No Tenancy is Listed on the Deed

I just looked at my old closing papers and noticed no tenancy is listed on the deed.  Is that a problem?

In most jurisdictions if no tenancy is listed on the deed, the tenancy defaults to Tenants in Common.  This is the least common tenancy since it does not allow for rights of survivorship.  Consequently, if two individuals hold title, and one of them passes, the property does not automatically pass to the survivor.  The percentage ownership of the decedent will pass to the estate and be subject to probate.

When no tenancy is listed on the deed, it is typically just an oversight by the party that prepared the deed.  However, you will want to correct the deed if you intend to have rights of survivorship. The process for correcting the deed is not too expensive, and it will save you a lot of trouble later.  Further, in MD, DC and VA, recording a deed to correct the tenancy is tax exempt.  So, you will not be hit with recordation or transfer taxes for simply correcting tenancy.

For further information on the different types of tenancy, please visit this link. If you are considering a adding or removing an individual from title, please take a look at our tenancy guide.  If you need to speak to an attorney about changing the deed to your property, please email services@federaltitle.com and an attorney will get back to you.