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Joint ownership

Joint ownership

Land owned by more than one person can be held in one of two ways. In all cases it is important to choose the right option for your circumstances.

Joint Ownership

The correct legal name for this type of ownership is "joint tenants". Where land is held by two people as joint tenants and one of them dies, his or her share automatically passes to the other. This is the most common form of joint ownership. One joint owner cannot deal with his share of the property separately from the other person's share. In most cases of course there will only be two joint owners, but there can be more.

Ownership "in Common"

The correct legal name here is "tenants in common". Where two people hold land as tenants in common each person's share can, in theory at least, be dealt with separately from the other person's share. The main effect of this is that on the death of one owner his share does not automatically pass to the other, but according to the terms of his will. If he has not made a will, his share will pass according to the rules applicable to people who die without making a will.

Where land is held by joint tenants, it is very easy for a solicitor to advise you how to convert your ownership to tenants in common.

Who owns what shares?

Normally, most couples buying a house reckon that they own the house in equal shares. Sometimes, however, one partner will have paid a greater proportion of the cost of buying the house than the other and he or she might think that he ought to own more than half. Very often, people give this matter no thought at all until there is a problem.

With married couples the problem is in many cases not very significant, although there are exceptions. With unmarried couples it is definitely worth thinking about. One of the problems from a solicitor's point of view is that raising the question of joint ownership with a couple can sometimes cause more problems than it solves. If you are buying a property in joint names with somebody else and want to discuss this matter, please raise it.

Sometimes, people ask us to prepare a special deed regulating the arrangements between them and this can of course be done. It is normally only done between unmarried couples. One problem is that such a deed is designed to set out what would happen if the relationship between the couple broke down and this is very much the last thing which the couple has in mind when setting out to buy a house together. A business-like attitude at that stage, however, can avoid uncertainty later.