Property and wills
Your home is usually the largest thing you own, and how it is held decides whether your will controls it at all. These guides cover joint ownership, leaving a share, mortgages and partners.
Reviewed by the Estate Advisory Group editorial teamLegally reviewed: 13 August 2026Last updated: 13 August 2026
- Does My Partner Get My House if I Die?Whether your partner automatically gets your house depends on your marital status, ownership type, and your will.
- What Happens to a Jointly Owned House When Someone Dies?Joint ownership of a house affects who inherits it, and the outcome depends on the type of joint ownership used.
- Joint Tenants and WillsBeing a joint tenant affects what your will can and cannot do with your share of a property.
- Tenants in Common and WillsOwning a property as tenants in common means your share needs your own will to say who inherits it.
- Can I Leave My Share of a House in My Will?You can only leave a share of a house in your will if you own it as tenants in common, not as joint tenants.
- What Happens to My Mortgage if I Die?Your mortgage becomes a debt of your estate on death, and life cover or a joint borrower's position affects what happens next.
- Can I Leave a Mortgaged House in My Will?You can leave a mortgaged house in your will, but you should say clearly whether the mortgage should be paid off first.
- What Happens to a Mortgage When One Partner Dies?The outcome depends on joint tenancy, life insurance, and whether the mortgage was sole or joint.
- Leaving Foreign Property in Your WillForeign property is usually best dealt with by a separate will made under local law.
- Leaving a Holiday Home in a WillA holiday home needs clear ownership and, if overseas, separate local advice.
- Buy-to-Let Property in a WillRental property needs clear instructions on mortgages, tenants and management.
Make your will online
Answer a few simple questions and we prepare your will ready to sign. Single will £69, mirror wills £89. One-off payment, lifetime access.
Start my will
Start free, pay only when you are ready. Prices in pounds.
Other guidance
- Make a willEverything you need to make a will in England and Wales: what a will does, what it costs, whether you can write your own and what makes it legally valid.
- Signing and witnessingHow to sign and witness a will correctly in England and Wales, who can act as a witness and the mistakes that stop a will taking effect.
- Executors and beneficiariesChoosing executors, naming beneficiaries, leaving property, money and possessions, and what happens to a gift if a beneficiary dies before you.
- Wills and familyWills for parents, married and unmarried couples, mirror wills, guardians, and how marriage, divorce and separation affect an existing will.
- Will guidesWhat happens if you die without a will, the intestacy rules, when to update a will, how to change one and whether you need a solicitor.
- Inheritance and giftsWho you can leave your estate to, leaving everything to one person, unequal shares between children, grandchildren, friends and the age children inherit.
- What happens when you dieWhat happens to bank accounts, joint accounts, pensions, ISAs and savings when someone dies, and how a will changes who ultimately benefits.
- Tax and estatesInheritance tax and wills explained: the nil rate band, residence nil rate band, spouse and charity exemptions, gifts and who pays the tax.
- Digital assetsWhat happens to your phone, email, social media, photos, online accounts and cryptocurrency when you die, and how to cover them in your will.
- Pets and willsWhat happens to your pet when you die, how to include a pet in your will, leaving money for their care and gifts to animal charities.
- Business ownersMaking a will if you own a business: company shares, sole trader businesses, partnership interests and what happens when an owner dies.
- Life eventsWhen to make or update a will: buying a home, moving in together, marriage, a new baby, travelling abroad, retirement and later life.
- Online willsMaking a will online in England and Wales: what it costs, fixed fee will writing, online versus DIY wills, and how quickly you can get one done.
- Gifts and wishesLeaving jewellery, cars, heirlooms and cash gifts in a will, giving different gifts to different people, and recording funeral and cremation wishes.
- Blended familiesWills for second marriages and blended families: stepchildren, children from a previous relationship, grandchildren and protecting a partner and children together.
Prefer to start now? Start my will.