Joint Owners: What Shall I Do?
Posted on 27th January 2024
When buying a property in joint names, your Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham will require confirmation as to how you wish to hold the property. Your Conveyancing Solicitors must include this information on the Transfer Deed (TR1), which is the document which effectively transfers the ownership of the property from the seller to the buyer. The TR1 is submitted to the Land Registry so, it is, therefore, important that this is correct before signature and submission.
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How can a property be owned?
A property can be owned as follows:
Joint Tenants
A joint tenancy is where two people own the whole property together. This may seem obvious, but owning a property as joint tenants incorporates the survivorship principle, which means that, upon death, the property is automatically passed to the surviving co-owner. Our Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham find this ownership is most common within spouses and civil partners, as each does not hold an individual share in the property, but they collectively own the interest together.
Example
Mr and Mrs A own 123 The Street in their joint names, as joint tenants. Mr A dies, and the property automatically passes – legally and beneficially – to Mrs A. The property then passes under Mrs A’s Will when she dies.
The only steps Mrs A needed to take when Mr A died was to send a copy of his death certificate to the Land Registry, with form DJP. The Land Registry will then remove Mr A’s name from the property register.
When Mrs A dies, the executors of her Will, or the administrators of her estate if she died without a Will, would need to obtain Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration, and send this to the Land Registry when the property is sold or transferred.
Tenants in Common in Equal Shares
As opposed to a joint tenancy, tenants in common each hold their own share in a property, and this can be in either equal or unequal shares. This means that when one co-owner dies, their share of the property passes under their Will (or the rules of intestacy if they have no Will), and not automatically to the surviving co-owner.
Our Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham find this form of ownership is more common if the parties purchasing have children from previous relationships. Often, each party wishes their respective share of the property to pass to their own children. This is usually following advice from our expert Wills Solicitors in Lytham, and the preparation of a legally valid Will, which creates a property trust to protect the surviving co-owner and the person’s children all in one comprehensive document.
Example
Mr B and Miss C purchase a house together worth £500,000. Mr B owns 50%, equating to £250,000, and Miss C owns 50%, equating to £250,000. Mr B wants to leave his share to his children, but allowing Miss C to live in the property, subject to conditions, for the rest of her life. He makes a Will to this effect. Miss C wants to leave her share to Mr B directly. She makes a Will to this effect.
Tenants in Common in Unequal Shares
It is common, when one party is contributing more to the purchase price of the property than the other, that this is reflected in how the individuals hold the property. The individual who makes a larger contribution, may hold a bigger share in the property, however, this is at the discretion of the parties themselves.
When deciding to hold the property as tenants in common, as each individual holds their own share, the survivorship principle does not apply. Instead, the parties can leave their individual shares to other people in their Will, or the same will be passed on by intestacy rules if there is no Will.
Example
Mrs D and Miss E buy a property together. Mrs D contributes 70% of the funds to purchase the property, and Miss E contributes 30%. As such, they agree to hold the property as tenants in common in unequal shares, with Mrs D holding 70% and Miss E holding 30%. When they each die, their share passes under their own Will, which they consulted our Wills Solicitors in Lytham about at the time of purchase, ensuring they both have rights of occupation in the property for their lifetimes.
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Where is property ownership recorded?
Once your Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham have confirmation as to how you want to hold the property, the Transfer Deed can be finalised. Our team will send the document to the seller’s solicitor for their approval, and to obtain signature by the seller to confirm the transfer of ownership. Upon Completion, your Conveyancing Solicitors submit the Transfer Deed to the Land Registry to register the change in ownership. If the property is to be held as anything other than joint tenants, the Land Registry which add a restriction onto the title, which states that one co-owner cannot sell alone.
It is important that the type of ownership can be established in the event that the property is sold. Your Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham will look to the Register to determine whether the seller has the authority to sell the property, and whether there is one or more registered proprietor. If, for example, there are two co-owners, but only one is listed as selling the property, our team will need evidence of how the second co-owner’s interests are being protected. Have they died? If so, we will need a death certificate, and the Land Registry will require that someone is appointed to give receipt of the funds for their estate. If they have lost capacity, usually their attorney will need to step in and act for them.
Contact MG Legal’s Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham for your property purchase
For more information on co-ownership, or to instruct our Conveyancing Solicitors in Lytham with your property purchase, contact our specialist team for a fixed-fee quote on 01253 202 452 or email property@mglegal.co.uk.
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Tagged as: Conveyancing, Solicitors in Lytham
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