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earnest money
deposit: an amount of money, deposited
by a prospective buyer as evidence of good faith under the terms of a contract,
that is to be forfeited if the buyer defaults but applied to the purchase price
if the sale is closed.
easement:
a right to use the land of another for a specific purpose, such as for a
right-of-way or utilities.
easement appurtenant:
an easement that passes with the land on conveyance.
easement by implication:
an easement that arises when the parties’ actions imply that they intend to
create an easement.
easement by necessity:
an easement allowed by law of necessary for the full enjoyment of a parcel of
real estate; for example, a right of ingress and egress over a grantor’s land.
easement by prescription:
a easement acquired by continuous, open, uninterrupted, exclusive, and adverse
use of the property for ten years.
easement in gross: an easement that is not created for the benefit of land owned by the
owner of the easement but that attaches personally to the easement owner; for
example, a utility easement.
economic life:
the period of time during which a structure may reasonably be expected to
perform the function for which it was designed or intended
emblements:
growing crops, such as grapes and corn, that are produced annually through labor
and industry; deemed to be personal property.
eminent domain:
the right of a government or municipal quasi-body to acquire property for public
use through a court action called condemnation, in which the court decides that
the use is a public use and determines the price or compensation to be paid to
the owner.
employee:
one who works under the supervision and control of another. The employer is
obligated to withhold income taxes and Social Security taxes from the
compensation of an employee. See also independent contractor.
employment contract: a document evidencing formal employment between employer and employee
or between principal and agent, In the real estate business, this generally
takes the form of a listing agreement or management agreement.
enabling acts:
state legislation that confers certain powers, such as zoning, to governmental
entities.
encroachment:
a building or some portion of it – a wall or fence, for instance – that extends
beyond the land of the owner and illegally intrudes on some land of an adjoining
owner or a street or alley.
encumbrance:
any lien that may diminish the value of a property; a cloud against clear, free
title proprety.
endorsement:
1. an additional document attached to an original insurance policy that amends
the original; a rider. 2. writing one’s name, with or without additional words,
on a negotiable instrument.
Equal Credit Opportunity
Act: a federal law to ensure that
funds are available to qualified loan applicants without discrimination on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, martial status, or
receipt of public assistance.
equal opportunity in
housing: a federal code that ensures
that all U.S. citizens have access to housing without discrimination.
equitable lien:
a lien arising out of common law
equitable right of
redemption: the right to redeem a
property before a foreclosure sale by paying the full debt plus interest and
accrued charges.
equitable title:
the interest held by a vendee under a contract for deed or an installment
contract; the equitable right to obtain absolute ownership to property when
legal title is held in another’s name.
equity:
the current market value of a property minus any loans.
equity loan:
a line of credit made against the equity in the borrower’s home..
erosion:
the gradual wearing away of land by water, wind, and general weather conditions;
the diminishing of property caused by the elements.
escheat:
the reversion of property to the state in the event the property is abandoned or
the owner dies without leaving a will and has no heirs to whom the property may
pass.
escrow:
the closing of a transaction through a third party called an escrow agent, or
escrow, who receives certain funds and documents to be delivered on the
performance of certain conditions outlines in the escrow agreement.
estate for years: a leased interest in property for a certain exact period of time and
for a specified consideration.
estate from period to
period: See periodic estate.
estate in land:
the degree, quantity, nature, and extent of interest that a person has in real
property.
estimate of value: an appraisal; the appraised value.
estoppel certificate:
a document in which a borrower certifies the amount he or she owes on a
mortgage loan and the rate of interest.
eviction:
a legal process to oust a person from possession of a real estate. See forcible
entry and detainer.
evidence of title: proof of ownership of property, commonly a title insurance policy or
an abstract of title with an attorney’s opinion of title.
exception:
as used in the conveyance of real estate, the exclusion of some part of the
property conveyed, such as a mineral interest held by a previous owner; a
deficiency in the grantor’s title; contrast with reservation.
exclusive agency: a listing contract in which an owner appoints a real estate broker as
his or her exclusive agent for a designated period of time to sell a property,
on the owner’s stated terms, for a commission. The owner reserves the right to
sell without paying anyone a commission if he or she sells to a prospect who has
not been introduced or claimed by the broker.
executed contract: a contract in which all parties have fulfilled their promises; a
contract is executed upon closing and funding.
execution:
the signing and delivery of an instrument. Also, a legal order directing an
official to enforce a judgment against the property of a debtor.
executor/executrix: the man/woman appointed in a will to carry out the requests of the
will; contrast with administrator/administratix.
executory contract: a contract under which something remains to be done by one or more of
the parties.
express agency:
an agency created by specific agreement, whether written or oral, of principal
and agent.
express contract: an oral or a written contract in which the parties state the
contract’s terms and express their intentions in words.
external obsolescence:
reduction in property’s value caused by factors outside the subject property,
such as social or environmental forces; also called economic or locational
obsolescence.
extraterritorial
jurisdiction: a half-mile to five-mile
area surrounding an incorporated area over which the municipality has the right
of subdivision approval and the potential for annexation.
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