Q&As

Where joint owners are tenants in common and the registered proprietors of a residential property, can an order for sale be obtained when one tenant in common refuses to agree to sell the property?

read titleRead full title
Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
Published by a LexisNexis Property Disputes expert
Published on: 12 June 2019
imgtext

There are many factors that may affect the ability of one co-owner to sell jointly owned property. It has not been indicated whether the parties were married or not, which is very significant as to how the courts would approach a jointly owned property. This Q&A has been drafted on the basis that the parties were not married.

Joint tenancy or tenants in common

Where property is purchased in the joint names of two or more co-owners, a statutory ‘trust of land’ arises (section 1 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996)). The parties can hold the legal title on trust for themselves as:

  1. •

    joint tenants, or

  2. •

    tenants in common

If the co-owners are joint tenants, each has an indivisible share in the property, where each owns the whole, rather than an identifiable share of the property. The right

Powered by Lexis+®
Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Tenant in common definition
What does Tenant in common mean?

Tenants in common share ownership of property, but not necessarily in equal shares. On the death of one of the tenants, their share passes to their beneficiaries in accordance with their Will or intestacy. See also ‘tenancy in common’, ‘joint tenancy’ and ‘joint tenants’.

Read more readmore

Popular documents

The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber)—practice and procedure

The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber)—practice and procedureThe Tribunals systemThe Tribunals system is a dispute resolution service which supports, and is part of, the broader court system. It is administered by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and is governed by the Tribunals, Courts

There are three parties to a contract (A, B, and C) with separate obligations. In the mistaken belief

There are three parties to a contract (A, B, and C) with separate obligations. In the mistaken belief that A had a release from B, A and C exchanged contracts. However, B had not signed the contract or released A. C has obligations in the contract to take actions with B under B’s obligations in the

In an application under section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA

In an application under section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996), can the court make an order for 'partitioning' under TOLATA 1996, s 7? If so, what does partitioning mean? Can the claimant ask the court to divide the land comprised in the trust so that the

When applying for a vacating court order to remove a historical charge against a property, is a normal

When applying for a vacating court order to remove a historical charge against a property, is a normal application on Form N245 required or is it necessary to make a claim on Form N1 (under CPR Part 7) or a claim under CPR Part 8?The Land Registry Practice Guide 63: Land Charges—applications for