How Do I Remove a Deceased Person's Name From a House Title in Ontario?
The steps depend on how the deceased held title. Registering an electronic document such as a transmission, survivorship application or transfer costs $86.42.
Where the property is in the estate, Ontario guidance says a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee from the Superior Court of Justice is normally required where the deceased owned real property. For some Land Titles Conversion Qualified properties, a transmission application generally does not need a certificate on the first dealing since conversion, but a covenant to indemnify the Land Titles Assurance Fund must be provided whenever a certificate is not applied for.
If a married spouse died owning an interest in 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. Where a spouse died owning an interest in a family residence as a joint tenant with a third party, a survivorship application must include a Family Law Act statement, which under the bulletin can be made and signed only by a solicitor.
Key takeaways
- Joint tenancy carries a right of survivorship, so a jointly owned asset passes automatically to the surviving owner, except that a married spouse's share in a matrimonial home held jointly with someone other than their spouse goes into the estate instead.
- Where the deceased owned real property in the estate, a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee is normally required.
- Registering an electronic document such as a transmission, survivorship application or transfer costs $86.42.
- Special rules for married spouses and for some converted properties can change the steps, so confirm them with a lawyer.