Joint Ownership
Situation where several people own the same property together without their shares being physically divided.
Full definition
Joint ownership is a legal situation in which several people (the joint owners) hold rights of the same nature over the same property together, without any of them having an exclusive right over a specific part of the property. This is often the case after an inheritance or a joint purchase.
Each joint owner holds an abstract share (for example 1/3 or 1/2) but cannot physically identify "their" part of the property. Important decisions (sale, major works) generally require unanimity or a qualified majority (2/3 of the rights), which can create deadlocks.
Several solutions make it possible to exit joint ownership: amicable division, the buyout of shares between joint owners, the sale of the property and division of the price, licitation (sale by auction), or organised continuation through a joint ownership agreement. For senior homeowners, the sale via life annuity of the jointly owned property can be an elegant solution: it frees all the joint owners and provides them with individual life annuities.
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Related terms
Inheritance
Transfer of a deceased person's wealth to their heirs according to legal or testamentary rules.
Bare Ownership
Ownership right of a property without the right to enjoy it or receive its income, held by the buyer in an occupied life annuity.
Usufruct
Right to use a property and receive its income (rents) without owning it, more extensive than the right of use and habitation.
Life Annuity
Property sale where payment is made in the form of an annuity paid to the seller until their death, with or without an initial bouquet.
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