Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024
(a) When a registered owner, legal owner, or junior lienholder is required to endorse a document to transfer his, her, or its ownership in a unit, and that registered ownership, legal ownership, or junior lienholder interest is held by co-owners following requirements shall be applicable:
(1) For joint tenant co-owners, each co-owner shall sign unless one or more of the co-owners is deceased, in which case
(A) the application shall contain a copy of the certified death certificate for each the deceased co-owner, and all surviving co-owner(s) shall sign.
(B) If all recorded co-owners are deceased, the heir(s), administrator, or executor of the estate as determined by Section 5542.1, of the most recently deceased co-owner, shall sign.
(2) For co-owners registered as tenants-in-common with the names joined by "and", the following shall be applicable:
(A) To transfer full interest in the unit, each co-owner shall sign.
(B) To transfer the individual interest of one co-owner, the co-owner transferring his or her interest in the unit shall sign. The signatures of the other co-owners are not required.
(C) To transfer a deceased co-owner's interest in a unit, the heir(s), administrator, or executor of the estate, as determined by Section 5542.1 of the deceased co-owner, shall sign.
(3) For co-owners registered as tenants-in-common with the names joined by "or,"
(A) any one of the co-owners shall sign.
(B) In the event all of the co-owners are deceased, either the heir(s), the administrator, or the executor of the estate, as determined by Section 5542.1, of the most recently deceased co-owner shall sign.
(4) For co-owners registered as husband and wife holding their interest as community property, the husband and wife shall each sign..
(A) To transfer a deceased co-owner's interest in a unit, the heir(s), administrator, or executor of the estate, as determined by Section 5542.1, of the deceased co-owner, shall sign.
(b) When a registered owner, legal owner, or junior lienholder is required to endorse a document to transfer his, her, or its interest in a unit registered with the department prior to January 1, 1985, and the unit's registration has not been subsequently changed to reflect co-owner terms described in subsection 5542(a), the following requirements shall be applicable:
(1) For interests held as tenants-in-common or as names separated by the word "or", the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(3) for tenants-in-common with the names joined by "or" shall apply
(2) For interests held as names joined by "and", the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(1) for joint tenants shall apply, with the exception that when one of the named owners dies, the heir, administrator, or executor of the estate, as determined by Section 5542.1, of the deceased named owner, shall sign for the deceased named owner.
(c) When the registered owner, legal owner, or junior lienholder is required to endorse a document to transfer his, her, or its interest in a unit which was originally registered by DMV and the unit's registration has not been subsequently changed to reflect co-owner terms described in subsection 5542(a) the following requirements shall be applicable:
(1) For interests held as names joined by the word "or", the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(3) for tenants-in-common with the names joined by "or" Shall apply.
(2) For interests held as names joined by the word "and", or by a slash (/) with no other conjunction or co-owner term, the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(1) for joint tenants shall apply with the exception that when one of the named owners dies, the heir, administrator, or executor of the estate, as determined by Section 5542.1, of the deceased named owner, shall sign for the deceased named.
(3) For interests held as names joined by "and/or" the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(3) for tenants-in-common with the names joined by "or" shall apply.
(4) For interest held as joint tenants the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(1) for joint tenants shall apply.
(5) For interests held as community property the endorsement requirements provided in subsection 5542(a)(4) for community property shall apply.
(d) Notwithstanding anything in Section 5541 to the contrary, when a registered owner is required to endorse a document to record a new legal owner or junior lienholder, each co-owner must sign as required in Sections 5581 and 5585. Therefore, when one of the co-owners is deceased, the application to record a new legal owner or junior lienholder shall also transfer the registered ownership of the unit from the deceased co-owner.
1. New section filed 12-31-97; operative 1-1-98 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(d) (Register 98, No. 1).
Note: Authority cited: Sections 18015 and 18075, Health and Safety Code. Reference: Sections 18075 and 18080, Health and Safety Code.
