WILLIAM REID PACE, APPELLANT,
v.
JOHN STEPHEN WOODS, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS EXECUTOR OF THE ESTATE OF KATHERINE JOHNSTONE PACE, DECEASED, APPELLEE
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William Pace appealed a circuit court's refusal to cancel a 1953 deed by which he and his wife converted their homestead property from tenants by the entireties to tenants in common. The Florida appellate court affirmed, holding that homestead protections do not apply to property held by tenants by the entireties, and that the conversion itself constituted valuable consideration.
The court affirmed the circuit court's refusal to cancel the deed, holding that homestead constitutional protections do not apply to property held by tenants by the entireties, and that even if consideration were required, the conversion itself—exchanging the right of survivorship for the right to devise separately—constituted valuable legal consideration.
“the homestead provisions of the Constitution adopted for the benefit of heirs of the heads of the family do not apply to property held by tenants by the en-tireties. And, property held by the entire-ties may be alienated like any other property.”
Establishes the core holding that homestead protections do not extend to property held by tenants by the entireties, allowing free alienation.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceIn 1946, William Pace purchased a house with his wife Katherine, holding title as tenants by the entireties. They resided on the property continuously…
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This is an appeal of a final decree of the circuit court refusing to cancel and set aside a deed.
The pertinent facts of this case are as follows:
In 1924, plaintiff-appellant married Katherine Johnstone Pace. In 1946 appellant purchased a house, title to which was taken in the names of himself and his wife as tenants by the entireties. Mr. and Mrs. Pace resided together’on this property continuously from the date of its purchase in 1946 until the death of Mrs. Pace in 1963. During such residence'" period Mr. Pace was the head of the household,-and there is no dispute as to the homestead character of that property under' Florida law.
In 1953, Mr. and Mrs. Pace executed a deed conveying the property to themselves as tenants 'in common with no right of survivorship. The deed recited that it was given for Ten Dollars and other good and valuable consideration, although no monetary consideration passed from one to the other. Upon Mrs. Pace’s death in 1963, she left a will devising one-half interest in the property to the appellee, her son by a prior marriage. The appellant has instituted this action to set aside the 1953 deed as an improper alienation of homestead property.
Our review of the applicable law leads us to conclude that the chancellor correctly decided this case.
*780Appellant’s main contention is that the 1953 conveyance should be set aside because it was without valuable consideration. Under the facts of this case such contention lacks merit in both law and fact. While it is true that Florida courts have consistently held that a homestead in the sole name of a head of a family can not be alienated without consideration,1 it is to be noted that in the cases where gratuitous conveyances were voided the complaining parties were children of the homestead owner and had a protected interest under the Constitution of Florida. In this case, appellant had no such interest. It would be a strained interpretation of homestead laws to hold that such laws are designed to protect the head of the household from his own alleged improper alienation of the homestead.
We are of the view that the authority most applicable to this case is Denham v. Sexton.2 In the Denham case, the Supreme Court held that the homestead provisions of the Constitution adopted for the benefit of heirs of the heads of the family do not apply to property held by tenants by the en-tireties. And, property held by the entire-ties may be alienated like any other property. The court went on to say,
“The fact that exemptions from liens and forced sales may be claimed by the head of a family during his lifetime on a home place owned by the husband and wife as tenants by the entireties makes no difference in the operation of the law as respects the right of the tenants by the entireties to make a conveyance of the property in the same manner as any other property owned by the tenants may be conveyed.”3
Moreover, assuming for the sake of argument that consideration to support the 1953 transfer was required, we find that legal consideration was in fact present. By converting their estate by the entireties to an estate in common, the parties thereby gave up certain legal rights in exchange for others. One valuable legal right lost was the right to succeed to the entire estate by outliving the other tenant. One valuable legal right gained was the right to dispose of their respective interests in precisely the manner done by Mrs. Pace, that is, by devise.
We have considered appellant’s remaining contention regarding disability of spouses to convey homestead property to each other but find such contention lacking in merit.
For the foregoing reasons the decree appealed is affirmed.
Affirmed.
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Betts v. Hawkins, 202 So. 2d 135 (Fla. 2d DCA 1967)…(1947), Justice Terrell in a dissenting opinion joined by Justice Chapman stated that a deed of homestead property to a municipality who in turn was to establish a memorial for the grantors was supported by adequate consideration. In Pace v. Woods, 177 So. 2d 779 (Fla.App.1965), the District Court held that a deed executed by the husband and wife, who had title to property as tenants by the entireties, which conveyed the property to them as tenants in common with no right of survivorship would not be set asi…
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United States v. ONE Single Fam. Residence With OUT Bldgs. Located AT 15621 S.W. 209th Ave., 894 F.2d 1511 (11th Cir. 1990)…can transfer his/her interest to the other spouse so that the donee spouse holds the property in fee simple. Hunt v. Covington, 145 Fla. 706, 200 So. 76 (1941). The spouses can reconvey the property to themselves as tenants in common. Pace v. Woods, 177 So. 2d 779 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1965). The death of a spouse destroys the entirety and the surviving spouse becomes the owner in fee simple. Wilson v. Florida Nat. Bank & Trust Co., 64 So. 2d 309, 312 (Fla.1953); Knapp v. Fredericksen, 148 Fla. 311, 4 So. 2d 251,…
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United States v. One Single Family Residence, 699 F. Supp. 1531 (S.D. Fla. 1988)…ct property rather than in personam against the owners, title is transferred upon commission of the prohibited act, and a tenancy by the entirety is therefore destroyed by removal of title from the marital unit. See, e.g., Pace v. Woods, 177 So.2d 779 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1965). There is no basis for such an automatic result in the language of the forfeiture statute. An innocent owner’s interest may be so broad as to encompass the entire property, so that nothing is available for forfeiture at the ti…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- George v. Reed and his wife, 145 So. 2d 858 (Fla. 1961)
- Denham v. Sexton, 48 So. 2d 416 (Fla. 1950)
- Bess v. Anderson, 102 Fla. 1127 (Fla. 1931)
- THE Fla. Nat'l Bank OF Jacksonville & Tr. under the Will of Grace Webster Taylor v. Winn, 158 Fla. 750 (Fla. 1947)