How to Hold Title to California Real Estate

The way a deed is worded — how you “hold title” — is one of the most consequential and overlooked decisions in California real estate. It controls what happens to the property when an owner dies.

The main ways to hold title

California Civil Code §682 recognizes several forms of co-ownership. In plain terms:

• Sole ownership — one owner. At death the property passes through that owner’s estate, which usually means probate unless it’s in a trust.
• Tenancy in common — two or more owners with separate, transferable shares and no right of survivorship. Each owner’s share passes through their own estate at death.
• Joint tenancy (Civil Code §683) — equal shares with a right of survivorship: when one joint tenant dies, their share passes automatically to the survivors, outside probate.
• Community property — the default for married spouses and registered domestic partners. Without a survivorship declaration, a deceased spouse’s half may pass through their estate.
• Community property with right of survivorship (Civil Code §682.1) — when the survivorship is expressly declared in the deed, the property passes to the surviving spouse without probate administration.

Why it matters for probate

This is the key takeaway: survivorship forms avoid probate. Joint tenancy and community property with right of survivorship (along with a living trust or a transfer-on-death deed) let real estate pass to the next owner automatically — sparing your family the cost and delay of probate. Sole ownership and tenancy in common do not.

Title choices also carry tax, creditor, and control trade-offs, so it’s worth getting advice before changing a deed. To talk it through with a local attorney, connect with a lawyer.