Contracts, regulations, compliance, entity structures, zoning, permits, and landlord-tenant law.
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Foundation terms you need to know first (89 terms)
Development costs are all the expenses incurred during the process of acquiring land, designing, constructing, and preparing a real estate project for use or sale, from start to finish.
Base rent is the fixed, minimum rent amount paid by a tenant to a landlord for the use of a property, excluding additional charges like operating expenses, taxes, or utilities.
An absolute auction is a type of real estate auction where the property is sold to the highest bidder, regardless of the price, with no minimum bid or reserve price set by the seller.
The Lease Commencement Date is the official date specified in a lease agreement when the tenant's rights and obligations, including rent payments and property responsibilities, legally begin.
An application fee is a non-refundable charge paid by a prospective tenant to a landlord or property manager to cover the costs associated with processing a rental application, including background and credit checks.
Complex strategies and professional concepts (117 terms)
An Equity-for-Property Swap is an advanced real estate investment strategy where an investor exchanges equity in one or more properties or entities for direct ownership of another property, often to achieve tax deferral, portfolio restructuring, or strategic asset acquisition.
The accounting process of recognizing the estimated cost of an Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) as a liability and capitalizing a corresponding asset, which is then depreciated over its useful life, reflecting the future costs associated with retiring a long-lived asset.
A legally binding contract that alters the priority of liens on a property, allowing a senior lienholder to voluntarily place their claim in a junior position to another, typically to facilitate new financing or complex transactions.
Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) is a tax levied on the net income of a tax-exempt organization, including certain real estate investment vehicles, derived from a trade or business regularly carried on and not substantially related to its exempt purpose.
Inverse condemnation is a legal action initiated by a private property owner against a government entity to recover "just compensation" for a taking of their property, where the government has not formally exercised its power of eminent domain but has effectively deprived the owner of beneficial use or value.
Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship (JTWROS) is a form of property co-ownership where two or more individuals hold equal, undivided interests, and upon the death of one owner, their share automatically transfers to the surviving owner(s) without probate.
A real estate Joint Venture (JV) is a collaborative business arrangement where two or more parties combine resources, expertise, and capital for a specific real estate project, sharing both the risks and rewards.
A Joint Venture (Development) is a strategic partnership between two or more parties, typically for a specific real estate development project, pooling resources, expertise, and capital to share risks and rewards.
A judgment lien is a legal claim placed on a debtor's property, typically real estate, as a result of a court-ordered money judgment, securing the creditor's right to collect the debt.
A junior lien is a claim on a property that is subordinate in priority to another existing claim, typically a first mortgage. In a foreclosure, junior lienholders are paid only after all senior lienholders have been fully satisfied, exposing them to higher risk.
Just Cause Eviction laws require landlords to have a legally specified, valid reason to terminate a tenancy, providing significant protection to tenants against arbitrary evictions.
Just compensation refers to the fair market value paid to a property owner when their private property is taken for public use by the government through eminent domain, as mandated by the Fifth Amendment.
A land contract is a seller-financed real estate agreement where the buyer makes payments directly to the seller, who retains legal title until the full purchase price is paid.
Land development is the process of transforming raw, undeveloped land into usable and valuable property by adding infrastructure and preparing it for construction or sale.
Land due diligence is the comprehensive process of investigating a parcel of land to identify potential risks, liabilities, and opportunities before purchase or development, covering legal, environmental, physical, and financial aspects.
The Land Registry is a government department responsible for recording the ownership of land and property, along with any associated rights, restrictions, or burdens. It provides a definitive, state-guaranteed record of title, simplifying transactions and preventing fraud.
A land swap is a strategic real estate transaction where two or more parties exchange parcels of land or properties of similar value, often to achieve specific objectives like consolidating parcels, optimizing land use, or deferring capital gains taxes.
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