Chapter 8 Flashcards

Chapter 8 Flashcards HomesteadA homestead is one's principal residence. Homestead laws protect family members against losing their homes to general creditors attempting to collect on debts. New York does not recognize a homestead estate.PartitionA partition suit can terminate a joint tenancy or a tenancy in common. Foreclosure and bankruptcy can also terminate these estates. A partition suit is a legal way for an owner to dispose of his or her interest against the wishes of other co-owners. The suit petitions the court to divide, or partition, the property physically, according to the owner's respective rights and interests. If this can't be done, the court may order the property sold and the proceeds divided among the co-owners.Curtsey/DowerDower is a wife's life estate interest in the husband's property. When the husband dies, the wife can make a claim to portions of the decedent's property. Curtesy is the identical right enjoyed by the husband in a deceased wife's property. Property acquired under dower laws is owned by the surviving spouse for the duration of his or her lifetime.New York no longer recognizes dower and curtesy FixtureA personal property item that has been permanently attached to land or a building is called a fixture and it becomes part of the real estate. Typical examples are toilets, water pumps, septic tanks and window shutters.The owner of real property essentially owns all fixtures belonging to the real property. When the owner sells the

property, the buyer gets the rights to all fixtures. Note:

Fixtures not included in the sale must be listed and excluded in the sale contract.Joint TenancyIn a joint tenancy, two or more persons collectively own a property as if they were a single person. Rights and interests are indivisible and equal. Each has a shared interest in the whole property which cannot be divided up.Joint tenants may only convey their interests to outside parties as tenant-incommon interests. One cannot convey a joint tenant interest. The defining characteristics and

requirements of joint tenancy are: unity of ownership, equal

ownership, transfer of interest, and survivorship. To create a joint tenancy, all owners must acquire the property at the same time, use the same deed, acquire equal interests, and share in equal rights of possession. These are referred

to as the four unities: unity of time, unity of title, unity of

interest, and unity of possession.BeneficiaryIn an estate in trust, a fee owner-the grantor or trustor-transfers legal title to a fiduciary-the trustee-who holds and manages the estate for the benefit of another party, the beneficiary. The trust may be created by a deed, will, or trust agreement. The trustee has fiduciary duties to the trustor and the beneficiary to maintain the condition and value of the property. The specific responsibilities and authorities are set forth in the trust agreement.IlliquidityReal estate suffers from illiquidity-meaning that it is not quickly or easily converted to cash, as short-term investments in stocks are.

Personal PropertyThe ownership of anything which is not real estate, along with the rights associated with owning the personal property item. Unlike real property, personal property is readily movable from one location to another. Personal property is sometimes referred to as chattels or personalty.This word evolved from the word cattle, one of man's earliest important possessions. Chattels real are annexed to real estate, whereas chattels personal are movable.Chattels are transferred by means of a bill of sale. The Uniform Commercial Code regulates the transfer of chattels and the use of chattels as security for debts Fee Simple EstateThe fee simple estate is the highest form of ownership interest one can acquire in real estate. It includes the complete bundle of rights and the tenancy is unlimited. The fee simple interest is also called the "fee interest," or simply the "fee." The owner of the fee simple interest is called the fee tenant.ParcelA parcel, or tract, of land is a section of land defined by boundaries Trade FixturesTrade fixtures, or chattel fixtures, are items of a tenant's personal property that the tenant has temporarily attached to a landlord's real property in order to conduct business.Trade fixtures may be detached and removed before the lease is up or at the time the tenant vacates the property. If the tenant fails to remove a trade fixture, it may become the property of the landlord through accession. From that point on, the fixture is considered real property. Examples of trade fixtures include a grocer's food freezers, a merchant's clothes racks, a tavern owner's bar, a dairy's milking machines and a printer's printing press.Life EstateA life estate is a freehold estate that is limited in duration to the life of the owner or other named person. Upon the death of the owner or other named individual, the estate passes to the original owner or another named party. The holder of a life estate is called the life tenant. The life tenant does not have the right to pass ownership to his or her heirs. o The distinguishing characteristics of the life estate

are: The owner enjoys full ownership rights during the

estate period. Holders of the future interest own either a reversionary or a remainder interest. The estate may be created by agreement between private parties, or it may be created by law under prescribed circumstances.Estate for YearsAn estate for years is a type of leasehold estate that lasts for a specific period of time. The beginning and ending dates are specified in the lease, along with the amount paid

in rent. No notice is required to vacate, as the tenant is expected to vacate at the end of the lease.Remainder Interests/RemaindermanIf a life estate names a third party to receive title to the property upon the death of the life tenant, the party enjoys