Joint Tenants vs Tenants in Common, Which is Right for You?

Two Ways to Co-Own Property

When two or more people purchase a property together in England and Wales, they must decide how to hold the legal title. There are two options: joint tenancy and tenancy in common. The names are confusingly similar but the legal and financial implications are meaningfully different.

This decision must be made before completion and recorded in the transfer deed (TR1 form) submitted to HM Land Registry. Changing it later is possible but requires additional legal work.

Joint Tenancy

Under a joint tenancy, all owners hold the property as a single, indivisible unit, there are no separate shares. The key feature is the right of survivorship: if one owner dies, their interest automatically passes to the surviving owner(s), regardless of what their will says. You cannot leave a joint tenancy interest in a will. The right of survivorship overrides any testamentary provision.

Tenancy in Common

Under a tenancy in common, each owner holds a defined share of the property. Shares can be equal (50/50) or unequal, reflecting different deposit contributions, for example. Each owner can leave their share in their will to whoever they choose. This makes tenancy in common suitable when:

• Buyers are contributing different deposit amounts and want shares to reflect this
• Buyers are not in a relationship and want to protect their individual investment
• Buyers want to leave their share to children from a previous relationship rather than to a co-owner

Key Comparison

Declaration of Trust

If you hold as tenants in common with unequal shares, a Declaration of Trust is strongly recommended. This is a legally binding document that records each person's exact share, what happens if one person wants to sell and the other does not, and how costs are divided. Without one, disputes about shares can be expensive and difficult to resolve.

Protecting a Tenancy in Common on the Title Register

When a property is held as tenants in common, a restriction is entered on the HM Land Registry proprietorship register, preventing a sole surviving owner from selling without appointing a second trustee. You can verify how a property's title is registered by searching on Property Passport UK, which displays title data sourced directly from HM Land Registry.