Unit 3 Exam Version 2

Question 1

State environmental protection laws are examples of

A)
private restrictions.
B)
eminent domain.
C)
condemnation.
D)
police power.
Explanation
The answer is police power. The power to enact legislation to preserve order, protect the public health and safety, and promote the general welfare of citizens is police power.

Answer 1

D)

police power.

Question 2

In some states, a husband could not sell his property unless his wife also signed the deed. The wife’s interest was called

A)
personal property.
B)
curtesy.
C)
dower.
D)
homestead.
Explanation
The answer is dower. Historically, a wife's interest in her deceased husband's property was dower, a husband's interest was curtesy. Protection of some part of the family home is called homestead.

Answer 2

C)

dower.

Question 3

A suit for condemnation would be used to exercise which governmental right?

A)
Taxing
B)
Police power
C)
Escheat
D)
Eminent domain
Explanation
The answer is eminent domain. The process is condemnation; the power is eminent domain.

Answer 3

D)

Eminent domain

Question 4

Question #4 of 27
Question ID: 784982
The holder of a right of reentry of real estate (or the holder’s heir or successor) can assert the right

A)
by entering the property and claiming ownership.
B)
by bringing a legal action in court.
C)
by publishing a notice of transfer of title in a newspaper of public record.
D)
with no notice to the current property owner.
Explanation
The answer is by bringing a legal action in court. With a fee simple subject to a condition subsequent, the estate does not automatically terminate upon violation of the condition of ownership. The owner (or the owner’s heir or successor) has the right of reentry but must bring a legal action in court to assert the right.

Answer 4

B)

by bringing a legal action in court.

Question 5

Question #5 of 27
Question ID: 936503
The government’s authority to appoint local citizens to serve on boards to govern compliance with zoning standards and building codes for their communities is an example of

A)
police power.
B)
escheat.
C)
eminent domain.
D)
rule of law.
Explanation
The answer is police power. Police power is the right of every state to enact and enforce legislation to preserve order, protect the public health and safety, and promote the general welfare of its citizens.

Answer 5

A)

police power.

Question 6

Question #6 of 27
Question ID: 784965
The holder of the possibility of reverter of ownership of real estate (or the holder’s heir or successor) can reacquire full ownership of the property on violation of a special limitation

A)
with no need to bring a legal action in court.
B)
by petitioning the court for a certificate of title.
C)
with filing of a notice of transfer of title in a newspaper of public record.
D)
by bringing a suit to quiet title in court.
Explanation
The answer is with no need to bring a legal action in court. If the holder of a fee simple determinable violates the special limitation that has been imposed on the title, the holder of the possibility of reverter (or heir or successor) can reacquire full ownership with no need to bring a legal action in court.

Answer 6

A)

with no need to bring a legal action in court.

Question 7

Question #7 of 27
Question ID: 936507
If the government acquires privately owned real estate through a condemnation suit, it is exercising its power of

A)
eminent domain.
B)
defeasance.
C)
reverter.
D)
escheat.
Explanation
The answer is eminent domain. The right of the state to acquire private property for public use is eminent domain. The court action is called condemnation. Property escheats back to the state when it becomes ownerless; that is, the owner dies leaving no heirs and no will.

Answer 7

A)

eminent domain.

Question 8

Question #8 of 27
Question ID: 774064
A property owner dies without a will or lawful heirs. By what process does the property revert back to the government?

A)
lis pendens
B)
escheat
C)
prescription
D)
easement
Explanation
The answer is escheat. State laws provide for ownership to transfer, or escheat, to the state when an owner dies and leaves no heirs (as defined by state law) and there is no will or living trust instrument that directs how the real estate is to be distributed.

Answer 8

B)

escheat

Question 9

Question #9 of 27
Question ID: 774063
All of the following will terminate an easement EXCEPT

A)
nonuse of a prescriptive easement.
B)
when the need no longer exists.
C)
abandonment of easement.
D)
release of the right of easement to the dominant tenement.
Explanation
The answer is release of the right of easement to the dominant tenement. An easement is terminated when the owner of the dominant tenement releases that right to the owner of the servient tenement.

Answer 9

D)

release of the right of easement to the dominant tenement.

Question 10

Question #10 of 27
Question ID: 936060
The type of easement that is a right-of-way for a utility company’s power lines is

A)
an easement by necessity.
B)
an easement in gross.
C)
a nonassignable easement.
D)
an easement by prescription.
Explanation
The answer is an easement in gross. Easements in gross are individual rights to use someone's land, as in the case of the utility company. A commercial (but not a personal) easement in gross can be assigned, conveyed, and inherited.

Answer 10

B)

an easement in gross.

Question 11

Question #11 of 27
Question ID: 936489
A family owns a house across the street from a lake but has the right to use the lakefront homeowner’s driveway to access the lake because of the existence of

A)
an easement.
B)
an encroachment.
C)
a life estate.
D)
a homestead.
Explanation
The answer is an easement. An easement is the right to use the land of another for a particular purpose.

Answer 11

A)

an easement.

Question 12

Question #12 of 27
Question ID: 936497
Notice of a pending legal action that can be filed in the public record is

A)
the declaration of homestead.
B)
the lis pendens.
C)
the bill of encroachment.
D)
the request to the court.
Explanation
The answer is the lis pendens. The lis pendens is a notice filed in the public record of a pending legal action affecting the title to or possession of property.

Answer 12

B)

the lis pendens.

Question 13

Question #13 of 27
Question ID: 936485
Government powers include police power, eminent domain, taxation, and

A)
reliction.
B)
accretion.
C)
avulsion.
D)
escheat.
Explanation
The answer is escheat. A governing body is able to enact laws to protect the public's welfare through its police power, take property for a public use by its right of eminent domain, enact taxes to provide for maintenance of public services, and take over ownership of property when an owner dies and no heir can be found.

Answer 13

D)

escheat.

Question 14

Question #14 of 27
Question ID: 936488
A deed restriction is considered

A)
a private restriction, and it is conveyed in the deed to the current property owner.
B)
a restraint on alienation because it may prevent the property from being sold.
C)
a public restriction if it benefits other property owners.
D)
a quasi-public restriction because it can be used to benefit all property owners in a subdivision.
Explanation
The answer is a private restriction, and it is conveyed in the deed to the current property owner. A deed restriction will run with the land (convey to a subsequent property owner) and cannot violate any law, such as a fair housing law.

Answer 14

A)

a private restriction, and it is conveyed in the deed to the current property owner.

Question 15

Question #15 of 27
Question ID: 936491
A tenant who rents an apartment from the owner of the property holds

A)
a freehold interest.
B)
an easement.
C)
a leasehold interest.
D)
a license.
Explanation
The answer is a leasehold interest. The leasehold interest held by a tenant is not revocable like a license and lasts for a fixed period. It is less than a life estate and so is not a freehold, but unlike an easement, it gives its holder the right to possess the land.

Answer 15

C)

a leasehold interest.

Question 16

Question #16 of 27
Question ID: 936492
Regulations that govern the use, occupancy, size, location, and construction of real property also fall within the government’s police

A)
enforcement.
B)
authority.
C)
power.
D)
presence.
Explanation
The answer is power. Regulations that govern the use, occupancy, size, location, and construction of real estate also fall within the government's police power.

Answer 16

C)

power.

Question 17

Question #17 of 27
Question ID: 936515
A patient died in a nursing home. The deceased left no will and had no heirs. What happens to the deceased’s $250,000 estate?

A)
It can be paid over to the deceased’s church.
B)
It will be split between the nursing home and the county.
C)
The nursing home gets to keep it.
D)
It escheats to the state or county.
Explanation
The answer is it escheats to the state or county. Because the patient died without a will and there are no heirs, the $250,000 becomes the property of the state or county.

Answer 17

D)

It escheats to the state or county.

Question 18

Question #18 of 27
Question ID: 936502
An encroachment describes improvements that

A)
is in need of deferred maintenance.
B)
does not comply with zoning.
C)
extend over adjoining lot lines.
D)
has not been recorded.
Explanation
The answer is extend over adjoining lot lines. An example of an encroachment is a shed that extends two feet onto the neighbor's property.

Answer 18

C)

extend over adjoining lot lines.

Question 19

Question #19 of 27
Question ID: 936052
Your neighbors use your driveway to reach the garage on their property. Your attorney explains that the neighbors’ real estate includes an easement appurtenant giving them the right to do this. Your property is

A)
the leasehold interest.
B)
the dominant tenement.
C)
the license property.
D)
the servient tenement.
Explanation
The answer is the servient tenement. Your driveway is on the property over which the easement runs and is the servient tenement. The adjacent property owned by the neighbors is known as the dominant tenement.

Answer 19

D)

the servient tenement.

Question 20

Question #20 of 27
Question ID: 936050
One who has ownership rights of real estate that could continue forever and which provide that no other person can claim to be the owner of or have any ownership control over the property has

A)
condition subsequent.
B)
determinable fee.
C)
fee simple absolute.
D)
life estate.
Explanation
The answer is fee simple absolute. Fee simple is an absolute ownership—an inheritable interest "with no strings attached." A life estate is noninheritable; fee on condition subsequent and determinable fees are both estates involving another person with an interest called "possibility of (either reverter or) re-entry."

Answer 20

C)

fee simple absolute.

Question 21

Question #21 of 27
Question ID: 441329
A property on Main Street that was formerly a retail store will become the site of a new city hall, made possible by the government’s power of

A)
eminent domain.
B)
taxation.
C)
possibility of reverter.
D)
escheat.
Explanation
The answer is eminent domain. Eminent domain is the right of the government to acquire privately owned real estate for public use.

Answer 21

A)

eminent domain.

Question 22

Question #22 of 27
Question ID: 784976
Which of the following is NOT a governmental power?

A)
Police power
B)
Eminent domain
C)
Dedication
D)
Taxation
Explanation
The answer is dedication. Governmental powers are police power, escheat, eminent domain, and taxation.

Answer 22

C)

Dedication

Question 23

Question #23 of 27
Question ID: 936500
Upon the death of a life tenant, the holder of the remainder estate will have which type of estate?

A)
Life estate
B)
Estate at will
C)
Fee simple absolute estate
D)
Estate for years
Explanation
The answer is fee simple absolute estate. Upon the death of the life tenant, the estate either returns to the grantor through a reversionary interest or goes to the designated remainderman. In either case, the estate will be a fee simple absolute.

Answer 23

C)

Fee simple absolute estate

Question 24

Question #24 of 27
Question ID: 441337
A homestead is a legal life estate in real estate that is

A)
occupied as the family home.
B)
leased by renters.
C)
used as a vacation home.
D)
a secondary residence.
Explanation
The answer is occupied as the family home. In many states, a portion of the area or value of this land is protected or exempt from judgments for debts other than those secured by the property.

Answer 24

A)

occupied as the family home.

Question 25

Question #25 of 27
Question ID: 936483
Another name for a qualified fee estate is

A)
the legal life estate.
B)
the fee simple absolute.
C)
the conventional life estate.
D)
the fee simple defeasible.
Explanation
The answer is the fee simple defeasible. A fee simple defeasible estate is a qualified fee estate subject to the occurrence or nonoccurrence of some specified event.

Answer 25

D)

the fee simple defeasible.

Question 26

Question #26 of 27
Question ID: 453099
A statutory right that a family has in its residence is called

A)
homestead.
B)
survivorship.
C)
entirety.
D)
curtesy.
Explanation
The answer is homestead. A homestead is a legal life estate that ensures that the home (or part of it) is protected from creditors during the occupants' lifetime.

Answer 26

A)

homestead.

Question 27

Question #27 of 27
Question ID: 936520
For as long as anyone can remember, neighbor families have used a footpath to get to the river. Recently, the current owner of the footpath erected a fence across the path. Which of these easements might the neighbors claim would require the owner of the footpath to remove the fence?

A)
Appurtenant easement
B)
Easement by prescription
C)
Easement in gross
D)
Easement by necessity
Explanation
The answer is easement by prescription. Long-time unauthorized usage may create legal rights leading to an easement by prescription. An easement in gross is a personal right, often used by utility companies. An easement by necessity could be imposed by court order to provide access to a landlocked property.

Answer 27

B)

Easement by prescription