Joint Tenants Or Tenants In Common For Married Couples In Houston

State:
Multi-State
City:
Houston
Control #:
US-00414BG
Format:
Word; 
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Description

Co ownership of real property can be in the following forms:



" Tenancy in common, in which the interest of each owner may be transferred or inherited;


" Joint tenancy, in which the tenants each have a right of survivorship;


" Tenants by the entirety, in which a husband and wife own property and have a right of survivorship; or


" Community property, which applies in some States to property acquired during the period of a marriage.


The phrase joint tenancy refers to a method of ownership by which one person mutually holds legal title to property with other persons in such a way that when one of the joint owners dies his share automatically passes to the surviving joint owners by operation of law.


Traditionally, when two or more people own real property together, they hold it as tenants in common. Owning real property as joint tenants with full rights of survivorship has, in the past, been usually been limited to married couples or other close kinship. However, there is no reason that single unmarried people cannot own property in a joint tenancy arrangement.

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  • Preview Agreement by Unmarried Individuals to Purchase and Hold Residence as Joint Tenants
  • Preview Agreement by Unmarried Individuals to Purchase and Hold Residence as Joint Tenants
  • Preview Agreement by Unmarried Individuals to Purchase and Hold Residence as Joint Tenants

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FAQ

Texas follows an inception of title rule. This says that if a piece of property is acquired during the marriage, it is presumed to be community property regardless of how it's titled.

Each spouse owns a one-half undivided interest in the community property (in other words, they own it 50/50). Texas does not care how a married couple takes title to the property–whether they put a house, bank account, or car in one spouse's name, or both.

Texas law presumes that if two non-spouses are named as co-owners, and nothing more is said, they are tenants-in-common (Est. Code Sec. 101.002). This means they each person owns an undivided one-half interest in the property but there is no automatic right of survivorship.

Even if only one spouse's name is on the deed, any property bought during the marriage is presumed to be community property, unless it was bought with separate property funds. The spouse claiming it as separate property must prove it in court.

In a joint tenancy, when one owner dies, their share of the property passes to the decedent's heirs or the persons named in the decedent's will. In a joint tenancy with right of survivorship, when an owner dies, their share of the property goes to the other owners.

The key distinction between a tenancy in common and a joint tenancy is that a joint tenancy contains a right of survivorship. These means that upon the death of one owner their share of the property will pass to the surviving co-owners. A joint tenant's interest is therefore not freely devisable in a will.

Utilizing a revocable trust is the best way for a married couple to take title. Titling property in your trust avoids probate upon the death of both the initial and surviving spouses and preserves the capital gains step up for the entire property on the first death.

Each spouse owns a one-half undivided interest in the community property (in other words, they own it 50/50). Texas does not care how a married couple takes title to the property–whether they put a house, bank account, or car in one spouse's name, or both.

For instance, if you're married, the most common way to title your home is Tenancy by the Entirety (TBE).

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Joint Tenants Or Tenants In Common For Married Couples In Houston