Real Estate Transactions & Title Transfers

• Grantee: The buyer in a transaction.
• Grantor: The seller in a transaction.
• Involuntary Alienation: Loss of property due to attachment, condemnation, foreclosure, tax sale, or other involuntary title transfer.
• Voluntary Alienation: Transfer of title to an asset with the owner's consent.
• Deed: A legal document signed at closing that transfers property ownership from seller to buyer, distinct from a contract. Deeds can be found on NYC Department of Finance ACRIS.

Chain of Title & Acknowledgement

• Chain of Title: The sequence of historical title transfers for a property, tracing back from the present owner to the original owner.
• Acknowledgement: A formal declaration before an authorized officer authenticating an instrument, giving it legal validity and preventing false recordings or fraudulent executions.

Consideration & Conveyance

• Consideration: Anything of value, like money or services, given to induce another party to enter a contract.
• Conveyance: The transfer of land title from one party to another, acting as the means by which real estate title is transferred.

Delivery, Acceptance, & Habendum Clause

• Delivery and Acceptance: Mandates that a real property deed be a matter of public record, requiring proper recording after delivery and acceptance.
• Habendum Clause: A deed or lease clause defining the interest type and rights enjoyed by the grantee or lessee.

Lot and Block & Merger Doctrine

• Lot and Block: A method for legally describing property.
• Merger Doctrine: The principle that a property conveyance contract merges into the deed of conveyance.
• The deed is relevant when the sales contract is signed and at the closing where it clearly specifies what the sellers responsibilities are.

Legal Description / Schedule A

• Description (Schedule A): The written words delineating a specific piece of real property.

Executor & Survey

• Executor: An individual or institution appointed by a testator to execute the terms of their will.
• Survey: The process of measuring land, ascertaining its area, and creating a blueprint of measurements, boundaries, and area.

Full Covenant and Warranty Deed

• Full Covenant and Warranty Deed: A deed where the grantor guarantees clear title and the right to sell, containing the strongest title guarantee, including:
  • Full possession for the purchaser.
  • Absence of liens and encumbrances.
  • Absence of hostile title claims.
  • Warranty covers the title in general.

Bargain and Sale Deed & Quitclaim Deed

• Bargain and Sale Deed: A deed conveying real property without covenants, but a version with covenants is more common.
  • With covenants means seller is saying they didn't do anything wrong to ruin the title.
  • Without covenants means there may be an issue with the title.
• Quitclaim Deed: Transfers the grantor’s rights or interest in real estate without covenants, used to remove a cloud from the title, and typically used when money is not exchanged. The grantee takes the property subject to its condition

Executor's Deed & Referee's Deed

• Executors Deed is only used when owner of the property passed away.
• Descendant or testator - the deceased person .
• Referee's Deed: Used to convey property sold through a judicial order, such as in a mortgage foreclosure or partition action.

Title & Marketable Title

• Title: A legal term for bundle of rights in a piece of property, where a party may own a legal or equitable interest.
• Marketable Title: A title that a court considers free from defect, legally compelling a buyer to accept it.
• The quality of the title in the transaction dictates the deed used. Negotiating a lower property price may allow for acceptance of lesser quality titles.

Intestate, Accession, & Accretion

• Intestate: Dying without a will, in which case an administrator represents the estate. If there is a will, the representative is called an executor.
• Accession: Acquiring property by adding value through labor or new materials.
• Accretion: Land addition through natural processes like water or wind.

Ad Valorem Taxes, Adverse Possession, & Alluvion

• Ad Valorem Taxes: Taxes based on property valuation.
• Adverse Possession: Acquiring title through actual, open, notorious, exclusive, and continuous occupancy of property under a claim of right for the required statutory period.
• Alluvion: Increase in land area due to sediment deposited by a river, contributing to accretion and value changes over time.

Assessed Value & Assessing Unit

• Assessed Value: A property valuation by a public officer or board as a basis for taxation.
• Assessing Unit: A city, county, town, or village authorized to value real property for taxation purposes.

Approved Assessing Unit

• Approved Assessing Unit: A city or town certified by the State Board of Real Property Tax Services for completing a revaluation or update in accordance with its rules and regulations.

Explore real estate terminologies! Key concepts include grantee, grantor, voluntary and involuntary alienation. Understand deeds, chain of title, acknowledgement, consideration, and conveyance in property transfer.