The simple answer is yes, you can.
As a homeowner, you are permitted to give your property to your children at any time, even if you live in it.
Under Australian law, you can give real estate to a relative as an outright gift. When giving ownership to a third party, there is no exchange of money. The gifting process involves filing a Transfer of Land with your title office. Filing a gift deed may also be necessary.
Transfers between family members are liable to transfer duty, however some transfers may qualify for an exemption or concession. If you've already paid transfer duty but were entitled to an exemption or concession, you can claim a refund for up to five years.
A quitclaim deed is likely the fastest, easiest, and most convenient way to transfer your ownership interest in a property or asset to a family member. Unlike other kinds of deeds, such as general and special warranty deeds, quitclaim deeds make no warranties or promises about what is being transferred.
A gift of property is subject to capital gains tax (CGT), which is charged on any profit arising, or treated as arising, on the gift. Where a gift is made to a close family member, the market value of the asset is substituted for any sums which are actually paid and CGT is charged on the gain deemed to arise.
Capital Gains Tax Considerations
It's generally better to receive real estate as an inheritance rather than as an outright gift because of capital gains implications. That's because of cost basis, which is cost of the property used to determine the capital gain, if any, when it is transferred.
As a rule of thumb, you should allow for between 8% and 10% of the purchase price of the property for all the other costs involved in purchasing a property. These costs will include bond registration fees, transfer duty, transfer costs, and other legal fees.
The good news is that you could gift your home to your children and if you lived for at least seven years after the gift was made, it would be removed from your estate and no inheritance tax would be due.
A father is within his rights to give the self-acquired -property to his one son to the exclusion of other children. During his lifetime, his children have no right to claim it. He can pass the same to his one son by gift or by will.
Father has every right to give his property as he likes. In your case father can give his to one son by ignoring other son or daughter. The transfer may be through sale Deed, gift Deed or will.
Gift the house
When you give anyone other than your spouse property valued at more than $16,000 ($32,000 per couple) in any one year, you have to file a gift tax form. But you can gift a total of $12.06 million (in 2022) over your lifetime without incurring a gift tax.
Illegitimate children
The inheritance rights of illegitimate children are governed by Section 16 (3) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, which states that 'such children are only entitled to the property of their parents and not of any other relation'.
It usually takes four to six weeks to complete the legal processes involved in the transfer of title.
It's absolutely possible to arrange the transfer of property to a family member. However, it's important to thoroughly understand the process and its implications – financial and otherwise – before committing to this.
| You can gift property to spouse, child or any relative and register the same. Under section 122 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, you can transfer immovable property through a gift deed. The deed should contain your details as well as those of the recipient.
Defined under Section 122 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, any immovable property can be transferred through a gift deed.
A man can give away his whole property during his lifetime. Only one-third of the net estate can be bequeathed. A gift inter vivos can be made in favour of any person without any restriction (except during marz-ul-maut). For bequeathing more than one-third of the property to any person, consent of heirs is mandatory.
Parents can transfer ownership of a property to their child in the form of a gift or by transferring equity in the property, but it's important to be aware of the inheritance tax rules that can still apply.
Gifting property to your children
The most common way to transfer property to your children is through gifting it. This is usually done to ensure they will not have to pay inheritance tax when you die. Inheritance tax starts at 40%.
To transfer a joint ownership property to sole ownership, it is essential for all parties to sign the transfer deed and register it with the Land Registry. People who are interested in becoming the sole owner of the property can buy out the share of their ex-spouse or siblings, or reach a different type of agreement.
Where this is the case, the period of occupation as a main home is sheltered from capital gains tax, as is the final 18 months of ownership, regardless of whether the property is occupied as a main home for that final period.
How do you protect your assets from your children's spouses? The most commonly used structure within a will to achieve this control is called a discretionary trust. The effect of passing your assets into such a trust is to provide no clear beneficiary for your assets.