Concurrent Ownership

Concurrent ownership is ownership or real estate by two or more people. There are several different types of concurrent ownership.

Types of Concurrent Ownership

Tenancy in Common - ownership of real estate by two or more persons without the right of survivorship. Owners could be entities in this case as well. Each owner is referred to as a Tenant in Common.

A tenancy in common can be created a couple of ways:

1. By conveyance to two or more people where the conveyance is "silent" as to how they will own it, or the conveyance explicitly says they shall be tenants in common.

2. Upon a divorce - The law provides that upon a divorce the owners of a property will be tenants in common, unless specified otherwise by the parties involved.

Rights To Tenants in Common

1. A right to possession of the property along with a right to a proportionate share of the rent or other income generated from the property together with the other co-tenants.

- A tenant residing in the residence is not required to pay rent to the other co-tenants, unless previously agreed upon.

2. A right to sell, mortgage, or make a gift of his interest in the property without the consent of the other co-tenants.

3. The right to leave their interests in the property to someone via a will or by letting their closest relative inherit it.

4. A right to have a court partition the property. The court will then either a) divide the property between the co-tenants or b) order the property to be sold and the net proceeds be divided between the cotenants.

Joint Tenancy - Ownership by two or more persons with the right of survivorship, that is, upon the death of one of the tenants, the remaining interest in the property is evenly divided between the surviving joint tenants. The right of survivorship overules any will created by the deceased tenant. A joint tenancy is created simply by expressing it in a deed or a will.

Rights of Joint Tenants

The rights of Joint Tenants are exactly the same as the rights of Tenants in Common, except that there is no right to leave one's interest to someone through a will; the right of survivorship supercedes a will in a joint tenancy.

One's interest may be gifted to someone else, but this creates a tenancy in common situation with the other tenants; there is no longer a joint tenancy.

Tenancy by the Entirety - A tenancy by the entirety is a certain type of concurrent ownership reserved only for married couples. Each spouse has an indestructible right of survivorship in the entire estate, and is free of all claims against the deceased spouse. This arrangement creates limited protection for the residence from the creditors of one spouse. Creditors may not pursue the residence as repayment.

Termination of Tenancy by the Entirety

1. Divorce
2. Death of a Spouse
3. A Conveyance
4. Foreclosure of a lien against both spouses

Tenancy in Co-Partnership - This is a unique form of ownership available to members of a business partnership. An agreement is perpared called the Articles of Co-Partnership which lays out the rights and responsibilities of each party. Partners are protected from the debts of the other partners.

Community Property - Once a couple gets married, everything they owned then and thereafter becomes community property, therefore, nothing can be done with the property without mutual consent.

Disclaimer: The information found on this site is not, and should not be considered, professional legal advice.
Always consult a professional before taking any sort of legal action.