Real Estate Terms

The rate lock is an agreement between the borrower and the mortgage lender that guarantees a rate for a set period of time (typically 30, 60 or 90 days).

Ratios are guidelines applied by the lender during underwriting a mortgage loan application to determine how large a loan to grant an applicant. The ratios the lenders use are generally…

A real estate broker is an individual employed on a fee or commission basis as an agent to bring buyers and sellers together and assist in negotiating real estate contracts…

An REIT is a trust owned by shareholders that buys and initiates mortgage loans.

A real estate salesperson performs any of the acts of a real estate broker but while associated with and supervised by a broker.

RESPA is a federal law that regulates the activities of lending institutions in making mortgage loans.

This lien is a tax levied against real property by the local government and has priority over all other liens.

When investment real estate has been depreciated for tax purposes, the gain on the sale includes a “recapture” of the previously written-off depreciation as gain. In certain cases, this can…

A recognition letter is a letter from the cooperative corporation’s board of directors recognizing the secured rights of a lender to the shares of stock and the proprietary lease on…

Recording is registering the ownership, lien, or claim of a party to a specific parcel of real estate with the local county.

Recording fees are the fees charged by the recorder’s office to record a document such as a mortgage, deed of trust, deed and UCC Financing Statement.

Redlining is the resistance of lending institutions to make loans for the purchase, construction, or repair of a dwelling due to the socio-economic conditions of the property’s location.

A referral fee is a percentage of a broker’s commission paid to another broker for the referral of a buyer or seller.

Refinancing are the proceeds of a new loan used to pay off an existing mortgage on the same property.

A form of rent regulation, rent control occurs when an apartment has tenants that have been in continual residence since July 1, 1971, or other qualified occupants that have been…

Another form of rent regulation, rent stabilization usually applies to buildings built before 1974 and apartments removed from rent control. After the rent has legally been raised to over $2,500…

A rental is the possession, but not ownership, of a property for a limited duration of time under defined terms and conditions.

A rental building only has apartments for rent and not for purchase.

A reserve fund is the amount reserved to provide funds for future expenses in order to maintain a cooperative or condominium building and is managed by the building’s board.

This act stipulates procedures to be followed in disclosing the presence of lead-based paint in the sale or rental of properties built prior to 1978.

A reverse annuity mortgage is a type of mortgage that retirees on fixed incomes can use to generate income out of the equity in their homes while they continue to…

A rider is an addendum to a document that covers supplemental issues.

A ridge beam is the highest part of framing in a structure and forms the apex of the roof.

The right of assignment allows the lender to sell a mortgage at any time and obtain money invested rather than wait for the completion of the loan term.

A condition contained in many condominium master deeds that permits the board to review any party seeking to purchase or rent an apartment and to refuse the applicant if it…

The right of survivorship is the right of an owner to receive the title to a co-owner’s share upon death of the co-owner, as in the case of joint tenancy…

Right-of-way is an easement allowing someone to use the land of another for a specific purpose.

Riparian rights are the rights of an owner of property adjoining a watercourse such as a river, including access to and use of the water.

Apartment size may be described by number of rooms. A room in NYC must be at least 100 sq. ft. and have a window, except in the case of a…

Running with the land refers to rights that are passed with the title of property from the grantor to the grantee.

The sale price, also referred to as the purchase price, refers to the amount of money paid by the purchaser to the seller.

The sales comparison approach is an appraisal tool for estimating the value of a property with other similar properties that have sold recently.

The satisfaction of mortgage indicates that a mortgage has been paid in full.

A list in the offering plan of all the apartments being sold in a newly-constructed building or one that is undergoing conversion. It presents allocated shares or unit-percentage interest, room…

The projected cost of operating a cooperative or condominium during its first year of operation and is part of the offering plan.

The security deposit is the payment required by the landlord that guarantees that the tenant will meet their financial obligations under the terms of the lease. Besides guarding against any…

The seller contribution is a payment by the seller of a property of some, or all, of the buyer’s closing costs.

A seller’s agent is the listing agent that works in the best interests of the seller.

A service drop is the above-ground electrical cables that come from the nearest electrical pole connecting the electrical service of the house.

Service lateral are the underground electrical wiring connecting the electrical service of the house.

Servicing are activities the lender performs such as collecting the payments and/or paying taxes and insurance from an escrow account.

Servient tenement refers to land encumbered by an easement.

The setback is the distance from the front or interior property line to the point where the structure is located.

Severalty refers to ownership by only one person.

When purchasing in a cooperative building, the apartment is not actually purchased directly as real estate but rather shares in the cooperative corporation are purchased. The amount of shares represent…

A soffit is the area under the roof extension of a structure that can be made of wood, vinyl or aluminum.

The sponsor is the developer or owner of the property that initiates the conversion of a property from single ownership to cooperative or condominium ownership.

The area measured in square feet of a certain property. Square footage can be measured in different ways and is usually considered approximate. Condominium apartments have specific laws that determine…

A standing mortgage is an interest-only mortgage with no principal reduction over time. See “Balloon Mortgage”.

A clause in the contract of sale for a cooperative apartment stipulating that the agreement is conditioned upon the buyer’s obtaining financing from a financial institution in an agreed-upon amount.