[WSBAPT] Assigning Deed of Trust

Craig Gourley craig at glgmail.com
Tue Oct 7 18:04:33 PDT 2025


I can answer part of your question and guess on the rest. The Promissory Note is personal property and the DOT is merely security for the Note. When you assign the DOT you also need to assign the note. Without the note the DOT means nothing. Essentially securing a debt you don't own.

It sounds like the title company must be acting as the trustee and they want CO letters or a living person. I would look for another trustee that would accept WA letters ( maybe a law firm that works in real estate) If the property was here, I would do it for you. The other option would be to assign the Note and DOT to a living person or entity, record the assignment and the trustee should accept the request for recon from that person or entity.  At least that is what I would do here.

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From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> on behalf of John Sullivan <jsullivan at dljslaw.com>
Sent: Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:10:17 PM
To: wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>; rppt-kcba at info.kcba.org <rppt-kcba at info.kcba.org.kcba.membercentral.org>
Subject: [WSBAPT] Assigning Deed of Trust


Listmates:



I am trying to avoid the expense of a CO ancillary probate. WA client recently died. He had a loan out o one of his kids, evidenced by a promissory note and a deed of trust on real property situated in CO. The kid is now selling the property and title needs someone to reconvey the deed of trust. Mostly the decedent’s assets are held in an RLT. The WA Letters are in a probate of the pour-over will. But CO title now says they need CO letters to accept the reconveyance.



Question: is the deed of trust itself real property or personal property. Do I have a workaround available by having the PR with her WA letters assign the note and deed of trust to herself as trustee of the trust? If the client (or his AIF) had assigned the note and deed of trust to the RLT while alive, I am certain I would not have this issue. But when I have assigned a Beneficiary’s interest in a deed of trust before, I have always recorded it.



Does my workaround work? Or am I stuck with ancillary probate?

Best regards,

John J. Sullivan

Attorney



Lyons | Sullivan

10655 NE 4th Street, Suite 704

Bellevue, WA  98004

425·451·2400 tel 425-451-7385 fax

www.dljslaw.com<http://www.dljslaw.com/>



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