NY REAL ESTATE EXAM GLOSSARY
80/20 Rule - answer that says in order for individual shareholders to continue to be able
to write off yearly taxes and mortgage interest, no more than 20 percent of a co-op's
yearly income can come from non-shareholder sources.
Abandonment - answer The failure to occupy and use property, which may result in a
loss of rights. Absolute The complete bundle of rights belongs to the owner.
Abutting Property - answer Parcels of land directly contiguous, sharing at least one
common boundary. Abstract The report of the chain of title to a piece of land.
Abstract of Title - answer A brief, chronological summary of the recorded documents
affecting title to a particular parcel of real property.
Accelerate - answer To make something go faster; in finance, making a loan come due
faster by having all payments become due immediately.
Acceleration Clause - answer A contract clause giving the lender the right to declare the
entire loan amount due immediately because of borrower's default, or other reasons as
stated in the contract.
Acceptance - answer1. Agreeing to the terms of an offer to enter into a contract, thereby
creating a binding contract. 2. Taking delivery of a deed.
Accessibility - answer Also referred to as ingress/egress; the relative ease with which
customers can get to a retail establishment.
Accession - answerThe acquisition of title to land by its addition to real estate already
owned, through human actions or natural processes. See: Accretion; Annexation;
Reliction.
Accessory Apartment - answerAn apartment within a primary residence.
Accessory Uses - answerA use or occupancy incidental or subordinate to the principal
use or occupancy.
Accord and Satisfaction - answerAn agreement to accept something different (usually
less) than what the original contract required.
, Accountability - answerDuty recognizing that money received in an agency relationship
belongs to the principal, not the agent. Agent has the duty to account strictly to the
principal for any amount received.
Accretion - answerA gradual addition to dry land by the forces of nature, as when the
tide deposits water-borne sediment on shoreline property. See: Accession; Alluvion.
Accrued Items - answerExpense items on a settlement statement for which the cost has
been incurred, but the expense has not yet been paid.
Acknowledgment - answerWhen a person who has signed a document formally
declares to an authorized official (usually a notary public) that he or she signed
voluntarily. The official certifies that the signature is voluntary and genuine. Compare:
Attestation.
Acquisition Cost - answerThe purchase price of a property, plus (allowable) buyer paid
closing costs.
Acre - answerA measure of land area that is equal to 43,560 square feet. One square
mile contains 640 acres.
Acre, Builder's - answerAn informal unit of measurement, usually 40,000 square feet,
that may be used by developers to describe lots for new construction. A builder's acre is
not a legal acre.
Administrative Agency - answerA government agency (federal, state, or local) that
administers a complex area of law, adopting and enforcing detailed regulations that
have the force of law.
Administrative Review - answerA prerequisite to judicial review and is initiated when a
taxpayer files a grievance with the assessing unit.
Administrator - answerA person appointed by the probate court to manage and
distribute the estate of a deceased person when no executor is named in the will or
there is no will.
Ad Valorem - answerA Latin phrase meaning "according to value"; used to refer to taxes
assessed on the value of property.
Adverse Possession - answerAcquiring title to someone else's real property by
possession of it. The possession must be open and notorious, hostile and adverse,
exclusive, and continuous, for statutory period of time. Compare: Prescription.
Affiant - answerA person who makes an affidavit.
Affidavit - answerA sworn statement that has been written and acknowledged.
80/20 Rule - answer that says in order for individual shareholders to continue to be able
to write off yearly taxes and mortgage interest, no more than 20 percent of a co-op's
yearly income can come from non-shareholder sources.
Abandonment - answer The failure to occupy and use property, which may result in a
loss of rights. Absolute The complete bundle of rights belongs to the owner.
Abutting Property - answer Parcels of land directly contiguous, sharing at least one
common boundary. Abstract The report of the chain of title to a piece of land.
Abstract of Title - answer A brief, chronological summary of the recorded documents
affecting title to a particular parcel of real property.
Accelerate - answer To make something go faster; in finance, making a loan come due
faster by having all payments become due immediately.
Acceleration Clause - answer A contract clause giving the lender the right to declare the
entire loan amount due immediately because of borrower's default, or other reasons as
stated in the contract.
Acceptance - answer1. Agreeing to the terms of an offer to enter into a contract, thereby
creating a binding contract. 2. Taking delivery of a deed.
Accessibility - answer Also referred to as ingress/egress; the relative ease with which
customers can get to a retail establishment.
Accession - answerThe acquisition of title to land by its addition to real estate already
owned, through human actions or natural processes. See: Accretion; Annexation;
Reliction.
Accessory Apartment - answerAn apartment within a primary residence.
Accessory Uses - answerA use or occupancy incidental or subordinate to the principal
use or occupancy.
Accord and Satisfaction - answerAn agreement to accept something different (usually
less) than what the original contract required.
, Accountability - answerDuty recognizing that money received in an agency relationship
belongs to the principal, not the agent. Agent has the duty to account strictly to the
principal for any amount received.
Accretion - answerA gradual addition to dry land by the forces of nature, as when the
tide deposits water-borne sediment on shoreline property. See: Accession; Alluvion.
Accrued Items - answerExpense items on a settlement statement for which the cost has
been incurred, but the expense has not yet been paid.
Acknowledgment - answerWhen a person who has signed a document formally
declares to an authorized official (usually a notary public) that he or she signed
voluntarily. The official certifies that the signature is voluntary and genuine. Compare:
Attestation.
Acquisition Cost - answerThe purchase price of a property, plus (allowable) buyer paid
closing costs.
Acre - answerA measure of land area that is equal to 43,560 square feet. One square
mile contains 640 acres.
Acre, Builder's - answerAn informal unit of measurement, usually 40,000 square feet,
that may be used by developers to describe lots for new construction. A builder's acre is
not a legal acre.
Administrative Agency - answerA government agency (federal, state, or local) that
administers a complex area of law, adopting and enforcing detailed regulations that
have the force of law.
Administrative Review - answerA prerequisite to judicial review and is initiated when a
taxpayer files a grievance with the assessing unit.
Administrator - answerA person appointed by the probate court to manage and
distribute the estate of a deceased person when no executor is named in the will or
there is no will.
Ad Valorem - answerA Latin phrase meaning "according to value"; used to refer to taxes
assessed on the value of property.
Adverse Possession - answerAcquiring title to someone else's real property by
possession of it. The possession must be open and notorious, hostile and adverse,
exclusive, and continuous, for statutory period of time. Compare: Prescription.
Affiant - answerA person who makes an affidavit.
Affidavit - answerA sworn statement that has been written and acknowledged.
