Real Estate Test Unit 3

Question 1

appurtenant easement

Answer 1

an easement that is annexed to the ownership of one parcel and allows the owner the use of the neighbor’s land

Question 2

condemnation

Answer 2

a judicial or administrative proceeding to exercise the power of eminent domain, through which a government agency takes private property for public use and compensates the owner

Question 3

covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs)

Answer 3

private agreements that affect land use. they may be enforced by an owner of real estate that benefits from them and can be included in the seller’s deed to the buyer

Question 4

curtesy

Answer 4

a life estate, usually a fractional interest, given by some states to the surviving husband in real estate owned by his deceased wife. Most states have recognized other marital property rights and abolished curtesy

Question 5

deed restrictions

Answer 5

clauses in a deed limiting the future uses of the property. deed restrictions may impose a vast variety of limitations and conditions - for example, they may limit the density of buildings, dictate the types of structures that can be erected, or prevent buildings from being used for specific purposes or even from being used at all

Question 6

eminent domain

Answer 6

the right of a government or municipal quasi-public body to acquire property for public use through a court action called condemnation, in which the court decides that the use is a public use and determines the compensation to be paid to the owner

Question 7

easement in gross

Answer 7

an easement that is not created for the benefit of any land owned by the owner of the easement but that attaches personally to the easement owner. for example, a right granted by a property owner to a friend to use a portion of the property for the rest of the friend’s life would be an easement in gross

Question 8

easement by prescription

Answer 8

an easement acquired by open, notorious, continuous, hostile and adverse use of the property for the period of time prescribed by state law

Question 9

easement by necessity

Answer 9

an easement allowed by law as necessary for the full enjoyment of a parcel of real estate

Question 10

easement appurtenant

Answer 10

an easement that follows along with the land

Question 11

easement

Answer 11

a right to use the land of another for a specific purpose, such as for a right-of-way or utilities; an incorporeal interest in land because it does not include a right of possession

Question 12

dominant tenement

Answer 12

a property that includes in its ownership the appurtenant right to use an easement over another person’s property for a specific purpose

Question 13

encroachment

Answer 13

a building or some portion of it - a wall or fence - that extends beyond the land of the owner and illegally intrudes on the land of an adjoining owner or a public street or alley

Question 14

encumbrance

Answer 14

anything - such as a mortgage, tax, or judgment lien; an easement; a restriction on the use of the land; or an outstanding dower right - that may diminish the value or use and enjoyment of a property

Question 15

escheat

Answer 15

the reversion of property to the state or county, as provided by state law, in cases in which a decedent dies intestate without heirs capable of inheriting, or when the property is abandoned

Question 16

estate in land

Answer 16

the degree, quantity, nature, and extent of interest a person has in real property

Question 17

fee simple

Answer 17

the highest interest in real estate recognized by the law; the holder is entitled to all rights to the property

Question 18

fee simple absolute

Answer 18

the maximum possible estate or right of ownership of real property, continuing forever

Question 19

fee simple determinable

Answer 19

a fee simple estate qualified by a special limitation. language used to describe the limitation includes the words so long as, while, or during

Question 20

fee simple subject to a condition subsequent

Answer 20

an estate carrying the limitation that, if it is no longer used for the purpose conveyed, it reverts to the original grantor by the right of reentry

Question 21

freehold estate

Answer 21

an estate in land in which ownership is for an indeterminate length of time, in contrast to a leasehold estate

Question 22

future interest

Answer 22

a person’s present right to an interest in real property that will not result in possession or enjoyment until sometime in the future, such as a reversion or right of reentry

Question 23

heir

Answer 23

one who might inherit or succeed to an interest in land under the state law of descent when the owner dies without leaving a valid will

Question 24

homestead

Answer 24

land that is owned and occupied as the family home. in many states, a portion of the area or value of this land is protected or exempt from judgements for debts other than those secured by the property

Question 25

judgment

Answer 25

the formal decision of a court upon the respective rights and claims of the parties to an action or suit. after a judgment has been entered and recorded with the county recorder, it usually becomes a general lien on the property of the defendant

Question 26

inverse condemnation

Answer 26

an action brought by a property owner seeking just compensation for diminished use and value of land because of an adjacent property’s public use

Question 27

legal life estate

Answer 27

a form of life estate established by state law, rather than created voluntarily by an owner. it becomes effective when certain events occur. see dower, curtesy, and homestead for legal life estates used in some states

Question 28

license

Answer 28

1) in real estate practice, the privilege or right granted to a person by a state to operate as a real estate broker or salesperson. 2) the revocable permission for a temporary use of land - a personal right that cannot be sold

Question 29

lien

Answer 29

a right given by law to certain creditors to have their debts paid out of the property of a defaulting debtor, usually by means of a court sale

Question 30

life estate

Answer 30

an interest in real or personal property that is limited in duration to the lifetime of its owner or some other designated person or persons

Question 31

life tenant

Answer 31

a person in possession of a life estate

Question 32

limited liability company (LLC)

Answer 32

a form of business organization that combines the most attractive features of limited partnerships and corporations

Question 33

lis pendens

Answer 33

a recorded legal document giving constructive notice that an action affecting a particular property has been filed in either a state or a federal court

Question 34

party wall

Answer 34

an exterior wall of a building that straddles the boundary line between two lots, or a commonly shared partition wall between two connected properties

Question 35

police power

Answer 35

the government’s right to impose laws, statutes, and ordinances, including zoning ordinances and building codes, to protect the public health, safety and welfare

Question 36

pur autre vie

Answer 36

“for the life of another” a life estate purchase autre vie is a life estate that is measured by the life of a person or persons other than the grantee

Question 37

remainder interest

Answer 37

the remnant of an estate that has been conveyed to take effect and be enjoyed after the termination of a prior estate, such as when an owner conveys a life estate to one party and the remainder to another

Question 38

reversionary interest

Answer 38

the remnant of an estate that the grantor holds after granting a life estate to another person

Question 39

right-of-way

Answer 39

the right given by one landowner to another to pass over the land, construct a roadway, or use as a pathway, without actually transferring ownership

Question 40

servient tenement

Answer 40

land on which an easement exists in favor of an adjacent property, called the dominant tenement

Question 41

tacking

Answer 41

concept providing that successive periods of continuous occupation by different parties may be combined to reach the required total number of years needed to establish a claim for a prescriptive easement

Question 42

taking

Answer 42

process of land being taken from a property owner for public use through eminent domain with the requirement that the owner be compensated fairly

Question 43

taxation

Answer 43

the process by which a government body raises monies to fund its operation