These clients were married to one another, had two grown children together and owned multiple properties together in Gillinahm Kent and in Rochester Kent. In order for the Right to Live Trust to work, ownership of the property had to be severed. When property is owned by more than one person, ownership is in one of the following ways: Joint Tenants = 100% / 100% ownership of the property and upon their death the survivor automatically owns 100%, Tenants in Common in Equal Shares = 50% / 50% and the survivor does not automatically own 100%, Tenants in Common in Unequal Shares = Specific percentages each totaling 100% and the survivor does not automatically own 100%. If two people own a property as Joint Tenants, they must sever their tenancy to become Tenants in Common either equally or unequally, and this is done by one owner serving notice on the other owner. It is important that this step is not missed if a Right to Live Trust is created, as the automatic rule of succession in place for a Joint Tenant would cause the Trust not to be effective upon death as the property would automtically pass to the survivor. Not only did these clients own and live in a property in Gilligham Kent together, but they also owned properties in Rochester Kent and although the Right to Live Trust related only to the property that the clients lived in, ownership was severed for all properties at the time of the Will being signed and executed. This was so that each client had the ability to pass their interest in the property to their chosen beneficieries upon their own death.
