Georgia Transfer on Death Deed (Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship)

Two Georgia joint tenants with right of survivorship already have an answer for the first death: the survivor takes the whole property automatically, by force of the vesting deed. The open question is the second death, when no co-owner remains and the property ordinarily heads to probate. This transfer on death deed, prepared under O.C.G.A. § 44-17-1 through § 44-17-7 for exactly two joint tenants, answers it of record: both owners sign one deed naming a grantee beneficiary who receives the property after the last surviving owner dies, without probate.

A deed that waits for the second death

Georgia wrote the joint tenancy interaction directly into the statute. Under O.C.G.A. § 44-17-6, a transfer on death deed does not sever a joint tenancy with right of survivorship. At the first death, the survivorship in the title controls and the deed transfers nothing. The deed operates at the death of the last surviving owner, when the named beneficiary takes the interest then of record. Until then the owners give up nothing: under § 44-17-7 they remain the legal and equitable owners, absolute owners with regard to creditors and purchasers, free to sell, mortgage, lease, revoke, or redirect the designation at any time, with no consideration and no involvement from the beneficiary.

Statutory words on a statutory form

Georgia authorized transfer on death deeds effective July 1, 2024, and § 44-17-3 supplies a statutory form with substantial compliance language. This deed keeps that form's architecture, adapted for two record owners: the indenture opening, the operative words that grant, bargain, sell, transfer, alien, convey, and confirm on death, the habendum in fee simple subject to the capitalized statutory limitations, and the warranty limited to persons claiming by, under, or through the grantors. The 2026 amendments (Act 379) are reflected as well, including the rule that an attorney-in-fact is not authorized to execute the deed for an owner. Each owner signs before a notarial officer and one other witness, Georgia's deed formality, on a separate attestation block for each owner.

Recording before death, acceptance after

The statute provides for executing, attesting, and recording the deed with the clerk of superior court of the county where the land lies, prior to the record owner's death. A PT-61 transfer tax filing does not accompany the owners' recording; GSCCCA materials place that filing with the beneficiary's side of the transaction. After the last owner dies, the beneficiary completes the transfer by recording the affidavit described in § 44-17-2, with a copy of the death certificate attached, within nine months of the death; an interest left unclaimed reverts to the deceased owner's estate. The deed states both requirements on its face, and the guide walks through each one.

The download includes the fillable deed formatted for Georgia recording standards, including the three inch first page margin and the § 44-2-14(b) return address block, a completed example on a Cobb County fact pattern, and a plain language guide covering every blank, the signing ceremony, and the recording steps. The Georgia Transfer on Death Deed for a single owner recites one record owner's designation, the pattern for a sole owner or a tenant in common, and the Georgia Revocation of Transfer on Death Deed ends a recorded designation without replacing it. These materials are informational and are not legal advice.