Virginia Real Estate Practice in Law Questions With Verified Answers

active license - Answer Any broker or salesperson under the supervision of a principal or supervising broker performing real estate brokerage activities. actively engaged - Answer A broker or salesperson having active licensure with a licensed real estate firm or sole proprietorship and active for an average of at least 40 hours per week. The REB may waive the 40-hour-per-week requirement at its discretion. adverse possession - Answer The actual, open, notorious, hostile, 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 - Answer The relationship between a principal and an agent wherein the agent is authorized to represent the principal in certain transactions. agent - Answer 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. alienation clause - Answer The clause is a mortgage or deed of trust stating that the balance of the secured debt becomes immediately due and payable at the lender's option if the property is sold by the borrower. In effect, this clause prevents the borrower from assigning the debt without the lender's approval. as-built survey - Answer A house location survey with all other physical features of the subject property shown, including water courses, utility lines, fence lines, outbuildings, and similar features. attorney-in-fact - Answer An unbiased third party appointed by another person to act in that person's place. automated survivorship - Answer Intended to place joint tenants in the same situation as tenants in common as far as augmented estates were concerned. Has been abolished in Virginia. beneficiary - Answer (1) The person for whom a trust operates or in whose behalf the income from a trust estate is drawn. (2) A lender in a deed of trust loan transaction. boundary survey - Answer Shows the boundary or perimeter of the parcel as taken from and applied to the ground. Corner stakes or other physical landmarks appear. broker - Answer In Virginia, any person or business entity, including, but not limited to, a partnership, association, corporation, or limited liability corporation, who, for, compensation or valuable consideration (i) sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, or negotiates the purchase or sale or exchange of real estate, including units or interest in condominiums, cooperative interest... or time-shares in a time-share program... or (ii) leases or offers to lease, or rents or offers for rent, any real estate or the improvements thereon for others. brokerage relationship - Answer Describes both client and customer relationships with the broker. broker's lien - Answer A lien on the rent paid by the tenant in the amount of the compensation (commission) agreed on by the owner and the broker. caveat emptor - Answer "Let the buyer beware." Requires the buyer to examine the property before purchase and to take responsibility for its condition. chain of title - Answer The succession of conveyances, from some accepted starting point, whereby the present holder of real property derives title. civil action - Answer A lawsuit that can be brought by a person who feels wronged or injured by another person client - Answer A person who has entered into a brokerage relationship with a broker license. Closing Disclosure (CD) - Answer A five-page statement of final loan terms and closing costs. cloud on the title - Answer Any document, claim, unreleased lien, or encumbrance that may impair the title to real property or make the title doubtful; usually revealed by a title search and removed by either a quitclaim deed or suit to quiet title. complainant - Answer The person or entity who files an administrative complaint accusing someone of violating Virginia fair housing law. conciliation - Answer A form of alternative dispute resolution in which a conciliator meets with each of the parties separately to help them settle their differences voluntarily, without the formality of a hearing or trial. concurrent license - Answer Brokers who are active in more than one legal entity, that is, who work for more than one brokerage firm. condemnation - Answer A judicial or an administrative proceeding to exercise the power of eminent domain, through which a government agency takes private property for public use and justly compensates the owner. condominium - Answer The absolute ownership of a unit in a multiunit building based on a legal description of the airspace the unit actually occupies, plus an undivided interest in the ownership of the common elements, which are owned jointly with the other condominium unit owners. conflict of interest - Answer Acting for more than one party in a transaction without written consent. consent order - Answer Resolution of a matter by accepting, making a counteroffer, asking for exhibits, or requesting an IFFC (if one has not been held). continuing education - Answer An approved course of study that meets the requirements for maintenance of a real estate license. cooperative - Answer A residential multiunit building whose title is held by a trust or corporation that is owned by and operated for the benefit of people living within the building who are the beneficial owners of the trust or shareholders of the corporation, each possessing a proprietary lease to a property unit. customer - Answer The third party or non represented consumer for whom some level of service is provided. deed of trust - Answer An instrument used to create a mortgage lien by which the borrower conveys title to a trustee, who holds it as security for the benefit of the note holder (the lender); also called a trust deed. defective drywall - Answer Imported drywall, commonly referred to as Chinese drywall. Some consumers who live in homes with defective drywall have reported problems including a strong sulfur smell (like rotten eggs), health issues (irritated and itchy eyes and skin), difficulty breathing, a persistent cough/headaches, and premature corrosion or deterioration of certain metal components in their homes (air conditioner coils and wiring behind electrical outlets and inside electrical panel boxes). deferred purchase money - Answer Sellers with no immediate need for cash from the proceeds of a sale may choose to defer the income of the sale and obtain an installment tax treatment by creating an annuity in this form of deed of trust, held by the seller. designated agent - Answer One or more licensees affiliated with a broker who are assigned by the broker to represent solely one client to the exclusion of all other clients in the same transaction and to the exclusion of all other licensees affiliated with the broker. distress warrant - Answer The order to seize tenant property. dual agent - Answer A broker who simultaneously has a client relationship with both seller and buyer or landlord and tenant in the same real estate transaction. due-on-sale clause - Answer A provision in the mortgage that states that the entire balance of the note is immediately due and payable if the mortgagor transfers (sells) the property. dwelling - Answer Any building or part of a building designed for occupancy as a residence by one or more families. easement by necessity - Answer An easement allowed by law as necessary for the full enjoyment of a parcel of real estate; for example, a right of ingress and egress over a grantor's land.