Can a Beneficiary Be Added to the Title of a Parent's House Before Death, and What Happens to It Afterward in Ontario?

Yes, a parent can add a child to title, but doing so does not automatically make the house the child's when the parent dies. In Kent v. Kent, 2020 ONCA 390, the Court of Appeal for Ontario held that when a parent gratuitously transfers a house into joint names with a capable adult child, a rebuttable presumption arises that the child holds the property on resulting trust for the parent, which means for the estate after death.

The person claiming a gift must prove the parent's contrary intention at the time of the transfer, on a balance of probabilities. Evidence should be contemporaneous, or nearly so, with the transfer, and later evidence is treated with caution if it is self-serving or reflects a change of intention. Joint tenancy normally carries a right of survivorship, but unless the presumption is rebutted, the child holds the house for the estate after death.

Exceptions matter. If a married parent held the matrimonial home as a joint tenant with someone other than their spouse, the joint tenancy is deemed severed immediately before death and the share goes into the estate. Jointly held property can also count toward the net estate for dependant support claims.