Ownership in Real Estate and Conveyance of Title
How do you know you “own” a property? In the USA, there is a chain of title for every property that goes back to original land grants and tribal treaties. This unbroken chain ensures that the buyer is legally purchasing a property from the property’s owner.
A title company will research the chain of title and commit to insuring the property.
If you are buying while legally married, property is deeded as “Tenants by the Entireties”.
If you are buying with someone you are not legally married to, you will be asked to choose how you want to take title.
Tenants in Common
Unity of Possession
Parties share an undivided possession of property and is entitled to its full use and enjoyment.
Example: Tenant (A) owns 20% of the property while (B) owns the remaining 80%. (A) has the same right to occupy and use the property that (B) has.
No right of survivorship
When one tenant dies, his/her interest passes to their own heirs.
Partition Suit
When a voluntary agreement can not be reached, one or more co-tenants may ask the court to order the splitting of title interest to end the tenancy.
Tenants may own either equal or unequal interests, each owns a proportionate share of the property as undivided interest.
Tenants may take ownership, all at one time, or at different times.
Each tenant may dispose of any part of their interest without affecting the interest of others.
Joint Tenancy
Unity of Possession
Parties share an undivided possession of property and is entitled to its full use and enjoyment.
Unity of Interest
Tenants share equal interest, i.e. if there are three tenants, they must each have a one third.
Unity of Time
All tenants take title at the same time.
Unity of Title
All tenants take title through the same deed or will.
Right of Survivorship
If one of the joint tenants die, their interest passes on to the other tenants that are still alive without a will and the expense of probate.
Down payment money is out there.
We’ll help you find it.
Realtor Lorentz 