PSI Exam Prep: Property Ownership Flashcards
The earth’s surface extending downward to the center of the earth and upward to infinity, including permanently attached natural objects
Land
Land, plus all things permanently attached to it naturally or artificially
Real estate
Real estate, plus the interests, benefits, and rights included with real estate ownership
Real property
Artificial attachments to land that include things such as fencing, buildings, and walkways
Improvements
Enjoyment, disposition, possession, control, and exclusion; often referred to as “bundle of rights”
Ownership rights
Everything owned that is not real property, aka chattel
Personal property
Five basic tests to determine if an item is real or personal property: MARIA
METHOD of annexation: Attached or not
ADAPTABILITY for use: if removed, it will drastically change
RELATIONSHIP of the parties: buyer vs seller or tenant vs landlord
INTENTION in placing: if temporary or permanent
AGREEMENT of the parties: all parties agree
Anything permanently attached to the land or to permanent structures on the land. are part of real property and are included (conveyed) with a sale of real property unless the parties negotiate differently.
Fixture
These Cultivated crops and are considered personal property, even though they’re part of the soil.
Emblements
Owners don’t need to dig up the crops and take them when the land is conveyed, but those owners are entitled to the fruits of their labor and can harvest the crop when it’s ready (even if the land has transferred to a new owner).
Yes
The process of converting personal property to real property.
Annexation
This is anything that’s attached to leased land or structures that’s used in conducting business. Rights and responsibilities differ depending on the commercial lease agreement, but usually tenants may remove trade fixtures when the lease terminates. They must repair any damage created by removing the fixtures.
Trade fixture
Real property is conveyed from one owner to another using a deed. Personal property is transferred using a
bill of sale or receipt.
The geographic location of land is fixed and can’t be changed.
Immobility
Improvements may deteriorate over time, but not land itself.
Indestructibility
One piece of land is never exactly like another.
Uniqueness
You can’t make more land; what we have now is what we’ll always have.
Scarcity
A land’s value can be positively or negatively affected by the improvements made on it.
Improvements
Some improvements are long-term, stable investments with stable returns over time.
Permanence of investment
A property’s value depends in large part on its location
Situs/location/area preference
it permits a specific parcel of property to be located by a trained surveyor.
A legal description
Three primary types of legal descriptions
metes and bounds, lot and block (also known as recorded plat), and rectangular government survey system (RGSS)
These are the direction and distance of a line forming the property’s boundary
Metes
these are physical features that define the boundaries of the property.
bounds
These descriptions are characterized by a point of beginning, which is where the description both begins and ends. It also uses monuments to mark boundaries.. The monuments are thought to have more credibility than the measurements.
Metes-and-bounds
A permanent physical marker used in a metes-and-bounds description that can be man-made or natural. It may be a tree, creek, rock, or a stake placed in the ground.
Monument
it divides land into townships and further into sections and fractions called sections.
The rectangular government survey system
it is the north-south line that runs through an initial point in the RGSS. These descriptions also use compass point directions (northwest; southeast; etc.).
The principal meridian
it is the east-west line from which measurements originate.
The base line
these lines of a survey are called township lines
East-west lines
north-south lines are called
range lines.
How many named principal meridians are in the U.S.?
37
it is described by referencing the principal meridian and base line that is appropriate to the township in which the parcel is located.
parcel
it is six miles square or 36 square miles
township
it is one square mile, which is also one mile squared.
section
this legal description looks like this (and is read right to left): S ½ SE ¼ NW ¼ Section 14, Township Clarkson
A rectangular government survey system
it begin with a reference to either metes and bounds or RGSS, then divide the land into lots with numerical descriptions of each parcel. A plat with the lot descriptions is recorded in the land records. it include streets, access roads, and other important features.
Lot-and-block systems
Lot 6 of Block 3 of the East Subdivision plat as recorded in Map Book 18, Page 11 at the Recorder of Deeds
A lot and block legal description
length × width ei (6 × 4)
Area of rectangle
side × side (4 × 4)
Area of square
1/2 base length × height
Area of triangle
One square yard =
nine square feet
Square feet ÷ nine =
square yards
Square yards × nine =
square feet
What does ANSI stands for?
American National Standards Institute
what does the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) do?
sets standards for measuring structures.
these can only be included if attached to the main property via stairways or hallways.
Finished spaces
Example
The living room of Trixie’s house is 15 feet by 13 feet. The dining room is 12 feet by 13 feet. How many square feet is this entire area?
(15 × 13) + (12 × 13) = 195 + 156 = 351 square feet
Jonathan’s 3,200 square foot home sold for $425,000. The price per square foot is
$425,000 ÷ 3,200, or $132.81.
What does GLA means?
Ground Living Areas
GLA may include stairways and closet and finished attic or basement square footage if ceiling height is at least
seven feet.
Covered, enclosed exterior areas are included only if they’re heated using
the same heat system
Additional finished buildings are usually included only if they’re attached to the main house by
a hallway or stairway.
these include corridors, meeting rooms, lobbies, restrooms, and a proportionate share of any common areas and a typically excludes common areas, elevator shafts, stairways, and HVAC and other system equipment areas.
rentable areas
One acre =
43,560 square feet (memorize this one)
Square feet ÷ 43,560
acres
Acres × 43,560
square feet
One mile =
5,280 linear feet
Linear feet ÷ 5,280 =
miles
Miles × 5,280 =
linear feet (memorize this for your exam)
One hectare =
approximately 2.47 acres
Front foot (frontage) =
length of the property along a street, highway, or waterway
Perimeter =
length and width of all sides added together
One square mile =
640 acres
Example
A parcel of land is three-quarters of a mile by 2,800 feet. The price is $2,500 per acre. How much is the land worth?
5,280 × .75 (3/4 of a mile) = 3,960 feet
3,960 x 2,800 feet, or 11,088,000 square feet
11,088,000 ÷ 43,560 (square feet in an acre) = 254.55 acres
$2,500 × 254.55 = $636,375
Example
A land parcel is 7,500 s.f. It’s 75 feet deep. What is the frontage?
7,500 ÷ 75 = 100. The property is 75 feet deep by 100 feet long (frontage).
Example
Trinity owns a land parcel that is a half-mile square. How many acres is it?
Each side of the parcel is 2,640 linear feet (5,280 feet in a mile).
2,640 × 2,640 = 6,969,600 square feet
6,969,600 ÷ 43,560 (square feet in an acre) = 160 acres
Air lot heights are established by
the city or other governing authority that has jurisdiction.
is a horizontal point of reference from which surveyors measure the depth and height of various land elevations.
A datum
is a point where the exact elevation is known and marked with a brass or aluminum plate. Surveyors can use this as a starting point to measure other elevations.
A benchmark
The three categories of water rights include
riparian rights, littoral rights, and the doctrine of prior appropriation.
it address water that moves through a property, such a river or stream. these rights are classified into one of two categories based on the type of water: navigable or non-navigable.
Riparian rights
address static water, such as a pond, lake, or ocean. Owners have the right to use and enjoy the static water but not divert or contain it.
Littoral rights
it says that the first party to physically take water from a source and put it to beneficial household, agricultural, or industrial use will continue to have a claim to the water.
Prior appropriation
Process by which water carries rock, sand, and soil and causes land build-up
Accretion
New deposits of land that are the result of accretion
Alluvion
Gradual loss of land due to a natural force
Erosion
A sudden loss of land by a swift, large-scale change in water flow
Avulsion
When water gradually recedes and uncovers new land
Reliction
it is a claim against a property by a party that is not the owner.
Encumbrances
affect real and personal property and include judgment liens, federal and state tax liens, and decedent’s debts.
General liens
affect the specific real property/properties to which they’re attached by agreement or law and include mortgage liens, real property tax liens, mechanic’s liens, special assessment liens, vendor and vendee liens, and HOA liens.
Specific liens
is one a vendor of goods or services places on the property and creates a cloud on the property’s title.
A mechanic’s lien
is when the courts place an encumbrance on the property of a defendant in a lawsuit for monetary damages (also known as a judgment).
An attachment lien
The typical priority of liens is
property tax lien, mechanic’s liens (if work began before the mortgage lien was recorded), first mortgage lien, and all other liens by date of recording.
super lien status
liens take priority over all other types.
is a non-possessory right acquired by one party to use another party’s land for a special use. These are often acquired through a written agreement. Because it affects the use of a property, they have the potential to diminish the property’s value.
An easement
it suffers the easement
the servient estate
it enjoys the easement.
the dominant estate
What should you consult when there is an encroachement?
the Survey
it is when the dominant estate owner takes action that shows a clear intent to stop using the easement.
Easement abandonment
How many acres are in a parcel described as, “The S 1/2 NW 1/4 Section 3, Township 4N, Range 2W of the 6th PM”?
This legal description defines half of a quarter section. A quarter section is 160 acres. Half of that is 80 acres. Alternatively, multiply the two fractions’ denominators (2 × 4) and divide into 640 (640 ÷ 8 = 80).
Which of the following would be a description used for real property?
In-ground
these are granted for the lifetime of the grantee. When the life estate holder dies, remaining interest is either returned to the original owner (reversion) or is granted to a third party (the remainderman).
Ordinary life estates
At the end of a life estate, the reversionary owner or remainderman hold a
Fee simple
these are artificial attachments to land that include items such as fencing, buildings, and walkways.
Improvements
What does the lot and block system use to develop a property’s legal description?
Plat references
In which form of co-ownership is a person’s ownership inheritable?
Tenancy in common
Attached to a specific parcel of land, transfers (“runs”) with the land, and gives the “dominant tenement” rights to use adjoining property/servient tenement
Easement appurtenant
Granted to a specific individual or business rather than attached to the property itself
Easement in gross
the dominant estate owner must take some action that shows a clear intent to stop using the easement.
abandonment easement
this occurs when the owner of either the servient or dominant estate purchases the other property. A property owner can’t have an easement over his or her own land.
Easement termination by merge
an easement allows someone to travel to and from the land.
Easement by necessity
This easement isn’t legal, and is created through the continued, uninterrupted, obvious, exclusive, and adverse use of someone’s property without permission.
Easement by prescription
itprovides a pass-through to other property but doesn’t allow usage of the land.
Right-of-way
is temporary permission for one person, at the discretion of the property owner, to do something on another’s land without actually possessing any interest or ownership in the land. it is not assignable or inheritable.
A license
If this provision is included, the mortgagee agrees not to evict tenants who are current on their rent if the mortgagee has to foreclose on the property.
non-disturbance clause
it is an interest in real property where the owner’s possession of the property isn’t of fixed duration, as it would be in a lease (leasehold estate)
A freehold estate
it is a type of freehold estate that conveys the most rights available. Property held as a fee simple can be sold and is inheritable.
Fee simple estates
it is a type of freehold estate in which ownership is subject to either the occurrence or non-occurrence of a particular event.
Fee simple defeasible
the current property owner conveys ownership to a new owner as long as some event does or doesn’t occur. For example, Morris gives a plot of land to a local parks district as long as the district only uses it for youth soccer fields. He gives the possibility of reverter to his son Joe, someone else named by Joe, or Joe’s heirs if the parks district changes the property’s use. If the use changes, the estate automatically ends and the property reverts to whoever holds the possibility of reverter.
a fee simple determinable estate
he current property owner conveys ownership to a new owner on a specific condition. For example, Trinity conveys her home to her son, Gabriel, on the condition that the property remains residential. If Gabriel converts the property to some other use, the estate doesn’t automatically revert to the original owner; however, Trinity (or her other heirs or successors) has the right to re-acquire full ownership. But she’ll have to go to court to do so.
a fee simple subject to condition subsequent estate
it is an estate in which the holder has a possessory interest in a property but no ownership.
A leasehold estate
it is a lease that ends on a specific date and must be renewed by mutual agreement between the landlord and tenant.
An estate for years
it is a lease that automatically renews at the end of its term (such as a month-to-month lease).
A periodic estate (aka estate from period to period)
it is a lease without an established ending that can be terminated by either party.
An estate at will
it is one in which a tenant (referred to as a holdover tenant) didn’t leave when the lease expired.
An estate at sufferance
Can ownership in severalty be inherited?
Yes, according to the will and instructions
it is a form of co-ownership in which each co-owner is entitled to possession of the whole. An owner’s ownership is inheritable and, upon the owner’s death, doesn’t necessarily pass to the other owners.
Tenancy in common
is a form of co-ownership in which equal ownership requires unity of time, title, interest, and possession.
includes the right of survivorship, which means that the surviving co-owner(s) will own the property of the person who dies.
Joint tenancy
Can common tenancy be inherited?
Yes
Can Joint tenancy be inherited?
No, the interested will go to the survivor members
Timeshares, condominiums, and cooperatives are primary examples of
common-interest ownership.
Can timeshares be inherited?
Yes, they can be sold also
it is a type of freehold estate in which ownership is limited to someone’s lifetime. The future owner is determined based on the life estate’s terms.
A life estate
it is s based on the life of the estate holder/life tenant. For example, Christine gives her son this type of life estate in a property, and the estate lasts until her son’s death.
An ordinary life estate
is based on the life of someone other than the holder of the life estate/life tenant. For example, Jarrod grants his ex-wife, Margo, this type of life estate in a house where Jarrod’s mother Rose and Margo, who cares for Rose, both reside. The life estate stipulates that Margo’s interest in the property will cease when Jarrod’s mother dies.
Pur Autre Vie (“for another’s life.)
Any act by the estate holder that significantly reduces the value of the property at the end of the life estate is called
an act of waste
When a life estate ends, ownership of and interest in the property is determined in one of two ways.
Remainder: Ownership will pass to a remainderman instead of the party who established the life estate.
Reversion: Ownership will revert to the life estate originator (or the originator’s successors and heirs).
When a life estate ends, the remainderman or reversion holder holds the estate in
fee simple.
The bundle of rights includes:
Possession: This means that the titleholder may possess (be on) the property.
Control: The owner controls the use of the property.
Exclusion: The owner may decide who may or may not access the property.
Enjoyment: The owner may use the property in any legal matter.
Disposition: The owner has the right to sell or convey the property.
Property ownership gives the title holder a bundle of rights. What’s significant about the concept of a bundle of rights?
It describes the ability to separate one right from the others while leaving the rest of the bundle intact.
our client Frank is interested in selling a 54,450-square-foot lot. A comparable property in the vicinity sold for $3,500 per acre. What would be reasonable list price for Frank’s property?
One acre = 43,560 square feet. Figure his lot acreage first (54,450 ÷ 43,560 = 1.25 acres). Since the two lots are comparable, calculate the price of the comp ($3,500 x 1.25 = $4,375), which is a good list price for Frank’s lot
In this description, what does “Beginning at the corner of State Route 61 and Hallowell Road” represent?
Bounds are physical features that define the boundaries of the property. Combined with directions and distances (metes), these form the basis of a metes and bounds legal description.
Without this easement—usually involving access to a road—the owner requiring the right of passage would be landlocked.
This describes an easement by necessity. One way to remember this type of easement is by thinking of the importance of getting access to a road.
43,560 square feet is
one acre
A section is
one square mile, or 640 acres.
A hectare is a
100-acre measurement.
What forms the boundaries of a township?
Township lines and range lines
What is an encumbrance?
A defect on a title that can be monetary or physical
