Real Property Ownership/Interest

Separate Property

Property owned by a married person in his or her own right outside of the community interest including property acquired by the spouse (1) before marriage, (2) by gift or inheritance, (3) from rents and profits on separate property, and (4) with the proceeds from other separate property.

Warranty of Habitability

Requires the landlord to keep the property in good condition by maintaining common areas, equipment etc.

Covenant of quiet enjoyment

Requires the owner or lessor to enter the property with permission unless it is for an emergency

Easements

Right of a nonowner to use real property for a specific purpose

Ingress

Right to enter a property

Egress

Right to exit a property

Three Types of Ownership

Severalty, co-ownership, trust

Property Taxes

Specific involuntary liens placed on the owners property also called ad valorem taxes

Special Assessments lien

Taxes levied for improvement of the property

Leased Fee Interest

The Lessor/owners interest

Estate in land

The degree, quantity, nature, and extent of interest a person has in real property.

Servient estate

The estate that is burden by an easement

Sale-leaseback

The grantor sells the property to the grantee and then leases it back

Leasehold interest

The leasee's Interest

Time Share / Interval ownership

The owner receives a deed that allows possession for an allotted time each year

Lienor

The party placing a claim on the property

Lienee

The party who owns the property upon which the lien has been placed

Conversion

The procession of changing one form of ownership to another, such as converting an apartment building to a condominium

Curtesy

The rights that a husband acquires in the wife's property upon her death.

Dower

The rights that a wife acquires in her husband's fee simple property.

Sole Proprietorship

The simplest form of business ownership by a single person

Percentage Lease

The tenant agrees to pay a fixed base rental fee plus a percentage of the gross income in excess of a pre-determined minimum amount of sales

Net Lease

The tenant agrees to pay ownership expenses such as utilities, property taxes, and special assessments

Lease purchase

The tenant agrees to purchase the property at a specific price within a certain time period usually at the end of a lease

Lease Option

The tenant has the option to purchase the property at a specific price at a specific time

Reversionary Right

To retake to property at the end of the lease.

Partnership

Two or more people form a business for profit as co-owners

Termination of leases

Upon the term of the lease, proper notice, surrender and acceptance, abandonment, merger, destruction, or condemnation

Basic Elements and Provision of Leases

Use of premises, term of lease, safekeeping and return of sec deposit, payments for tenant improvements, payment for maintenance, parking spaces, condemnation clause, compliance clause, insurance clause, noncompliance clause, renewals and rent increases, expansion options, responsibility of the landlord and the tenant

life estates

When a life tenant has right to occupy a piece of property for life or earn income from the piece of property for life, after which control of the property passes to the designated owner

Sublease

When a tenant assigns less than all the leasehold interest.

Constructive Eviction

When the landlord breaches the lease and the tenant must leave the premises because they have become uninhabitable

Attachment

a court order that directs the sheriff or another authorized person to retain custody of the property

Graduated lease

a lease that allows for a periodic step up of rent payments

Tenancy for years

a lease with a definite time period . No notice is needed to terminate the estate

Dominant Estate

a property that benefits from an easement

The Declaration

allows the developer to create a condominium community

Lease

an agreement that transfers exclusive possession and use of real estate from a landlord / owner / lessor

special assessments

are improvements to the property that are not covered by the maintenance fee and must be paid by the owners

Special Limitation with Possibility of Reverter

ends automatically upon current owner's failure to comply with limitation, former owner reacquires full ownership with no need to re-enter the land or go to court.. also known as the fee simple determinable (under fee simple defeasible)

Bylaws

govern the operations of the homeowners association which manages the community

proprietary lease

grants occupancy of a specific unit in the building

Judgement

if a party has been found guilty in a lawsuit and foes not pay

Actual Eviction

is when the landlord files a suit for possession because the tenant has breached the lease

Gross Lease

or a straight lease, the tenant agrees to pay a fixed renal amount

Index lease

the lease contains an escalation clause that allows the lease payment to change based on the index.

Syndicate

when two or more people unite and pool their resources to own, develop and or operate an investment

Priority of Liens

1., Real Estate taxes and special assessments are paid first 2. Debtor in first or senior position is paid next 3. Junior debtor paid in order of recording 3. Mechanics or contractors

Joint Venture

A business relationship that is limited to certain a certain time frame. Capitol, revenues, expenses, and assets are shared.

Specific Lien

A claim against a particular property only

General Lien

A claim against all property of the owner, both real and personal property

Lien

A claim against real estate to satisfy the payment of money

nondisturbance clause

A clause that that agrees not to terminate the lease upon a foreclosure.

estate for years

A conveyance of realty for a definite stated period of time. The term may be one year, one month, one week or even one day. No notice needed to terminate.

Joint Tenancy

A form of concurrent ownership, which occurs when two or more persons own a single estate in land, with right of survivorship. Must have equal shares, right to partition.

IRS tax lien

A general, statutory, involuntary lien on all real and personal property owned by a debtor resulting from non payment of income or withholding tax

Uniform Residential Landlord & Tenant Act

A law that is designed to standardize and regulate the relationship between property owners and their tenants

Tenancy at Will

A lease that gives the tenant the right to possess the property with the consent of the landlord for an uncertain time period. The lease can be terminated at any time by the landlord or tenant with proper notice

Periodic Tenancy

A lease with an indefinite time period. The lease automatically renews until proper notice is given

A Corporation

A legal entity that is seen as an artificial person with a board of directors to manage the business.

Machanics lien

A lien placed on property by a party who preformed labor or furnished material to improve the property

Easement

A limited right to make use of a property owned by another.

Torrens System

A method of legal registration of land where title does not transfer and encumbrances are not effective against the property until the proper documents are registered at the Torrens office.

Life tenant

A person in possession of a life estate

Homestead

A portion of the value of the real estate that is protected from unsecured creditors

Community Property

A statutory estate - all property acquired after a marriage is jointly owned by the husband and wife

Tenancy at Sufferance

A tenancy created when a tenant remains in possession of the property without the consent of the landlord after the lease expires.

Assignment

A tenant who transfers all the leasehold interest

Mortgage lien

A voluntary lien securing the loan for the lender until the debt is paid off

fee simple absolute

Absolute ownership. The greatest interest that one can have in real property. An estate that is without restriction, of indefinite duration, freely transferable and inheritable.

Appurtenances

Accessories A right, privilege, or property that is considered incident to the principal property for purposes such as passage of title, conveyance or inheritance; a thing that is necessarily connected with the use and enjoyment of another thing.

Life estate Pur Autre Vie

Also known as the estate for the life of another.The estate is owned for the lifetime of some named third party. A life estate that is designed to last for the life of another person

A Security

An act where a party joins with other in the expectation of making a profit from the efforts of others.

Town House

An attached single family dwelling normally with two floors.

freehold estate

An estate in real property which continues for an indefinite period of time.

Fee Simple estates

An estate of unlimited duration, also referred to as an estate of inheritance. - These are the highest types of interest in real estate law - complete ownership. The owner of this has the entire bundle of rights including the right to pass the real estate to heirs. Therefore, also known as an estate of inheritance.

Fee Simple determinable

An estate which has been created to exist only until the occurrence or nonoccurrence of a particular event. Returns automatically.

Fee Simple Defeasible

An interest in land/estate that has limitations. Examples include: So long as it's used as a church, No alcoholic beverages can be sold on the property, etc.

Tenancy in Common

An interest in real estate held by two or more persons without right of ‎survivorship.‎ Ownership of real or personal property by two or more persons in which ownership at the death of one co-owner is part of the owner's ESTATE, and does not pass to the co-owner(s).

tenancy at will

An occupation of space for an indefinite period which can be terminated by either the lessor or lessee at any time.

non-freehold estate or leasehold estate

An ownership interest in land generally of a fixed of determinable duration.

Intangible

Assets that are saleable though not material or physical. i.e water rights, easements, privileges etc.

Appurtenant Easement

Benefit of easement is held by the title holder of a neighboring parcel. Easement runs with the land.

Easement in gross

Benefits a person or an entity. Example: Power lines, utilities,

Tangible

Capable of being touched

Limited Liability Company LLC

Classified as an unincorporated association with the advantage of being able to pass through income in the members of the company to avoid double taxation.

Condition Subsequent with Right of Reentry

Condition subsequent - If the owner sells the property with the condition that certain requirements need to be met or the property needs to be used for a certain purpose and the buyer breaches this condition subsequent after the sale, the seller may take possession of the property and regain title.

A master deed

Conveys the land to condominium use

Conventional Life Estate

Created by grant from the owner of the fee simple estate. The owner retains a reversionary interest in the property or names a remainderman.

Statutory Lien

Created by law such as a judgment

Involuntary Lien

Created by law without any action on the part of the owner

Planned unit developments

Designed for high density of dwellings

General Partnership

Each person is classified as a general partner and may share in all of the decisions of running the business

Voluntary Lien

Established intentionally by the owner such as a mortgage lien

Remainder or Reversion

Legal Future Interests; who gets the estate when you die

Constructive notice

Legal notice created by recording documents , such as deeds, mortgages and long term leases in the county where the property is located.

Reversion

Life tenant has full use and enjoyment property for tenants life

Actual Notice

Occurs when a party has actual knowledge of a fact.

Limited partnership

One or more general partners are assigned to run the business. The other partners are known as silent or limited partners

Cooperative

Ownership, a corporation holds title to the property