Do I need to remove a deceased co owners name from deed?

Short answer: strictly speaking the ownership may already have passed to you, but yes, you should formalize it, and it is inexpensive to do now and expensive to fix later. Everything depends on how the deed was worded. Pull the recorded deed and read it. If it says joint tenants with right of survivorship, the deceased owner's interest passed to you automatically at death, by operation of law and outside probate. Nothing further was legally required. But the public record still shows a dead person as a co-owner, and that becomes a problem the day you try to sell, refinance, or insure, because a title examiner will flag it and you will be scrambling for a death certificate under a closing deadline. To clean it up in Missouri you record an affidavit of deceased joint tenant, sometimes called an affidavit of survivorship, with the Recorder of Deeds in the county where the property sits. You attach a certified copy of the death certificate and a copy of the recorded deed showing the joint tenancy. Certified death certificates come from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services or your county health department, and get several copies while you are at it. If you would rather the name be gone entirely rather than explained by an affidavit, the alternative is a new deed showing both joint tenants as grantors and you alone as grantee. If the deed instead says tenants in common, this is a different situation. That share did not pass to you automatically. It passed through the deceased owner's estate, according to their will or Missouri intestacy law, and probate may be required. Do not record anything on your own assumption in that case, talk to a Missouri attorney first. While you are in there, one forward-looking item. Missouri allows a beneficiary deed, which lets you name who receives the property at your death without probate. If you are now the sole owner, that is a cheap and clean way to keep the next generation out of the same paperwork. Worth asking an attorney about in the same conversation. This question is from 2021, so if it is still not recorded, do it now rather than during a future closing. I am a real estate professional, not an attorney, and the tenants-in-common scenario above genuinely needs Missouri counsel. I am Zoltan Peresztegi, a Realtor and Seniors Real Estate Specialist working the Palos Verdes Peninsula and the South Bay in Los Angeles County. Southeast Missouri is not my market, but if you get to the point of selling and want an introduction to a local agent, just ask. Zoltan

More information is DEFINITELY needed to be able to properly answer this question. Keith Jean-Pierre Managing Principal The Dapper Agents Real Estate Operations in ALL 50 States

Yes, it’s usually a good idea. Removing the name helps avoid title issues when you refinance or sell. The process is often simple, usually involving a death certificate and a recorded document with your county.

I would strongly suggest contacting a local real estate attorney. Most can answer this question at no charge.

Contact a Probate or Real Estate Attorney to see if they can help, and what documentation they may need.