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Fee Simple Absolute (FSA)
Potentially infinite Duration - potentially lasts forever.
FSA must be fully alienable: No direct restraints on transfer of ownership of FSA.
Direct Restraints
Any attempt to put a direct restraint on alienation is VOID.
Exception: Modern View - Right of First Refusal
- Acre to A, but provides that if A tries to sell the farm during her lifetime, then B has a right of
first refusal - option to buy first.
Conditions
May be imposed on the exercise of a fee simple but any attempt to limit the right to transfer is
void.
OKAY - Acre to A but provided that if A lets B on property, then farm goes to C.
Creation of FSA - CL
To A and her heirs
Creation of Life Estate - CL
To A.
Creation of FSA - Modern Presumption
To A/To A and her heirs.
,Courts will presume a fee simple was granted - UNLESS language shows a clear intent to do
otherwise.
Fee Tail
CL - locked property into the Grantee's family.
- to A and the heirs of his (or her) body;
- to A and his (or her) bodily heirs.
Modern presumption - no more fee tails
- FSA
Life Estate
Life Estate is never measured by time - only measured by life.
Can be by express or implication...
Life Estate Pur Autre Vie
a life estate measured by the life of another
CL - If tenant dies, seisin - anyone can take.
Modern presumption - If tenant dies first, it goes to tenant's estate. Life estate continues until the
measuring life dies.
Life Estate and Restraints on Alienation
Modern rule allows a provision that terminates the life estate if the life tenant attempts to convey
away the life estate.
If you sell life estate, it goes to X in fee simple (Forfeiture restriction - OKAY).
Life Estate - Life Tenant and Law of Waste
Life tenant maintains the estate. Max and Min on what life tenant can do.
,Life Estate - Voluntary Waste
Any affirmative action beyond the right of maintenance that causes harm to the premise.
Maintain means life tenant may continue the normal use of the land.
Any change of use is voluntary waste for which the life tenant may be liable to holder of future
interest.
Open mines doctrine
Depletion of natural resources constitute waste UNLESS consumption of such resources
constitutes the normal use of the land, as in the case of a life estate in a coal mine or a granite
quarry.
However, the sale of harvestable corps do not involve waste.
Life Estate - Permissive Waste
Failure to maintain.
Tenant must do three things to avoid liability for permissive waste:
(1) repair - ordinary repairs, but not replacement;
- repairs limited to amount of rents and profits received from the land;
- if no rents/profits, then reasonable rental value of land if the life tenant is using the land.
- if no income and not using property, then life tenant has no repair obligation
(2) tax - tenant must pay all taxes on the property
- Same limitation as above.
Failure to pay taxes = tax sale will eliminate the future interest (new buyer is BFP).
(3) Mortgage Debt - must pay interest on any mortgage indebtedness on the property but is not
, required to make any principal payments. Holder of future interest pays the principal.
- same limitation
~(4) Insurance - does not have to insure the property, but does have insuranceable interest.
Life Estate - Ameliorative waste
Life tenant alters the property substantially but life tenant's activity increases the value of the
land.
General rule - if changed conditions have made the property relatively worthless, then the life
tenant can alter the property without incurring liability to the holder to the future event. (changed
conditions -> relatively worthless).
Seisin
Holder of seisin = taxpayer
Future Interest
The interest exists now but possession will not take place - if it takes place at all - until some
time in the future.
The future interest exists now - when it is created - but will not become possessory until some
time later.
Grantor - reversion, possibility of reverter, right of entry.
Grantee - remainder, executory interest
Reversion - (Grantor)
A reversion arises whenever the grantor conveys away less than the full durational estate that the
grantor had.
Fee Simple Determinable (Defeasible)
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Fee Simple Absolute (FSA)
Potentially infinite Duration - potentially lasts forever.
FSA must be fully alienable: No direct restraints on transfer of ownership of FSA.
Direct Restraints
Any attempt to put a direct restraint on alienation is VOID.
Exception: Modern View - Right of First Refusal
- Acre to A, but provides that if A tries to sell the farm during her lifetime, then B has a right of
first refusal - option to buy first.
Conditions
May be imposed on the exercise of a fee simple but any attempt to limit the right to transfer is
void.
OKAY - Acre to A but provided that if A lets B on property, then farm goes to C.
Creation of FSA - CL
To A and her heirs
Creation of Life Estate - CL
To A.
Creation of FSA - Modern Presumption
To A/To A and her heirs.
,Courts will presume a fee simple was granted - UNLESS language shows a clear intent to do
otherwise.
Fee Tail
CL - locked property into the Grantee's family.
- to A and the heirs of his (or her) body;
- to A and his (or her) bodily heirs.
Modern presumption - no more fee tails
- FSA
Life Estate
Life Estate is never measured by time - only measured by life.
Can be by express or implication...
Life Estate Pur Autre Vie
a life estate measured by the life of another
CL - If tenant dies, seisin - anyone can take.
Modern presumption - If tenant dies first, it goes to tenant's estate. Life estate continues until the
measuring life dies.
Life Estate and Restraints on Alienation
Modern rule allows a provision that terminates the life estate if the life tenant attempts to convey
away the life estate.
If you sell life estate, it goes to X in fee simple (Forfeiture restriction - OKAY).
Life Estate - Life Tenant and Law of Waste
Life tenant maintains the estate. Max and Min on what life tenant can do.
,Life Estate - Voluntary Waste
Any affirmative action beyond the right of maintenance that causes harm to the premise.
Maintain means life tenant may continue the normal use of the land.
Any change of use is voluntary waste for which the life tenant may be liable to holder of future
interest.
Open mines doctrine
Depletion of natural resources constitute waste UNLESS consumption of such resources
constitutes the normal use of the land, as in the case of a life estate in a coal mine or a granite
quarry.
However, the sale of harvestable corps do not involve waste.
Life Estate - Permissive Waste
Failure to maintain.
Tenant must do three things to avoid liability for permissive waste:
(1) repair - ordinary repairs, but not replacement;
- repairs limited to amount of rents and profits received from the land;
- if no rents/profits, then reasonable rental value of land if the life tenant is using the land.
- if no income and not using property, then life tenant has no repair obligation
(2) tax - tenant must pay all taxes on the property
- Same limitation as above.
Failure to pay taxes = tax sale will eliminate the future interest (new buyer is BFP).
(3) Mortgage Debt - must pay interest on any mortgage indebtedness on the property but is not
, required to make any principal payments. Holder of future interest pays the principal.
- same limitation
~(4) Insurance - does not have to insure the property, but does have insuranceable interest.
Life Estate - Ameliorative waste
Life tenant alters the property substantially but life tenant's activity increases the value of the
land.
General rule - if changed conditions have made the property relatively worthless, then the life
tenant can alter the property without incurring liability to the holder to the future event. (changed
conditions -> relatively worthless).
Seisin
Holder of seisin = taxpayer
Future Interest
The interest exists now but possession will not take place - if it takes place at all - until some
time in the future.
The future interest exists now - when it is created - but will not become possessory until some
time later.
Grantor - reversion, possibility of reverter, right of entry.
Grantee - remainder, executory interest
Reversion - (Grantor)
A reversion arises whenever the grantor conveys away less than the full durational estate that the
grantor had.
Fee Simple Determinable (Defeasible)