Abstract of Title - A summary of the conveyances, transfers and other facts appearing on record or relied upon as evidence of title to real property.



Abstract of Judgment - A brief transcript of the essentials of a judgment.



Abstract of Title - A summary of the conveyances, transfers and other facts appearing on record and relied upon as evidence of title to real property.



Abutting - Touching or bordering a street, highway, or other public place.



Acceleration Clause - A clause in a note, trust deed, or mortgage advancing or hastening the date of maturity of the indebtedness or obligation upon the happening of a certain event.



Access Right - A landowner's right to enter and leave the property from or onto a public street.



Accretion - A process by which land on a shore or riverbank increases gradually by the deposit of sand or soil upon the shore or riverbank.



Acknowledgment - A formal declaration before a duly authorized officer by a person who has executed an instrument that such execution is his or her act and deed.



Adjoining Owners - Owners of two or more parcels of real property that are adjacent to each other.



Administrator - Personal representative of the estate of an intestate decedent.



Adverse Possession - Claim of ownership of property based upon open and hostile possession and occupancy.



Agreement of Sale - An agreement entered into for the sale and purchase of property.



Ancillary Administration - Probate estate administration in a state other than the state of decedent's primary residence.



Assignee – A person to whom property is assigned.



Assignor – A person who transfers property by assignment.



Bequeath - To give personal property by will.



Blanket Mortgage or Deed of Trust - A mortgage or deed of trust on more than one lot or parcel.



Bona Fide Purchaser - A purchaser in good faith, for fair value and without notice of any adverse claim or right of third parties.



C&Rs – Covenants & Restrictions -- detailed limitations applying to the use or enjoyment of real property.



Cloud on Title - A claim on title that is in fact invalid.



Codicil – A document or a part of document subsequent to a will altering, explaining, adding to, subtracting from, or confirming it, but not revoking it.



Condemnation - The taking of private property for a public use; the exercise of power of eminent domain.



Condominium - The composite of individual ownership and exclusive possession of a cube of space in a multi-unit building plus a collective ownership of and a collective right of possession to facilities common to all separately owned units.



Consideration - The value inducing another person to enter into a contract.



Contiguous - In actual close contact; touching, adjacent, near.



Convey - To transfer title to property from one person to another.



Conveyance - A written instrument transferring title to or an interest in land.



Covenant - Agreement or promise.



Decedent - Deceased person.



Declaration of Trust - A written instrument by a person (settlor-trustor), acknowledging that he or she holds title to property (as trustee) for the benefit of another or others (beneficiary/ beneficiaries).



Deed - Written document transferring title to land from one person to another.



Deed In Lieu of Foreclosure – A deed given by the borrower to borrower’s lender to prevent or cancel foreclosure proceedings.



Deficiency Judgment - A personal judgment against the debtor for the amount remaining due after foreclosure of a security device, as in the case of a mortgage or trust deed.



Transfer Tax - A tax on certain recorded transfers of title to real property.



Due-on-Sale Clause – A provision in a mortgage that requires borrower to pay the loan in full upon borrower’s sale or conveyance of property.



Easement - A limited righted of use, privilege, or benefit from a parcel of land.

Easement Appurtenant - An easement created for the benefit of and attaching to a parcel of land.



Easement in Gross - An easement that benefits a particular person rather than a parcel of land.



Ejectment - Legal action for return of right to possession of land and for damages.



Eminent Domain - The right to take private property for public use.



Encroachment - The extension of an improvement onto land of another.



Encumbrance - A right or interest in land decreasing its value but not hindering its sale or transfer.



Estate Tax - A tax upon the privilege of transmitting title to property of a decedent.



Examination - The process of determining the vesting of title, and encumbrances burdening land, and the various interests attached to it.



Executor – The person or entity designated in a will to administer the estate of a testator.



Fee Simple Absolute - The largest recognized estate in land; a title without limitation or end.



Fiduciary - Holding a position of trust and confidence, requiring scrupulous good faith and honesty. For example, a trustee of a trust is a fiduciary.



Fixture - Property originally personal in character but intended to be a part of the real property to which affixed.



Foreclosure - Enforcement of a lien by sale of property given as security.



Foreclosure Sale - The sale of property given as security to secure performance of an obligation.



Forfeiture - The loss of a right, title, or interest in property as consequence of a default under an obligation.



Grantee - The person acquiring title to real property by a deed.



Grantor - The person transferring title to real property by a deed.



Habendum Clause - The provision in a deed, usually following the description, reciting: "to have and to hold, etc."



Holographic Will - A will entirely written, dated, and signed by the testator in his or her own handwriting.



In Rem - Against property.



Intestate - Without a will; also, a decedent who left no will.



Joint Tenancy - A form of co-ownership by two or more persons in equal shares characterized by the incident of survivorship.



Judgment Lien - A statutory lien created by recording a judgment, or an abstract, ordering the payment of a sum of money.



Leasehold - The estate for years created by a lease.



Lien - A charge upon property for the purpose of securing the payment or discharge of a debt or obligation.



Littoral - Pertaining to the shore.



Mean High Tide Line - The average height of certain high waters.



Mechanic's Lien - A statutory lien in favor of persons contributing labor, material, supplies, etc. to a work of improvement upon real property.



Owner's Policy - A policy of title insurance insuring the title of an owner.



Partition Action - Judicial proceedings instituted by a co-owner or co-owners to sever their co-ownership either by a physical division into separate parcels or by sale of entire parcel and division of proceeds.



Plat - A plot, map, or chart showing the divisions of a piece of land.



Power of Attorney - A written delegation from a principal authorizing another person, as agent of principal, to act for him or her in his/her name in a designated transaction or transactions.



Pre-Payment Penalty - Charge imposed by a lender for payment of a debt before due date.



Prescription - A method of acquiring an easement by adverse use of another's property.



Purchase Money Mortgage - A mortgage securing payment of all or a portion of the purchase price of real property.



Quiet Title Action - An action brought to establish a title to property or to remove a cloud on the title.



Quitclaim Deed - A form of deed containing no warranties and conveying the current right, title and interest of the grantor, if any, to real property.



Ratification - The approval of a previous unauthorized act.



Real Property - Immovable property such as land, buildings, and improvements.



Redemption Right - The right of a debtor to reacquire title to property formerly owned by him or her but sold through judicial process to satisfy his/her debts.



Reservation - A right or an interest retained by a grantor in a conveyance.



Restrictions - Impediments, limitations, or prohibitions respecting use of real property imposed in deeds or in a declaration.



Right of Survivorship - The right to succeed to the interest of a decedent.

 

Right of Way - A right to pass over or to cross a parcel of land.



Riparian - Pertaining to the bank of a river or stream.



Riparian Rights - The rights of an owner to water bordering his or her land.



Slander of Title - False unjustified statements regarding another person's title to property.



Specific Performance Action – An action seeking to compel a party to fulfill the terms of a contract.



Subordination Agreement - An agreement changing the priority of interests.



Tenancy by the Entirety - A form of co-ownership by husband and wife, characterized by the inability of one spouse alone to convey or encumber and by the incident of survivorship.



Tenancy in Common - A form of co-ownership of property by two or more persons in undivided interests.



Testamentary Trust - A trust created by the last will and testament of a decedent.



Time Is Of The Essence - Clause in a contract indicating punctual compliance is required.



Title Insurance - Assurance of indemnification for loss occasioned by defects in the title to real property or to an interest therein which is insured.



Transfer Tax - A tax imposed upon transfers of title to real property.

Trust - A fiduciary relationship in which a trustee holds title to property for the benefit of a beneficiary.



Warranty Deed - A deed containing express covenants as to good title and right to possession.