How does joint tenancy with right of survivorship work in New York?

In New York, a disposition of property to two or more people creates a tenancy in common unless it is expressly declared to be a joint tenancy. A disposition of real property to a husband and wife creates a tenancy by the entirety unless it is expressly declared to be a joint tenancy or a tenancy in common, and the same rule applies to cooperative apartment shares with their proprietary lease disposed of on or after January 1, 1996. A disposition to people who are not legally married to one another but are described in it as husband and wife or spouses creates a joint tenancy unless it is expressly declared to be a tenancy in common. The words in the deed decide which kind of ownership was created, so read the deed itself. This is N.Y. Est. Powers & Trusts Law § 6-2.2.

WhatNew York
A deed to two or more peopleTenancy in common unless the deed says otherwise
What it meansTenancy in common unless the deed declares survivorship

Source

N.Y. Est. Powers & Trusts Law § 6-2.2

Read the statute in the New York Consolidated Laws (New York State Senate): nysenate.gov.

Checked against the statute on November 13, 2026.

This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.

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An owner on Seayora keeps each property’s owners of record, its entity and its documents in one place, so who holds title and how is on file beside the leases and the books.

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