Chapter 48: Real Property Flashcards
real property
the land itself, as well as buildings, trees, soil, minerals, timber, plants, crops fixtures, and other things permanently affixed to the land or buildings
land
the most common form of real property; includes the land and buildings and other structures permanently attached to the land
surface rights
the right to occupy the land. the owner may use, enjoy, and develop the property as they see fit, subject to any applicable govt laws and regulations
subsurface rights / mineral rights
rights to the earth located beneath the surface of the land
plant life and vegetation
plant life and vegetation that is growing on the surface of land and is considered part of the real property
fixtures
personal property that is permanently affixed to and or buildings
air rights
the owners of land own [this term] above the real property they own
air space parcel
property rights owned by the owner of real property above the land they own. the owners of these often sell or lease them to other parties
estate in land / estate
ownership rights in real property; the bundle of legal rights that the owner has to possess, use, and enjoy the property
freehold estate
an estate in which the owner has a present possessory interest in the real property. there are three types of these: fee simple absolute (or fee simple), fee simple defeasible (or qualified fee), and life estate
present possessory interest
a principle that states that an owner of real property may use and enjoy the property as they see fit, subject to any applicable govt regulation or private restraint
fee simple absolute / fee simple
a type of ownership of real property that grants the owner the full bundle of legal rights that a person can hold in real property
fee simple defeasible / qualified fee
a type of ownership of real property that grants the owner all the incidents of a fee simple absolute except that it may be taken away if a specified condition occurs or does not occur
life estate
an interest in real property for a person’s lifetime; upon that person’s death, the interest will be transferred to another party
life tenant
a person who is given a life estate
estate pur autre vie
a life estate that is measured by the life of a third party
concurrent ownership / co-ownership
a situation in which two or more persons own a piece of real property. the following forms of [this term] of real property are recognized: joint tenancy, tenancy in common, tenancy by the entirety, community property, condominiums, and cooperatives
joint tenants
parties who co-own a real property in a joint tenancy agreement
right of surivorship of joint tenants
a legal rule that provides upon the death of one joint tenant, the deceased person’s interest in the real property automatically passes to the surviving joint tenant(s)
tenancy in common
a form of co-ownership in which the interest of a deceased tenant in common passes to the deceased tenant’s estate and not to the co-tenants
tenancy by the entirety
a form of co-ownership of real property that can be used only by married couples
community property
a form of ownership in which each spouse owns an equal one-half share of the income of both spouses and the assets acquired during the marriage
separate property
property owned by a spouse prior to marriage, as well as inheritances and gifts received by a spouse during the marriage
condominium
a common form of ownership in a multiple-dwelling building where the purchaser has title to the individual unit and owns the common areas as a tenant in common with the other condominium owners
cooperative
a form of co-ownership of a multiple-dwelling building in which a corporation owns the building and the residents own shares in the corporation
future interest
the interest in real property that a grantor retains for himself or a third party. two forms of this are reversion and remainder
reversion
the right of possession that returns to the grantor of real property after the expiration of a limited or contingent estate (e.g. life estate)
remainder
a right of possession to real property that returns to a third party upon the expiration of a limited or contingent estate (e.g. life estate)
remainder beneficiary
a person who possesses the right of remainder to real property upon the expiration of a limited or contingent estate (e.g. life estate); a person or an entity who receives the trust corpus upon the termination of a trust
sale / conveyance
the passing of title to real property from a seller to a buyer
real estate sales contract
a contract for the sale of real property
closing / settlement
the finalization of a real estate sales transaction that passes title to the property from the seller to the buyer
deed
a document that describes a person’s ownership interest in a piece of real property
general warranty deed / grant deed
a deed to real property that contains the greatest number of warranties and provides the highest level of protection to a grantee. the seller warrants that they own the property, that they have the legal right to sell it, and that the property is not subject to encumbrances other than those that are disclosed
special warranty deed / limited warranty deed
a deed to real property that protects a buyer from defects in title that were caused by the seller. the seller is not liable for defects in title or for encumbrances that existed before the seller obtained the property
quitclaim deed
a deed that provides the least amount of protection to the grantee because the grantor transfers only the interest they have in the property
recording statute
a state statute that requires a mortgage or deed of trust to be recorded in the county recorder’s office of the county in which the real property is located
county recorder’s office
an office where deeds, mortgages, and other documents pertaining to real property located in the county are recorded and security interests in personal property are often recorded
constructive notice
notice given by publishing the information in a newspaper of general circulation; recording of a deed, mortgage, lien, or other document pertaining to an interest in real property give constructive notice to the world of the owner’s or other recorder’s interest in the real property; notice given by a general partnership by filing a statement of dissociation of a partner; notice given by a general partnership by filing a statement of dissolution of a partner
reformation of a deed
the correction of inaccurate information in a real estate deed by action of a court
tax sale
a government sale of property belonging to an owner of real property who fails to pay property taxes in order to raise the amount of the taxes. if the taxes remain unpaid for a statutory period of time, the government can sell the property at a [this term] to satisfy the lien
period of redemption
the period of time during which a mortgagor may redeem real property after default and before foreclosure
gift
the voluntary transfer of title to property without payment of consideration by the donee. to be valid, three elements must be shown: donative intent, delivery, and acceptance
will
a document that stipulates how a person wants their property distributed upon death
trust
a legal arrangement established when one person transfers title to property to another person to be held and used for the benefit of a third party
inheritance
occurs when a person dies without having a valid will or living trust and the deceased’s property is distributed to the heirs of the deceased as provided in the state’s inheritance statute
marketable title / good title
title to real property that is free from any encumbrances or other defects that are not disclosed but would affect the value of the property
title insurance
insurance that purchasers of real property, and lenders who make loans where real property is collateral for the loan, purchase to ensure that they will be paid for losses suffered by defects in the title to the property that occurred prior to the purchase or loan
abstract of title / attourney’s opinion
a chronological history of the chain of title and encumbrances affecting real property that an attorney examines in order to render n opinion concerning the status of a title
torrens system
a method of determining title to real property in a judicial proceeding at which everyone claiming an interest in the property can appear and be heard. after the evidence is heard, the court issues a certificate of title to the person who is determined to be the rightful owner
quiet title action
an action brought by a party, seeking an order of the court declaring who has title to disputed property
adverse possession
a situation in which a person who wrongfully possesses someone else’s real property obtain title to that property if certain statutory requirements are met
statutorily prescribed period of time
the required statutory period during which a person must wrongfully possess another party’s real property to obtain title to that property thru adverse possession
open, visible, and notorious
a requirement that must be proven by a person to obtain real property by adverse possession. it requires that the adverse possessor has occupied the property so as to put the owner on notice of the possession
actual and exclusive
a requirement that must be proven by a person to obtain real property by adverse possession. it requires that the adverse possessor has physically occupied the premises
continuous and peaceful
a requirement that must be proven by a person to obtain real property by adverse possession. it requires that the adverse possessor has occupied the property continuously and uninterrupted for the required statutory period. any break in normal occupancy terminates the adverse possession
hostile and adverse
a requirement that must be proven by a person to obtain real property by adverse possession. it requires that the adverse possessor has occupied the property without the express or implied permission of the owner
nonpossessory interest
a situation in which a person holds an interest in another party’s real property without actually owning any part of the property. three types are easements, licenses, and profits
easement
a given or required right to make limited use of someone else’s real property without owning or leasing in
express easements
easements that are created by words and must be in writing. they include the following: easement appurtenant, easement in gross, easement by reservation, and negative easement
easement by appurtenant
an easement that is expressly created when the owner of one piece of real property purposefully grants an easement to the owner of an adjacent piece of real property to use the first piece of property in some specified way
easement in gross
an easement that expressly authorizes a person who does not own adjacent real property the right to use another party’s nonadjacent real property in some specified way
easement by reservation
an express easement that occurs where an owner sells real property that they own to another party but reserves an easement on the sold property
negative easement
an express easement whereby the owner of real property makes a promise to another owner of real property that they will not do something with or o their real property
implied easements
easements that are implied from the situation and circumstances
easement by necessity
an implied easement that is created if two parcels of real property are so situated that an easement over once parcel is strictly necessary for the use and enjoyment of the other parcel. these are often granted to that owners can reach “landlocked” property
easement by implication
an implied easement that is created when an owner subdivides a parcel of real property that has a beneficial appurtenant on it (e.g. road, path, well) that serves the entire parcel, and the purchasers of the subdivided pieces of property automatically acquire an easement to use the beneficial appurtenant
easement by prescription
an implied easement whereby one party obtains the right to use a portion of another party’s real property when the requirements for adverse possession are met
license of real property
a contract that grants a person the right to ender upon another’s property for a specified and usually short period of time
profit-a-pendre / profit
a document that grants a person the right to remove something from another’s real property
premises liability
liability that is imposed on landowners and tenants for breaching duties that they owe to visitors who are injured on their real property
duty of ordinary care
a duty that a landowner or tenant owes to invitees and licensees to make the premises safe from, or to warn of, dangerous conditions posing an unreasonable risk of which the landowner or tenant has actual or constructive knowledge
mode-of-operation rule
a rule that states that when a business invitee is injured on a business’s premises the injured party is entitled to an inference of the business’s negligence and is relieved of the obligation of proving that the business owner had actual or constructive notice of the dangerous condition that caused the injury
open and obvious danger
a rule that states that a possessor of real property is not liable to invitees who are injured by a danger that a reasonable person would have been able to observe, recognize, and perceive through casual inspection
zoning ordinance
local laws that are adopted by municipalities and local governments to regulate land use within their boundaries
zoning
government regulation that establishes land use districts (i.e. areas are generally designated residential, commercial, or industrial); restricts the height, size, and location of buildings; and establishes aesthetic requirements or other limitations for the exterior of buildings
variance
an exception to a zoning ordinance that permits a type of building or use in an area that would otherwise not be allowed there
nonconforming use
uses and buildings that already exist in a zoned area that are permitted to continue even though they do not fit within new zoning ordinances
