AGREEMENT OF SALE - An agreement between the seller (vendor) and buyer (vendee) for the purchase of real property.
AIR RIGHTS- The rights to the use of the open space or vertical plane above a property. Ownership of the land includes the right to all air above the property.
ALIENATION CLAUSE - A clause in a promissory note or mortgage which provides that the balance of the secured debt becomes immediately due and payable at the option of the mortgagee upon the alienation of the property by the mortgagor.
ALLODIAL SYSTEM - The free ownership of land by individuals.
AMENITIES - Features, both tangible and intangible, which enhance and add to the desirability of real estate.
AMORTIZATION - The gradual repayment of a debt by means of systematic payments of principal and interest over a set period, where at the end of the period there is a zero balance.
ANCHOR TENANT - Major department or chain stores which are strategically located at shopping centers so as to give maximum exposure to smaller satellite stores.
ANNUAL PERCENTAGE RATE - The relationship of the total Finance Charge to the total amount to be finance as required under the Federal Truth-in-Lending Law.
APPRAISAL - The process of estimating, fixing, or setting the market value of real property. An appraisal may take the form of a lengthy report, a completed form, a simple letter, or even an oral report.
APPRECIATION - An increase in the worth or value of property due to economic or related causes, which may prove to be either temporary or permanent.
APPURTENANT - Belonging to; adjunct; appended or annexed.
ARBITRATION - The non-judicial submission of a controversy to selected third parties for their determination in the manner provided by agreement or by law.
ASSESSED VALUATION - The value of real property as established by the state government for purposes of computing real property taxes. ASSESSMENT - A specific levy for a definite purpose, such as adding curbs or sewers in a neighborhood. Individual condominium owners are subject to special assessments benefiting the project as a whole and not funded through regular maintenance charges.
ASSIGNMENT - The transfer of the right, title and interest in the property of one person, the assignor, to another, the assignee. In real estate, there are assignments of mortgages, contracts, agreements of sale, leases, and options, among others.
ASSUMPTION OF MORTGAGE - The act of acquiring title to property which has an existing mortgage on it and agreeing to be personally liable for the terms and conditions of the mortgage, including payments.
ATTACHMENT - The legal process of seizing the real or personal property of a defendant in a lawsuit, by levy or judicial order, and holding it in the custody of the courts as security for satisfaction of the judgment which the plaintiff may recover in any action upon a contract, express or implied. ATTORNEY-IN-FACT - One who is authorized by another to act in his place under a power of attorney.
ATTORNMENT - The act of a tenant formally agreeing to become the tenant of a successor landlord; as in attorning to a mortgagee who has foreclosed on the leased premises.