Should you add your spouse's name to the deed to your home?

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Attorney Tom Olsen is host of the Olsen on Law Radio Show on in Orlando. You can reach Tom at 407-423-5561 or [email protected]. Tom has been answering legal questions on his radio show for over 35 years and has been practicing law in Orlando for 40 years.
The Olsen on Law Radio Show is America’s longest running legal radio show.
Produced by Professional Media Ideas. Call or text Chrissy Merrill at 321-207-8384 or by email at [email protected]

Transcript:
Attorney Tom Olsen: We had a text question from a lady wanting to know if she should add her husband to the deed to the home that they live in and is it expensive. Chrissy, I've had people call me with that over the years and my first question to her would be, "How long you've been married?" If she says, "Hey, I've been married for six months or a year," I'd say, "Look, give it time. Let this marriage mature before you add the husband's name to the deed because once you do it, it is no taking it back."
If you keep that home in your name only and you get divorced in a few years, guess what? You're leaving with that home. If you add his name to the deed and you get divorced, guess what? He's getting one half that home. Give it time.
Now, I understand that sometimes we have spouses that there's something about-- they're insisting that their name be added to the deed and I can understand there's something about keeping your spouse happy and I can understand the pressure you can be under, but that's something you're going to have to-- I always tell people, "Hey, you can always blame it on me." Tell your spouse that Tom Olsen said no don't do it yet.
The other thing is, is it expensive? The good news and bad news. The good news is that-- well, actually, it's all good news. It's not that expensive to do a deed and record it here in the State of Florida. When you do deeds, you owe the State of Florida documentary stamps. It is nothing less than a tax.
We don't have income taxes here in the State of Florida, so one of the way that the state raises money is to dock stamps on deeds so that when there's monies changing hands or property being deeded back and forth and there's mortgages on those properties, you have to pay the State of Florida dock stamps. As far as a deed between a husband and wife, if it is their homestead, the home that they live in, no dock stamps due. That would only be true for the home that they live in. No dock stamps due, so good news on that front.