To protect my property, I plan to quit claim it to my daughter, & remove my name, is this a valid strategy?

I agree with Mr. Palley. It is generally not recommended that you quitclaim for many reasons, including losing the rights to the property and potential tax consequences. It is worth meeting with an estate planning attorney to discuss the situation and see what is best for your situation.

You mention a "potential hassle in the near future". If that means that someone has claims against you and you transfer property for less than fair market value, that "creditor" may have cause to complain about the transfer and have it set aside as a "fraudulent conveyance". You should see a lawyer. There are better ways to deal with this issue than an outright transfer to your daughter. There are many potential problems that could be created by such a transfer. You need advice about this as soon as possible.

If you are transferring the property in order to avoid the debt the court may set it aside as fraudulent. You might want to consult with an attorney to decide the best strategy for dealing with this 'potential hassle.' Good luck.

Transferring assets to family members in order to avoid lawsuits is what I call “Hope”. It is not asset protection planning. Imagine your daughter gets involved into a small car accident. It does not take much for a contingency fee attorney to find out what kind of assets the potential plaintiff can go after. And, as my colleagues point out, if you feel you may be in trouble in the near future, court may regard any transfer of assets as fraudulent conveyance. A lot depends on the specifics the issue that may cause you legal headaches. It is likely that you still can set up a sound asset protection plan. Note that asset protection planning is a very specific area of the law (it is not estate planning) and you really want to schedule a consultation with an attorney that has proven expertise in this field of the law. Good luck!

You do not say whether you are married or not - but I will assume no for my answer. It may be best (depending on value of home) to convey it to an irrevocable trust and reserve a life estate in the house (or any replacement house in the future). Your daughter would then be the remainder beneficiary and protect against creditors against you personally. However, fraudulent conveyance issue is real if there is anything at present where the major reason to do this is to avoid creditors. Conversely, if you are doing it as part of an overall estate plan given your family circumstances then it can be a legitimate move to do at present w/o regard to contingent claims out there. there are gift tax issues using a revocable trust as well as the other matters voiced by my colleagues. You need an attorney for this no doubt and the quitclaim idea, although expeditious, may create more problems down the road.

Without knowing more by what you mean about a "potential hassle" it is not really possible to tell you much. If you have creditors, or are about to and you are found to have done this to evade them, your daughter and you could be sued in many states, for the property. You should discuss this carefully and honestly with an attorney in your area. Doug Holbrook www.holbrook-associates.com