Real Estate Title Transfer Flashcards
_________ ________: Also known as voluntary alienation. Typically, real estate professionals are concerned with the _________ ________ of real property titles. _________ ________ involves the intentional
conveyance of title, by sale or gift, from one owner to another by means of a deed or a patent. Homeowners selling their homes to interested buyers are engaging in the most common type of _________ ________.
Voluntary Transfer
A ______ _____ transfers legal title to land from the government to a private party.
Historically, they were a common form of title transfer, although it is seldom used today. The Homestead Act of 1862 granted ownership rights to anyone occupying and improving a given area of land for a specified time. These grants to individuals were conferred by means of a ______, a formal document conveying a part of the public domain to a private citizen.
Public grant
patent
A _______ _____ transfers title to real property from one private person to
another. Most voluntary transfers are _______ ______. A title is generally conveyed by deed. The party conveying title is known as the GRANTOR (* vendor in Louisiana). The party receiving title is known as the GRANTEE (* vendee in Louisiana)..
Private grant
The voluntary conveyance of title as a gift from a private owner to the government is known as ______ __________. A subdivider, for example, may publicly dedicate a certain area of a subdivision as land to be used for streets and parks.
Public Dedication
_____ are used to transfer title voluntarily.
Deeds
___________ ________ or involuntary alienation. Title to real property may be transferred involuntarily, or without the owner’s consent. Most involuntary transfers of title are effected through the
action of the law, through government bodies or the courts.
Involuntary Transfer
_______ ______- the right to acquire private property, by government, for public use. Lands thus acquired must be used for specific public purposes and the owners affected must be justly compensated
for their loss of title.
(* In Louisiana, this is called expropriation).
Eminent Domain
The government’s right of eminent domain is expressed through court action known
as ____________.
Condemnation
_________ ____: Joint tenancy and tenancy in common can be dissolved by partition suit. Only one of the co-owners need initiate such a suit. The tenancy can be dissolved by _________ ____ whether all owners agree to it or not. The outcome of the suit is usually a court ordered sale of the property. The proceeds of the sale are divided proportionately among the co-tenants.
Partition Sale
_______: When an owner dies without leaving a will and without heirs, his property title reverts to the state. Since property cannot be allowed to remain owner-less, the state must assume ownership where there is no legal claim to title.
Escheat
________ ______: This involves transfer by foreclosure, attachment and tax sale. This occurs when an owner defaults on a debt and his creditors file suit. If a judgment is entered against the owner, his property will be sold, and the proceeds of sale used to pay off the debt. The property may also be sold at a tax sale for failure to pay property taxes.
Judicial Action
_______ __________: This is the acquisition of title to property by possession of the property for a statutory number of years. In order to claim title, the occupancy and possession of the property must be
continuous, open, hostile, exclusive and notorious. The adverse possessor must occupy the property he claims continuously, for a period of five to thirty years, as determined by state law.
Adverse Possession
If two or more adverse claimants occupy the same property in succession, the years of their occupancy may be combined for the benefit of the most recent claimant. This adding together of years to meet the statutory requirements of possession is known as _______. Payment of property taxes by the adverse claimant may also be a necessary condition.
(* In Louisiana, the term for adverse possession is acquisitive prescription. If a claimant occupies a parcel of property in good faith, it may become his in ten years; if in bad faith, it takes thirty years.)
tacking
The title to real property may be _________ by ____. A will is a written instrument by which a person arranges for the conveyance of his property to take effect after his death. A person who dies leaving a will is said to have died _______. A _______ is one who inherits property in a will.
transferred by will
testate
legatee
_________ ____: a formally prepared will, usually by an attorney, which is witnessed and signed.
Statutory Will
___________ ____: a will completed entirely in the testator’s own handwriting, dated and signed by him, but not witnessed by any other person. Some states do not recognize holographic wills. (* In Louisiana, this type of will is recognized, but it is called an olographic will.)
Holographic Will
___________ ____: a will made orally by a testator who is near death. Only personal property may be transferred by this type of will. It must be witnessed, and the witness must commit the testator’s words to writing. The testator must be legally competent for ___________ and holographic wills to be binding.
Nuncupative Will
______ ____: must be in writing, signed by the testator, sealed, and notarized with three witnesses.
(* Effective July 1, 1999, Louisiana recognizes only two forms of wills, holographic and notarial (same as
statutory).
Mystic Will
A _______ is an addition to an existing will by which changes in the provisions of the will are made.
codicil
When a testator dies, his will is admitted to _______. This is a court proceeding designed to establish the validity and authenticity of the will, and allow the legatees, creditors, and other interested parties to claim their shares of the estate.
probate
An ________, or _________, if female, is usually appointed in the will to carry out
the instructions of the will. If not, the court will appoint an _____________ for that purpose. (* In Louisiana, the term for probate is succession. Real property transferred by will is known as the devise. The person to whom such real property is transferred is known as the devisee. An executor’s deed is used to
convey title to real property to the devisee).
executor
executrix
administrator
_____ is a wife’s interest in her husband’s estate at his death.
Dower
_______ is the husband’s interest in his
wife’s estate.
Curtesy
________ By ____ Of __________: When a person dies without leaving a valid will, he dies _______. In this case, state law determines how his property will be divided. An _____________ is named
by the court to administer an intestate succession. Laws of succession vary from state to state, but typically, they will satisfy the interest of heirs in the following order: surviving spouses and children, followed by the deceased’s grandchildren, parents, siblings, and other more distant relations. In states recognizing community property as a form of husband and wife co-ownership, the entire estate is transferred to the surviving spouse. In most other states, the deceased’s estate is usually divided among the surviving spouse and children. Distribution of the estate is usually supervised by a court appointed
administrator.
Transfer by Laws of Succession
intestate
administrator
________ by _________ involves the acquisition of real property interests through natural or artificial causes, or acts of God. Although this is a type of involuntary transfer, it is treated separately because no deeds or other legal instruments are involved.
Transfer by Accession
The principal forms of transfer by Accession are:
HInt: AREA
Accretion
Reliction
Erosion
Attachment
_________- the gradual, physical increase in the size of a property as the result of some natural process, usually the action of water. Such deposits are called ________.
Accretion
alluvion
_________- the gradual exposure of land behind a receding waterline. When the water level of a lake, river, or stream drops, the land exposed becomes a part of the adjoining property.
Reliction
_______ - the loss of property by wearing away of soil by wind, water, etc.
Erosion
__________ - Real property interests may be gained, lost or transferred by artificial means. Improvements on real property, for example, fixtures, may become permanent property additions. Even improvements made in error, a garage built on the wrong lot.
Attachment
A ____ is a written instrument by which the title to real property is formally transferred from one party to another. A deed must be properly executed to be valid. A deed must also be conveyed to and accepted by the party to whom the title is being transferred.
deed
A ________ ____ contains covenants, (or promises), of warranty. That is, it guarantees that the title it conveys is good.
Warranty Deed
The _______ ________ ____ offers a more comprehensive guarantee of title than any other type of deed. The grantor certifies that the title he is conveying is free of defects which may have arisen either before or during the time he owned the property. This is the best type of deed because it contains all covenants warranting back through all previous owners. (* In Louisiana, this type of deed is called a SALE WITH WARRANTY).
General Warranty Deed
The following five covenants are included in a general warranty deed:
HInt: SEFAQEWF
Covenant of Seizen
Covenant against Encumbrances
Covenant of Further Assurance
Covenant of Quiet Enjoyment
Covenant of Warranty Forever
________ Of ______- assures that the grantor fully possesses or is “seized with” the title he is conveying.
Covenant of seizen
________ _______ ____________ - assures the grantee that the property is free from liens and encumbrances, other than those specified in the deed.
Covenant against Encumbrances
________ of _______ _________: promises that the grantor will defend the grantee’s title
against all claims which may arise from the period prior to transfer.
Covenant of Further Assurance
________ of _____ __________: protects the grantee’s rights to physical possession of the property without being disturbed by other parties making claims against his rights.
Covenant of Quiet Enjoyment
________ of ________ _______: underwrites each of the other four covenants and
guarantees absolutely the grantees ownership rights and title. The grantor agrees to compensate the grantee for losses suffered from the breach of any of the deed’s covenants.
Covenant of Warranty Forever
_______ ________ ____: This deed contains only one covenant. In this covenant, the grantor guarantees the condition of title only for the time he actually owned the property. He claims no responsibility for title claims arising from past periods of ownership, or for encumbrances other than those he himself has incurred and specifically listed in the deed.
Special Warranty Deed
The _________ ____ makes no promises at all. The grantor simply relinquishes any
claim to title which he may or may not have had. It conveys whatever title the grantor possesses, whether it is a clear, unimpaired title, a defective title claim or no title interest at all.
Quitclaim Deed
Quitclaim deeds are used frequently for removing clouds on title. A _____ on _____ is a lingering, often vague or uncertain claim or encumbrance that impairs an owner’s title. (* In Louisiana, the SALE
WITHOUT WARRANTY is comparable to the Quitclaim Deed)
Cloud on title
The _______ and ____ ____ guarantees more than the quitclaim, but not as much as a warranty deed. It conveys title without explicit guarantees, but does imply that title is good. There is an assurance that the grantor does in fact, possess the rights which he is conveying.
Bargain and Sale Deed
The _______ and ____ ____ with _________ is a special type of bargain and sale deed which includes a covenant assuring the grantee that the grantor has done nothing to encumber the property during the time he has owned it. This covenant, in effect, turns the deed into a special warranty deed.
Bargain and Sale Deed with Covenant
_______________ ____: used to convey property of an intestate deceased.
Administrator’s Deed
______ ____: used to convey a private owner’s road, street or alley rights to a public governmental body.
Cession Deed
____ in _____: used for placing property in a land trust.
Deed in Trust
____ of _____: used for conveying title to a trustee as security for a loan.
Deed of Trust
_________ ____: conveys property out of trust.
Trustee’s Deed
_________ ____: conveys property of a testate deceased.
Executors Deed
____ ____: conveys property given as a gift.
Gift Deed
_________ ____: conveys property of minors or incompetents.
Guardian’s Deed
_________ ____: conveys severed interests of co-owned property resulting from a court ordered partition.
Partition Deed
________ ____: conveys property sold by court order to satisfy a debt.
Sheriff’s Deed
____________ ____: used by a trustee to return title to a trustor.
Reconveyance Deed
_______ ______: identifies the grantor and grantee, may include their addresses.
Vesting Clause
________ ______: expresses the grantor’s intention to convey, grant, give, sell or release his real property interest to the grantee, using specific _____ of __________.
Granting Clause
Words of Conveyance
________ ______: specifies the kind of estate being transferred, that is, fee simple, life, etc., and also lists any covenants, warrants, or promises. Habendum comes from the Latin, habendum et tenendum, meaning “to have and to hold”. Deed restrictions and encumbrances are usually listed immediately following this clause.
Habendum Clause
_________ ______: includes the signature of the grantor, the date of signing, the signatures of witnesses, and a seal, if required. In transferring co-owned property, all co-owners must sign. In
transferring dower or curtesy rights, the grantor’s spouse must sign.
Execution Clause
______________ follows the signatures of grantor and witnesses. A formal declaration before an authorized person, usually a public notary, made by the person signing the deed, that he is the grantor and that he has signed the deed of his own free will
Acknowledgment
All documents that create, transfer or encumber a property must be recorded
in the public records, to protect the interest of the grantee and insure future marketability of title. Public recording involves the registration or enrollment of an instrument - deed, mortgage, etc. - with some local government official, usually the county clerk or county recorder. This is known as ____________ ______.
Constructive Notice
_____ of ________: In order to establish that a document which is to be recorded has been willingly signed by its true executor.
Proof of Validity
Four Types of Proof are commonly used:
HInt: AVAA
Acknowledgement
Verification
Affidavit
Affirmation
_______________: a statement that the person executing a document has done so of his own free will, and that he is in fact the person whose signature appears on the document.
Acknowledgement
____________: an oath confirming the truth of a document’s contents.
Verification
_________: a written confirmation of the truth of a set of circumstances.
Affidavit
___________ a declaration made by a person prohibited from giving an oath by his religious beliefs.
Affirmation
______ ______: firsthand information regarding a property which is known by a single interested party, or which should be known by this party. EXAMPLE: Mr. Summers buys 560 acres of farmland from Mr. Ferguson. When Mr. Summers attempts to fence in a portion of the land, Mr. McGee, his neighbor to the north, accuses him of trespassing, a charge which is confirmed when a survey is made. The fault is Summers’. To protect his interest in this property, he would have used actual notice, by employing a professional surveyor to determine the actual dimensions of the land he purchased.
Actual Notice
The _________ _______: This method is based on an attorney’s examination of the history of the title. This history is contained in the ________ of _____, which is a brief summary of all recorded instruments which have affected the title, including records of taxes, special assessments, judgments, mortgages and
trust deeds. The abstract of title is a condensed version of the information available in the public records about a particular property. It is a complete chronological, historical summary of all documents that affect the title to a property.
The Attorney’s Opinion
abstract of title
The basis of the abstract is the property’s _____ of _____, a continuous linking of owners stretching back, ideally, to the time when the land’s first owner received it by patent or grant from the government.
chain of title
The ____________ of _____: After the abstract is done, it is then sent to an attorney for legal examination of the title evidence. The attorney gives an opinion as to who the owner is and as to anyone else with a
legitimate interest in the property. The attorney then gives a ___________ of _____, which is his opinion, written, signed, and attached to the abstract.
Certificate of Title
The certificate of title gives a professional evaluation of the current condition of the title, but offers no guarantee of the title’s soundness. A ____ to _____ _____ may be filed which is a legal action in which the
court is asked to resolve any possible clouds on the title.
suit to quiet title
_____ _________ began as protection for attorneys for any errors they might make in abstracts. It is now available to anyone who wishes to buy it. It is used to protect the owner and lender against possible claims by third parties. It offers financial protection if the title proves unsound. This company determines whether the title is insurable based on a review of the public records. Once the title company makes a payment to settle a claim, the company generally acquires the right to any remedy or damages available to the insured. This right is called ___________.
Title Insurance
subrogation
There are 2 types of title insurance.
Morgagee’s or Lender’s policy
Mortgagor’s or Borrower’s policy
___________ or _______ ______: protects the lender who takes the property as collateral for a loan. It protects only the amount owed on the loan, and the insured amount is reduced as the loan is paid off.
Mortgagee’s or Lender’s policy
___________ or _________ ______: is good for the full amount of coverage as stated on the policy and for as long as the owner or his heirs have an interest in the property.
Mortgagor’s or Borrower’s policy
A ________ ________policy normally insures the title as it is known from the public records, and against such hidden defects as forged documents, conveyances by incompetent grantors, incorrect marital statements, and improperly delivered deeds
standard coverage
________ ________ includes the protections of a standard policy plus additional protections against defects such as rights of parties in possession, examination of a survey and certain unrecorded liens.
Extended coverage
Title insurance protects only against the past, not the future. Title policies are taken out with a ___-____, ____ ___ _______, and are not __________.
one-time, lump sum payment and are not transferable
___________: The right of the title company to any remedy or damages available to the insured, when the title company has made a payment to settle a claim covered by a policy.
Subrogation
_____________: unauthorized intrusion of a building or other improvement onto the land of another person. The owner of the land that is being encroached upon has the right to force the owner of the ____________ to remove it. Failure to do so may injure his title. A survey identifies an encroachment.
Encroachments
________ ______: unrecorded easements and information based on incorrect and inaccurate surveys.
Technical errors
______ _______ in ______ _______: such as any omission or error in public records, such as misfiling, etc.
Hidden defects in public records
_________ _________ and _____ ________: are other defects which can present problems in a title.
Uncanceled mortgages and prior judgments
____ of ________ _____ _______: A title defect, or cloud on a title may be removed in several ways. One way is by paying unpaid taxes. Another way is by filing a Suit to Quiet Title. A third method is use of the Quitclaim Deed, whereby a third party releases any claim to the title.
Ways of Clearing Title Defects
A type of deed which grants title free of defects past and present is known as a:
a. general warranty deed
b. special warranty deed
c. bargain and sale deed
d. quitclaim deed
a. general warranty deed
A deed which makes no guarantees at all as to the title is a:
a. general warranty deed
b. special warranty deed
c. bargain and sale deed
d. quitclaim deed
d. quitclaim deed
A Bargain and Sale Deed With Covenant is equivalent to a:
a. general warranty deed
b. special warranty deed
c. bargain and sale deed
d. quitclaim deed
b. special warranty deed
The right to take private land for public use is called:
a. eminent domain
b. acquisitive prescription
c. expropriation
d. escheat
a. eminent domain
A will which is written in the testator’s own handwriting, signed and dated, but not witnessed is a:
a. statutory will
b. holographic will
c. nuncupative will
d. mystic will
b. holographic will
A formally prepared will, usually by an attorney is a:
a. statutory will
b. holographic will
c. nuncupative will
d. codicil
a. statutory will
The method by which personal property becomes real property is:
a. accretion
b. fixation
c. annexation
d. acknowledgment
c. annexation
Recording documents in the public records of the court house is known as:
a. actual notice
b. constructive notice
c. notice
d. acknowledgment
b. constructive notice
Firsthand information regarding a property such as physical occupation or having a survey done is:
a. actual notice
b. constructive notice
c. notice
d. acknowledgment
a. actual notice
A summary report of what was found in the public records when the title search is done, beginning with the original owner and giving a chronological list of all recorded instruments including liens and encumbrances is a:
a. chain of title
b. abstract of title
c. attorney’s opinion
d. certificate of title
b. abstract of title
