Real Estate Key Terms 1

What is an abstract of title?

• A legal document outlining the dimensions of a property

• An abbreviated history of a property, including information on transfers, grants, wills, conveyances, liens, and encumbrances

• A statement of the property's market value

• A clause in a mortgage agreement

What does an acceleration clause in a security instrument do?

• It allows for the gradual increase in land area through natural deposits

• It provides a history of the property's ownership

• It makes the entire loan amount due immediately upon default

• It transfers the title of the property to another party

What is accretion?

• The process of paying off a debt in regular installments

• The process that results in the gradual increase in land area through deposits of soil by natural forces

• The transfer of air rights above a property

• The act of adjusting interest rates on a mortgage

What is an acre?

• A unit of currency used in real estate transactions

• A type of mortgage loan

• A measurement of land equal to 43,560 square feet

• A legal term for the air space above a property

What is adverse possession?

• A clause in a mortgage that allows for early payment without penalty

• The right to use the airspace above a property

• An involuntary transfer of title from an owner who does not use or inspect their land for a number of years to another person who has some claim to the land and takes possession

• A process by which a property's value is officially assessed

What is the purpose of an agency agreement?

• To provide a history of a property's ownership

• To authorize another party to act on one's behalf

• To outline the terms of a mortgage loan

• To establish the boundaries of a property

What is the role of an agent in real estate?

• To calculate property taxes

• To provide an official valuation of a property

• To act on behalf of another, usually in a buying or selling transaction

• To draft legal documents for property transfer

What are air rights in the context of real estate?

• The rights to underground resources on a property

• The right to use the air space above the surface of land

• The rights to access water on a property

• The rights to build underground facilities

What does alienation refer to in real estate?

• The process of paying off a mortgage

• The transfer of ownership (title) to real property

• The act of leasing property to another party

• The division of property into smaller lots

What is the Americans with Disabilities Act?

• An act that regulates the size of properties

• A federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against land passed in 1990

• A law that governs the transfer of property titles

• A federal civil rights law passed in 1990 which prohibits discrimination against and create standards for people with disabilities