If you are co-owners of property and one dies who owns the property?

Answer 1

What happens to real property upon the death of a co-owner must be set forth in the deed by which the parties acquire their interests.

If you own property as joint tenants with the right of survivorship or tenants by the entirety, when one dies, the Survivor automatically becomes the sole owner of the real estate bypassing probate. The only responsibility of the survivor is to record a death certificate in the land records to clear the title. Tenancy by the entirety is reserved for legally married couples in those states that allow T by E ownership.

When two people own property as tenants-in-common, when one dies their half interest will pass to their heirs by their will or by the state laws of intestacy if there is no will.

The term "joint tenancy" should be reserved for a joint tenancy with the right of survivorship. Although many sources refer to tenants in common as a form of joint ownership that is a misuse of the term and is misleading. Joint tenancy and tenancy in common are properly referred to as different forms of co-ownership or concurrent ownership.

Answer 2

That depends on the wording of the will. If the beneficiary has predeceased the testator the will often name an alternate beneficiary. Sometimes the legacy will pass to the remaining beneficiary or to the children of the predeceased beneficiary. If there are no provisions made in the will the legacy will lapse and the gift will become part of the residuary estate and pass as intestate property according to the state laws of intestacy.

On the other hand, if the beneficiary dies soon after the testator's death, before the estate is settled, the legacy will pass to the deceased beneficiary's next of kin under the state laws of intestacy if there is no will, or, by the terms of their own will.