Chapter 1 Flashcards
Appurtenance
used to describe rights, privlages or improvements that belong to and pass with the land.
Improvements
mans additions to the land such as building and landscaping
Personal Property
is a right or interest in something of a temporary or movable nature and includes anything not classed as real property
Personal Property is also called?
Chattel or personalty
How is ownership of personal property transferred?
By a bill of sales
When personal property is included in a sale, what may be attached to the contract to describe the details of the transaction?
Addendum
Fixture
an item that was personal property; however, it has been attached in such a way that it has become real property.
The word installed often indicates a
permanent attachment
A fixture is never
freestanding
the process of attaching may also be called
annexation
The process of real property becoming personal will be described as
severed or severance. The fixture is uninstalled and once again becomes personal property
Trade Fixtures
are fixtures installed by a tenant in order to carry out a business, and they may be removed from leased property prior to the termination of the lease. If trade fixtures are not removed prior to the termination of the lease, they become real property and pass to the landlord
Emblements
are crops cultivated annually. Even though they are attached to the ground they are considered the personal property of the farmer who cultivated them. Ownership can be transferred with a bill of sale, or the farmer may make arrangements to return to the property and harvest them one time after he sale closes and the crops are ready for harvest.
Physical characteristics of real property
Nonhomogeneity
Immobility
Indestructibility
Nonhomogeneity
no two pieces are exactly alike. a more current term is uniqueness. Each piece of land is unique.
Immobility
land cannot be moved. a person must go to the land
indestructibility
durability - it will always be there
Scarcity
In short supply where demand is great. Scarcity is usually based on geographic considerations
Modification
Land use and value are greatly influenced by improvements made by man land and to surrounding parcels of land.
Fixity
Land and buildings and other improvements to land are considered fixed or permanent investments - they are not liquid assets.
Situs
Location preference , or location from an economic rather than a geographic stand point. (This can change over time as people change)
The following methods of land descriptions are legal:
- Metes and bounds
- Lot, block, and subdivision
- The rectangular survey system known as the Government survey system
Metes and bounds
use terminal points and angles and always have a p.o.b. (point of beginning). This method used compass directions, degrees, and minutes. The point of beggining is also the end (sometimes called the termination point). This is the oldest and most common method of land description. Monuments, permanent surveyor markers, are often the starting point for metes and bounds description, and can be essential to the accuracy of that description. Monuments can be man made - an iron pipe or natural - a stand of timber, an old oak tree, etc.
Lot, block and subdivision
are derived from a recorded map called a plat. This is the most common description used in residential listing agreements
The rectangular survey system also known as the government survey system
takes into consideration base lines, and meridians, townships, and sections. Townships and sections are located in ranges.
One township contains
36 sections
Each section contains
640 acres, which is 1 square mile
Each acre contains
43,560 square feet
Police power
is the power given to a municipality to regulate and control the character and use of property for the health, safety and general welfare of the public.
Zoning
is the most common example of police power. Zoning regulations are local laws to control land use. For example R-1 zoning means residential, single family only.
A change is zoning may result in a
non-conforming use. This use was permissible under former rules , but new rules prohibit it. A non conforming use is allowed to continue as it is considered grandfathered. The non-conforming use is automatic, no hearing or application process is required. A non-conforming use cannot be altered or expanded without permission, but it can be sold to a party who wishes to continue the existing use. If the property is destroyed, the non-conforming use may not be rebuilt without permission. (Note - there is no violation of zoning here)
If your property violates zoning you may request a
variance
Variance
a variance may also be requested prior to construction. Adding on to the front of a building would usually require a variance. the process to obtain a variance is to apply to the zoning committee. A hearing will be scheduled and all neighborhood property owners will be invited to the hearing to voice any objections they might have to the variance. A variance goes with the property when the property is sold.
Conditional use or special use
Can be granted by a zoning committee or deed restrictions (HOA). This use would benefit the neighborhood, like a school within a residential neighborhood.
Another conditional use is a
PUD (planned unit development).
PUD zone
allows for a higher population density with houses clustered together, leaving more green area open for parks and recreation. a non-profit community association is organized to provide maintenance of the common areas. An extra tax may apply to property owners in a PUD.
Buffer zone
is an area of land separating on land use from another, such as residential from commercial, The buffer zone is located between incompatible uses. The buffer zone is a transitional use. Example: single family, apartments, retail. The apartments are the buffer zone.
The government also has the right to regulate special land types for the public good including.
coastal properties and wetlands. Standards have been set to keep construction a set distance from protected wetlands. The space between the wetlands and constructions is another example of buffer zone.
Police power provides the government with the right to establish building codes
Specific construction requirements, design, materials, safety guidelines, etc. can all be regulated.
New construction frequently requires a Certificate of Occupancy to be issued
Certificate of Occupancy to be issued
Eminent Domain
Is the right of the government to take private property for public use through the action of condemnation. This is the only time the government must compensate property owners.
When an individual forces the government to buy his or her property, this is called
inverse condemnation
Taxation
property taxes are the highest priority lien on real property. Property taxes are ad valorem taxes, or according to value. Unpaid taxes create an automatic lien on property. At foreclosure, property taxes are always paid first.
Ad valorem
according to value
Escheat
Property reverts to the state when someone dies leaving
The most common private controls of land use are
CC&Rs - deed covenants, conditions and restrictions
HOA or POA regulations are like deed restrictions but usually apply to
Condominium complexes and subdivisions
Deed restrictions are imposed to
Control land use, development and methods and materials for construction
Violations of deed restrictions can result in civil court action. Court with issue ____ to enforce the restrictions
Injunction
Encumberance
Is a limit on a property, or a limit on a property’s owners rights, that may or may not also be a cloud on the title
Examples of encumberances
- Reservation
- Encroachment
- Easement
- Dominant & Servient Estates
- Easement in Gross
- License
- Adverse possession
- Lis Pendens
Reservation
Imposed by the grantor, withholds title to a part of the land described in the deed
(Example: an easement or mineral rights)
Encroachment
When a structure or improvement overlaps or trespasses onto another’s property. Encroachments must be disclosed. The determination of an encroachment requires a survey
Note: a listing agent disclosed an encroachment, a buyers agent recommends a survey. In the case of an encroachment, the injured party has the right to demand the removal of the encroachment
Easement
Allows limited use or enjoyment of another’s land. It is the right in land and should be created in writing and recorded. It is use without possession
Easements can be created by expression (written or verbal) or implied (by action or evidence) grant, agreement, reservation, limitation or prescription, necessity, or condemnation
The government will take an easement by condemnation for itself, the utilities or the railroads. Easements can be terminated by merger (acquiring the adjacent property), release, or abandonment
Dominant and Servient Estates
If you have two parcels of land with a road across one parcel,
the owner who crosses over the other’s land is dominant. The dominant estate would be landlocked
without the easement, in most cases. The property with the road is servient to the dominant estate.
The dominant estate benefits from the easement, while the servient estate is encumbered. The most
common reason for this type of easement is entry and exit from the property. This easement is called
an Easement Appurtenant. It goes with the land, and the landowner owns the easement.
Easement in Gross
Easement in Gross
license
is permission to do a particular act upon the land or property of another. A theater ticket
or sports event ticket is a license that grants use of one seat for one performance. A license is similar
to an easement, but of much more limited duration. It is not a right in land. It is often given verbally
and easily revoked
Adverse Possession
(squatter’s rights) occurs when property is acquired from the rightful owner
through the Statute Of Limitations. Occupancy must be hostile, visible or open, actual or notorious,
continuous and distinct for the statutory period.
Lis pendens
is a recorded notice filed against a specific property, meaning that some form of lawsuit
has been filed, but not yet resolved in court. A lis pendens may become the responsibility of a new
owner, if not settled prior to closing.
