do I have if my unit is my homestead and the building is terminated?
Florida law provides specific protections where a bulk owner is driving the termination. Owners of homestead-exempt units must generally receive at least the original purchase price of the unit rather than merely current fair market value, and former homestead owners receive an additional relocation payment calculated as a percentage of their allocated termination proceeds. Displaced homestead owners may also have the right to lease the unit back for a period on comparable terms. Non-bulk owners generally must receive at least full fair market value based on independent appraisal.
Should I still do a Lady Bird Deed if my building might be bought out?
Yes, in most cases. A termination is a possibility, not a certainty, and it may be years away or never happen. In the meantime the deed does exactly what it is supposed to do: keeps the unit out of probate if you die while you still own it. What matters is knowing the deed is tied to that specific unit, so if a termination actually happens you come back and adjust the plan for whatever replaces it. That is a fifteen-minute conversation, not a reason to leave the property exposed for a decade.
What are milestone inspections and do they affect my beneficiaries?
Following Florida’s post-2021 condominium safety legislation, buildings of a certain age and height must complete milestone structural inspections, and associations must fund reserves based on a structural integrity reserve study rather than waiving them. Pompano Beach has a large stock of older beachfront buildings working through exactly this, and the resulting assessments can be substantial. A Lady Bird Deed transfers the unit subject to those obligations, so your beneficiaries inherit the assessment along with the condo.
Where is a Lady Bird Deed recorded for Pompano Beach property?
In the Broward County Official Records. Broward is unusual in that deeds are recorded by the county Records, Taxes & Treasury Division rather than the Clerk of Courts. The counter is at the Broward County Governmental Center, 115 South Andrews Avenue, Room 114, Fort Lauderdale, generally open 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekdays. Deeds may also be mailed or submitted through an approved e-recording provider.
Will a Pompano Beach Lady Bird Deed affect my homestead exemption?
A properly drafted deed should not affect your homestead exemption or your Save Our Homes assessment cap during your lifetime. You retain an enhanced life estate, you remain in possession, and the Broward County Property Appraiser continues to treat you as the owner of record. Keeping homestead status matters for a second reason here: it is also what triggers the enhanced protections available to homestead owners if the building is ever terminated.
Does a Pompano Beach Lady Bird Deed protect the home from Medicaid estate recovery?
Florida limits Medicaid estate recovery to assets that pass through the probate estate. Because a Lady Bird Deed moves the home outside probate, it is one of the standard tools for reducing exposure on a Florida homestead. With over 21% of Pompano Beach residents aged 65 or older, this comes up often. The deed does not qualify anyone for Medicaid, the five-year look-back still applies to other transfers, and the protection depends on the home keeping homestead status and passing to heirs. See our Medicaid guide.
Can I use a Lady Bird Deed on a mainland Pompano Beach house rather than a condo?
Yes, and for a single-family home the analysis is simpler because there is no declaration of condominium and no termination risk. Much of Pompano Beach west of the Intracoastal is single-family housing, a good deal of it built in the 1950s and 1960s. For those owners the main considerations are the usual ones: homestead and spousal rights, whether title is clean from any earlier death in the family, and any open permits or code liens on older housing stock.
Do my beneficiaries get a stepped-up basis?
Generally yes. Because you keep the enhanced powers, the property remains in your gross estate at death, which normally produces a stepped-up cost basis. For a Pompano Beach condominium bought decades ago on a coastline that has appreciated sharply, that step-up can eliminate most of the capital gain if they sell. Confirm the treatment for your situation with a tax advisor.
Can a Pompano Beach Lady Bird Deed be changed or revoked later?
Yes. You can sell the property, refinance it, lease it, add or remove beneficiaries, or revoke the deed entirely without the consent of the people named to receive it. A new deed is prepared and recorded to make the change effective. That flexibility matters especially in a building facing possible termination, because it means you can respond to whatever happens rather than being locked into a plan made years earlier.
More general questions are answered on our Florida Lady Bird Deed FAQ page.
