What happens if I don’t have a declaration of a Trust?

The beneficial ownership of an asset would follow the legal ownership. Therefore, if two people co-own a property then the law would determine that they each own 50% of the rental income or sale proceeds. What would happen on death of a co-owner would depend on whether they owned the property as “beneficial joint tenants” or “beneficial tenants in common”.

In cases of dispute, it could give rise to what is known as a TOLATA claim if someone has made contributions towards the purchase or renovation costs of a property which they do not own.