Tenants by Entirety


Tenants by Entirety

Two or more persons who jointly own a property with rights of survivorship. In other words, a property with tenancy by entirety does not become part of a decedent's estate; rather, the other tenant(s) continue to own the property. Couples may be tenants by entirety on a jointly-owned house, for example. Likewise, two business partners may be tenants by entirety 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. However, the decedent's liabilities may remain attached to this property and may be used to pay off creditors, even if a creditor had nothing to do with the property in question.