Nevada Transfer Tax - Exemption 5

When Do Counties in Nevada Charge a Transfer Fax on Real Property?

If you have recently purchased or refinanced a home, the escrow officer at the title company will issue an estimated and final settlement statement. When you see a line item, RPTT, this refers to Real Property Transfer Tax. When a Deed is recorded in Nevada, a Declaration of Value form must accompany the Deed. It will identify the Total Value or Sales Price, the Transfer Tax Value, and the RPTT calculated for the property.

Nevada does allow the RPTT to be waived under very specific conditions. Today, we will be discussing Exemption Code #5, which pertains to individuals. We will clarify those relationships and conditions that the State of Nevada will consider valid to waive the transfer tax. (In another article, we will focus on other types of scenarios and exemptions, i.e., transfer between trusts and business entities).

Purchasing a Home - the Transfer Tax Value will round up in increments of $500 and this will be disclosed on the Settlement Statement. There is no waiver from transfer tax on a purchase.

Adding or Removing a Name - in this scenario, we will review the allowed exemptions and documentation to support the relationship between the individuals.

• Allowed Exemption - Adding a Spouse or Domestic Partner (this pertains to a State of Nevada Registered Domestic Partnership). We see this in two situations, a refinance and a purchase, both of which deal with property that is being financed. One of the spouses (the borrowing spouse) is on the Loan, the Deed of Trust and the Deed. The non-borrowing spouse will be required by the lender to execute/sign a Deed relinquishing their interest to the property. The buyers are often told by their real estate professional and/or mortgage professional that they can add the non-borrowing spouse to the Title after the Close of Escrow, i.e. the Deed has been recorded in the buyer's name. In the event that the spouses have different last names, a Certified Marriage Certificate must accompany the Deed being recorded. The Marriage Certificate must be in English.
• Allowed Exemption - Adding a Parent, Child or In-Law - as long as there is no money/consideration involved, i.e. it's a gift, this would qualify for the exemption. If the parents, in-laws, and/or children have different last names, in addition to marriage certificates, a certified original birth certificate will need to accompany the documents. With today's often complex marriages, divorces and remarriages for both parents and their children, it is required that all certificates identifying name changes accompany the Deed. This can be particularly challenging when the Certificates (birth/marriage) are in a language other than English. Lately, we do see more Certificates in both English and their original country's language.

A lot of our clients wish to add a fiancé, a grandchild, a sibling, a niece or nephew, etc. etc. These are not exempt from the Real Property Transfer Tax (RPTT); however, in most of these scenarios, we have been successful in reducing the Transfer Tax for our clients. Every situation is unique so please call us as soon as you know you are making this non-exemption type of a Transfer of Ownership. In these situations, it is important to remember that if the individual on the title dies or becomes incapacitated, the property will likely require consultation with an attorney. Where we see this most, is with a fiancé who contributed to the down-payment, is not yet on the Title, and now they are dealing with legal issues and the family of the deceased.

The above situations are specific to Nevada. Each State has different guidelines relative to waiving any type of transfer tax or real property re-appraisal. This is specific to the State the property is located in not the owner's state of residence.

Give us a call, 702.233.4014 or email us at [email protected]. You can also chat with us online on our website. We are happy to answer any questions.

Quick Claim USA and their employees are not attorneys in the State of Nevada or in any other State or Jurisdiction. Quick Claim USA is not licensed to give legal advice and may not accept fees for giving legal advice. Should you have questions regarding any of the above items, you must seek the advice of independent legal/tax counsel of your choosing.