Last minute change from joint tenants to tenants in common?!

soplum

Hi all,

We have exchanged and due to complete this Friday. 

My solicitor has forgotten about the deed of trust we wanted (told her numerous times) and never told us we had to be tenants in common for this so we have said we are joint tenants in the transfer deeds stuff. 

She said she can change us to tenants in common to do the deed of trust by Friday. 

By changing us to tenants in common could this delay completion on Friday? 

Sorry I’m stressing over here!

Tiglet2

No, completion can go ahead on Friday.  In any case, you have exchanged so the completion date is now fixed.

The deed of trust and ticking the appropriate box on the Transfer document can be done after completion and prior to submission to Land Registry to update the title.

wend33

You can sever a joint tenancy at any time, it won't hold up your purchase.

doodling

Hi,

Whilst I agree that the land registry stuff can wait, I personally wouldn't complete until I had a written agreement with the other owner as to how the shares of the house would be split if it was sold, especially if a 50/50 split would leave me out of pocket.  There is always the possibility that the other owner might forget what they agreed to once completion has taken place.

That doesn't have to be a formal trust deed, but it would be something signed by the two of you, ideally with someone impartial witnessing it.  It would then be replaced by the formal deed in due course.

Of course, I may be paranoid.  If you trust someone enough to buy a house with them then maybe you trust them not to immediately rip you off?  In that case, everything can wait...