Which form of co-ownership requires both spouses to hold the property and generally cannot be severed by one spouse?

Which form of co-ownership requires both spouses to hold the property and generally cannot be severed by one spouse?

• A. Tenancy in Common
• B. Joint Tenancy
• C. Tenancy in Severalty
• D. Tenancy by the Entirety

Answer: (D)

Ownership held by both spouses as a single unit with a right of survivorship is tenancy by the entirety. This arrangement is available only to married couples, and because the two spouses hold title together as one legal entity, one spouse cannot unilaterally sever the ownership or transfer the property on their own. To break or change this form, you generally need a mutual action—such as divorce or both spouses agreeing to convey the property—or one spouse’s death, after which the surviving spouse continues to own the property. The key outcome is that the surviving spouse automatically receives the property upon the other’s death, often avoiding probate for that share. By contrast, tenancy in common lets each owner hold a separate, potentially unequal share and does not include survivorship; a co-owner can transfer their interest without the others, which can end co-ownership or create new ownership arrangements. Joint tenancy also has a right of survivorship, but it requires four unities (time, title, interest, possession), and a unilateral transfer by one joint tenant can sever the joint tenancy and convert it to a tenancy in common. Tenancy in severalty is sole ownership by one person or entity with no co-owners at all.

Ownership held by both spouses as a single unit with a right of survivorship is tenancy by the entirety. This arrangement is available only to married couples, and because the two spouses hold title together as one legal entity, one spouse cannot unilaterally sever the ownership or transfer the property on their own. To break or change this form, you generally need a mutual action—such as divorce or both spouses agreeing to convey the property—or one spouse’s death, after which the surviving spouse continues to own the property. The key outcome is that the surviving spouse automatically receives the property upon the other’s death, often avoiding probate for that share.

By contrast, tenancy in common lets each owner hold a separate, potentially unequal share and does not include survivorship; a co-owner can transfer their interest without the others, which can end co-ownership or create new ownership arrangements. Joint tenancy also has a right of survivorship, but it requires four unities (time, title, interest, possession), and a unilateral transfer by one joint tenant can sever the joint tenancy and convert it to a tenancy in common. Tenancy in severalty is sole ownership by one person or entity with no co-owners at all.