Who inherits a jointly owned property?
It depends on how you own it. As joint tenants, the property passes automatically to the surviving co-owner by survivorship — outside the will, no probate needed for the transfer. As tenants in common, each owner has a distinct share that passes under their own will or the intestacy rules, so the survivor does not automatically take it. The form of ownership, not the will alone, decides the outcome.
Detailed explanation
Two or more people can own property together in one of two ways, and the difference is decisive on death.
Joint tenants. The owners hold the whole property together, with no separate shares. When one dies, the principle of survivorship applies: their interest passes automatically to the surviving owner(s). This happens regardless of what the deceased's will says — you cannot leave a joint-tenancy interest to someone else by will. Most married couples own their home this way.
Tenants in common. Each owner holds a defined share, which can be equal (50/50) or unequal (say 70/30). There is no survivorship. On death, an owner's share passes under their will — or under the intestacy rules if there is no will — to whoever they choose. This is the flexible option used in estate planning, for example to leave a share to children from a previous relationship while letting a partner live in the home.
You can check and change how you own a property. The Land Registry records the type of ownership, and joint tenants can convert to tenants in common by serving a "notice of severance" — a common step when couples want each share to pass under their own will.
Priya and Sam own their home as tenants in common, 50/50, each having children from earlier relationships. Priya's will leaves her 50% share in trust so Sam can live there for life, after which it passes to her children. Because they are tenants in common, her share passes under her will — exactly as planned. Had they been joint tenants, her share would simply have passed to Sam, and her children might have received nothing.
Sources
- Law of Property Act 1925 and Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 — legislation.gov.uk
- HM Land Registry — Joint property ownership (GOV.UK)
- GOV.UK — Owning property: joint tenants and tenants in common
- Reviewed by
- Michael Smith, Estate Planning Specialist
- Last reviewed
- June 2026
- Next review
- December 2026
- Jurisdiction
- England & Wales
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