Tenant By Entirety. are a legal term that states will use for married couples. Even though they have some similarities, there are some differences between the two terms.
The Tenant By Entirety. is a way that legally married spouses can jointly own a property. Not all states allow Tenant By Entirety for real estate. Under the Tenant By Entirety, the husband and wife jointly own the property; one cannot consent to change the property without the other spouse’s consent.
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Guide To Tenants By Entirety
Tenant By Entirety is a legal method that some states will use where married couples can jointly hold the title to the property. In this case, both spouses’ names will be on the property deed.
For one spouse to modify their interest in the property in any way, they must have the other spouse’s consent; both spouses are required by law to consent to any change or modification to the property.
Specific Legal Elements For Tenants By Entirety
There are some particular legal elements when a couple decides to own a property as Tenant By Entirety. Only about half of the United States allows for Tenants by Entirety for all property types. A handful of states allow it only for real estate.
To understand what your state may or may not allow, it is best if you could talk to a lawyer in the state where the property is located.
Here are some specific legal elements of the Tenants by Entirety:
- Both names Are On The Deed – Both spouses are on the deed as joint property owners.
- Spouses Own As Single Entity – A Tenant By Entirety means that both spouses jointly own the property as a single legal entity. There is essentially no separation between both spouses. They are one legal entity.
- Spouses Have Equal Interest – As long as the spouses are signing for the property at the same time and are married during that time, each spouse has an equal and undivided interest in the property.
- Both Spouses Must Consent – As both names are on the deed, both spouses must consent to any mortgage, refinancing, or change to the property status.
- Spouse Will Inherit – Right of Survivorship – If one spouse dies, the other spouse will gain full ownership of the property or what is known as the Right of Survivorship.
- Rights Of Both Owners Are Affected – With Tenants by Entirety, both spouses must agree to any change in the property. The other spouse cannot transfer their title to another party, nor can they use their share in the property to finance something else; both owners must agree and consent together.
- One Owner’s Individual Debit Will Not Affect Property – When one spouse has creditors coming after them, the creditors cannot touch this property as the property is in Tenants by Entirety. with two spouses. The property cannot be used to satisfy the debt collection for one of the parties in the Tenant By Entirety. Only if both husband and wife are parties to the debt can the property be attached to satisfy the debt.
- Right To Inherit Can Be Affected – If one of the spouses has in their will that they would like to have their children be the joint owners when they pass away, that term of the will may be ignored, and full ownership will go to the surviving spouse, no matter what the will of the former spouse says.
For many married couples, especially those in a happy marriage, there can be benefits for them to have Tenants by Entirety. For a married couple, who jointly own a house, there can be many advantages to having a Tenant By Entirety of their property.
The advantage of a Tenant By Entirety is the Right of Survivorship. When one spouse dies, the interest of the property automatically goes to the surviving spouse, so the property is not tied up in probate or any other type of legal probate issue.
This, of course, can be an advantage, and the surviving spouse, then, will not need to worry about the property as they will now be the complete owner of the property.
Divorce Can Make Tenant By Entirety Messy
The Tenant By Entirety could be an excellent legal process for spouses, especially if they are happy and in a long-term relationship. The Tenant By Entirety tends to get messy when the relationship of the spouses also becomes messy or if the spouses decide to divorce.
Under the Tenant By Entirety, spouses must agree on what happens to the property. That is why usually, under the terms of a divorce, the tenants of entirety would be eliminated, or there would be a court order where the judge would force the sale of the property and the proceeds to be divided between the parties.
One party can also voluntarily agree on how they will change the nature of the tenant’s ownership in the Tenant By Entirety. This can get messy if both spouses fight over who has what property and who has the right to what property.
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