Land Titles & Surveys - Procedures Manual - Alteration or Clarification of Co-Ownership Arrangements

Sep 16, 2026

Uploaded by Mimi

Manual content outlines legal concepts and registration steps for changing or clarifying co-ownership arrangements involving joint tenancy and tenancy in common. It explains key distinctions such as survivorship rights, unity of possession and interest, and how joint tenants may sever a joint tenancy to create a tenancy in common. It then details required transfer and statutory declaration processes, SPIN2 document type guidance, fee implications, and handling of undefined or changing proportionate interests during title registration.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryForms

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time2 min

AccessFree to download

Procedures Manual

Background: Joint tenancy vs tenancy in common

Registration procedure

Tenants in common

Severing a joint tenancy

Land Titles & Surveys Procedures Manual Subject: ALTERATION OR CLARIFICATION OF CO-OWNERSHIP ARRANGEMENTS – TENANCIES IN COMMON AND JOINT TENANCIES BACKGROUND Joint tenancy and tenancy in common are forms of concurrent ownership of estates inland. Joint tenancy is characterized by the right of survivorship and by the four unities of possession, interest, title and time (in other words, "joint tenants must have the same interest, accruing under the same conveyance, commencing at the same time and held under the same undivided possession") . (1) Tenancy in common has no right of survivorship and has only the unity of possession. A tenant in common can deal with his interest independently of the other co-owners, including the disposition of the interest by will. The interest of a joint tenant cannot be disposed of by will as the right of survivorship passes the interest automatically on death to the other joint tenant(s) . With respect to other dispositions by a joint tenant, the common law recognizes the right of a joint tenant to unilaterally sever the joint tenancy and thereby create a tenancy in common. (2) Section 65 of the Land Titles Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. L-4, provides that a transfer which has the effect of severing a joint tenancy is registrable if it is consented to or executed by all joint tenants or proof is provided that all the joint tenants have been served with written notice of the intention to register the transfer. While tenants in common hold undivided proportionate interests (“undivided” means possession of the property is not divided as each tenant is entitled to possession of the whole parcel), it is inconsistent with the unity of interest to ascribe proportionate interests to joint tenants. However, it is permissible for a defined undivided proportionate interest to be held in joint tenancy so that the joint tenants of the proportionate interest are tenants in common with the holders of the other undivided proportionate interests (e.g. , A as to an undivided 1/3 interest, B as to an undivided 1/3 interest and C and D as joint tenants as to an undivided 1/3 interest) . REGISTRATION PROCEDURE 1. Tenants in Common-When land is granted, transferred, conveyed, assigned or bequeathed to two or more persons, other than as executors, administrators or trustees, in fee simple or for any lesser estate, legal or equitable, and the tenancy is not specified in the document creating the estate, the co-owners hold as tenants in common. (3) a) Failure to Define Proportionate Interest - No allocation of proportionate interests is to be indicated on title unless they have been specifically defined in the document creating the tenancy in common. It cannot be presumed that the tenants in common hold equal shares. The tenants in common may subsequently declare their proportionate interests by way of a statutory declaration signed by all of the co-owners. Date Issued 2024 09 13 In this situation, a transfer is not appropriate as the proportionate interests are only being clarified. This procedure is only acceptable when the tenants in common declare that they have always held the interests being designated. When the proportionate interests have not been defined, one of the co- owners may mortgage or transfer all of his interest without clarifying his interest provided he indicates that he is mortgaging or transferring all of his interest. Fees for a transfer are charged on the total value of the property. A separate title is not to be issued for an undefined interest. If one already exists, the proportionate interests should be defined through a declaration before it is dealt with. The SPIN2 document type to be used when creating a Document Registration Request (DRR) form is: Statutory Declaration The code used for registration at Land Titles is: STAT b) Changing Proportionate Interests-Where tenants in common wish to change their proportionate interests, a transfer must be used. For example, if A a

FAQs

What is the main difference between joint tenancy and tenancy in common?

Joint tenancy includes the right of survivorship and the four unities of possession, interest, title, and time. Tenancy in common has no right of survivorship and relies only on the unity of possession.

How can proportionate interests be clarified when they were not defined in the original document?

No allocation of proportionate interests is indicated unless specifically defined in the tenancy document. Tenants in common may subsequently declare their proportionate interests via a statutory declaration signed by all co-owners.

When tenants in common want to change their proportionate interests, what document is required?

A transfer must be used to change proportionate interests. Fees are charged based on the value of the proportionate interest being transferred.

Sep 16, 2026

Uploaded by Mimi