Do tenants in common transfer to joint tenancy?

Tenants in common and joint tenants are two distinct forms of property ownership, each with unique characteristics. Joint tenancy includes the right of survivorship, meaning that when one joint tenant passes away, their share automatically passes to the surviving joint tenant(s). In contrast, tenants in common do not have rights of survivorship; instead, each owner's share can be transferred to heirs or sold independently.

The transition from tenancy in common to joint tenancy requires specific actions that fulfill certain legal conditions, such as the express intent of the parties involved and proper execution of a deed that establishes joint tenancy. Since tenants in common do not automatically or inherently change their ownership status to joint tenancy without a deliberate change in the terms of ownership, it is clear that this transformation does not occur under ordinary circumstances. Thus, tenants in common cannot simply shift to a joint tenancy automatically or unilaterally; it necessitates defined steps, which means the answer reflects that tenants in common cannot convert to joint tenancy without intentional alterations to their legal agreement.