What are Dower Rights?

The Dower Act is a law that prevents a spouse from selling or mortgaging their home without the other spouse’s written consent. A spouse has dower rights if he/she is married to the seller who is named on the title but is not personally named on the title. If your spouse has dower rights, they will be asked to sign the purchase and sale contract and an additional consent to acknowledge they are forgoing their dower rights to the property to allow for the sale. This is standard practice in real estate.