ABA Family Legal Guide

Home Ownership

Property Rights and Restrictions

Ownership Options

Should both my name and my spouse's appear on the deed?

The way in which your deed states ownership has critical long-term implications, including who can transfer interests to someone else, how much of the property is available to one owner's creditors, whether the property goes through probate when one co-owner dies, and whether the surviving owner faces a tax on any capital gain when it is time to sell.

It's important to think about what you want the deed to accomplish because, depending on your state law, at least three ownership options may be available--sole ownership, joint tenancy with right of survivorship, and tenancy in common. In some states, married couples also may opt for owning the property as tenants by the entirety. (For more on these topics, see chapter 18, "Estate Planning.")