Family ownership: holding title together, splitting into strata lots, and planning for a death

Joint tenants and tenants in common

When two or more family members are on the same title, the title says how they hold it. Section 177 of the Land Title Act requires the registrar to enter the words "joint tenants" after the owners' names when they hold as joint tenants. If those words are not there, the owners are tenants in common. Section 11 of the Property Law Act sets that default: land transferred to 2 or more people, other than trustees or personal representatives, goes to them as tenants in common unless a contrary intention appears in the transfer. If the shares are not stated, they are presumed to be equal.

The difference shows when an owner dies. The Law Students' Legal Advice Program manual on Clicklaw (reviewed 16 July 2026) explains that in a joint tenancy each owner has a right of survivorship: when one dies, the others become entitled to the whole property. The deceased owner's interest does not form part of their estate and does not pass under their will, and probate fees on that property can be avoided. The same manual notes the cost of that: the surviving owner owns the property and does not have to follow the deceased owner's wishes. In a tenancy in common, each owner has a separate share, and that share forms part of their estate.

For a multigenerational family, the choice follows from who paid for what. Two spouses who want the survivor to own the whole house can hold as joint tenants. A parent and an adult child who each put money into a new duplex may want unequal shares that pass to their own heirs, which only a tenancy in common gives. State the shares on the transfer. If the transfer is silent, section 11 (3) presumes equal shares, which may not match what each person paid.

A joint tenancy can end. Section 18 (3) of the Property Law Act says a joint tenant who transfers their interest to themselves severs the joint tenancy, with the same effect as a transfer to another person. After that the owners are tenants in common. Talk to a lawyer before doing this, because it changes what each owner's heirs receive.

When an owner dies

For a joint tenancy, the survivors update the title. Section 269 of the Land Title Act says the registrar will deal with the change only when a certified copy of the probate grant or a death certificate is filed. For a tenancy in common, section 162 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act says land without a right of survivorship goes to the deceased owner's personal representative, who holds it in trust for the people entitled to it under the will.

Timing rules apply when family members die close together. Section 10 (2) of the same Act says that if it cannot be shown that one of 2 joint tenants survived the other by 5 days, half the property passes as if each had survived the other. Section 5 (2) treats joint tenants who die at the same time as tenants in common. These rules decide who inherits a family home after a car accident, which is why wills for every owner matter.

A will has formal requirements. Section 37 says it must be in writing, signed at its end by the will-maker in front of 2 or more witnesses present at the same time, and signed by 2 or more of those witnesses. Section 36 sets the minimum age at 16. If a parent dies without a will and leaves a spouse and children of both spouses, section 21 gives the spouse the household furnishings and a first share of $300,000 of the estate before the rest is divided (as of the Act current to 20 October 2026).

Wills that favour one child can be challenged. Section 60 lets the court change a will that does not make adequate provision for the will-maker's spouse or children, and section 61 says the claim must be started within 180 days from the date the probate grant is issued in British Columbia. A parent who leaves the home in a family duplex to the child who lived with them, and nothing to the others, should expect that question and get advice on how to record the reasons.

A written co-ownership agreement

The statutes give co-owners some tools, and most of them end in court. Section 13 of the Property Law Act lets a co-owner who paid more than their share of the mortgage, taxes, insurance or repairs because another owner defaulted apply to the Supreme Court. Section 14 lets the court give that owner a lien on the other owner's interest and order that interest sold if the money is not paid within 30 days or another set period.

The Partition of Property Act goes further. Section 2 says any joint tenant or tenant in common can be compelled to divide or sell the land. Under section 6, if owners holding half or more ask for a sale, the court must order it unless it sees good reason not to. Under section 8, the other owners can stop a sale by agreeing to buy the share of the owner who asked for it, at a value the court can set.

A co-ownership agreement lets the family decide these things before anyone disagrees. It should record who put in what (land, cash or borrowing), each person's share, who lives in which home, how the mortgage, taxes, insurance and repairs are split, what happens if one person wants to sell, how a share is valued for a buyout, and how disputes are settled before anyone goes to court. Our Journal post on multigenerational multiplexes lists the questions families raise most. A lawyer drafts the agreement; each family member should have the chance to get their own advice before signing.

Separate strata titles for each household

Splitting a duplex or multiplex into strata lots gives each household its own title, its own mortgage and its own share to pass on. Section 249 of the Strata Property Act has the registrar register a new title for each strata lot when the plan is deposited. The strata ownership chapter explains the plan, the documents and the owner developer's duties.

Timing matters most for a family. Section 241 says a building that has not been occupied needs only a BC land surveyor's endorsement that nobody has lived in it, dated no more than 180 days before the plan is filed. Section 242 says a previously occupied building needs approval from the city council, which must consider the priority of rental housing, the building's life expectancy and expected maintenance costs, and whose decision is final with no appeal. A family that moves into a new duplex and decides to stratify a year later faces section 242. Decide before anyone moves in.

A secondary suite cannot become its own strata lot, as the home types chapter explains. If the plan is for a parent to own their home outright, that home has to be a main home in a duplex or multiplex.

Splitting a parcel among the people who already own it can be exempt from property transfer tax. The province's page on transfers in the course of subdivisions (last updated 24 June 2025) gives a full exemption where the people receiving the new parcels are the registered owners of the original parcel and each owner's share of the value after the split is no larger than their share before. Ask your lawyer to confirm how this applies to your strata plan.

Moving title between family members

Adding an adult child to a parent's title, or moving a home from parent to child, is a transfer, and property transfer tax applies unless an exemption fits. The province exempts a transfer of a principal residence to a related individual when the property was the principal residence of the transferor or the person receiving it for at least 6 months immediately before the transfer, the person receiving it is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and the buildings are designed and used for 3 or fewer families (page updated 17 March 2026). Tax on land over 0.5 hectares is not exempt. The exemption also covers a partial interest.

The tax glossary (updated 11 May 2026) lists who is related for property transfer tax: your child, grandchild, great-grandchild and their spouse; your parent, grandparent or great-grandparent; and your spouse and their child, parent, grandparent or great-grandparent. Brothers and sisters appear in the glossary's home owner grant list and are absent from the property transfer tax list.

Two provincial programs also react to title changes. A parent in the property tax deferment program must repay the loan in full before adding anyone other than a spouse to title, removing a living owner, refinancing or subdividing (page updated 5 May 2026). And the home owner grant goes to a registered owner who lives in the home as their principal residence. The money and tax chapter covers both.

A lawyer is needed for every step on this page: each transfer of title, the co-ownership agreement, each owner's will, the strata plan, and any mortgage that family members sign together. Get that advice before money moves, because most of these steps are hard or costly to undo.