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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Do you own your house as tenants in common or joint tenants?

95 replies

PaddingtonStareBare · 07/11/2020 23:42

Curious really, as we've just served the joint tenancy on ours and had it changed to tenants in common.
We were having our wills done and we both wanted to be sure that our dc would inherit our 'half' should one of pass away, their inheritance then goes into trust until the surviving spouse passes away or downsizes. It was all done by the solicitors.

Is this a common thing to do? I just read so many stories about one parent passing away, then surviving parent remarries or changes the will so a new partner benefits leaving the DC with nothing :(

OP posts:
Original poster
PaddingtonStareBare · 07/11/2020 23:42

served should be severed 🙄

OP posts:
PanamaPattie · 07/11/2020 23:46

DH and I are joint. Tenants in common is the thing to do if you are not married I believe.

WitchQueenofDarkness · 07/11/2020 23:58

Tenants in Common for exactly the same reason as you.

Joint tenancy means that the surviving owner gets full ownership which is a minefield in the days of blended families. I do not want my children disinherited if I predecease my DH and he predeceases a second wife

MissDollyMix · 08/11/2020 00:01

Tenants in common. I don’t really understand the full ins and outs but DH is a solicitor and he felt quite strongly that it was for the best.

SenorFrog · 08/11/2020 00:29

My mum and dad are tenants in common, means they can each leave their half to their children and the other still live there. It's good for inheritance tax to not leave everything to the surviving spouse.

Vodkatonic8 · 08/11/2020 00:33

It’s more a case of it being good in the event of the surviving spouse needing care. Protects half the house if nothing else.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 08/11/2020 00:41

It's good for inheritance tax to not leave everything to the surviving spouse.

If you're married, you can roll over the unused tax-free IHT threshold from the first to die to the surviving spouse, doubling theirs, so there is no difference in how much tax is paid when the second spouse dies - unless, I suppose, there's a big gap between the two deaths and the value of the house goes up significantly (IHT thresholds could also be periodically increased to take account of this, though).

Redyoyo · 08/11/2020 00:42

We are in Scotland we own ours equally between us and the survivor of us.

pincertoe · 08/11/2020 00:47

@PaddingtonStareBare Not yet but it is what I want to do. I've not discussed with DH and I am not sure he will agree. We have spoken about my worry of him remarrying and my children missing out on my money but he tells me not to be silly and of course he would protect them.

It is something I feel strongly about so I know they would be safe if he goes before me but I'm not convinced by him.

You have been wise.

SomeSmotheringDreams · 08/11/2020 00:51

Tenants in common. I think most people are these days aren't they?

TheSmallAssassin · 08/11/2020 00:57

I think that inheritance is inherently unfair, so really don't see my half of our home as essentially "belonging' to our children. I'm happy to leave it all for my husband if I predecease him and for him to leave it to whomever he wants to. It will no doubt go to our kids, but they aren't due it just by dint of the luck of their birth.

HateIsNotGood · 08/11/2020 00:58

Neither, just me and I really like it that way.

Blueberrycreampie · 08/11/2020 01:01

Tenants in Common - DH set it up for our wills but can't remember what the advantage is now?

WithIcePlease · 08/11/2020 01:04

For will reasons , most recent house purchase is tenants in common

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 08/11/2020 01:08

I think that inheritance is inherently unfair, so really don't see my half of our home as essentially "belonging' to our children. I'm happy to leave it all for my husband if I predecease him and for him to leave it to whomever he wants to. It will no doubt go to our kids, but they aren't due it just by dint of the luck of their birth.

Nobody would force him to leave it to your kids, if he didn't want to. He could leave it to anybody - it would just benefit from two tax-free allowances before any IHT was due instead of just one.

Nobody is necessarily saying that your children do deserve it by right, but if you think about it as you (or your DH) giving it (being no longer able to make any further use of it yourself) rather than the kids getting it, are there really other people you would rather receive a big financial bonus that came from you but is now useless to you instead of your own children/grandchildren?

Pyewhacket · 08/11/2020 01:08

I knew somebody who was property was held as a tenancy in common. Tragically his wife died suddenly but to add to his stress his kids demanded their inheritance and forced the sale of the property. Luckily he met somebody else and is happily remarried with shared finances and joint tenants but he hasn’t seen or spoken to his kids since, even when his daughter got married.

Flittingaboutagain · 08/11/2020 01:09

Tenants in common whilst I was married. Joint tenants is only sensible if you both started out with nothing and came up together or have no concerns about who to leave what to.

CastleOfDoom · 08/11/2020 01:11

Tenants in common here and we are married. It's so if one of us dies and the other ends up in care, they don't take the whole lot and the kids still get some.
Changed it a couple of years ago.

Gatehouse77 · 08/11/2020 01:42

Tenants in common. Our wills give the surviving partner the right to stay in the family home as long as they want so can’t force a sale. Once they do sell then half would go directly to the children.

LizB62A · 08/11/2020 01:47

Tenants in common makes a lot more sense if you want to ensure that if you die first, your DP can't disinherit your children

MiniMum97 · 08/11/2020 02:31

[quote pincertoe]@PaddingtonStareBare Not yet but it is what I want to do. I've not discussed with DH and I am not sure he will agree. We have spoken about my worry of him remarrying and my children missing out on my money but he tells me not to be silly and of course he would protect them.

It is something I feel strongly about so I know they would be safe if he goes before me but I'm not convinced by him.

You have been wise. [/quote]
As my mum says it's not about him. It's about what any new spouse might do.

MiniMum97 · 08/11/2020 02:34

@Pyewhacket

I knew somebody who was property was held as a tenancy in common. Tragically his wife died suddenly but to add to his stress his kids demanded their inheritance and forced the sale of the property. Luckily he met somebody else and is happily remarried with shared finances and joint tenants but he hasn’t seen or spoken to his kids since, even when his daughter got married.
That sounds like it wasn't set up properly. He should have had a life interest trust so that the kids effectively can't access their inheritance until he dies.
MiniMum97 · 08/11/2020 02:36

@PaddingtonStareBare

Curious really, as we've just served the joint tenancy on ours and had it changed to tenants in common. We were having our wills done and we both wanted to be sure that our dc would inherit our 'half' should one of pass away, their inheritance then goes into trust until the surviving spouse passes away or downsizes. It was all done by the solicitors.

Is this a common thing to do? I just read so many stories about one parent passing away, then surviving parent remarries or changes the will so a new partner benefits leaving the DC with nothing :(

What happens if the surviving partner wants to move house?
Chosennone · 08/11/2020 02:53

Anyone know what happens if Just one owns the house. I have the mortgage and deeds in my name only? If I die is it share equally?

Pyewhacket · 08/11/2020 03:36

That sounds like it wasn't set up properly. He should have had a life interest trust so that the kids effectively can't access their inheritance until he dies.

I don't know the full details but he spent an awful lot of time effort and money restoring that house, most of which he did himself, in all weathers. He was in a bad place for a while but he eventually got his head together and moved on with his life, in just about every way possible. He got all his posessions from the house, including family photo's and certificates and stuff the kids did at school and burnt the lot. Everything went on the bonfire. He said it was a cleansing process. To rid himself of what he saw was the biggest mistake he'd ever made and wasting 22 years of his life. That he found happiness again I think came as much as a shock to him than anybody else. Just goes to show you, get your own solicitor to check it out before you sign anything.