| Package Insurance Policy - A generic term describing an insurance policy that insures against a number of perils, such as a homeowner's policy. |
| Package Mortgage - A mortgage or deed of trust on both real and personal property. |
| Panic Peddling - See Blockbusting. |
| Parol - Oral, as distinguished from written. |
| Participation Mortgage - (a) A mortgage whereby the lender receives a portion of the income from the property or a partial equity interest in the property; (b) A mortgage loan made by two or more lenders. |
| Partition - A division of land among those who own it in undivided shares, such as tenants in common. A partition may be by a voluntary exchange of deeds or it may be ordered in a judicial proceeding. |
| Partition Deed - A deed executed by concurrent owners of property in order to convert their ownership into ownership in severally. |
| Party Wall - A wall that is erected upon and over a line separating two adjoining properties and to which use the owners of the respective parcels have a common right. |
| Patent Ambiguity - A condition that exists in an attempted description of real estate in a deed, contract, or other document affecting title that is so absolutely uncertain that there is no way of determining where the property is. A document containing a patently ambiguous description is void. Compare Latent Ambiguity. |
| Patent Defect - An obvious property defect that should be discovered by a reasonably diligent inspection of the property. Compare Latent Defect. |
| Payment Cap - A limit on the amount the monthly payment on an adjustable rate mortgage can be increased when the interest rate is adjusted upward. |
| Percentage Lease - A lease of commercial property in which the rent is computed as a percentage of the receipts, either gross or net, from the business conducted by the lessee, sometimes with a guaranteed minimum rental. |
| Percolation Test - A soil test to determine if soil will absorb and drain water sufficiently for use of a septic tank. |
| Periodic Tenancy - See Estate from Year to Year. |
| Personal Property - Movable property that is not real property. The term "personal property" includes tangible property such as money, goods, chattels, and also intangible property such as debts and claims (choses in action). |
| Personal Representative - A person appointed to wind up the affairs of a decedent; appointed by the court, an administrator, or, if named by a will, an executor. |
| Pest Inspection Report - See Wood-Destroying Insect Inspection Report. |
| Physical Deterioration - Impairment of condition; one of the causes of.depreciation, resulting from wear and tear, disintegration use in service, action of the elements, and other causes. |
| Plaintiff - The complaining party in an action or suit in court. |
| Planned Unit Development - A "PUD" is a special use permitted under some zoning ordinances that allows a developer to deviate from construction on standard lots and develop tracts with varying land uses and densities. A PUD often involves cluster housing with areas of open space. |
| Plat - A map of a division of land into blocks and lots. |
| Plat Book - A public record in the office of the Register of Deeds of various recorded plans of subdivisions of land into blocks and lots. |
| Points - One percent of a mortgage loan. See also Discount Points. |
| Police Power - The inherent rights of a government to pass such legislation as may be necessary to protect the public health and safety and to promote the general welfare. |
| Power of Attorney - An instrument authorizing a person to act as the agent or attorney of the person granting it; may be a general power or may be limited to performance of specific act or acts. |
| Power of Sale - A method of foreclosure of a mortgage or deed of trust in default. After proper notice and a hearing before a clerk of court, the mortgaged property is sold at a public sale. |
| Prepayment Penalty - Charge by lender when mortgage loan is paid before it is due. Such penalties are prohibited by law in North Carolina on home loans of $100,000 or less. |
| Prequalifying a Buyer - The process of making a nonbinding preliminary determination as to the qualifications of a prospective buyer of real estate with respect to a mortgage loan. Prequalification may be performed by a lender or a real estate agent. |
| Present Value - The present worth of money to be received at some future time. |
| Prima Facie - From Latin and meaning "first view." Prima facie evidence of fact is in law sufficient to establish the fact unless rebutted. |
| Primary Mortgage Market - The market in which mortgage loans are originated. This market consists of lenders (such as savings and loan associations, mortgage companies, and banks) that make mortgage loans directly to borrowers. |
| Prime Contractor - See General Contractor. |
| Principal - (a) One who appoints or hires an agent to act for and in his/her stead; (b) A capital sum lent at interest; the amount of a loan. |
| Private Mortgage Insurance - Insurance that insures a mortgage lender (and subsequent purchaser of the mortgage note) against default by the borrower on a conventional mortgage loan. |
| Probate - The judicial process by which the validity of a will is formally determined. |
| Procuring Cause - A legal term referring to that cause which originates a series of events that lead directly to the accomplishment of a goal. In real estate brokerage, a test applied to determine whether a broker has earned his/her commission under a listing contract (except for an exclusive right-to-sell listing) by procuring a purchaser who is ready, willing, and able to complete a sales transaction in accordance with terms acceptable to the seller. See also "Ready, Willing and Able." |
| Promissory Note - See Note. |
| Property - The term describing the rights and interests a person has in lands, chattels, and other determinate things. "Property" encompasses a "bundle of rights," various interests that are created and protectible by law, giving to an individual exclusive rights to own, possess, use, enjoy, and to dispose of determinate things. |
| Property Tax - A tax on real and personal property ownership based on the market value of the property; called an ad valorem property tax. |
| Proprietary Lease - A lease given by the corporation owning a cooperative apartment building to a tenant (who is also a stockholder in the corporation) giving the tenant the right to occupy a particular unit. |
| Prospectus - A printed advertisement for a new enterprise, such as a planned subdivision development or office complex. |
| Proration - The division or distribution of money or monetary obligations between seller and buyer in a real estate closing transaction. |
| Protection Agreement - An agreement between an owner of real estate and a real estate broker in which the owner promises to pay the broker a commission if the property is sold to a specified prospective purchaser procured by the broker. |
| Public Offering Statement - A disclosure statement prepared by a developer that contains all material facts about a property offered for sale and that must be provided to a prospective purchaser in accordance with applicable state or federal law. |
| Purchase Contract - An offer to purchase that has been accepted by the seller and has become a binding contract. See also Sales Contract. |
| Purchase Money Mortgage (or Purchase Money Deed of Trust) - A mortgage (or deed of trust) given by a buyer to the seller to secure a part or all of the purchase price of real estate. The significance of a purchase money mortgage given to a seller in North Carolina is that, in the event of default and foreclosure of the mortgage, the seller will not be able to sue for a deficiency judgment under G.S. 45-21.38. |
