Missouri · RSMo 404 and 442Missouri power of attorney for a real estate closing: acknowledgment, recording and durable powers

When a Missouri buyer or seller signs through an attorney in fact, two sets of rules apply. RSMo 442.360: every letter of attorney or other instrument containing a power to convey real estate, or to sign for another any instrument conveying or affecting real estate, must be acknowledged or proved, certified and recorded in the same way as other instruments conveying or affecting real estate – so plan for the power of attorney to be recorded too, not just the deed or deed of trust. RSMo 404.705: a power of attorney keeps working if the principal later becomes disabled or incapacitated, or if it later becomes uncertain whether the principal is alive, only if it is denominated a 'Durable Power of Attorney', includes a statement in substance that the attorney in fact's authority won't terminate in those events, and is subscribed by the principal and dated and acknowledged in the manner prescribed for real estate conveyances. A durable power of attorney doesn't have to be recorded to be valid, except where recording is required for real estate transactions under 442.360 and 442.370. A general power of attorney covers each action an adult could carry out through an agent, but some actions require express authority in the document – among them making gifts of the principal's property and creating or changing survivorship interests (404.710(6)). An attorney in fact who acts owes fiduciary duties: to act in the principal's best interests, avoid self-dealing and conflicts of interest, and preserve the principal's estate plan, including joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety arrangements, unless explicitly authorized otherwise (404.714).