Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Missouri

joint tenants with rights of survivorship and transfer on death

If a nonmarried couple purchased a home in Missouri and titled it as joint tenants with rights of survivorship can they also assign a transfer on death (TOD) to other family member(s) in case the couple die at the same time? If so, what happens to the TOD if one of the owners survives. Does the TOD not kick in until the sole survivor's death or does the TOD have to be handled by wills?

Thanks


Asked on 8/08/03, 11:47 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Michael R. Nack Michael R. Nack, Attorney at Law

Re: joint tenants with rights of survivorship and transfer on death

You seem to be interested in trying to provide that the real estate goes to some particular people at the time of the last one of the two joint owner's deaths. Obviously, if the property is held initially in joint tenancy, then the survivor of the two people becomes the sole owner of the property upon the death of the first to die, and can do whatever the survivor wants to do with the property. You may want to consider preparing a beneficiary deed which is similar to using a TOD on items of personal property. The beneficiary deed can spell out exactly who you would want the property to go to and exactly upon what occurance. Even after this beneficiary deed is recorded, the current owners would retain the full right to do whatever they want with the property until the occurance described in the beneficiary deed occurs. I would suggest that you should consult with an attorney in your area. Getting this done right will save everyone a great deal of trouble and expense later, and the cost of getting it done right should not be too high. If you do not already have an attorney, you may call me at 314-727-2822. Thanks.

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Answered on 8/10/03, 3:07 pm


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