Definitions Flashcards
Abatement
a reduction in the price of a property due to the discovery of some problem that tends to decrease the property’s value
Accessory building
a building whose function is secondary to that of the main structure
Amenities
desirable features of a building or near a building that have the effect of increasing the property’s value
Amoritization
the payment of a loan over the life of the loan using equal payments at equal intervals. Each payment provides for a portion to be applied to the principal and remainder to be applied to the interest.
Anchor Tenant
a major tenant in shopping mall, such as a department store, that in theory serves to attract shoppers to the mall to the benefit of other, smaller stores.
Appraisal
an estimation of a property’s value made by a qualified appraiser
Aquifer
a natural, underground reservoir from which wells draw water
Assessed Value
the value given to a piece of property by a local jurisdiction, to be used to assess taxes on the property. The assessed value is a percentage of the actual value, that is, the value that the property would command on the open market
Bedroom community
a region or small town that contains mainly housing and offers few employment opportunities
Blighted Area
an area of a city that has been determined to contain buildings and infrastructure that are in a state of decay and in need of improvement
Boilerplate
a standard portion (generally a paragraph or more) of a written document, such as a contract or architectural specification, that appears in all similar documents
Buffer zone
a piece of land used to separate two incompatible uses
Capital Expenditure
an amount of money used to make physical improvements to a property to enhance the property’s value over an extended period of time
Cash Flow
the amount of money that is net income from a property after expenses are paid
CC&Rs
abbreviation for “covenants, conditions, and restrictions,” which are all the rules that apply to a property owner in a subdivision, condominium, or cooperative housing facility.
Cluster housing
a particular type of housing development in which the houses or apartments are placed close to each other and have access to nearby common open spaces
Common Area
a portion of a building or development that is available for the use of all the tenants or unit owners. Typically, common areas are owned by the property owners in the development or homeowners’ association, and property owners subsequently pay the maintenance fees.
Conditional use Permit (CUP)
a permit given by a city or other zoning jurisdiction for a proposed use that would otherwise not be allowed in a particular zoning district. The conditional use permit provides the zoning jurisdiction with the means to impose special conditions on the proposed development , to ensure that the development will not adversely affect the surrounding neighborhood or the public safety and welfare.
Condominium
a development in which residents own their own living units but share common areas, which are maintained by the condo corporation
Conveyance
the act of transferring an interest in a property to another person, or the document written to formalize such a transfer.
Cooperative (or Co-op)
a type of land ownership where the residents of individual units own an interest in the corporation that owns the entire property. Unlike the residents of a condo, the residents of a coop do not own their own units directly.
Cul-de-sac
a dead-end street that has only one way in and often features a large circular turnaround space at the end
Dedication
the donation of a parcel of land by a developer to develop a parcel of land
Demising wall
aka Party wall, the shared wall between two leased spaces or between two residential units.
Despoil
to remove items of value from a site
Development rights
the legal ability of a developer to develop a parcel of land
Discount rate
the rate of interest that reflects the time value of money and that is used to discount future values to present values or to calculate the future value of money invested at the discount rate
Downzoning
a change in zoning resulting in a decrease of allowable density
Easement
a portion of land of one ownership that another owner or a govt agency has the right to use for a specific purpose
Eminent domain
the right of a governmental jurisdiction to take ownership of private property for the public good while paying fair market value compensation to the owner
Encroachment
an intrusion onto one property by the improvement to an adjoining property
Equity
the amount of money an owner of a property keeps after selling the property and paying off any mortgages that is, the difference between the fair market value of a property and the amount of debt on the property
Escalation rate
the rate of change in the price for a particular good or service
Fair Market Value
aka Market Value: the value of a piece of property that a buyer would pay a seller in a free transaction for the property
Fixture
an item that is attached to a building and is typically included in the sale of the building
Ground lease
a long-term lease of a property that allows the tenant to use and improve the land, but that reverts to the owner at the end of the lease
Height zoning
restrictions on the heights of buildings and structures established by local laws
Improvement ratio
the ratio of the value of improvements on a property to the value of the property alone
Inverse condemnation
a remedy by a court for a private land owner whose land has been taken away by a governmental body
Landlocked
descriptive of a parcel of land that does not border any public road
Land sale leaseback
a legal arrangement in which the owner of a property sells the property to someone else but then immediately leases it from the purchaser
Lien
Full terminology_Mechanic’s and materialman’s lien (but typ just lien): a claim placed against a property’s deed by someone who provided work or materials to improve the property but was not paid for the work
Lien waiver
a document that gives up a person’s right to claim a lien against property
Minimum property standards
min standards for residential building required by the Federal Housing Administration for construction or for underwriting a mortgage
Modified Uniform Present worth Factor
a discount factor that is used to convert an annual amount, which is changing from year to year at a given escalation rate, to a time-equivalent present value
Net leasable area
the area of a building that is available for rent, which does not include common areas, structure, stairs, and the like
Occupancy permit
a document issued by a city’s bldg department, giving permission for a building to bee occupied. More commonly called the Cert of Occupancy. The occupancy permit is part of a bldg permit process, and its cost is included in the bldg permit fee paid by the contractor
Pad site
a separate location for development of retail space near (but not in) a shopping center
Pro forma
a financial projection for a development project meant to determine if the project is feasible, given estimates on potential income and the cost of developing the project
Restriction
a limit on how the owner of a property or building can use or improve the property. Often called a Restrictive covenant, it is usually contained in the deed to the property.
Riparian
related to a body of water
Riparian rights
the rights of a landowner to use or control all or a portion of the water in a body of water bordering his or her property
Satellite tenant
a minor or smaller tenant in a shopping center. aka Anchor tenant
Special use permit
an exemption from zoning regulations given to a jurisdiction
Spot zoning
the application of specific zoning regulations to specific properties when nearby land is under different zoning
Underimproved land
property that is not producing the maximum income it is capable of producing given its size, zoning, and so on
Uniform capital recovery
a method of calculating the future values of money to a present worth using the discount rate
Uniform present worth factor
the discount factor that is used to convert uniform annual values (costs) to a time-equivalent present value
Uniform sinking fund
the amount of money that has to be invested at today’s value at a give interest rate (the discount rate) to have a specified amount of money in the future
Usury
the illegal practice of charging exorbitant interest rates on a loan
Variance
permission granted by a local jurisdiction to deviate from the literal provisions of a zoning ordinance where strict adherence would cause undue hardship because of conditions or circumstances unique to an individual property
Wetlands
land that has development restrictions placed on it because it is commonly flooded and may be environmentally sensitive
Zero lot line
part of a zoning regulation’s setback requirements that allows a bldg to be constructed up to the property line with no setback
Zoning by-law
the set of zoning regulations established by a local jurisdiction that regulates certain building practices within the jurisdiction
