House Study Bill 2 



                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON
                                            JUDICIARY BILL BY
                                            CHAIRPERSON SWAIM)


    Passed House, Date               Passed Senate,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to the conveyance or encumbrance of a homestead.
  2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  3 TLSB 1328HC 82
  4 rh/sh/8

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 561.13, Code 2007, is amended to read
  1  2 as follows:
  1  3    561.13  CONVEYANCE OR ENCUMBRANCE.
  1  4    A conveyance or encumbrance of, or contract to convey or
  1  5 encumber the homestead, if the owner is married, is not valid,
  1  6 unless and until the spouse of the owner executes the same or
  1  7 a like instrument, or a power of attorney for the execution of
  1  8 the same or a like instrument, and the instrument or power of
  1  9 attorney sets out the legal description of the homestead.
  1 10 However, when the homestead is conveyed or encumbered along
  1 11 with or in addition to other real estate, it is not necessary
  1 12 to particularly describe or set aside the tract of land
  1 13 constituting the homestead, whether the homestead is
  1 14 exclusively the subject of the contract or not, but the
  1 15 contract may be enforced as to real estate other than the
  1 16 homestead at the option of the purchaser or encumbrancer.  If
  1 17 a spouse who holds only homestead rights and surviving
  1 18 spouse's statutory share in the homestead specifically
  1 19 relinquishes homestead rights in an instrument, including a
  1 20 power of attorney constituting the other spouse as the
  1 21 husband's or wife's attorney in fact, as provided in section
  1 22 597.5, it is not necessary for the spouse to join in the
  1 23 granting clause of the same or a like instrument.
  1 24                           EXPLANATION
  1 25    This bill eliminates the requirement that the married
  1 26 spouse of a person who conveys or encumbers a homestead must,
  1 27 in the conveyance instrument or through a power of attorney,
  1 28 set out the legal description of the homestead.
  1 29 LSB 1328HC 82
  1 30 rh:nh/sh/8