Overall, landlords in Virginia have to provide the tenant a property in good condition that complies with local housing regulations and guidelines and also respond to damages with a repairing service promptly (usually within 21 days of notice).
In Joint Tenancy in Virginia, all owners must control equal shares of the property. This is as opposed to Tenants in Common, where two people may own 50% each, or four people own 25% each, or some other portion of the whole. In Tenancy by the Entirety, each married spouse owns 100% of the property.
The most common types include joint tenancy, tenancy in common, tenants by entirety, sole ownership, and community property.
Virginia recognizes the ability of two or more individuals to hold concurrent interests in a property. There are four types of co-ownership structures recognized under the Virginia law: (1) tenancy in common, (2) joint tenancy, (3) tenancy by entirety, and (4) coparcenary.
Tenants in common is the default form of ownership in Virginia when there are multiple owners on title to the property. This is when two or more people own an equal (or unequal undivided share in a property if stated in the deed) and each has an equal right to possess the entire property.
Historically, the common law required that in order for a joint tenancy to be created, the co-owners must share the “four unities” of (1) time – the property interest must be acquired by both tenants at the same time; (2) title - both tenants must have the same title to the property in the deed; (3) interest - both ...
Joint tenancy is most common among married couples because it helps property owners avoid probate. Without joint tenancy, a spouse would have to wait for their partner's Last Will to go through a legal review process—which can take months or even years.
Cons. Disregarding a will or owner's heirs: Owners can't will their ownership share to their heirs. When owners die, their share of the home immediately passes on to their co-owner or co-owners. If you want to pass your portion of a home to a child, you'll need a different form of ownership.
Joint tenants are not married so they are not treated as one legal entity. One owner may petition the court to divide the property or order its sale.
Joint ownership in real and personal property. Any persons may own real or personal property as joint tenants with or without a right of survivorship.