What happens to a life estate if the life tenant dies before the measuring life?

In the context of a life estate, the key point to understand is that a life estate is an interest in property that lasts for the duration of a person's life, known as the life tenant. Once the life tenant dies, the life estate terminates and the property interests must now be considered.

In this scenario, the correct understanding is that when a life tenant dies, the life estate does not pass to the life tenant’s family, nor does it go to the state or get divided among heirs as if it was a typical interest that could be inherited. Instead, the life estate automatically facilitates the next phase dictated by the terms set out in the original conveyance or the trust. Typically, the property will transfer to a remainderman—the individual or entity that holds the remainder interest in the property after the life estate ends.

In this case, while option B suggests the estate goes to the life tenant's family, it introduces confusion; the life estate does not transfer in that manner. Instead, the correct answer would reflect that the title would revert to a remainderman or follow through to the next intended party, rather than being an automatic inheritance by the family.

Understanding that the transfer of interest upon the death of the life tenant follows