Healys: Joint owners

Buying a house can be one of the most exciting purchases you will ever make and it is certainly the most expensive. Whilst people put a lot of care into choosing the home of their dreams, deciding on the area where they wish to live and the type of property they wish to buy, they often put little thought into how they will own the property. If you are buying a property with someone else and you are not married to that person, this should be an important consideration.

“There are two ways to own a property: as beneficial joint owners or tenants in common”

There are two ways to own a property: namely as beneficial joint tenants or tenants in common. What is the difference between the two? If you own the property as beneficial joint tenants, it means the property belongs to you and the other owner of the property equally. If one of you should die, that person’s share of the property will automatically pass to the other regardless of what they may say in their Will. If you own the property as tenants in common, the property belongs to you jointly, but you also own a specific share of its value. You can give away, sell or mortgage your share. If you die, your share of the property passes to the beneficiary named in your Will, or if you do not have a Will it will pass under the rules of intestacy.

So, back to the drawing board. Imagine you are buying a property with a friend or partner and you are investing more money into the property that the other person. How can you protect the money you have invested? Simple, you purchase the property as tenants in common and instruct a solicitor to draw up a Declaration of Trust setting out your investment and the agreement between you and the other purchaser. If you own the property as tenants in common, the Land Registry will only keep a record of the fact that you own the property as tenants in common, not how your shares are allocated. The Declaration of Trust will set out in detail how you wish the shares to be allocated and it can also set out who is to pay the mortgage and other house related costs etc.

How much does it cost to have a Declaration of Trust drawn up?
Our normal fees would be in the region of £250 plus VAT for a straightforward declaration, but if you are in the process of buying a property and would like us to draw up a Declaration of Trust on your behalf, please contact us quoting “Latest Homes Declaration of Trust” and we will offer you a 10% reduction on this service.
Please feel free to telephone us on 01273 685888 to discuss the above. Alternatively, you may choose to email us at either of the addresses below:
Catherine Taylor: catherine.taylor@healys.com
Kathryn Sawyer: kathryn.sawyer@healys.com