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A
abandonment:
The voluntary surrender or relinquishment of
possession of real property with the intention of terminating one’s possession
or interest but without the besting of this interest in any other person, such
as when a person moves and abandons leased property before the lease term has
expired.
abatement:
Elimination or reduction of real estate taxes to
attract new business to an area.
abstract of title:
the condensed history of a title to a particular parcel of real estate,
consisting of a summary of the original grant and all subsequent conveyances and
encumbrances affecting the property and a certification by the abstractor that
the history is complete and accurate.
abstract of title with
lawyer’s opinion: an abstract of title
that a lawyer has examined and has certified to be, in his or her opinion, an
accurate statement of fact.
acceleration clause:
the clause in a mortgage or trust deed
or note that can be enforced to make the entire amount of principal and interest
due immediately if the mortgagor defaults on an installment payment or other
covenant
accession:
acquiring title to additions or improvements to
real property as a result of the annexation of fixtures or the accretion of
alluvial deposits along the banks of streams.
accretion:
the increase or addition of land by the deposit
of sand or soil washed up naturally from a river, lake, or sea.
accrued items:
on a closing statement, items of expense that
are incurred but not yet payable, such as interest on a mortgage loan or taxes
on real property.
acknowledgement:
a formal declaration made before a duly authorized officer, usually a
notary public, by a person who has signed a document testing that he or she
executed the instrument and that it was his or her free and voluntary act.
acre
a measure of land equal to 43,560 square feet,
4,840 square yards, 4,047 square meters, 160 square rods, or .4047 hectare.
actual eviction:
the result of legal action, originated by a lessor, whereby a defaulted
tenant is physically ousted from the rented property pursuant to a court order.
See also eviction.
actual notice:
express information or fact; that which is
known; direct knowledge.
adjustable-rate mortgage
(ARM): a mortgage loan in which the
interest rate may increase or decrease at specified intervals over the life of
the loan.
adjusted bias:
See bias.
adjusted sales price:
for income tax purposes, the actually
sales price reduced by allowable sales expenses.
administrator/administratix:
a man/woman appointed by a court to
settle the estate of a deceased person when there is no will; contrast with
executor/executrix.
ad valorem tax:
a tax levied according to value; generally used to refer to real estate
tax.
adverse possession:
the actual, visible, hostile, notorious, exclusive, and continuous
possession of another’s land under a claim of title. Possession for a statutory
period may be a means of acquiring title.
agency:
the relationship between a principal and an agent
wherein the agent is authorized to represent the principal in certain
transactions.
agency by ratification:
an agency relationship that is
established after the fact.
agent:
one who acts or has the power to act for another.
A fiduciary relationship is created under the law of agency when a
property owner, as the principal, executes a listing agreement or management
contract authorizing a licensed real estate broker to be his or her agent.
air lot:
a designated airspace over a piece of land. An
air lot, like surface property, maybe be transferred.
air rights:
the right to use the open space above a property,
generally allowing the surface to be used for another purpose
alienation:
the act of transferring property to another.
Alienation maybe voluntary, such as by gift or sale, or involuntary, as through
eminent domain or adverse possession.
alienation clause:
the clause in a mortgage or deed of trust that states that the balance
of the secured debt becomes immediately due and payable at the mortgagee’s
option if the property is sold by the mortgagor. In effect this clause prevents
the mortgagor from assigning the debt without the mortgagee’s approval; also
called a due-on-sale clause.
allodial system:
a system of land ownership in which land is held free and clear of any
rent or service due to the government; commonly contrasted to the feudal system.
In the United States, land is held under the allodial system.
Americans with
Disabilities Act: a federal law to
eliminate discrimination against individuals with disabilities by mandating
equal access to jobs, public accommodations, government services, public
transportation, and telecommunications.
amortization:
a loan in which the principal as well as the
interest is payable in monthly or other periodic installments over the term of
the loan.
amount realized on sale:
the amount of gain, or profit, subject
to the income tax.
antitrust laws:
Laws designed to preserve the free enterprise of the open marketplace by
making illegal certain private conspiracies and combinations formed to minimize
competition. Violations of antitrust laws in the real estate business generally
involve price-fixing (brokers conspiring to set fixed compensation
rates), allocations of customers or markets (brokers agreeing to limit
their areas of trade or dealing to certain areas or properties), or agreement to
boycott competitors.
appointed licensee:
a licensee associated with and appointed by an intermediary broker to
communicate with, carry out instructions of, and provide opinions and advice to
the parties to whom the licensee is appointed.
appraisal:
an estimate of the quantity, quality, or value of
something. The process through which conclusions of property value are obtained;
also refers to the report that sets forth the process of estimation and
conclusion of value.
appraisal review board:
a group of people who hear appeals
concerning assessed valuations for tax purposes and recommend or deny changes in
values shown of record.
appraised value:
an estimate of the present worth of a property.
appreciation:
an increase in the wroth or value of a property due to economic or related
causes, which may prove to be either temporary or permanent; opposite of
depreciation
apprentice inspector:
a person who is in training under the direct supervision of a professional
inspector or real estate inspector to become qualified to perform real estate
inspections
appurtenances:
those privileges, and improvements that belong to and pass with the transfer of
real property but are not necessarily a part of the property, such as
rights-of-way, easements, water rights, and property improvements.
ARELLO:
The Association of Real Estate License Law Officials.
assemblage:
the combining of two or more adjoining lots into one larger tract to increase
their total value.
assessed
value: the value set upon property for taxation purposes
assessment:
the imposition of a tax, charge, or levy, usually according to established
rates.
assessment roll:
the public record of the assessed values of all lands and buildings within a
specific area.
assignment:
the transfer in writing of interest in a bond, mortgage, lease, or other
instrument.
assumption
of mortgage: acquiring title to property on which there is an existing
mortgage and agreeing to be personally liable for the terms and conditions of
the mortgage, including payments; contrast with subject to mortgage.
attachment:
1. The act of taking a person’s property into legal custody by writ or other
judicial order to hold it available for application to that person’s debt to a
creditor. 2. A process of converting personal property to real estate.
attorney:
one who acts for or represents another, Must be licensed as such to give legal
advice. No license is required to act under the power of attorney (an
attorney-in-fact).
attorney’s opinion of
title: a writing based on a lawyer’s
reading of an abstract of title that specifies any title defects and names the
legal titleholder as the lawyer interprets it; states whether a seller may
convey good title.
automatic extension: a clause in a listing agreement that states that the agreement will
continue automatically for a certain period of time after its expiration date;
illegal in Texas.
avulsion:
the sudden tearing away of land, as by earthquake, flood, volcanic action, or a
sudden change in the course of a stream.
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