tenants in common

Australia's #1 for Law
Join 150,000 Australians every month. Ask a question, respond to a question and better understand the law today!
FREE - Join Now
In property law, a concurrent estate or co-tenancy is any of various ways in which property is owned by more than one person at a time. If more than one person owns the same property, they are commonly referred to as co-owners. Legal terminology for co-owners of real estate is either co-tenants or joint tenants, with the latter phrase signifying a right of survivorship. Most common law jurisdictions recognize tenancies in common and joint tenancies.
Many jurisdictions also recognize tenancies by the entirety, which is effectively a joint tenancy between married persons. Many jurisdictions refer to a joint tenancy as a joint tenancy with right of survivorship, but they are the same, as every joint tenancy includes a right of survivorship. In contrast, a tenancy in common does not include a right of survivorship.
The type of co-ownership does not affect the right of co-owners to sell their fractional interest in the property to others during their lifetimes, but it does affect their power to will the property upon death to their devisees in the case of joint tenants. However, any joint tenant can change this by severing the joint tenancy. This occurs whenever a joint tenant transfers his or her fractional interest in the property.
Laws can vary from place to place, and the following general discussion will not be applicable in its entirety to all jurisdictions.

View More On Wikipedia.org
  1. S

    WA Tenants in Common - Protecting Mum's Share?

    Hello - Mum passed away and Mum (deceased) and me are the owners of a house with Tenants in Common on the titles. The will states that the executor of will, being her sister (who I do not trust), has no money. I am the sole beneficiary, so I really see that she has no real job to do. No other...
  2. M

    VIC Tenants in Common - What are my Property Rights?

    Hi I have a 50% share in a tenants in common property. I don't want to sell my share, the other person with the other 50% has had an offer to buy their share. Can they refuse to sell their share, to force the sale of the whole property? What are my property rights?
  3. S

    QLD Should I do a Family Provision Claim for Mum's Estate?

    Hi, My stepdad forced my mum to sign a new will a week before she passed away. In the will, he signed everything over to himself, including her share of the tenants in common agreement. My children are included in the will, however I am not included in the will at all. My mum and stepdad were...
  4. W

    QLD Property Investment - Transfer Property Ownership for Renovation?

    Hi My husband and I live in a property investment owned by my in-laws. It was originally purchased after the introduction of CGT. We pay for the maintenance, rates, etc and my in-laws refer to it as my husband's and my house - they don't intend to rent it again, & they don't wish to do capital...
  5. B

    VIC Tenants in Common - Provisions Upon Death?

    I own a bush block with a holiday home with two friends as tenants in common in equal shares. We have managed all issues amicably in the 30 years we have owned the property. As we grow older, we are concerned about protecting our interests should one of us die and the share pass to someone who...
  6. A

    QLD Tenants in Common - Paying One Party More Than 50%?

    We have a situation where my husband owns a property jointly with his brother as tenants in common in equal shares. Upon sale of the property, is it possible for one party to authorise the solicitors acting on the sale to pay an amount to one of the parties that is more than their 50% share?
  7. J

    NSW Tenants in Common - Buying Out Father's Share?

    Hello, My father and I are 50/50 tenants in common on a property I live in and I now want to buy his share out. Do I need a formal contract of sale or do I just need a written agreement and the NSW Transfer form completed and then from reading online I have three months to pay the stamp duty...
  8. A

    WA De Facto Living in Estate in Fee Simple - Only Upon Remarriage?

    This query is in regards to a remarriage clause in an estate in fee simple. How could a de facto relationship factor into this ? One would assume that a widower living in a de facto relationship is against the spirit of the will. A few months after the death of her husband, a widow started a...
  9. D

    QLD Tenants in Common with Partner - Property Settlement?

    I separated from my de facto about 15 years ago. We are tenants in common in a property he still lives at. He agreed to buy my half about 12 months ago but hasn't followed through. What can I do with regards to property settlement?
  10. P

    NSW Tenants in Common - Options Other than Declaration of Trust?

    We own 100 acres of freehold land with 4 couples. The certificate of title is in the name of one person only. The land is owned according to a declaration of trust. The agreement states that "...ownership of land is as joint tenants between husband and wife and as tenants in common and as...