week 9 class notes - land and mortgages Flashcards
What is real property?
Land and everything that attaches to it.
What does land include at common law?
Buildings, minerals, airspace above and below.
What happens when personal property is attached to land?
It becomes a fixture.
Under the feudal system, how was land granted?
In return for military or agricultural service, reverting (escheat) to the Crown when service ended.
What is tenure?
The system where estates in land were granted by the Crown.
What is a freehold estate?
An estate with fixed services attached, which eventually became permanent.
What is fee simple?
The highest form of land holding, existing forever and inheritable.
How were estates in land originally created?
Through a Crown patent.
What rights does fee simple allow?
Alienation, sale, gifting, inheritance.
What happens if a fee simple owner dies without heirs?
The land escheats (reverts) to the Crown.
What is expropriation?
The forced taking of land by the Crown, with compensation to the owner.
When can expropriation occur?
When land is needed for public projects like highways or hydro lines.
Who is the grantor in a land transfer?
The person transferring the interest in land.
Who is the grantee?
The person receiving the interest in land.
What is a deed?
A document that transfers an interest in land.
What does the Statute of Frauds require for land contracts?
They must be in writing.
When is a transfer legally completed?
When the deed is executed, delivered, and registered.
What is a life estate?
An estate that grants rights similar to fee simple but only for a person’s lifetime.
What happens when a life tenant dies?
The land reverts to the original grantor or their heirs.
What is a reversion interest?
The fee simple interest that remains with the grantor when a life estate is granted.
What can a life tenant NOT do?
Commit waste (destroy property, remove trees or buildings unnecessarily).
What are the financial responsibilities of a life tenant?
Paying interest on mortgages and land taxes, but not principal or local improvement taxes.
What is a leasehold estate?
A grant of possession for a period in return for rent.
How is a leasehold estate different from fee simple?
It is temporary and contractual rather than permanent ownership.
Why are leasehold estates common in the UK?
They help with housing affordability.
What are the two parts of a condominium estate?
Exclusive ownership of a unit and shared ownership of common elements.
What does a condominium declaration do?
Sets out rights, obligations, and management guidelines for the condominium.
How are common elements owned?
As tenants in common.
Who manages a condominium?
A board of directors elected by unit owners.
How can a condominium be terminated?
By unanimous or high-percentage vote of owners.
What is a co-op housing corporation?
A corporation where members acquire shares and receive occupancy rights.
How is membership terminated?
By removing occupancy rights.
What is an easement?
A right to use another person’s land for a specific purpose.
What is a dominant tenement?
The land benefiting from an easement.
What is a servient tenement?
The land burdened by an easement.
What is a restrictive covenant?
A legal obligation to not use land in a certain way, often to maintain property values.
Who usually owns mineral rights in Canada?
The Crown, unless granted otherwise.
What are riparian rights?
Rights of landowners adjacent to water bodies to reasonable water use.
What actions are prohibited under riparian rights?
Obstructing water flow, polluting, or altering fish habitats.
What is adverse possession?
Claiming ownership of land through continuous, open, and notorious use.
What are the three criteria for adverse possession?
- Actual possession
- Intent to exclude others
- Discontinuance of possession by the owner
Where does adverse possession not apply?
Provinces with the Land Titles system.
What happens if a structure encroaches on another’s land?
If unchallenged, the encroaching party may gain rights over time.
What is a fixture?
A chattel attached to real property that becomes part of the land.
What are joint tenants?
Co-owners with equal undivided shares and a right of survivorship.
What happens when a joint tenant dies?
Their share automatically transfers to the surviving tenants.
What is tenancy-in-common?
Co-ownership without survivorship rights, where shares can be willed or transferred.
What was the old system for proving land ownership?
Keeping all title documents and proving a chain of title.
What does the Land Titles system do?
Guarantees clear title, eliminating the need for a 40-year title search.
What is Polaris?
Ontario’s computerized land registration system.
Who is the mortgagor?
The debtor (borrower).
Who is the mortgagee?
The creditor (lender).
What is the purpose of a mortgage?
To use property as security for a loan.
What is an acceleration clause?
A clause allowing the lender to demand full repayment upon default.
What is an equitable mortgage?
A mortgage that does not transfer title, but still secures debt.
How are mortgage priorities determined?
By the order of registration in the land registry office.
