What Are Tenants by the Entirety in Florida?

What Is Tenants by the Entirety in Florida?

Tenancy by the entirety is a way two married people can own property together as a single legal unit. Neither spouse owns half. Both own the whole, and neither can sell or mortgage without the other. The property belongs to the marriage itself as long as both spouses live.

Florida law recognizes this form of ownership in real estate and, under certain conditions, in bank accounts and other assets. When a married couple takes title to real property together, Florida presumes they hold it as tenants by the entirety. The couple does not need magic words. A deed to both spouses is enough, as long as all the other requirements are met.

Creating tenancy by the entirety in real estate follows the same steps as any deed in Florida. Two subscribing witnesses must watch the grantor sign. A notary must acknowledge the signature. The deed must be recorded in the county where the property sits. Remote online witnessing is valid for deeds under Florida law, and witnesses appearing by audio-video must be residents of and physically located within the United States.

A deed can move property from one spouse alone into both spouses together. Florida law specifically allows a spouse who holds title to deed the property to both spouses as tenants by the entirety. After the deed is signed, witnessed, notarized and recorded, the married couple holds title in this protected form unless the deed says otherwise.

The form of ownership matters most when a creditor appears. If a husband owes a judgment debt and the family home is titled in both spouses as tenants by the entirety, the creditor cannot force a sale or collect from the property. The property is beyond reach unless both spouses owe the debt together.

The Six Things That Have to Be True

A tenancy by the entirety exists only when six characteristics are present. Florida courts look for all six. If any one is missing, the ownership is something else, and the protection may not apply.

The first characteristic is unity of possession. Both spouses must own and control the property together. Neither has a separate share that can be divided or transferred alone.

The second is unity of interest. The ownership interests must be identical. One spouse cannot own a larger percentage than the other. Both own everything, together.

The third is unity of title. Both interests must have originated in the same instrument. Florida law allows a spouse who already holds title to convey directly to both spouses as tenants by the entirety, satisfying this unity without a transfer through a third party.

The fourth is unity of time. Both interests must have commenced simultaneously. A spouse who acquires an interest later, rather than at the same moment as the other, may not satisfy this requirement.

The fifth is survivorship. When one spouse dies, the survivor owns the property outright. The property does not pass through probate. The surviving spouse already owned the whole, and now owns it alone.

The sixth is unity of marriage. The parties must be married at the time the property became titled in their joint names. An unmarried couple cannot hold property as tenants by the entirety, no matter what the deed says. If a couple divorces, the tenancy by the entirety ends.

Florida courts have applied these six characteristics for decades. The 2001 Beal Bank decision described them and held that a bank account titled in both spouses' names is presumed to be a tenancy by the entirety as long as the unities are established and the signature card does not expressly disclaim that form of ownership. Missing even one unity can cost the protection.

What Does Tenants by the Entirety Protect in Florida?

The protection that tenancy by the entirety provides applies to the property, not to the spouses personally. Property held this way cannot be reached by a creditor of one spouse alone. Only creditors of both spouses, jointly, may attach the property.

The reason is that neither spouse owns a divisible share. A creditor cannot attach something that does not exist. A husband's business debt, for example, does not allow that creditor to force a sale of the marital home if both spouses hold title as tenants by the entirety. The home is not the husband's to lose.

The Florida Supreme Court in Beal Bank confirmed that property held as a tenancy by the entireties is not divisible on behalf of one spouse alone and cannot be reached to satisfy the obligation of only one spouse.

A spouse who owes a debt still owes it. The creditor may pursue other assets that are not protected. Bank accounts held in one spouse's name alone and property titled differently can all be targets. Tenancy by the entirety shields only the assets actually titled that way.

Bank accounts titled in both spouses' names receive a similar presumption under Florida law, as long as the signature card does not expressly disclaim tenancy by the entirety and another form of ownership is not expressly designated. If the presumption holds, the account is beyond reach of one spouse's creditors.

The estate lasts while both spouses live. After the death of either spouse, the survivor owns the property alone. The creditor protection applies during the joint ownership period. Once one spouse dies, the property belongs to the survivor outright and may then be subject to that survivor's own creditors.

What Are the Limits?

Tenancy by the entirety does not protect against every claim. The limits are real, and understanding them matters before relying on this form of ownership alone.

A debt both spouses owe together can reach the property. A joint credit card, a mortgage both signed, or a judgment against both spouses gives the creditor a path. The protection applies only when the debt belongs to one spouse and not the other.

Divorce ends the tenancy by the entirety. Under Florida law, when a married couple dissolves their marriage, property they held as tenants by the entirety becomes a tenancy in common. Each former spouse then owns a share, and a creditor of either former spouse can reach that person's share.

The protection also ends at the first death. While both spouses are alive, both own the property together. After the death of either spouse, the survivor owns the property alone. That property becomes part of the survivor's estate, subject to the survivor's own debts and obligations.

Tenancy by the entirety works alongside other protections. Combining protections in the right way for your situation is what the exemption audit at the consult is for.

Does the Deed Have to Say Tenants by the Entirety?

Florida law presumes that real property titled in the names of both spouses is a tenancy by the entireties, as long as the other unities are established. The presumption means a married couple does not have to use those exact words in the deed. A deed to "John Smith and Jane Smith, husband and wife" raises the presumption that the couple holds the property together in this protected form.

The deed's words still matter for two reasons. First, the presumption can be overcome if the deed or another document shows a different intent. A deed that says "as joint tenants with right of survivorship" or "as tenants in common" can defeat the presumption. Second, a clear statement in the deed removes any doubt for a title company, a lender, or a future buyer. When the deed says "as tenants by the entirety" or "as tenants by the entireties," there is nothing to argue about.

Some couples receive a deed that says only "John Smith and Jane Smith" with no label at all. The presumption still applies if they were married at the time the property became titled in their joint names and the other unities are present. A creditor who later claims the property can challenge the presumption, but the burden falls on the creditor to prove the couple did not intend this form of ownership.

The safest practice is to use the words. A deed that expressly names the form leaves no room for a creditor or a court to interpret the document differently. A $399 flat fee, plus recording, covers a retitling deed.

Are Bank and Investment Accounts Covered?

Florida law treats deposit accounts of a husband and wife in a way that parallels real estate, but with an important difference. A joint account held by spouses at a Florida bank carries a presumption of tenancy by the entireties only when the signature card does not expressly disclaim that form of ownership. The presumption shifts the burden to a creditor to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the couple did not intend to hold the account together.

The signature card is the document the bank keeps on file, and its wording controls. If the card does not name any form of ownership, the presumption applies and the account is treated as protected from a creditor of one spouse alone. Couples should check that the card reflects their intent.

An express disclaimer on the signature card changes the result. If the card states that the account is not held as a tenancy by the entireties and names another form of ownership, no presumption arises. Absent fraud, the Florida Supreme Court has said that an express disclaimer ends the inquiry into whether the couple intended this protection. The one exception is when the bank did not offer the entireties option at all. In that case, the couple may prove by other evidence that they intended to hold the account together, but the burden is on them.

Investment and brokerage accounts are not covered by the same statutory presumption that applies to deposit accounts at banks. For those accounts, protection depends on how the account is titled and what the account agreement says. Couples should review the titling on every account and ask for written confirmation that the account is held as tenants by the entireties. A statement that says only "joint" may not qualify for the protection.

The difference matters when a creditor of one spouse seeks to garnish an account. A deposit account with the presumption in place puts the burden on the creditor. An investment account titled only as "joint" may leave the couple arguing that they intended the protected form, with no presumption to help them.

What Happens When One Spouse Is Added Later?

A tenancy by the entireties requires unity of time and unity of title. Both spouses must acquire their interests at the same moment, in the same instrument. When one spouse opens an account alone and later adds the other spouse, those unities are missing.

A Florida appeals court addressed this situation in a case where a husband opened a bank account in his name alone in February 2017. Several months later, in October 2017, he and his wife signed new signature cards. The cards stated the account belonged to both of them and checked the box for "Joint Tenants by Entirety." When a creditor of the wife sought to garnish the account, the wife claimed it was protected because it was an entireties account.

The creditor argued that the account did not qualify. The husband had opened the account alone, and the wife was added months later. The unities of time and title were never present because the interests did not originate in the same instrument at the same moment. The appeals court agreed with the creditor. The Florida Supreme Court's earlier decision on bank accounts did not abolish the common law requirements for creating a tenancy by the entireties. Checking a box on a new signature card does not cure the problem.

The lesson for accounts is that adding a spouse to an existing account does not automatically create the protected form. The safer approach is to close the old account and open a new one in both names from the start. We sort out the details at the no-cost consult.

How Is It Different From Joint Tenancy?

Joint tenancy and tenancy by the entireties share several features. Both require unity of possession, interest, title, and time. Both include a right of survivorship, meaning the surviving owner takes the whole property when the other dies. The differences are in who can use them and what happens when a creditor comes after one owner.

The protection from creditors is the main reason married couples choose tenancy by the entireties. Florida law treats the spouses as one unit, not as two people each holding half. Because neither spouse owns a divisible share, a creditor of one spouse cannot reach the property to satisfy that spouse's debt alone. Only creditors of both spouses, jointly, can attach the property.

Joint tenancy works differently. Each joint tenant owns a share that can be separated from the whole. A creditor of one joint tenant can attach that tenant's portion of the property to collect an individual debt. The creditor does not have to wait for the debtor's co-owners to owe something as well.

Divorce ends a tenancy by the entireties and turns it into a tenancy in common. The spouses then each own a share, with no right of survivorship. Joint tenancy does not require the unity of marriage in the first place.

What Florida Courts Have Said

The Florida Supreme Court settled the rules for bank accounts in a 2001 case called Beal Bank. When creditors tried to garnish accounts that a father and son each held with their respective wives, the spouses claimed those accounts were held as tenants by the entirety and that a creditor of one spouse alone could not reach them. The creditors held judgments from obligations tied to the father's and son's businesses. The court used the case to explain the six characteristics that define tenancy by the entirety and to decide whether a bank account titled in both spouses' names gets the same presumption that real estate does.

The court in Beal Bank held that when a signature card does not expressly disclaim tenancy by the entirety, a presumption arises that a bank account titled in both spouses' names is held as tenancy by the entirety, so long as the account was established with the unities of possession, interest, title, time, and with right of survivorship. The presumption shifts the burden to the creditor to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that a tenancy by the entirety was not created. The court receded from earlier opinions that had required spouses to prove their intent before their accounts could receive protection.

The Beal Bank presumption has limits. A Second District Court of Appeal case decided in August 2024 called Loumpos involved a husband who opened a bank account in his name alone in February 2017. Several months later, in October 2017, he and his wife signed new signature cards marking the account as tenants by the entirety and checking the box for that form of ownership. When a creditor of the wife sought to garnish the account, the wife claimed the account was exempt. The court held that Beal Bank did not do away with the common-law requirements for creating a tenancy by the entirety. Because the wife's name was not on the account when her husband opened it, the unities of time and title were missing. The creditor could garnish the account.

A 1925 Florida Supreme Court case called Bailey v. Smith described tenancy by the entirety as "an estate held by husband and wife together so long as both live, and after the death of either, by the survivor so long as the estate lasts."

What About a Mortgage Held by Spouses, or a Land Trust?

Florida law treats a mortgage made to a married couple much the same way it treats a deed to them. A mortgage encumbering real property, or an assignment of a mortgage, made to two persons who are husband and wife creates an estate by the entirety in that mortgage and in the obligation it secures, unless the mortgage or assignment says otherwise. Couples who invest in mortgages or private lending may hold those notes with the same protection that applies to their home.

Land trusts allow a couple to hold their real estate through a trustee. Florida law recognizes that multiple beneficiaries may own a beneficial interest in a land trust as tenants in common, joint tenants with right of survivorship, or tenants by the entireties. A married couple who put their property into a land trust can hold their beneficial interest as tenants by the entirety.

The structure depends on how the trust agreement is drafted. If the agreement names both spouses as co-beneficiaries and establishes the unities that define tenancy by the entirety, the couple may hold their interest that way. Whether a particular land trust achieves the protection you want depends on the facts and is something we review at the no-cost consult.

Is It Actually in Place? How to Check Your Deed and Accounts

A recorded deed should identify the grantee (the person receiving the property) by name and by the form of ownership. Look for language such as "John Doe and Jane Doe, his wife, as tenants by the entirety" or similar wording. Florida law presumes that real property titled in the names of both spouses is held as tenancy by the entirety, so long as the other unities are established. A deed that says "husband and wife" without further detail should still qualify, though explicit language is safer.

Bank accounts require a closer look. Florida law presumes that a deposit account held by two persons as husband and wife belongs to both of them with right of survivorship, unless otherwise specified in writing. For creditor protection, the signature card matters most. If the card does not expressly disclaim tenancy by the entirety, the presumption arises. If the card names another form of ownership and expressly disclaims tenancy by the entirety, no presumption exists. A card that simply says "joint account" without the word "entirety" or "entireties" may leave room for dispute.

Investment and brokerage accounts do not have the same statutory rule as deposit accounts. They depend entirely on how the account is titled and what the account agreement says. A signature card or account application that checks a box for tenancy by the entirety, or one that describes the account as held by the spouses together, strengthens the claim. An account that only says "joint" without more may not qualify. The safest approach is to ask the financial institution for an account statement or agreement that shows the exact ownership designation. We review your deed language and account titling at the no-cost consult.

How Do You Set Up Tenants by the Entirety, Step by Step?

Real estate and bank accounts follow different paths. A retitling deed moves property that one spouse owns alone into both spouses together. The deed names both spouses as grantees and, when the required elements are present, creates the tenancy by the entirety under Florida law.

A deed requires two subscribing witnesses and a notary acknowledgment. Florida law allows those witnesses to be present through audio-video communication technology instead of standing in the room. A witness appearing remotely must verbally confirm that the witness is a resident of and physically located within the United States or a territory of the United States at the time of witnessing. Once the deed is signed and notarized, it is recorded in the county where the land sits. The firm delivers the deed to recording.

Bank accounts are handled at the bank itself. Florida law provides that deposit accounts opened by a husband and wife are presumed to be a tenancy by the entirety unless otherwise specified in writing. Couples should open a new account together rather than adding a spouse to an existing account. The signature card should not disclaim the tenancy by the entirety form of ownership.

Investment and brokerage accounts depend on how the account is titled. Couples should confirm the account registration names both spouses and does not disclaim the entireties form.

A retitling deed is a $399 flat fee, plus recording. Accounts are retitled at the bank without a posted fee. A no-cost consult is a good first step to review what you own and how it is titled.

Common Mistakes Couples Make

One mistake is calling an account "joint" without specifying tenants by the entirety. Florida law presumes that a bank account titled in the names of both spouses is held as a tenancy by the entirety when the signature card does not expressly disclaim that form. The word "joint" alone may or may not create the protection, depending on the other elements.

Another mistake is adding a spouse to an existing account and assuming that fixes everything. A Florida appeals court considered an account a husband opened alone in February. In October of the same year, both spouses signed new signature cards marking the account as tenants by entirety and checking the joint tenants by entirety box. The court held that Beal Bank did not abrogate the common law requirements for creating the tenancy even when the signature card expressly designates it. The unities of time and title were missing because the account was not established by both spouses together. A creditor of one spouse could garnish the account.

A third mistake is signing a signature card that expressly disclaims the entireties form and names another form of ownership. Under Florida law, no presumption arises when the card expressly states that the account is not held as a tenancy by the entireties and another form of ownership is designated. Absent fraud, that ends the inquiry.

Unmarried couples cannot hold property as tenants by the entirety. A deed using those words for unmarried co-owners does not create the protection because the sixth characteristic, unity of marriage, is missing.

Forgetting that divorce ends the tenancy is another mistake. Florida law converts a tenancy by the entirety into a tenancy in common when the spouses divorce. The creditor protection is gone from that point forward.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Situations

A husband opened a bank account in his name alone in February. After eight months, he and his wife signed new signature cards together, and they checked the box for tenants by the entirety. A creditor with a judgment against the wife tried to garnish the account. The creditor argued that the wife had not been on the account from the start, so the unities of time and title were missing. The account was not protected, even though the cards said tenants by the entirety.

A married couple bought their Florida home together, and the deed named them both as husband and wife. The husband later owed money from a failed business he had run alone. A creditor with a judgment against the husband tried to collect from the house. The couple showed the deed, which created a tenancy by the entirety. The creditor could not reach the property, because the debt belonged to the husband alone. The home stayed protected while both spouses were alive.

The Word That Costs Couples This Protection Is “Joint”

In 14 years of law practice, tenancy by the entirety is the protection people are most confident they already have and least able to prove. Married couples tell me their accounts are joint, which is true, and take it to mean the accounts are protected, which does not follow. I read the Florida cases on this rather than relying on a summary of them, and the couples who lose the argument are almost never the ones who did something wrong. The couples who lose used the ordinary English word instead of the legal one.

In one case I have reviewed, a husband in a second marriage converted two of his own bank accounts into accounts he held with his wife. The couple told the bank employee they wanted joint accounts, which is exactly what people say. The bank's form had a list of ownership types, and two of the choices were a multiple-party account and a multiple-party account held as a tenancy by the entireties. The employee checked the ordinary one. She had never been taught the difference and so she never raised it, and nobody was asked to initial next to the box. Both spouses signed at the bottom after reading the form for accuracy.

The accounts held $105,478.05 each. A little over a year later the husband closed them, took two checks in his own name, moved the money to an account at another bank, and three days before he died he signed papers putting that account into his revocable trust without telling his wife. She sued, and the trial judge agreed with her that the accounts had been held as tenancies by the entirety, which would have meant her husband could not have moved a dollar of it without her consent. The appellate court reversed her. Because the accounts were ordinary joint accounts, his withdrawal ended the arrangement, and the $210,956.10 was his to move.

The line from that opinion I have never forgotten is the court's own observation that only a handful of attorneys in Florida can describe the difference between an entireties bank account and a joint account with a right of survivorship. The court used it to explain why the bank owed the couple no explanation. A customer who signs the form is presumed to know what it says, and the bank's job is to offer the option rather than to make anyone understand it.

Avoid treating the presumption as a plan. In my practice the review takes twenty minutes and consists of reading signature cards and deeds, which is unglamorous work that has never once failed to turn something up. The protection is free, and confirming you actually have it is the only part anybody pays for.

Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., admitted in Florida since 2012. Any case described above is a decision of a Florida court rather than a matter handled by this firm. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Sources of Law

• Florida tenancy by the entirety (real and personal property; the presumption for jointly held marital accounts): Beal Bank, SSB v. Almand & Assocs., 780 So. 2d 45 (Fla. 2001). (retrieved 2026-06-08)
• The six characteristics of a Florida tenancy by the entirety (unity of possession, interest, title, time, survivorship, and marriage): Beal Bank, SSB v. Almand & Assocs., 780 So. 2d 45, 52 (Fla. 2001), citing First Nat’l Bank v. Hector Supply Co., 254 So. 2d 777, 781 (Fla. 1971). Verified against the opinion text 2026-09-01.
• Fla. Stat. §655.79(1): a deposit or account in the name of two persons who are husband and wife is considered a tenancy by the entirety unless otherwise specified in writing (added by ch. 2008-75, effective October 1, 2008). Verified against the 2025 statute text 2026-09-01.
• Wexler v. Rich, 80 So. 3d 1097 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012): where a bank form offered a tenancy by the entireties option and the parties signed an agreement selecting a multiple-party account with right of survivorship instead, the entireties presumption was expressly disclaimed, and a bank has no duty to explain the options. Read in full 2026-09-01.
• Limits: joint creditors are not barred; federal tax liens are not defeated (United States v. Craft, 535 U.S. 274 (2002)); the tenancy ends at divorce or the first spouse’s death.
• Real property conveyed to spouses: Beal Bank, SSB v. Almand & Assocs., 780 So. 2d 45, 54 (Fla. 2001), quoting First Nat’l Bank v. Hector Supply Co., 254 So. 2d 777, 780 (Fla. 1971) (a rule of construction that a tenancy by the entireties is created, although fraud may be proven). Reading note: the rule that proceeds of the sale or rental of entireties property keep the entireties character comes from a 2004 decision of a Florida district court of appeal recorded in the firm's homestead and entireties case study; the opinion was not read for this page and is not cited by name.
• Bankruptcy: 11 U.S.C. §522(b)(3)(B) (entireties and joint-tenancy interests exempt to the extent exempt from process under applicable nonbankruptcy law); §522(b)(3)(A) (the 730-day domicile rule for state exemptions); §522(o) and (p) (the fraudulent-conversion lookback and the cap, each limited by its terms to subsection (b)(3)(A)). Summarized from the firm's homestead and entireties case study (2026); the statute text was not reproduced for this page.

Updated on October 27, 2026. Reviewed by Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 99502. General information about Florida law, not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. Asset-protection planning must be done before a claim arises and depends on your facts. Do not send confidential information until we have agreed to represent you.