Somewhere between the mortgage offer and the moving van, your solicitor will ask a question that catches most buyers off guard: do you want to own the property as joint tenants or as tenants in common? It usually arrives on a form, with two tick boxes and very little explanation, while you are already juggling surveys, searches and removal quotes.
It is worth slowing down for this one. The box you tick decides what happens to your share of the home if you die, what happens if you separate, and whether the deposit your parents gifted you is protected. Here is what each option means, and how to work out which fits your situation.
What “joint tenants” really means
If you own a property as joint tenants, you and the other owner or owners own the whole of it together. Nobody has a distinct 50% or 70% share — legally, you own all of it jointly.
The important consequence is something called survivorship. If one of you dies, your share passes automatically to the surviving owner. It does not pass under your will, and it does not go through probate. Even if your will says something completely different, survivorship wins.
This suits many married couples and long-term partners who own everything together, contributed roughly equally, and want the survivor to keep the home without fuss. It is simple, and when the relationship is straightforward it usually does exactly what people want.
What “tenants in common” really means
Tenants in common each own a defined share of the property. That share can be equal — 50/50 — or it can reflect what each of you actually put in, such as 70/30 or 65/35.
Your share is yours to leave in your will. It does not pass automatically to the other owner. You can leave it to your children, a sibling, or anyone else you choose. The surviving owner keeps their own share, but does not inherit yours by default.
This gives you more control, and it is usually the right choice where the ownership is not a simple two-people-sharing-everything arrangement. It does mean you need a will, because without one your share passes under the intestacy rules rather than to the person you had in mind.
Which one fits your situation?
There is no universally correct answer, but some patterns come up again and again in Cardiff and across South Wales. Tenants in common tends to be the better fit if:
- You are putting in unequal deposits, or one of you is receiving a family gift you want protected
- You are buying with a friend, a sibling, or a business partner rather than a romantic partner
- You have children from a previous relationship you want to provide for
- You are in a second marriage and both have your own children
- You want to keep the option of leaving your share to someone other than the co-owner
Joint tenancy tends to suit married couples and civil partners with shared finances, no children from previous relationships, and a clear intention that the survivor should simply keep the house. Buying as an unmarried couple is worth a conversation either way — unmarried partners have no automatic rights to each other’s property in Wales or England, so how you hold the title matters more, not less.
Getting it in writing: declarations of trust
If you buy as tenants in common with unequal shares, a declaration of trust is the document that records who owns what. It sets out the percentages, and it can also cover practical points such as who pays which share of the mortgage, what happens if one of you wants to sell, and how any future improvements are accounted for.
Without one, you are relying on memory and goodwill years later, often at the worst possible moment. With one, the answer is written down and agreed while everyone is still on good terms.
You are also not locked in forever. A joint tenancy can be converted to a tenancy in common later through a process called severance — commonly done when a relationship breaks down, or when someone updates their estate planning.
The part people forget: your will
How you hold your property and what your will says need to work together, and this is where things quietly go wrong.
If you own as joint tenants, your will has no say over the property at all — survivorship overrides it. If you own as tenants in common and have no will, your share follows the intestacy rules, which may send it somewhere you never intended. A blended family is the classic example: the house passes in a way nobody planned, and the people you meant to provide for are left with nothing.
The simplest approach is to sort both at the same time. You are already making decisions about the property — deciding what happens to it afterwards is a short extra conversation, not a separate project.
Speak to Dudden Law Today
If you are buying with someone else and unsure how to hold the property, our team at Dudden Law is here to help. We offer a free first consultation so you can get clear, straightforward advice without any obligation.
Based in Cardiff and serving clients across South Wales and the UK, we’re ready to support you. Get in touch today — call us on 02921 320 150 or email info@duddenlaw.co.uk.
Insights from Aimmee Gregory
