Grace, Henry, and Irene purchase a vacation property in Cape Cod, Massachusetts as joint tenants. Grace later conveys her interest to her nephew, James, without telling Henry or Irene. What is the resulting ownership structure after Grace's conveyance to James?
Correct Answer
A) James holds his interest as a tenant in common with Henry and Irene, while Henry and Irene remain joint tenants with each other
Under Massachusetts law, a joint tenant may unilaterally convey their interest to a third party, which severs the joint tenancy as to that interest. When Grace conveyed to James, she severed her one-third joint tenancy interest. James, as a new party who did not acquire title with the original unities, holds his interest as a tenant in common. However, Henry and Irene's joint tenancy with each other remains intact — they still hold their two-thirds interest as joint tenants with survivorship rights between themselves. This partial severance result is the standard rule recognized in Massachusetts.
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Related Topics & Key Terms
Key Terms:
Related Concepts
Condominium ownership involves owning a unit of airspace within a multi-unit building plus an undivided interest in the common elements shared with other unit owners. Each unit is separately taxed and financed.
In a cooperative (co-op), the building is owned by a corporation, and residents purchase shares of stock in the corporation that entitle them to a proprietary lease on a specific unit. Residents are shareholders, not property owners.
Fee simple absolute is the highest and most complete form of property ownership, giving the owner unrestricted rights to use, possess, enjoy, and dispose of the property. It is of unlimited duration and fully inheritable.
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