Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship

Joint tenants with right of survivorship

In the case of a joint account, on the death of one account holder, ownership of the account assets is transferred to the remaining account holder or holders.

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Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship

Two or more persons who own a property for which they have right of survivorship. In other words, if two or more persons jointly own a property with right of survivorship, and one of them dies, the property does not become part of a decedent's estate; rather, the other tenants continue to own the property. A married couple may be joint tenants with right of survivorship on their house, for example. Less commonly, two business partners may be joint tenants with right of survivorship on a business property: if two persons own an apartment complex and one of them dies, the whole of the complex belongs to the co-owner, and not the decedent's heirs. It is important to note, however, that the decedent's liabilities may remain attached to the property and may be used to pay off creditors, even if the creditor had nothing to do with the property in question.