Real Estate Glossary

See Starter.

The slope of the ground around a house.

The valve inside a toilet tank that controls the filling of the tank.

A mortgage loan in which the monthly payments are not large enough to repay the loan by the end of the term. So at the end of the term, the remaining balance comes due in a single large payment.

The final large payment at the end of a balloon mortgage term.

When a person or business is unable to pay their debts and seeks protection of the state against creditors. Bankruptcies remain on credit records for up to ten years and can prevent a person from being able to get a loan.

A special proceeding under federal, or in some instances state, laws by which the property of a debtor is protected by the court and may be divided among the debtor's creditors and the debtor.

A structural supporting member.

See Deed of Trust.

A physical receipt indicating the sale of property.

A mortgage where you make "half payments" every two weeks, rather than one payment per month. This results in making the equivalent of 13 monthly payments per year, rather than 12, significantly reducing the time it takes to pay off a thirty year mortgage.

A mortgage or trust deed that covers more than one lot or parcel of real property, and often an entire subdivision. As individual lots are sold, a partial reconveyance from the blanket mortgage is ordinarily obtained.

Any region of a city or town that has fallen into disrepair or otherwise has become undesirable.

Any genuine offer, made without intent to defraud or deceive.

One who buys property in good faith, for fair value, and without notice of any adverse claim or right of third parties.

A subordinate or division office of First American Title Insurance Company, as opposed to an affiliate, agent, subsidiary or underwritten firm associated with the Company.

Failure to perform a contract, in whole or part, without legal excuse.

An interim loan made to facilitate the purchase of a new home before the buyer's current residence sells and its equity is available to fund the new purchase.

Structural members used between beams to strengthen the structure.

An individual who facilitates the purchase of property by bringing together a buyer and a seller.

British Thermal Unit. A unit of measurement used to describe heating or cooling capacity.

A segment of land between two disparate municipal zones which acts as a shield to keep one zone from encroaching upon the other. Often used to separate residential districts from commercial areas.

Regulations that ensure the safety and material compliance of new construction within a municipality. Building codes are localized to ensure they are adequate to meet the risk of common hazards.

An agreement between an owner or lessee and a building contractor, setting forth terms relative to the construction of a proposed structure.

The statutory distance between buildings and the property line, imposed by municipalities, home associations, or other agreements.

Specific items of personal property which are installed in a real estate improvement such that they become part of the building. Built-in microwave ovens and dishwashers are common examples.

A one-story, home-style dating from the early twentieth century. Often characterized by a low-pitched roof.

Extra money paid in a lump sum to reduce the interest rate of a fixed rate mortgage for a period of time. The extra money may be paid by the borrower, in order to have a lower payment at the beginning of the mortgage. Or paid by the seller, or lender, as incentive to buy the property or take on the mortgage.

A payment to the lender from the seller, buyer, third party, or some combination of these, causing the lender to reduce the interest rate during the early years of a loan. The buydown is usually for the first one to five years of the loan. (See also: Certificate Backed Mortgage).

Electrical cable shrouded in a galvanized steel outer cover.