Property Rights, Tital, Deeds & Ownership Restrictions Flashcards
As defined in local zoning ordinances, the distances between lot lines and improvements are known as:
A) Frontage
B) Set back
C) Buffer zones
D) Depth
B) Set back
Frontage is the distance along a lot’s boundary with the road. A buffer zone is a piece of property situated between two differently zoned properties (i.e. a vacant lot between commercial land and residential land).
Fee simple title to a designated unit of air space plus a percentage ownership of common elements in the property is called:
A) Planned unit development
B) Commingle
C) Condominium
D) Cooperative
C) Condominium
A condominium is the co-ownership of real property with common dominion of common elements. A cooperative is not an ownership of real estate at all, but rather is an ownership in stock and a lease of property.
A homeowner owns some acreage along a reservoir that is about to be designated as a state park. The state wishes to gain title to the acreage along the reservoir by purchasing the homeowner’s property and designating it for the good of the public. The right of the government to take private property for public use is called:
A) Condemnation
B) Escheat
C) Adverse Possession
D) Eminent Domain
D) Eminent Domain
Eminent domain is the right of the government to take private property for public use; condemnation is the actual act or proceeding by which the government takes private property for public use. Escheat is when a person dies without a will or any heirs and so the title to real estate passes to the state. Adverse possession does not occur between an individual and the government or vice versa.
Real property, as defined in Chapter 475, F.S., is any interest or estate in which of the following:
A) Land, business enterprises and business opportunities including any assignment, leasehold, subleasehold, or mineral rights
B) Land, improvements, leaseholds, subleaseholds, mineral rights, cemetery lots, or any assignment thereof.
C) Land, improvements, business enterprises and business opportunities, leaseholds, subleaseholds, mineral rights and mobile homes
D) Land, business enterprises and business opportunities, leaseholds, subleaseholds, mineral rights,
cemetery lots, mobile home lots, or any assignment thereof.
A) Land, business enterprises and business opportunities including any assignment, leasehold, subleasehold, or mineral rights
Real property or real estate means any interest or estate in land and any interest in business enterprises or business opportunities, including any assignment leasehold, subleasehold, or mineral rights. The term does not include any cemetery lot or right of burial in any cemetery, nor does the term include the renting of a mobile home lot or recreational vehicle lot.
The right to use, enjoy, possess and dispose of real property is commonly referred to as:
A) Billing codes
B) Bundle of rights
C) Encumbrances
D) Bill of sale
B) Bundle of rights
Billing codes are government regulations which restrict how property can be used. Encumbrances are burdens on land that interfere with the use and enjoyment of property. The bundle of rights are the rights that run with the land (i.e. are appurtenant to it).
Which of the following would be considered a chattel?
A) A new furnace
B) A fence
C) Goods or other items of personal property which have not been annexed to the real property
D) An in ground swimming pool
C) Goods or other items of personal property which have not been annexed to the real property
Chattels are personal property, goods or other items of property, moveable or immovable, which are not real property; they are also known as trade fixtures
The seisin clause in a deed specifies which of the following:
A) The right reserved by the grantor
B) The improvements being transferred with the land
C) The type of estate being conveyed
D) That the grantor actually owns the property and has the right to sell it
D) That the grantor actually owns the property and has the right to sell it
The covenant of seisin (also seizing) is a promise that the grantor owns the estate in the land that he or she intends to convey and has the right to convey
The owner of a property places a condition in the deed that there can be no new buildings erected on the property for 10 years. This is called:
A) Police Power
B) Deed Restriction
C) Governmental restriction
D) Easement
B) Deed Restriction
The limitations in a deed restriction may be either perpetual or for a specified period of time. While deed restrictions are in effect, they restrict the use of the property for the first owner and all subsequent owners
When does the title to real property legally transfer from grantor to grantee?
A) When the deed is recorded
B) When the deed is voluntarily delivered and accepted
C) When the deed is signed
D) When the proper amount of tax is paid on the deed
B) When the deed is voluntarily delivered and accepted
Transfer of title to property is not effective until the conveyance instrument (usually a deed) is delivered to and accepted by the grantee
A term used to describe the physical attachment of a fixture to real property, thereby causing it to become a part of the real property, is:
A) The Doctrine of Emblements
B) Actual Annexation
C) Adverse Possession
D) Easement by Prescription
B) Actual Annexation
The Doctrine of Emblements refers to crops yet to be harvested from leased land. Adverse possession involves the acquisition of title to land through open, notorious and hostile occupancy of another’s property. An easement by prescription is obtained in much the same way as adverse possession, but does not transfer title. Actual annexation is when a fixture is attached to real property.
A tenant farmer, upon being told of the sale of the field that he farms, may have to:
A) Vacate the property at once
B) Vacate the property after harvesting the crops
C) Plow under his crops
D) Replant to assure the new landlord of an income
B) Vacate the property after harvesting the crops
If the sale has occurred after planting but before harvest, then, under the Doctrine of Emblements, a tenant farmer with an indefinite rental term, who is not in default, may re-enter the land and harvest the first crop to mature after the tenancy ends.
A system of ownership and fee simple title to designated areas of air space plus a percentage of ownership of common elements in the property is termed:
A) Cooperative
B) Condominium
C) Condemnation
D) Chattel
B) Condominium
Cooperative is the ownership of stock in a company and occupancy rights prescribed under a lease. Condominium is actual fee simple title to designated areas of air, plus percentage of ownership of “common elements” in the common area
The Smiths own their Florida homesteaded property and also a vacant lot in the same subdivision, acquired in both their names. In a divorce, how is the lot distributed?
A) The lot is considered separate property and will be distributed equally
B) The real estate is community property and each spouse is entitled to one-half interest
C) The interest in the lot will revert to a life estate and will be distributed to the lineal descendants
D) The lot is a marital asset and is distributed equitably
D) The lot is a marital asset and is distributed equitably
The area owned together by all owners of a condominium project and available for all owners’ use is termed:
A) Common Area
B) Community property
C) Cooperative element
D) Limited Common Element
A) Common Area
A limited common element is property owned by all the unit owners of a condominium but may be used by only one of the owners, i.e., a designated parking space. Community property is accumulated by husband and wife by the efforts of either during their marriage and is subject to division at time of divorce or dissolution.
Which of the following are characteristics of a cooperative?
A) An owner purchases shares of stock in the corporation
B) The corporation holds title to land and improvements
C) A proprietary lease entitles the purchaser to occupy a unit
D) All of the answers
D) All of the answers
A cooperative (co-op, cooperative association) is organized as a corporation which holds title to the land and improvements. Owners purchase shares of stock in the corporation. In return, they are entitled to a proprietary lease and the right to occupy the unit for the life of the corporation.
Subsurface rights such as mineral rights and the limited right to use the air above the surface of real property are commonly referred to as:
A) Appliances
B) Appurtenances
C) Avionics
D) Actuaries
B) Appurtenances
Appurtenances are rights that go with real property, but may be sold separately, and may be limited by a prior transaction. Appliances are personal property unless built-in or otherwise attached to real property. Actuaries are skilled mathematicians. Avionics is the science of electronics applied to aviation
Physical components of real property do NOT include?
A) Subsurface
B) Surface
C) Equitable rights
D) Air space
C) Equitable rights
An owner’s rights to use the physical components of surface, subsurface, and air are referred to as surface rights, subsurface rights, and air rights. Most real property transactions include all three physical components in the exchange of ownership rights. (Seller may retain one or two components if the buyer and seller agree.)
A buyer is considering purchasing an interest in a time share. The buyer is offered the right to buy stock in a corporation that owns the property and will receive a lease of its units for his time share interest. Such a time share is a:
A) Land contract time share
B) Cooperative time share
C) Condemnation time share
D) Condominium time share
B) Cooperative time share
A cooperative is obtained through a proprietary lease by purchasing stock in a corporation that owns the property. A condominium is actually a freehold estate with the sharing of certain common areas with owners of the condominium. Land contract is a means by which a buyer buys the way towards the deed on the “installment plan”.
A deed that contains the covenant in which the grantor guarantees that he or she will forever be responsible for warranting title and will defend the title and possession is a:
A) Special warrant deed
B) Public patent deed
C) Bargain and sale deed
D) General warranty deed
D) General warranty deed
The general warranty deed contains additional warranties including: (1) quiet enjoyment of the property that guarantees peaceful possession undisturbed by other claims of title, (2) assurance that guarantees the grantor will deliver and obtain any legal instrument required to make title good in the future, and (3) covenant of warranty forever that guarantees the grantor will forever warrant and defend the grantee’s title against all lawful claims.
John dies and leaves the township 10 acres to use as it wishes, but not on Sunday. If the land is used for any purpose on Sunday, ownership will pass to his son, Bill. Which describes the interests of the township and Bill respectively?
A) Township - a fee simple conditional estate; Bill - a remainder interest.
B) Township - a fee simple absolute estate; Bill - a life estate.
C) Township - a fee simple defeasible estate; Bill - a reversionary interest.
D) Township - an estate for years; Bill - a periodic tenancy.
C) Township - a fee simple defeasible estate; Bill - a reversionary interest.
A fee simple defeasible estate is automatically terminated and immediately reverts to the grantor or to his or her heir(s) upon the occurrence of the triggering event or condition. The beneficiary of the reversion is said to have a reversionary interest. A fee simple absolute freehold estate would have no conditions as to use. A fee simple conditional estate, upon the occurrence of the limiting condition, may or may not be terminated, at the option of the grantor. Estates for Years and Periodic Tenancies describe leasehold estates. A life estate implies exclusive use, which Bill did not have.
The state statute in Florida’s Marketable Record Titles Act limits the number of years the title search must go back. The limit is:
A) 40 years
B) 30 years
C) 10 years
D) 20 years
B) 30 years
Persons are individually held liable for damages along with the group
Joint and several liability
- Taking private property for public use, through the government’s power of eminent domain. Also called appropriation. 2. A declaration that a structure is unfit for occupancy and must be closed or demolished.
Condemnation
A fibrous material that was once very common in many building materials because of its insulating and heat-resistant value. (Now banned in most places for most uses, and subject to strict EPA regulations.)
Asbestos
A property is undesirable to most people because of a past event (often a crime or environmental hazard).
Stigmatized Property
Local ordinances dividing a city, county, etc. into zones, allowing different types of land use in different areas. (A government restriction via its police power.)
Zoning Laws
When someone is held legally responsible for an injury to another, even though they did not act negligently.
Strict Liability
A restriction on real property use, imposed by a former owner; promise to do or not do an act relating to real property; usually owner’s promise to not use property in a particular way. May or may not run with land. Also called: Restrictive Covenant
Deed Restriction
A naturally occurring radioactive gas that emanates from rocks; it is odorless, colorless and tasteless but has been identified as a cancer-causing agent.
Radon Gas
Not fit for occupancy. (Used to describe rental property.)
Untenantable
Property that receives the benefit of an appurtenant easement.
Dominant Tenement
Government regulations specifying minimum construction and building standards to safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of the public.
Building Code
An easement granted to another in a deed or other document.
Easement by Express Grant
- A contract. 2. A promise. 3. A guarantee (express or implied) in a document such as a deed or lease. 4. A restriction. (Typical restrictions compel or prevent certain actions by the property owner or uses for the property.)
Covenant
A permit obtained from the local zoning authority allowing the holder to use property or build a structure in a way that violates the zoning ordinance.
Variance
An easement that benefits a particular piece of property (dominant tenement).
Appurtenant Easement
A government’s valuation of property for tax purposes.
Assessment
A defect that is not visible or apparent; a hidden defect that would not be discovered in a reasonably thorough inspection of property.
Latent Defect
A document, required by law, which reveals specific information. For example, federal law requires that lenders give buyers this document detailing the actual cost of borrowing money from the lender.
Disclosure Statement
Form that states whether an agent is representing the seller or the buyer, or both, in a transaction.
Agency Disclosure Statement
A nonpossessory interest in property, giving a lienholder the right to foreclose if the owner does not pay a debt owed the lienholder; a financial encumbrance on the owner’s title.
Lien
A specific lien claimed by someone who performed work on the property (construction, repairs, or improvements) and has not been paid.
Mechanic’s Lien
Property use that doesn’t conform to current zoning laws, but is allowed because the property was being used that way before the new zoning law was passed.
Nonconforming Use
An interest in property that does not include the right to possess and occupy the property; an encumbrance, such as a lien or an easement.
Non-possessory Interest
Federal law dealing with real estate closings which sets forth specific procedures and guidelines for disclosure of settlement costs.
Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA)
A lien that attaches only to a particular piece of property (as opposed to a general lien, which attaches to all of the debtor’s property).
Specific Lien
An easement created in a deed when a landowner is dividing the property, transferring the servient tenement but retaining the dominant tenement.
Easement by Express Reservation
Property burdened by an easement. In other words, the owner of the servient tenement (the servient tenant) is required to allow someone who has an easement (the dominant tenant) to use their property.
Servient Tenement
A law passed by a local legislative body; more specifically, a law passed by a city council or village council.
Ordinance
State and local laws that must be complied with before land can be subdivided
Subdivision Regulations
An easement created by open and notorious, hostile, and adverse use of another person’s land for a specific period of time determined by state law. Prescriptive use does not have to be exclusive (the owner may be using the property, too), and the user does not acquire title to the property.
Easement by Prescription
When property reverts to the state after a person dies without leaving a valid will and without heirs. (Property also reverts to the state after abandonment.)
Escheat
A recorded notice which states that there is a lawsuit pending that may affect title to the defendant’s real estate
Lis Pendens
Destruction, damage, or material alteration of property by someone in possession who holds less than a fee estate (such as a life tenant or lessee).
Waste
An illegal rezone that favors (or restricts) a particular property owner (or a small group of owners) without justification.
Spot Zoning
A physical object intruding onto neighboring property, often due to a mistake regarding the boundary
Encroachment
A lien against all property of a debtor, instead of a particular piece of property.
General Lien
An easement that benefits a person or company, rather than benefiting another parcel of land.
Easement in Gross
Any claim, lien, charge, or liability that affects or limits the fee simple title to real property.
Encumbrance
