Real Estate Law, Land Use Control, Property Ownership, and Taxes Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards covering public land use controls, zoning, legal rights, forms of ownership, easements, liens, adverse possession, and real estate taxation.

Police Power

The right of the government to enact laws and enforce them for the order, safety, health, and general welfare of the public, including zoning, subdivision regulations, and building codes.

Zoning

The government regulation of the size and intensity of real estate, encompassing land use regulation, height regulation, and area regulation.

Variance

A permitted administrative relief or departure from literal zoning requirements granted to a property owner.

Spot Zoning

A rezoning change applied to a specific small area or individual property lot that differs from the surrounding zoned area.

Conditional Use Permit

A special permit granted under zoning ordinances allowing a specific land use under designated conditions within a zoned area.

Nonconforming Use

A land use that was lawful prior to the enactment or amendment of a zoning ordinance but does not comply with current regulations.

Subdivision Regulations

Governmental rules specifying standards for subdivision design (such as curb cuts, utility/sidewalk layouts, and lot setbacks) and environmental protections (such as percolation tests, floodplain limits, and green space).

Building Codes

Governmental regulations specifying standards for safety and habitability (parking, fire protection, running water, sewer) and construction specifics (foundation depth, roof pitch, framing stud spacing).

Environmental Site Assessment (ESA)

An environmental evaluation process consisting of 3 stages used to identify potential environmental contamination and liabilities on a property.

Escheat

The right of the government to claim ownership of private property when the owner dies without a valid will and no legal heirs can be found.

Eminent Domain

The right of the government to acquire private property for public benefit upon providing just compensation to the property owner.

Condemnation

The legal procedure by which the government exercises eminent domain, requiring delegated authority, necessity, public purpose, and just compensation.

Real Estate Commodity

A marketable asset in a specialized area that has utility to people and consists of physical land, improvements, and a legal bundle of rights.

Land

The solid surface of the earth in a physical concept, along with the legal bundle of rights obtained through ownership.

Improvements to the Land

Physical enhancements made to prepare or develop land itself, such as utility lines, streets, sidewalks, and excavation/grading.

Improvements on the Land

Structures or buildings erected on the land, such as houses, garages, commercial buildings, and fences.

Fixture

An item of personal property that has been permanently attached to land or real estate so that it legally becomes part of the real property.

Trade Fixture

Personal property installed on a rented property by a tenant for business or trade purposes, which remains personal property removable by the tenant.

Surface Rights

The legal rights to use, occupy, and control the top surface of a parcel of land.

Mineral Rights

Subsurface rights to extract resources such as oil, gas, and minerals, typically limited to depths of no more than $20{,}000\,\text{feet}$ below ground.

Air Rights

The legal rights to control, occupy, and use the space above a piece of land, generally extending up to $1{,}500\,\text{feet}$ above ground.

Riparian Rights

Water rights granted to owners of land bordering a moving body of water, such as a river or stream.

Littoral Rights

Water rights granted to owners of land bordering a standing body of water, such as a lake, ocean, or sea.

Freehold Estate

An estate in real property involving actual ownership of land and improvements for an unpredictable, indefinite duration.

Fee Simple Estate

The highest and most complete form of private ownership in real estate, granting complete title and full bundle of rights.

Life Estate

A freehold estate where ownership lasts only for the duration of a designated person's life.

Reversion

The future ownership interest where property automatically returns to the original grantor or their heirs upon the death of a life tenant.

Remainder Interest

A future ownership interest created in a designated third party who receives fee simple title when a life estate ends.

Leasehold Estate

An interest in real property of definite duration that grants possession and use without conveying actual ownership.

Tenancy in Common (TIC)

A form of co-ownership where two or more owners hold individual fractional interests in a property without right of survivorship.

Joint Tenancy

A form of co-ownership characterized by equal ownership shares and the right of survivorship.

Tenancy by the Entirety

A specialized form of joint real estate co-ownership reserved exclusively for married couples.

Dower

A wife's life estate interest in the real property owned by her deceased husband.

Curtesy

A husband's interest in the real property owned by his deceased wife.

Community Property

A marital property ownership system where each spouse owns an equal $\frac{1}{2}$ interest acquired through joint efforts, where $\frac{1}{2}$ goes to heirs at death unless survivorship applies.

Easement

A nonpossessory private right or limit permitting someone to use another person's real property for a specific purpose.

Easement in Gross

An easement that affects one or many properties and benefits an individual or corporate entity directly rather than a neighboring land parcel, containing only servient estates.

Easement Appurtenant

An easement that benefits a neighboring parcel of land, involving both a dominant estate and a servient estate.

Servient Estate

The parcel of real estate that is burdened or subject to an easement.

Dominant Estate

The parcel of real estate that receives the benefit of an easement appurtenant.

License

A revocable personal permission granted to enter or use another person's land for a specific purpose without conveying an interest in the real property.

Adverse Possession

A legal process of acquiring land title through continuous, hostile, actual, open and notorious, and exclusive occupation for a statutory period.

Lien

A hold, claim, or encumbrance on a debtor's property that secures a debt and could force a court-ordered sale of the property.

Restrictive Covenants

Private deed restrictions that place legally binding limits on how land or property can be used and developed.

Ad Valorem Taxes

Property taxes assessed based directly upon the monetary value of real estate.

Millage Rate

The tax rate expressed in mills used to calculate property tax, where $1\,\text{mill} = \frac{1}{1000}\text{th}$ of $\text{\$1.00}$ ($0.001$ or $0.1\%$).

Assessed Value

The value of a property determined by multiplying market value by an assessment rate, used prior to exemptions to calculate annual real estate taxes.

Homestead Exemption

A statutory property tax exemption applied to owner-occupied primary residences to reduce total taxable assessed value.

Capital Gains Taxes

Taxes levied upon the profit or gain realized from selling an investment or capital asset such as real estate.