Real Estate Appraisal

Question 1

1 acre

Answer 1

A unit of area equal to 43,560 square feet

Question 2

Abstract of title

Answer 2

A legal document listing the history and condition of title to a parcel of real estate.

Question 3

Accession

Answer 3

Title to improvements or additions to real property is acquired as a result of the accretion of alluvial deposits along the banks of streams or as a result of the annexation of features.

Question 4

Accretion

Answer 4

An increase or addition to land by deposit of sand or soil washed up naturally from a river, lake or sea.

Question 5

Acknowledgement

Answer 5

A declaration made by a person to a notary public or another public official authorized to take acknowledgements that an instrument was executed by him or her as a free and voluntary act.

Question 6

Ad Valorem

Answer 6

A Latin phrase meaning “according to value”.

Used to describe general property taxes that are levied on the basis of a property’s assessed value.

Question 7

Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM)

Answer 7

The interest rate for ARM changes over the course of a loan at 5, 7 or 10 year intervals; fluctuating interest rates

Question 8

Adverse Possession

Answer 8

The actual, visible, hostile, notorious, exclusive and continuous possession of another’s land under a claim to title.

Question 9

Alienation

Answer 9

The act of transferring property to another

Question 10

ALTA

Answer 10

American Land Title Association, the national trade association for the title insurance industry.

Question 11

Amenities

Answer 11

Neighborhood facilities and services that enhance a property’s value; always outside of the property

Question 12

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Answer 12

A federal law effective in 1992 designed to eliminate discrimination against individuals with disabilities

Question 13

Annual Percentage Rate (APR)

Answer 13

The amount of interest charged on a loan each year.

Question 14

Appraisal

Answer 14

The unbiased estimate of how much a property is worth.

Question 15

Appurtenances

Answer 15

Something that goes along with ownership of real estate (ex: mineral rights or an easement)

Question 16

As is

Answer 16

Is the condition of the property at the time the offer was written (seller is unwilling to perform any repairs)

Question 17

Assignment

Answer 17

When the seller of a property signs over rights and obligations to that property, to the buyer before the official closing

Question 18

Attorney-in-fact

Answer 18

The holder of a power of attorney

Question 19

Avulsion

Answer 19

A sudden tearing away of land by the action of natural forces

Question 20

Backfill

Answer 20

Soil or gravel used to refill the excavation surrounding the foundation walls

Question 21

Balloon payment

Answer 21

The final payment of a mortgage loan that is considerably larger than the required periodic payments

Question 22

Baseline

Answer 22

One of a set of imaginary lines running east to west and crossing a principal meridian at a definite point

Question 23

Bilateral Contract

Answer 23

A contract in which each party promises to perform an act in exchange for the other party’s promise to perform.

Question 24

Blockbusting

Answer 24

The illegal practice of inducing homeowners to sell their properties by making representations regarding the entry, or prospective entry, of minority persons into the neighborhood

Question 25

Board Foot

Answer 25

A unit of measurement for lumber, equivalent to 144 cubic inches

Question 26

Bounds (monuments)

Answer 26

A natural or artificial object used as a reference point for land descriptions

Question 27

British Thermal Units (BTUs)

Answer 27

A unit of measurement for heat

Question 28

Bundle of rights

Answer 28

The theory that land ownership involves ownership of all legal rights to the land, such as possession, control within the law, and enjoyment, rather than ownership of the land itself

Question 29

Capital Gains

Answer 29

ProfIt earned from the sale of an asset

Question 30

Capital Improvements

Answer 30

The initial capital and long-term expenditures made to establish and maintain a business or investment property

Question 31

Caveat Emptor

Answer 31

A Latin phrase meaning “let the buyer beware”

Question 32

CC and Rs (Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions)

Answer 32

These are the rules and regulations placed on a real property by a HOA

Question 33

Chain of Title

Answer 33

The documentation of all past ownership of a property, from the first owner to present owner (the Kelly Blue Book for homes)

Question 34

Chattel

Answer 34

Personal property

Question 35

Cloud on title

Answer 35

A claim or encumbrance that may affect the title to land

Question 36

Codicil

Answer 36

a testamentary disposition subsequent to a will that alters, explains, adds to, or confirms the will, but does not revoke it

Question 37

Commingling

Answer 37

The illegal act of a real estate broker who mixes other people’s money with that if their own

Question 38

Community Property

Answer 38

Refers to property acquired by a married couple and owned equally by both spouses

Question 39

Condemnation

Answer 39

A judicial or administrative proceeding or process to exercise the power of eminent domain

Question 40

Consideration

Answer 40

Something of value that induces one to enter into a contract

Question 41

Constructive Notice

Answer 41

Notice given to the world by recorded documents

Question 42

Cripple Walls

Answer 42

With a pier and beam foundation, a perimeter wall enclosing the crawl space under the house to protect the piers from the weather

Question 43

Freehold Estate

Answer 43

An estate that includes the title

Question 44

Leasehold Estate

Answer 44

An estate that includes possession without the title

Question 45

1 mile

Answer 45

Equal to 5,280 feet long

Question 46

1 square acre

Answer 46

Equal to 208.71 feet on each side, generally rounded up to 209 feet.

Question 47

1 square mile

Answer 47

Contains 640 acres