Where the deceased owned a house or land or an interest in a house or land (such as a mortgage or lease), in their name only, a grant of probate or letters of administration will be needed. This also applies where the deceased owned an interest in land as a tenant in common.

No grant of probate is required to deal with a house or land owned as a joint tenant. A surviving joint tenant automatically owns the whole property when the other joint tenant dies. The deceased person's interest does not form part of the deceased estate and cannot be left to someone in a will.

Despite this automatic operation, the death must be noted on the certificate of title to the property before any further dealing with the property can take place. The surviving joint tenant must lodge an Application to Register Death with Land Services SA, on the form prescribed by the Register-General.

It is strongly advised that a conveyancer or lawyer prepare and lodge the application, because the identity of the surviving joint tenant must be verified as part of the application. There is a fee to lodge the form.