Glossary of Real Estate Terms Questions
And Answers
Abutting - ANSWER>>Parcels of land next to each other that share a common
border.
Abstract of Title - ANSWER>>A summary of all of the recorded instruments and
proceedings which affect the title to property, arranged in the order in which they
were recorded.
Acceleration Clause - ANSWER>>Term given to the practice of paying off a
mortgage loan faster than required by terms of the mortgage agreement.
Accession - ANSWER>>A mode of acquiring property that involves the addition of
value to property through labor or the addition of new materials.
Accessory Apartment Uses - ANSWER>>A second residential unit that may be
contained within an existing single-family home, garage, or carriage house.
Accessory Uses - ANSWER>>The use of land that is subordinate, incidental to, and
customarily found in connection with the principal use allowed on a lot by the
zoning law.
Accretion - ANSWER>>The addition of land through processes of nature, as by
water or wind.
Acknowledgement - ANSWER>>A formal declaration before a duly authorized
officer by a person who has executed an instrument that such execution is the
person's act and deed.
Acre - ANSWER>>A measure of land equaling 43,560 square feet.
,Act of Waste - ANSWER>>Describes a cause of action that can be brought in court
to address a change in condition of a property brought about by a current tenant
that damages or destroys the value of that property.
Active Income - ANSWER>>Income for which services have been performed.
Actual Cash Value - ANSWER>>A method of valuing insured property.
Actual Eviction - ANSWER>>Where one is either by force or by process of law,
actually put out of possession.
Actual Notice - ANSWER>>Notice delivered in such a way as to give legally
sufficient assurance that actual knowledge of the matter has been conveyed to
the recipient.
Ad Valorem Taxes - ANSWER>>According to valuation.
Adjusted Basis - ANSWER>>The original cost of a property minus depreciation and
sales of portions thereof plus allowable additions such as capital improvements
and certain carrying costs and assessments.
Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) - ANSWER>>A mortgage loan with the interest
rate on the note periodically adjusted based on an index which reflects the cost to
the lender of borrowing on the credit markets.
Administrative Discipline - ANSWER>>The Department of State's ability to enforce
license laws through reprimand and denial as well as the suspension and
revocation of licenses.
Advance Consent to Dual Agency - ANSWER>>The seller or buyer agrees to dual
agency before it occurs by indicating the same on the agency disclosure form.
, Adverse Possession - ANSWER>>A means of acquiring title where an occupant has
been in actual, open, notorious, exclusive, and continuous occupancy of property
under a claim of right for the required statutory period.
After Tax Cash Flow - ANSWER>>The net profit/loss realized after taxes are
deducted.
Agency Disclosure Form - ANSWER>>A written explanation, to be signed by a
prospective buyer or seller of real estate, explaining to the client the role that the
broker plays in the transaction.
Agent - ANSWER>>One who undertakes to transact some business or to manage
some affair for another by authority of the latter.
Air Rights - ANSWER>>Rights in real property to use the space above the surface
of the land.
Alienation Clause - ANSWER>>Allows lender to require the balance of a loan to be
paid in full if the collateral is sold (also known as a 'due on sale' clause).
Alluvion - ANSWER>>The increase in the area of land due to sediment deposited
by a river.
Alteration Agreement - ANSWER>>Describes the terms under which the
cooperative gives permission to a shareholder before making any changes or
improvements to the unit the shareholder occupies.
Americans with Disabilities Act - ANSWER>>A wide-ranging civil rights law
enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990, that prohibits, under certain circumstances,
discrimination based on disability.
Amortization - ANSWER>>The process by which a loan principal decreases over
the life of a loan.
And Answers
Abutting - ANSWER>>Parcels of land next to each other that share a common
border.
Abstract of Title - ANSWER>>A summary of all of the recorded instruments and
proceedings which affect the title to property, arranged in the order in which they
were recorded.
Acceleration Clause - ANSWER>>Term given to the practice of paying off a
mortgage loan faster than required by terms of the mortgage agreement.
Accession - ANSWER>>A mode of acquiring property that involves the addition of
value to property through labor or the addition of new materials.
Accessory Apartment Uses - ANSWER>>A second residential unit that may be
contained within an existing single-family home, garage, or carriage house.
Accessory Uses - ANSWER>>The use of land that is subordinate, incidental to, and
customarily found in connection with the principal use allowed on a lot by the
zoning law.
Accretion - ANSWER>>The addition of land through processes of nature, as by
water or wind.
Acknowledgement - ANSWER>>A formal declaration before a duly authorized
officer by a person who has executed an instrument that such execution is the
person's act and deed.
Acre - ANSWER>>A measure of land equaling 43,560 square feet.
,Act of Waste - ANSWER>>Describes a cause of action that can be brought in court
to address a change in condition of a property brought about by a current tenant
that damages or destroys the value of that property.
Active Income - ANSWER>>Income for which services have been performed.
Actual Cash Value - ANSWER>>A method of valuing insured property.
Actual Eviction - ANSWER>>Where one is either by force or by process of law,
actually put out of possession.
Actual Notice - ANSWER>>Notice delivered in such a way as to give legally
sufficient assurance that actual knowledge of the matter has been conveyed to
the recipient.
Ad Valorem Taxes - ANSWER>>According to valuation.
Adjusted Basis - ANSWER>>The original cost of a property minus depreciation and
sales of portions thereof plus allowable additions such as capital improvements
and certain carrying costs and assessments.
Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) - ANSWER>>A mortgage loan with the interest
rate on the note periodically adjusted based on an index which reflects the cost to
the lender of borrowing on the credit markets.
Administrative Discipline - ANSWER>>The Department of State's ability to enforce
license laws through reprimand and denial as well as the suspension and
revocation of licenses.
Advance Consent to Dual Agency - ANSWER>>The seller or buyer agrees to dual
agency before it occurs by indicating the same on the agency disclosure form.
, Adverse Possession - ANSWER>>A means of acquiring title where an occupant has
been in actual, open, notorious, exclusive, and continuous occupancy of property
under a claim of right for the required statutory period.
After Tax Cash Flow - ANSWER>>The net profit/loss realized after taxes are
deducted.
Agency Disclosure Form - ANSWER>>A written explanation, to be signed by a
prospective buyer or seller of real estate, explaining to the client the role that the
broker plays in the transaction.
Agent - ANSWER>>One who undertakes to transact some business or to manage
some affair for another by authority of the latter.
Air Rights - ANSWER>>Rights in real property to use the space above the surface
of the land.
Alienation Clause - ANSWER>>Allows lender to require the balance of a loan to be
paid in full if the collateral is sold (also known as a 'due on sale' clause).
Alluvion - ANSWER>>The increase in the area of land due to sediment deposited
by a river.
Alteration Agreement - ANSWER>>Describes the terms under which the
cooperative gives permission to a shareholder before making any changes or
improvements to the unit the shareholder occupies.
Americans with Disabilities Act - ANSWER>>A wide-ranging civil rights law
enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990, that prohibits, under certain circumstances,
discrimination based on disability.
Amortization - ANSWER>>The process by which a loan principal decreases over
the life of a loan.
