Florida Land Trusts

[Pat Lintz]

Hi, I'm new to real estate law but I think I have a pretty good idea of how Florida Land Trusts work. I just have a few things that I need to clear up and was hoping I could get some help with that here.

1. I understand that the trustee of the property is listed as the owner on the public record and is responsible for the administration/maintenance of said property, at the direction of the beneficiary. I assume this means that utility bills and home insurance will be under the name of the trustee as well. The beneficiary in this case would like to have access to and full control of the payment of utility bills, home insurance, and taxes, without the involvement of the trustee. Is this possible, given that some of these bills typically must be under the name of the owner of the property? To put it more clearly, can the beneficiary's name be listed on, for example, the property's water bill, even though the trustee is listed as the owner?

2. I also understand that one of the major advantages of establishing a trust is privacy. However, I've read that the beneficiary's name is disclosed when the land trust is established, but I'm unsure as to how accessible this information is. For example, if a beneficiary is attempting to waive a debt when the land trust is being established, will the debtee be able to access this information while considering the beneficiary's waiver request?

Thanks in advance for any help that can be provided.