Property Ownership and Land Use Controls and Regulations

contiguous

In close proximity.

littoral rights

Rights to shorefront land held by landowners whose property borders large, navigable lakes and oceans.

special assessment

1) Legal charge against real estate by a public authority to pay cost of public improvements such as street lights, sidewalks, street improvements. 2) In a common interest subdivision, a charge, in addition to the regular assessment, levied by the association against owners in the development, for unanticipated repairs or maintenance on the common area or capital improvement of the common area

Subdivision Map Act

A California subdivision law setting forth the conditions for approval of a subdivision map and requiring enactment of subdivision ordinances by which local governments have direct control over the types of subdivision projects to be undertaken and the physical improvements to be installed.

civil law

A Spanish legal system in which elaborate statutes are created to address potential issues in advance of disputes.

encumbrance

A claim or lien on a parcel of real estate, such as trust deeds, CC&Rs, easements, taxes or assessments.

Federal Housing Administration (FHA)

A collection of policies designed to prevent the arbitrary restriction of access to housing based on an occupant's inclusion in a protected class.

Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act

A collection of significant changes to U.S. financial regulation in response to the financial crisis.

party wall

A common boundary improvement located on a property line between adjacent properties, such as a wall, fence or building co-owned by the adjacent property owners.

partition

A division of real or personal property or the proceeds there from among co-owners.

declaration of homestead

A document signed by a homeowner and filed with the county recorder's office to protect the owner-occupant's homestead equity from seizure by creditors.

tenement

A freehold interest in land and things immovable located on the land.

Section 8 housing

A government housing program for low income households which provides qualifying tenants with rent subsidies and minimum habitability standards.

Fannie Mae

A government-sponsored entity operating in the secondary mortgage market.

right of alienation

A homeowner's ability to sell or lease the property for a period exceeding one year.

tenancy-at-will

A leasehold interest granted to a tenant, with no fixed duration or rent owed. A tenancy-at-will can be terminated at any time by an advance notice from either party.

tenancy-at-sufferance

A leasehold interest held by a tenant who retains possession of the rented premises after the termination of the tenancy.

fixed-term tenancy

A leasehold interest which lasts for the specific lease period set forth in a lease agreement. A fixed-term tenancy automatically terminates at the end of the lease period.

subdivision

A legal definition of those divisions of real property for the purpose of sale, lease or financing which are regulated by law.

adverse possession

A method of acquiring title to real property through possession of the property for a statutory period under certain conditions by a person other than the owner of record.

vesting

A method of holding title to real estate, including joint tenancy, tenancy in common, community property and community property with the right of survivorship.

riparian land

A parcel of real estate located next to a water source with surface water and within the watershed of the surface water

section

A portion of land is established by government survey which contains 640 acres and is one mile square.

estate for life

A possessory, freehold estate in land held by a person only for the duration of his or her life or the life or lives of another.

right of way

A privilege operating as an easement upon land, whereby the owner does by grant, or by agreement, give to another the right to pass over owner s land, to construct a roadway, or use as a roadway, a specific part of the land; or the right to construct through and over the land, telephone, telegraph, or electric power lines; or the right to place underground water mains, gas mains, or sewer mains

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) mortgage guarantee

A program that assists qualified veterans or their surviving spouses to buy a home with zero down payment.

Home Mortgage Disclosure Act

A regulatory scheme requiring lenders to publically release loan data.

easement

A right, privilege or interest limited to a specific purpose which one party has in the land of another

aklaline

A soil with a pH level above 7.

avulsion

A sudden and perceptible loss of land by the action of water, such as by a rapid change in the course of a river.

public policy

A system of laws maintained by local, state or federal government for the conduct of its people.

building code

A systematic regulation of construction of buildings within a municipality established by ordinance or law.

leasehold estate

A tenant's right to occupy real estate during the term of the lease. This is a personal property interest.

deciduous

A tree that loses its leaves each year.

ingress and egress

A type of easement granting one property owner the right to traverse a portion of another's land to access their property.

accretion

Accession by natural forces, e.g., alluvium.

bundle of rights

All of the legal rights incident to ownership of property including rights of use, possession, encumbering and disposition.

community property

All property acquired by husband or wife during a marriage when not acquired as the separate property of either spouse.

adobe

Also known as clay, adobe soil is a naturally occurring heavy material which readily cracks and is composed primarily of fine-grained minerals.

common law

An English legal system in which disputes are decided on a case-by-case basis before a judge.

accession

An addition to property through the efforts of man or by natural forces.

solar easement

An easement restricting an owner's ability to maintain improvements interfering with a neighbor's solar energy system.

easement in gross

An easement which belongs to an individual and is not appurtenant to a property

estate at sufferance

An estate arising when the tenant wrongfully holds over after the expiration of the term. The landlord has the choice of evicting the tenant as a trespasser or accepting such tenant for a similar term and under the conditions of the tenant s previous holding. Also called a tenancy at sufferance.

freehold estate

An estate of indeterminable duration, e.g., fee simple or life estate.

encroachment

An improvement on one parcel of real estate which extends onto real estate belonging to another person without their consent.

fee estate

An indefinite, exclusive and absolute legal ownership interest in a parcel of real estate.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

An independent federal agency fathered by the Dodd-Frank Act responsible for regulating consumer protection with regards to financial services and products.

life estate

An interest in a parcel of real estate lasting the lifetime of the life tenant.

estate for years

An interest in lands by virtue of a contract for the possession of them for a definite and limited period of time. May be for a year or less. A lease may be said to be an estate for years.

estate

As applied to real estate, the term signifies the quantity of interest, share, right, equity, of which riches or fortune may consist in real property. The degree, quantity, nature and extent of interest which a person has in real property.

zoning

Building and land use restrictions enacted by local policy makers to ensure a consistent flow of improvements to meet the demand of population growth.

tenancy in common

Co-ownership of property by two or more persons who each hold an undivided interest, without right of survivorship; interests need not be equal.

general plan

Development policies for acceptable land uses within a jurisdiction.

Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA)

Fannie Mae a quasipublic agency converted into a private corporation whose primary function is to buy and sell FHA and VA mortgages in the secondary market.

State Water Resources Control Board

Government entity established to ensure the proper allocation and efficient use of state water resources.

Subdivided Lands Law

Government regulations that empower the Real Estate Commissioner to approve a public report for the sale of property divided and developed by the land owners.

senior citizen housing

Housing intended for persons 55 or 62 years of age or older

township

In the survey of public lands of the United States, a territorial subdivision six miles long, six miles wide and containing 36 sections, each one mile square, located between two range lines and two township lines.

rent control

Local ordinances that are reasonably related to the prevention of excessive rents and maintaining the availability of existing housing

Alquist-Priolo Maps

Maps which identify earthquake fault areas available from the State Mining and Geology Board and the city or county planning department.

incorporeal rights

Nonpossessory rights in real estate, a rising out of ownership, such as rents.

joint tenancy

Ownership of an interest in property concurrently received by two or more individuals who share equally and have the right of survivorship

building permit

Permits issued by a city or county building department authorizing commencement of construction in accordance with minimum safety standards.

mobilehome

Property designed to be used as a dwelling, classified as either personal or real property depending on this method of attachment. Also known as a manufactured home.

expansive

Soils that expand when water is added then shrink when they dry out. Such continuous change in soil condition can cause property built on this soil to settle unevenly and crack.

Department of Fair Employment and Housing

State agency designated with protecting Californians from housing, employment, and public accommodation discrimination.

common interest development

Subdivided lands which include a separate interest in real property combined with an interest in common with other owners. The interest in common may be through membership in an association. Examples are condominium projects, cooperatives or single family residences in a planned unit development.

public housing

Subsidized housing typically reserved for lowincome families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities.

appurtenance

That which belongs to something, but not immemorially; all those rights, privileges, and improvements which belong to and pass with the transfer of the property, but which are not necessarily a part of the actual property. Appurtenances to real property pass with the real property to which they are appurtenant, unless a contrary intention is manifested. Typical appurtenances are rights-of-way, easements, water rights, and any property improvements.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

The Department of Housing and Urban Development which is responsible for the implementation and administration of U.S. government housing and urban development programs.

Mello-Roos

The Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982 authorizes the formation of community facilities districts; the issuance of bonds, and the levying of special taxes thereunder to finance designated public facilities and services.

condemnation

The act of taking private property for public use by a political subdivision upon payment to owner of just compensation. Declaration that a structure is unfit for use.

appropriation

The action of taking something for one's own use, such as water from a stream.

assemblage

The combining of land parcels to create a value higher than the sum of their parts.

police power

The constitutional source of the state or local government's authority to act.

reversion

The conveyance of real estate fixtures from a tenant to landlord on expiration of a lease.

alluvium

The gradual increase of the earth on a shore of an ocean or bank of a stream resulting from the action of the water

reliction

The gradual recession of water leaving land permanently uncovered.

fee simple estate

The greatest interest that one can have in real property. An estate that is unqualified, of indefinite duration, freely transferable and inheritable.

reversionary interest

The interest which a person has in lands or other property, upon the termination of the preceding estate. A future interest.

estate at will

The occupation of lands and tenements by a tenant for an indefinite period, terminable by one or both parties.

dominant tenement

The property benefitting from an easement whose owner is entitled to use the easement.

servient tenement

The property whose title is burdened by an easement limiting its owner's use of the portion of the property subject to the easement.

principal residence

The residential property where the homeowner resides a majority of the year.

escheat

The reverting of property to the State when heirs capable of inheriting are lacking.

riparian rights

The right of a real estate owner to take surface water from a running water source contiguous to their land.

overlying rights

The right of a real estate owner to take the ground water below the surface of their land.

eminent domain

The right of government to take private property for public use. The government on the taking pays the owner the fair market value of the property.

ownership

The right of one or more persons to possess and use property to the exclusion of all others. A collection of rights to the use and enjoyment of property.

right of survivorship

The right of surviving joint tenants or a spouse to succeed to the entire interest of the deceased co-owner.

profit a prendre

The right to remove minerals from another's real estate.

prescriptive easement

The right to use another's property established by the adverse use of the property for a period in excess of five years without a claim of ownership.

prescriptive right

The right to use water established by appropriating nonsurplus water openly and adversely for an uninterrupted period of five years without documentation of a legal right.

alienation

The transferring of property to another; the transfer of property and possession of lands, or other things, from one person to another

agreed-boundary doctrine

When owners of adjacent properties uncertain over the true boundary agree to establish the location of their common lot line and acquiesce to the boundary line for at least five years.

covenants, conditions and restrictions

Written rules, limitations and restrictions on use mutually agreed to by all property owners in a subdivision or common interest development.