Unit 3: Ownership and Title Transfer Flashcards
2 parties to a deed
Grantor
Grantee
Deed
- Written legal document by which ownership of property is transferred from one party to another
- Must be signed by the grantor to convey title
- does not pass to the grantee until the deed is delivered and accepted
- must have legal description to be valid
- executed by grantor signing
- recording is not essential
- voluntary alienation of real property
Covenant of Quiet enjoyment
Assurance to the grantee that he will not be disturbed by someone else with a lawful interest in the property
Quit claim deed
Conveys whatever interest in the property the grantor holds at the time of conveyance and contains no covenants or warranties
Grantor conveys nothing
Used to clear clouds on title and release interest in property (divorce)
Grantor wants no future claims or liability
Special Warranty Deed
Deed with warranties that apply only to the period the grantor owned the property
*corporation buys your house in moving package
No protection against previous claims
Used by banks to,transfer title to foreclosed property
Severally
Property owned by one person
Upon death goes to heirs or devises
Tenants in common
Form of concurrent ownership in which each tenant owns an undivided ownership share in the entire property
Has no right of survivorship to other owners
Interests go to heirs or devises upon death
Owners must buy at the same time
Shares can be equal or unequal
Married couple who divorce and still own property together
General warranty deed
Considered the best deed for a grantee
Joint tenancy
Concurrent ownership in which all of the owners have equal shares in the property
Has right of survivorship, overrides a will
Does NOT require com owners to go thru probate to obtain title
Not typical in NC
If 1 owner sells share, new owner will be a tenant in common
Time share
Undivided interest in a resort condominium as a tenant in common for at least 5 times over 5 years
No set number of days or years required unless created by state law
Condominium
Created by filing a declaration
Common elements are owned by all current owners as tenants in common . Elements owned as ‘tenants in common’
Deed transfers fee simple interest in unit plus undivided interest in common elements
Cooperative
A person who holds stock in a building owned by a corporation and owns rights
Adverse possession
An owner who fails to inspect her real property and give notice to a trespasser might loose the right of ownership
Ownership recognized after pen, continuous , exclusive , actual and notorious (hostile) possession of another’s land for a certain period of time set by state law
Can not be adverse possession if all parties know and agree to the possession
Tacking
Group of people who have continuously used a path over private property may gain the right to prescriptive easement thru this process
In NC the period in which to make a claim is 20 yrs
Tenants by the Entirety
Married couples in NC typically take title as this
Each spouse owns equal, undivided interest regardless of financial contribution
Automatic survivorship, spouse becomes owner in severalty
Will can not over ride
Covenant of Seisin
Covenant affirms that grantor holds title and has the right to convey it to another
Probate process
Required if party died testate
Act of distributing all of a deceased person’s assets
Title to real property
Occurs at the moment the deed is delivered and accepted
Syndication
2 or more people or firms joining together as an entity to own real estate
Corporation, partnership, trust, real estate investment trust (REIT)
4 essential elements of Joint Tenancy
1) Possession
2) Interest
3) Title
4) Time
Partition lawsuit
Can divide property among co owners
Townhouse
Horizontal units that own land under unit
Common elements owned by HOA
Cooperative
Corporation gets tax wrote off and pays the taxes
Owned by the corporation which allows owners occupancy
Buyers receive membership in association, shares of stick, proprietary lease which gives right of possession
Alienation
Act of conveying real estate title
Thru:
Private grant : from individuals using deed
Public Grant: from the gov to individuals using a land patent
Dedication : from individuals to the government
Essential elements of a valid deed:
1) competent grantor : 18, sane and sober
2) identifiable grantee (does not have to be competent)
3) words of conveyance: (granting clause) states seller is making a grant that conveys warranties of the deed
4) legal description
5) consideration : money or something of value
6) execution by the grantor : must be signed by all owners in order to convey
7) delivery to and acceptance by the grantee
5 covenants and warranty to title in a deed
1) covenant of Seisin- grantor owns and has the right to convey
2) covenant of quiet enjoyment- guaranteed owner will not be ‘disturbed’ by 3rd party claims
3) covenant against encumbrances- all liens removed
4) covenant of further assurance - cooperation in signing additional documents
5) warranty forever - guarantee of defense of title against claims such as liens or easements
Correction deed
Used to correct title issues such as misspelling
Typically not used to release interest in a property
Other deeds
1) bargain in sale deed: no warranties against liens, but warrants grantors right to convey title
2) Trustee deed/sheriffs deed/certificate of sale: transfers title at the end of a foreclosure
3) Reconveyance deed: used when borrowers pay off a loan secured by deed of trust
4
NC Special Purpose Deeds:
1) timber deed - transfers timber rights
2) mineral deed- transfers subsurface rights
3) tax deed- given at tax foreclosure sale
4) deed of gift: used to make gift of real property
Devise
Act of transferring a deceased per dibs interest in real estate by deed
Bequest
Act of transferring a deceased person’s assets by bill of sale
Intestate secession (no will)
Heirs/descendants determined by stare laws of descent
NC uses system of intestate succession, not statutory marital estates
OCEAN (easement by prescription)
O: open - visible use
C: continuous
E: exclusive -distinct
A: actual
N: notorious (hostile)
Adverse possession : possession
Prescriptive easement: use
Seller’s disclosure statement :completed by seller (not broker) to the best of their knowledge
Should cover:
1) Land/soil and environmental conditions
2) structural issues and condition of fixtures
3) lot size, encroachments, easements etc
4) all material defects
5) tax liens or special assessments
Broker disclosure
Must do a visual inspection
1) disclose all material defects found
2) request that seller disclose any latent defects
