| Abstract of Title - A condensed, chronological
history of the title to a particular piece of real estate consisting of a summary of the
various documents that have been recorded in the office of Register of Deeds and certain
other public offices constituting the various links in the chain of title. An abstract of
title also includes a statement of all liens, judgments, taxes, or encumbrances that
affect particular property. An abstract of title is not what is provided to a purchaser of
real property in North Carolina; rather, the attorney searching title prepares an Opinion
of Title or Certificate based upon his/her review of matters in the abstract and
elsewhere. |
| Acceleration Clause - A clause in a mortgage note
or contract stating that upon default of a payment due, the balance of the debt or
obligation should at once become due and payable. |
| Acceptance (Contract Law) - In contract law, a
promise by the offeree to be bound by the terms of an offer. An acceptance must be
absolutely identical with the terms of the offer and must be communicated to the offeror
in the manner indicated or implied in the offer. |
| Accord and Satisfaction - A settlement or
compromise of a dispute between parties to a contract with the rendering of some different
performance by one of the parties which is accepted by the other. |
| Accretion - The gradual and imperceptible deposit
of additional soil to land by natural causes, usually the flow of water. See Alluvion. |
| Accrued Interest - The amount of interest
due for the period of time that has passed since interest was last paid. |
| Acknowledgment - The
act of one who has executed a deed or other written instrument when he/she goes before a
notary public or other competent officer and declares the instrument that he/she has
executed to be his/her voluntary act and deed. An acknowledgment is sometimes referred to
as the written certification of the officer itself. |
| Acre - A measure of land equally 160 square rods,
or 4,840 square yards, or 43,560 square feet, or a tract about 208.71 feet square. |
| Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM)
- A mortgage loan involving a payment plan that allows the lender to periodically (e.g.
annually) adjust the interest rate (and usually the monthly principal and interest payment
as well) in accordance with certain designated factors or indices which normally reflect
trends in general market interest rates. See also Variable Rate Mortgage (VRM). |
| Adjusted Basis - For income tax purposes, the
original cost (adjusted purchase price) of a property, referred to as its
"basis," less the amount of allowable depreciation taken, plus the cost of
capital improvements. (Note: A depreciation deduction is not allowed for a personal
residence.) |
| Administrator - A person appointed by the court to
manage and settle the estate of a deceased person who died intestate, that is, died
without leaving a will. (Technically, the term administrator is now obsolete and the term
personal representative is the proper statutory title. The old terminology remains in
popular use, however.) |
| Ad valorem - Designates an assessment of taxes
against property; literally, "according to value." |
| Adverse Possession - A possession that is
inconsistent with the right of possession and title of the true owner. Adverse possession
is the actual, open, notorious, exclusive, continuous, and hostile occupation and
possession of the land of another under a claim of right or under color of title. If
adverse possession is maintained for the period prescribed by statute, a new title is
created in the adverse possessor and the title of the record owner is extinguished. An
unusual feature of regular adverse possession in North Carolina is that the claimant must
have the conscious intent to appropriate the land of another; i.e., land cannot be
acquired under the regular doctrine (as opposed to color of title) by mistake. |
| Aesthetic Zoning - Zoning laws designed to regulate
the physical appearance of property. Such zoning might require, for example, that
junkyards be screened from public view by a fence or shrub-line. |
| Affidavit - A statement or declaration reduced to
writing, and sworn or affirmed to before some officer who has authority to administer
oaths or affirmations. |
| Affidavit as to Mechanics' Liens - An affidavit
provided by a seller to a buyer assuring the buyer that no work has been done on the
subject property that might give rise to the filing of a mechanic's lien. |
| Affirmation - As solemn declaration in the nature
of an oath made by persons who have religious scruples against taking oaths. |
| Agency - The relationship that exists by contract
between a principal and an agent, whereby the agent is authorized to represent and act on
behalf of the principal in certain business transactions. See Agent and Principal. |
| Agent - A person who represents and acts on behalf
of another person, called the principal, in dealing with a third party or parties pursuant
to a contract of agency. |
| Agreement of Sale - See Purchase Contract and Sales
Contract. |
| Air Rights - The right vested by a grant (deed,
lease agreement, or other conveyance) on an estate in real property to build upon, occupy,
or use, in the manner and degree permitted, all of any portion of space above the ground
or any other stated elevation within vertical planes, the basis of which corresponds with
the boundaries of the real estate described in the grant. |
| Alienation Clause - See Due-on-Sale Clause. |
| Alluvion - Soil deposited on existing land by
accretion; increase in land on the shore or bank of a river due to change in flow of
stream. See Accretion. |
| Amenities - The qualities and state of being
pleasant and agreeable. In appraising, those qualities that attach to property in the form
of benefits derived from ownership other than monetary. Satisfactions of possession and
use arising from architectural excellence, scenic beauty, and social environment. |
| Amortization - The act of liquidating, or
extinguishing, a financial obligation on an installment basis, usually by periodical
payments made to a sinking fund, to a creditor or to an account. |
| Annexation - (a) The permanent attachment of an
item of personal property to real property, thus creating a "fixture"; (b) The
addition of real property to its corporate limits by a city or town. |
| Annual Percentage Rate (APR) - The relationship,
expressed as a percentage, of the total finance charges associated with a loan to the
amount of the loan. This rate must be disclosed by lenders to borrowers under the
Truth-in-Lending Act and implementing federal regulations. |
| Appraisal - An estimate or
opinion of quantity, quality, or value. As applied to real property, it is a documented
opinion as to a property's value, marketability, usefulness, or suitability. Also, the
process of deriving a conclusion as to value, and the report setting forth such
conclusion. See Valuation. |
| Appreciation - An increased conversion value of
property or mediums of exchange due to economic or related causes that may prove to be
either temporary or permanent; generally, an appraisal term referring to the increase in
value of property. |
| Appurtenance - That which belongs to something
else. In real estate law an appurtenance is a right, privilege, or improvement that passes
as an incident to the land, such as a right of way. |
| Appurtenant Easement - An easement over one parcel,
the servient estate, that benefits (is appurtenant to) another parcel, the dominant
estate. According to property law, whoever owns the dominant estate has the right to use
the easement over the servient estate. (See Easement for a full definition of that term.) |
| Assessed Value - The official appraised value of
property for ad valorem property tax purposes. |
| Assessment - See Special Assessment. |
| Assignee - The person to whom an agreement or
contract is assigned. |
| Assignment - The method or manner by which a right,
a specialty, or a contract is transferred from one person to another. |
| Assignment of Lease - Transfer by a lessee (tenant)
of all his/her interest under a lease for the entire balance of the term of the lease. |
| Assignor - One who makes an assignment. |
| Assumption Fee - Fee charged by a mortgage lender
when a new buyer of property assumes an existing mortgage. |
| Assumption of Mortgage - The taking of title to
property by a grantee, wherein the grantee assumes liability for payment of an existing
indebtedness secured by a mortgage or deed of trust against the property. He/she becomes a
co- guarantor for the payment of said mortgage or deed of trust indebtedness along with
the original obligor (maker of the note) unless the latter is released from the debt
obligation by the mortgagee (lender). One who "assumes" a mortgage indebtedness
becomes the primary obligor thereon, and is personally liable for its payment. |
| Attachment of Property - A writ issued at the institution
or during the progress of an action that commands the sheriff or other proper officer to
take possession of the property, right, credit, or effects of the defendant in order to
secure it for the purpose of satisfying the demands of the plaintiff in the action. An
attachment is used principally against absconding, concealed, or fraudulent debtors. |
| Attorney at Law - A lawyer; a licensed attorney; an
officer of the courts who is employed by a party in a case to manage the cause for
him/her. |
| Attorney in Fact - One who is authorized to perform
certain legal acts for another under a power of attorney; the power of attorney may be a
general power or it may be limited to authorize the performance of a specific act or acts.
See also Power of Attorney. |
| Avulsion - The removal of a considerable quantity
of soil from the land of one person, and its deposit upon or annexation to the land of
another, suddenly and by the perceptible action of water. Top of Page
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