The Nature of Real Property - Vocabulary

Question 1

air rights

Answer 1

The real property right to the reasonable use of the airspace above the surface of the land.

Question 2

appurtenance

Answer 2

anything affixed to or used with land for its benefit that is transferred with the land.

Question 3

base line

Answer 3

Imaginary lines that run east-west and intersect meridians that run north-south to form the starting point for land measurement using the rectangular survey system of land description.

Question 4

bill of sale

Answer 4

written instrument that conveys title to personal property.

Question 5

bundle of rights

Answer 5

the legal rights of ownership of real property, including the rights of possession, use, disposition, and exclusion of others from the property.

Question 6

civil law

Answer 6

legal system based on laws and regulations, without the influence of judicial decisions as in the common law system.

Question 7

common law

Answer 7

the body of law from England based on custom, usage, and court decisions.

Question 8

community property

Answer 8

all property acquired by spouses during marriage except that qualifying as separate property.

Question 9

correction line

Answer 9

guide meridians running every 24 miles east and west of a meridian, and standard parallels running every 24 miles north and south of a base line, used to correct inaccuracies in the rectangular survey system of land description caused by the earth’ curvature.

Question 10

correlative use

Answer 10

doctrine that states that property owners may use a reasonable amount of water from an underground source, but not to the detriment of adjoining property owners.

Question 11

emblements

Answer 11

crops produced annually by labor and industry as distinguished from crops that grow naturally on the land.

Question 12

fixture

Answer 12

anything permanently attached to land or improvements so as to become real property.

Question 13

fructus industriales

Answer 13

plant growth that is the result of cultivation.

Question 14

fructus naturales

Answer 14

plant growth that does not require cultivation, such as natural trees, grasses, and shrubbery

Question 15

land

Answer 15

the earth’s surface, including substances beneath the surface extending downward to the center of the earth and the airspace above the surface for an indefinite distance upward

Question 16

legal description

Answer 16

a land description used to define a parcel of land to the exclusion of all others that is acceptable by a court of law.

Question 17

littoral rights

Answer 17

Right to use water from a lake or other body of still water by adjoining property owners.

Question 18

lot and block system

Answer 18

subdivision system; method of legal description of land using parcel maps identified by tract, block, and lot numbers.

Question 19

markers

Answer 19

natural or artificial object used to identify locations in a metes and bounds description. Also called monuments.

Question 20

meridians

Answer 20

Imaginary lines that run north to south and intersect base lines that run east to west to form the starting point for land measurement using rectangular survey system of land description.

Question 21

metes and bounds

Answer 21

method of legal description of land using distances (called metes) measured from a point of beginning and using natural or artificial boundaries (called bounds) as well as single objects as points of reference.

• could refer to sections in a township
• could use words such as commencing and ending

Question 22

mineral rights

Answer 22

right of the owner of real estate to explore for and remove solid, liquid, and gaseous substances from the property; can be transferred independently of the right to occupy the property’s surface

Question 23

monuments

Answer 23

natural or artificial object used to identify locations in a metes and bounds description. Also called markers.

Question 24

personal property

Answer 24

all property that is not real property

Question 25

plat map

Answer 25

subdivision map showing division of property into tracts, blocks, and lots.

Question 26

point of beginning

Answer 26

the place at which a legal description using metes and bounds starts

Question 27

ranges

Answer 27

in the rectangular survey system of land description, townships running east and west of a meridian.

Question 28

real estate

Answer 28

real property; land; includes the surface of the earth, the substances beneath the surface, the airspace above the surface, fixtures, and anything incidental or appurtenant to the land.

Question 29

rectangular survey system

Answer 29

section and township system; U.S. government survey system; method of legal description of land using areas called townships measured from meridians and base lines.

Question 30

right of appropriation

Answer 30

right of government to take, impound, or divert water flowing on the public domain from its natural course for some beneficial purpose.

Question 31

riparian rights

Answer 31

the right of a landowner whose property borders a lake, river, or stream to the use and enjoyment of the water adjacent to or flowing over the property, provided the use does not injure other riparian landowners.

Question 32

section

Answer 32

a standard land area of one mile square, containing 640 acres, used in the rectangular survey system of land description.

Question 33

subdivision map

Answer 33

document showing division of land into two or more parcels, required before subdivision approval.

Question 34

tiers

Answer 34

in the rectangular survey system of land description, townships running north and south of a base line.

Question 35

township

Answer 35

a standard land area of six miles square, divided into 36 sections of one mile square each, used in the rectangular survey system of land description.

Question 36

underground water rights

Answer 36

right to remove water from aquifers and other sources below the surface of the land.

Question 37

water rights

Answer 37

right to use of water found at surface of land and underground.