Quick Answer

Unmarried couples buying a home together in the East Bay don't have the automatic legal protections marriage provides, which makes explicit agreements about ownership, financial contributions, and what happens if the relationship ends genuinely important—not just a formality, but real protection for both partners.

Why This Requires More Deliberate Planning Than a Married Couple's Purchase

Married couples benefit from a body of family law addressing property division if the marriage ends. Unmarried couples don't have this automatic framework, meaning the protections that would otherwise exist need to be created deliberately through how you structure ownership and any written agreements.

How to Hold Title

• Tenants in Common—each partner holds a defined (not necessarily equal) percentage share, which can reflect unequal financial contributions and can be individually willed or sold—generally the more flexible and often recommended structure for unmarried couples specifically because it doesn't assume equal ownership by default
• Joint Tenancy—equal shares with automatic right of survivorship, simpler in some ways but assumes equal ownership regardless of actual contribution, and doesn't allow the same individual estate planning flexibility

This decision should reflect your actual financial contributions and intentions—worth discussing directly with a real estate attorney rather than defaulting to whichever option seems simpler without considering the implications.

What a Cohabitation or Property Agreement Should Address

Similar in spirit to our co-buying with family or friends guide, but with additional considerations specific to a romantic partnership:

1. Down payment and ongoing contribution tracking—especially important if contributions are unequal, to protect the partner who contributed more if the relationship ends
2. What happens if you separate—buyout process, sale process, and how proceeds would be divided based on actual contributions, not assumed equal splits
3. What happens if one partner passes away—this is where your title structure (particularly tenants in common versus joint tenancy) directly affects the outcome and should align with your actual estate planning wishes
4. Responsibility for the mortgage and other costs during the relationship, and what happens to this responsibility if one partner leaves

Financing Considerations

• Both partners' credit and income are typically evaluated if both are on the loan—worth understanding how this affects your specific approval and terms
• One partner can be on title without being on the loan, or vice versa—this is a structuring decision with real implications worth discussing with both a lender and an attorney, since it affects each partner's actual legal and financial position differently

Why This Deserves Real Attention, Not Just Optimism

It's natural to not want to plan for a breakup while buying a home together during a happy chapter of a relationship—but this is precisely the reasoning that leads to poorly protected purchases. A clear agreement, made when the relationship is strong, protects both partners regardless of what happens later, similar in spirit to how a prenuptial agreement functions for married couples.

FAQ

Do we need a lawyer to buy a home together if we're not married?

Not strictly required to complete the purchase, but strongly recommended for establishing a proper cohabitation or property agreement—this protects both partners in ways a standard purchase agreement alone doesn't address.

What happens to the home if we break up and didn't have a written agreement?

Without a clear agreement, resolving ownership and financial contribution disputes can become considerably more complicated and potentially contentious—this is exactly the scenario a property agreement is designed to prevent.

Can we hold unequal ownership shares if one of us contributed more to the down payment?

Yes—tenants in common title specifically allows for this, reflecting actual contribution rather than assuming an equal split.

Should both partners be on the mortgage loan?

This depends on your specific financial situations and goals—worth discussing with a lender, since there are trade-offs either way depending on credit profiles and income.

This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Property ownership and cohabitation agreements have real legal consequences—consult a real estate attorney to structure an agreement specific to your situation.

Bottom Line

Buying a home together as an unmarried couple is entirely workable and common, but the protections marriage provides automatically need to be created deliberately here—a clear title structure and written agreement protect both partners regardless of how the relationship unfolds.

Buying a home with a partner and want to make sure both of you are properly protected? Let's talk through the right structure for your situation.

About The Parker George Team

Robert Parker and Josie George lead The Parker George Team , a Berkeley-based real estate team serving Berkeley, Oakland, Kensington, El Cerrito, Piedmont, Alameda, Albany, Emeryville, and Richmond. Robert holds the Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS) designation, and the team has been recognized by America's Best and featured in the San Francisco Business Times. Licensed with the California DRE (Robert #01923837, Josie #01990905), the team is based at 801 Delaware St, Berkeley, CA 94710.

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