3 Answers
Dear Client, Since you and your husband are joint owners, the Will you registered addresses each person's share in the property. Upon your death, the Will directs your share to your husband. The important part is that until your husband's death, your son has no active right to the property, and your husband can use it freely. However, if your husband wants to sell the entire property during his lifetime after your passing, he can sell his original share without restrictions. For your share that he received through the Will, he must first get the Will probated or have his name updated in the property records before completing the sale. He can do this without your son's signature, since the Will grants him full use rights. Your son's rights only come into effect after both parents are gone. If your husband sells the property and spends the entire proceeds during his lifetime, your son may have limited legal options unless the Will specifically states that the property itself, and not just the proceeds, must pass to him. It would be wise to consult a property lawyer to add a clearer clause protecting your son's inheritance.
I hope this helps, and if you have any further issues, do not hesitate to contact us.
Dear Client,
If you and your husband are joint owners and your registered will clearly says that on either of your
deaths all assets go to the surviving spouse for their use and then pass to your son only after both of
you are gone, the son does not get any immediate legal ownership during the surviving spouse’s
lifetime. The surviving spouse becomes the absolute owner of the entire property after the first
death, provided the will is valid and the required formalities are completed. Once the surviving
spouse is the confirmed legal owner, they can sell the property without the son’s signature, because
the son is only a contingent beneficiary after the second death, not a current co‑owner, and there is
no automatic legal right for him to block a sale during the surviving spouse’s lifetime unless the will
itself creates a trust or any specific condition that restricts transfer.
I hope this helps and if you have any further issues do not hesitate to contact us.
Dear Sir,
In a situation where a husband and wife jointly own a property and have executed a registered Will providing that upon the death of one, the entire property shall devolve upon the surviving spouse, the legal effect depends primarily on the nature of ownership and the wording of the Will. If the property is held as joint owners (and not as tenants-in-common with distinct shares), then upon the demise of one spouse, the surviving spouse typically becomes the absolute owner of the deceased’s share, subject to the Will. In such a case, the son does not acquire any immediate right upon the first death, because his interest is only a future or contingent interest that arises after the demise of both parents. Therefore, the son’s signature is generally not required for sale of the property by the surviving spouse.
However, once the surviving spouse becomes the absolute owner by virtue of the Will, he or she usually has full rights to deal with the property, including selling it during their lifetime. A Will only takes effect after the death of the testator, and it does not restrict the living owner from disposing of the property unless there is a specific legal arrangement creating a life interest (i.e., limiting rights to “use only” without power of sale). If the Will merely expresses an intention that the property should pass to the son after both parents’ demise, but does not legally restrict alienation, the surviving spouse can legally sell the property and is not bound to preserve it for the son.
Therefore, unless the Will clearly creates a life estate in favor of the surviving spouse with a restriction against sale, the husband (as surviving owner) can sell the property without the son’s consent and is not legally obligated to leave the property or its proceeds to the son. The son’s right is only expectant and not enforceable during the lifetime of the surviving parent.