Acceptance Affidavit
After the death of the Grantor, if the TODD has not been revoked, the Beneficiary must claim the property by executing and recording a sworn affidavit which must:
- Be recorded within nine months of the Grantor’s death;
- Cross-reference the TODD by Deed Book and Page number;
- State that the Grantor has died;
- State whether the Grantor and the Beneficiary were married at the time of the Grantor’s death; [1]
- Include a legal description of the property (which can usually be found on the TODD, unless the boundaries of the property have changed);
- Be signed by the Beneficiary (or their agent under a power of attorney);
- Be notarized; [2]
- Attach a copy of the Grantor’s death certificate. [3] [4]
[1] Whether the Grantor and Beneficiary were married has no impact on anything under Georgia law. We believe this language was accidentally kept in the statutes when they were copied over from another state. Regardless, the Acceptance Affidavit must include this statement.
[2] There is not currently a requirement that the Acceptance Affidavit have a second witness in addition to the notary, but it’s probably a good idea to have one, just in case.
[3] It is currently difficult for a non-related Beneficiary to get a death certificate; the list of who can get someone’s death certificate is short. We hope that the State of Georgia is adding TODD Beneficiaries to that list.
[4] It is very important to redact the Grantor’s Social Security Number when recording their death certificate. We also recommend redacting all healthcare information, which is currently boxes 32–44 on the Georgia death certificates.