How you own your home with your spouse or partner is very important. If one of you dies, what happens to your financial stake in the property will be very different depending on whether you are joint tenants or tenants in common.

This could affect:

Any outstanding mortgage
The level of funding you’re able to get for care home fees
The amount of inheritance tax that has to be paid on death
How the rest of your estate is taxed
Whether or not you can stay in your home.

Joint tenancy means that you or your partner inherits the property outright when the other dies. Although this can often be beneficial, it could also mean there is more inheritance tax to pay.

It can also push you above the threshold for any means-tested benefits you would otherwise be eligible for, including support for care home fees.

If you are tenants in common, you can leave your share of the property to your spouse, partner or to someone else in your Will, or you can put it in a trust for safekeeping. This can protect your estate from unnecessary tax and make sure your partner is able to keep living in the house when you’ve gone.

Our solicitors can advise you on the type of joint ownership that’s right for you. We have experts in conveyancing as well as tax and trusts and probate: we’ll be able to look at the whole picture to evaluate what’s best for you and your estate.

Call the team today on 0370 1500 100 – or use our online form and we’ll call you back.

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Severance Of Joint Tenancy - More Information

- What’s The Difference Between ‘Tenants In Common’ And ‘Joint Tenancy’?
- Joint tenants have something called a ‘right of survivorship’. This means that when one co-owner dies, their share of the property automatically passes to the other.
  
  With a tenancy in common, each co-owner has their own separate share of the property. This share doesn’t automatically pass to the other co-owner upon death, so if you wanted your co-owner to inherit you would have to specifically name them in your Will.
  
  Alternatively, you could leave your share to someone else or even set up a trust to protect the capital. With the right planning you can make sure your spouse or partner gets to keep living in the house without being faced with an unmanageable tax bill or losing out on funding for care home fees.
- Does My Spouse Inherit Our Home If I Die?
- This depends on whether you and your spouse co-own the property as joint tenants or tenants in common. If you own it as joint tenants, your spouse will inherit the entire property by virtue of the ‘right of survivorship’.
  
  If you own it as tenants in common, however, you’ll need to make sure that:
  - Your Will names them as the sole beneficiary, or
  - They will be the sole beneficiary under the rules of intestacy.
  The rules of intestacy come into effect if someone hasn’t left a valid Will and could upset your inheritance plans if you’re not prepared. Read more about intestacy.
- Can My Spouse Stay In The Property If Someone Else Inherits My Share?
- If your spouse or partner owns a share in the property, they’ll still have a right to live there even if your share has passed to someone else.
  
  However, this can be complicated if the new co-owners don’t want them to stay there – for example, if they’d like to sell the property.
  
  Planning is essential to make sure you and your spouse or partner are both protected if the other dies. We’ll be able to advise on the best way to structure your assets to minimise tax but also ensure you don’t lose your home.
- Meet The Team
- Our partner-led team comprises experts in probate, wealth structuring and tax. In addition to our expertise in tax, trusts and estates, we also have our conveyancing team on hand to deal with all of your property needs.
  
  We are members of many professional bodies, including STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), CIOT (Chartered Institute of Taxation), and CILEX (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives).
  
  All this means we have the multi-disciplinary expertise to give you the very best advice for you and your estate. Whatever your needs, we can help you plan effectively for the future.
  
  Meet the team

Irwin Mitchell are a very professional, trustworthy and straightforward company to deal with. I would recommend them to anyone."

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Severance Of Joint Tenancy

For general enquiries

Get In Touch Today

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Frequently Asked Questions

What Do I Need To Think About When Severing A Joint Tenancy?

How Can Irwin Mitchell Help?

How Does Joint Tenancy Affect Care Home Fees?

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