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Here is the "D" page
from our dictionary of real estate
terms and definitions beginning with "damages" and ending with "dwelling"
We try to provide as much information
as possible to buyers of Ocala Real Estate. These terms and definitions apply
pretty much nation wide, and we try to update with terms specifically relating
to Florida Real Estate as soon as we come across something we've missed. We
welcome your comments and suggestions!
DAMAGES:
The indemnity recoverable by a person who has sustained an injury, either
in his person, property or relative rights, through the act or default of
another.
DATE OF APPRAISAL:
The precise day, month and year upon which an assessment of the value of
a property has been given.
DATE OF INSTRUMENT:
The specific day, month and year a legal document was signed or prepared.
DATE OF
REGISTRATION:
The specific day, month and year upon which an instrument was registered
on title to the property.
DEAD END STREET:
Also known as "Cul De Sac". A street which is closed at one end so that
traffic cannot flow through it.
DEALER:
Similar to a car dealer, a person who offers a collection of properties
for sale to the public.
DEALER PROPERTY:
Property held for sale to customers. Profit is considered ordinary income
for income tax.
DEBIT:
An entry on a financial statement which reflects payments or
disbursements made on behalf of a party for which the party is responsible
(opposite of "Credit").
DEBT - RESOURCE LINKS:
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DEBT:
1. An obligation to another person.
2. That obligation which is created by borrowing.
3. The total of all financial obligations of a person or corporation.
DEBT COVERAGE RATIO
(DCR):
A comparison of the net income of a property with the cost of payments
(principal and interest) on the mortgage on the property, used to assess the
ability of the property to generate enough income to pay for itself.
DEBT EQUITY RATIO:
A comparison of the amount owing on a property with the equity (value of
property minus amount owing).
DEBT FINANCING:
Paying for the purchase of a property with credit.
DEBT RATIO:
Also known as Debt-to-Income ratio. A comparison of the total monthly
payments of all of the borrower's debts (including the mortgage) with the gross
monthly income of the borrower, used to assess borrower's ability to pay
mortgage.
DEBT SERVICE:
The mortgage payment for a given period of time.
DEBTOR:
This is the party who "owns" the property which is subject to the
security interest. Previously he was known as the mortgagor or the pledgor, etc.
DECIDUOUS TREES:
Lose their leaves in the autumn and winter.
DECLARATION OF ABANDONMENT:
Document recorded to terminate a homestead.
DECLARATION OF HOMESTEAD:
Document recorded to establish a homestead to protect the owner against
judgment liens.
DECLARATION OF
RESTRICTIONS:
Recorded list of restrictions imposed on a subdivision by a subdivider.
DECLARATION OF
TRUST:
A signed statement by a trustee acknowledging that she holds legal title
to property on behalf of someone else (the beneficiary of the trust).
DECLINING BALANCE DEPRECIATION:
Method of computing depreciation for income tax purposes.
DECREE OF
FORECLOSURE:
An order of the Court setting out the amount outstanding on a delinquent
mortgage and ordering the sale of the property to pay the mortgagee.
DEDICATION:
An appropriation of land by its owner for some public use accepted for
such use by authorized public officials on behalf of the public.
DEED:
Written instrument which, when properly executed and delivered, conveys
title.
DEED BOOKS:
The permanent record of deeds registered in a particular jurisdiction.
Also known as "libers".
DEED IN LIEU OF
FORECLOSURE:
A legal instrument in which a borrower conveys property to a lender under
a mortgage to save the expense of foreclosure. See also quit-claim deed.
DEED IN TRUST:
A legal instrument conveying legal title to a property to a trustee, may
contain statements as to powers of trustee, duties of trustee etc.
DEED OF
RECONVEYANCE:
A legal instrument which conveys title from a trustee back to the
borrower under a mortgage once the mortgage has been paid out.
DEED OF RELEASE:
A legal instrument signed by lien claimants or mortgagees which gives up
their claim to the property. See Discharge and Quit Claim Deed.
DEED OF SURRENDER:
A legal instrument in which a person with a life interest gives up that
interest to the person with underlying title.
DEED OF TRUST:
Document by which naked legal title is transferred to a trustee as
security for a loan.
DEED POLL:
A legal instrument which conveys title and is made by only one party.
DEED RESTRICTION:
A clause in a deed which limits the use of the property in certain
respects.
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DEFAULT:
Failure to fulfill a duty or promise or to discharge an obligation;
omission or failure to perform any act.
DEFAULT JUDGMENT:
A decision rendered by a Court when the defendant has failed to respond
to the claim.
DEFEASANCE CLAUSE:
The clause in a mortgage that gives the mortgagor the right to redeem his
property upon the payment of his obligations to the mortgagee.
DEFEASIBLE:
Able to be revoked in the case of the occurrence (or non-occurrence) of a
certain event or the performance (or failure) of a condition.
DEFECT OF RECORD:
A registered claim on title which serves to interfere with the
marketability of the owner's title to the property.
DEFECTIVE TITLE:
Ownership of property which is subject to some competing claim.
DEFENDANT:
The person against whom a claim is asserted in a Court action.
DEFERRED INTEREST:
Interest which is not paid as it accumulates but which is added, instead,
to the loan principle.
DEFERRED INTEREST
MORTGAGE:
A technique for reducing the amount of each periodic payment on a
mortgage monthly by postponing the payment of a portion of the interest until a
certain date in the future (or to when the property is sold), at which time the
interest postponed is added to the principle owing.
DEFERRED
MAINTENANCE:
Existing but unfulfilled requirements for repairs and rehabilitation.
DEFICIENCY JUDGMENT:
A judgment given when the security pledge for a loan does not satisfy the
debt upon its default.
DEGREE:
One 360th of a circle. One 90th of a right angle. Used in astronomic
bearings in metes and bounds descriptions of land.
DELINQUENCY:
The condition of being late on a payment but not yet in default.
DELIVERY:
The act of turning over any legal document (including a Deed) to another
party so as to make it legally operative and no longer revocable.
DEMAND:
Desire for property. One of four elements which create value.
DEMAND LOAN:
A type of loan where the lender may require payment in full of the
principal (and accumulated interest) at any time.
DEMISE:
Transfer to another of an estate for years, for life, or at will.
DEMISED PREMISES:
The portion of the entire property which is leased to a particular
tenant.
DENSITY:
A measure of the number of a certain thing within a defined space.
Population density, for example, measures the number of people in a given area
(a square-mile, an acre etc.)
DEPARTMENT OF
HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT (HUD):
A federal agency focusing on programs regarding housing and renewal of
city communities.
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA):
An independent federal agency which oversees programs for military
veterans, including loan and mortgage programs.
DEPOSIT:
1. The money paid up-front by a purchaser as security for her completing
the transaction. Also known as "good faith money" or "earnest money".
2. An instrument which is not registered on title but placed in the records for
a given piece of land for information purposes.
DEPOSIT OF TITLE
DEEDS:
When a lender requires ownership documents to be left with it as further
security for a loan.
DEPOSIT RECEIPT:
Document used when accepting earnest money to bind an offer. Basic
contract between buyer and seller.
DEPRECIABLE BASIS:
The initial acquisition cost of an improvement on land, used for income
tax purposes. Land may not be depreciated but the improvements (buildings, etc.)
may be.
DEPRECIABLE LIFE:
An estimation of the useful, valuable life of certain assets (such as
buildings or production machinery).
DEPRECIATION:
Loss of value in real property brought about by age, physical
deterioration, or functional or economic obsolescence. Broadly, a loss in value
from any cause.
DERELICTION:
The gradual receding of water, leaving more land than was there
previously.
DEPTH TABLE:
Table used by appraisers when appraising lots of varying depths.
DERIVATIVE
CONVEYANCE:
A transfer of property made to correct or confirm an earlier conveyance.
DESCENT:
Acquiring property by inheritance when the deceased dies intestate.
DESCRIPTION:
Also known as "Legal Description". The manner in which a piece of land is
identified. May involve metes and bounds measurements using astronomic bearings
or may simply set out Lot and Plan numbers in a specific municipality. Most
jurisdictions require description of land to be included in all instruments to
be registered on title to that property.
DESIGNATED REAL
ESTATE BROKER:
Person designated by a corporation to oversee all real estate activities
of that corporation. Must meet requirements for real estate broker's license.
DESIGNATED REAL
ESTATE INSTRUCTOR (DREI):
Any person who has met the requirements of the Real Estate Educators
Association for this designation.
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DESIST AND REFRAIN ORDER:
An order directing a person to desist and refrain from committing an act
in violation of the law.
DETACHED
SINGLE-FAMILY HOME:
A free-standing dwelling that is designed to house one family unit.
DETERIORATION:
Impairment of condition. One of the causes of depreciation and reflecting
the loss in value brought by wear and tear, disintegration, use in service, and
the action of the elements.
DEVELOPER:
A person or company who makes a business of turning vacant or underused
parcels of land into new housing (or business, commercial or industrial)
surveys.
DEVELOPMENT LOAN:
A loan specifically designed to finance the transformation of a vacant
tract into a new survey. May provide for money to be advanced as the stages of
the development are completed.
DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS:
The legal ability to develop a parcel of land, usually purchased from the
owner of a vacant tract of land by the developer. Title to the property does not
change hands until the new survey of properties is sold to third-party
purchasers.
DEVISE:
A gift of real property by will.
DEVISEE:
One who receives real property by will.
DEVISOR:
One who leaves real property by will.
DINK:
Short form for "Double Income, No Kids". A description of a type of
Purchaser in the real estate market.
DIRECT COSTS:
Those expenses in the improvement of property which can be directly
attributed to the improvement itself (i.e. labor, material, taxes, etc.). Also
known as "hard costs".
DIRECT REDUCTION
MORTGAGE:
A kind of mortgage where the principal and interest to be paid are based
on the principal remaining. An amortized mortgage.
DIRECTION:
1. A document containing written instructions to a person to do a certain
thing in a certain way.
2. A point on a compass, used in legal descriptions.
DIRECTION REGARDING
FUNDS:
A direction made by a party who is entitled to money to the party who is
obligated to pay the money which sets out how the receiving party wishes the
money paid.
DIRECTION REGARDING
TITLE:
Also known as "Title Direction". A direction made by the Purchaser to the
Vendor of property setting out how the Purchaser wishes to take title. May
include the full legal name, the birthdate (if necessary), the address for
service of the Purchaser and, if there are more than one Purchaser, the capacity
in which they wish to share title ( i.e. as Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common).
DIRECTIONAL GROWTH:
The location or direction toward which the residential section of a city
is destined or determined to grow.
DISAFFIRM:
To refuse to accept a decision already made, to revoke consent, assent or
agreement already given.
DISBURSEMENT:
An expenditure of money.
DISCHARGE:
1. A document registered to remove a mortgage from title to a property.
2. To payout out a debt.
3. To meet one's obligations.
DISCLAIMER:
A statement of refusal of responsibility of a legal right etc.
DISCLOSED PRINCIPAL:
The person on whose behalf an agent is acting when that person's identity
is made know to the person with whom the agent is dealing.
DISCLOSURE:
Sometimes known as "Vendor's Disclosure", a legal requirement in some
jurisdictions in which the Vendor of a property must provide a written statement
to a prospective purchaser setting out defects in the property known to the
Vendor.
DISCLOSURE
STATEMENT:
A document issued by a lender to a borrower in which the lender sets out
the terms and conditions of the loan. Often required under legislation.
DISCOUNT:
An amount deducted from the face amount of the loan.
DISCOUNT POINTS:
Prepaid interest demanded by lender when loan is negotiated. A premium
paid for the privilege of borrowing at the stated interest rate.
DISCOUNT RATE:
A benchmark for interest rates, the rate charged by the Federal Reserve
System on loans to banks.
DISCOUNT REAL ESTATE
BROKER:
A licensed real estate broker who charges a commission at a lower rate.
DISPOSSESS:
To remove a person from occupation of a property by a legal action.
DISPOSSESS
PROCEEDINGS:
The legal action taken to dispossess a person of property.
DISTRAINT:
A landlord's action for recovering arrears in rent by taking possession
of and selling the tenant's personal property.
DISTRESS:
The right of a party to sell the real or personal property of another
party to pay for arrears in rent or loan payments.
DISTRESSED PROPERTY:
A property which is to be sold in order to pay arrears on a mortgage.
DISTRICT:
A terms used to classify neighborhoods according to their use:
residential, commercial, industrial, etc.
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DOCUMENT:
1. Noun: a paper which establishes certain facts or attempts to bring
about a certain result.
2. Verb: to set out events, facts or beliefs in written form.
DOCUMENTARY STAMP:
A levy paid to the local government for registration of a document (a
deed or mortgage) in the public records, often calculated as a percentage of the
purchase price or the value of the mortgage.
DOCUMENTARY TRANSFER TAX:
A tax collected when a deed is recorded. Stamps are affixed to the deed.
DOG:
A slang term for a property that, as a result of factors such as poor
condition, poor location or poor design, is slow to sell.
DOMICILE:
The place where a person legally resides.
DOMINANT ESTATE:
The property which enjoys the benefit of an easement over another
property (known as the servient estate).
DOMINANT TENEMENT:
The land that is benefited by an easement appurtenant.
DONEE:
A person to whom a gift is made.
DONOR:
A person who makes a gift.
DOUBTFUL TITLE:
Ownership of land which is questionable as a result of a possibly valid
competing claim.
DOWER:
The right which a wife has in her husband's estate at his death.
DOWN PAYMENT:
The amount of money provided by the Purchaser toward the total price of
the property (not including legal fees or other acquisition costs). In general,
downpayment plus mortgage equals purchase price.
DOWNZONING:
The reduction of the density allowed for a certain property under zoning
by-laws, such as from high density (high rise apartment) to medium density (low
rise or individual homes).
DRAGNET CLAUSE:
A term of a mortgage which establishes the subject property as security
for the present and for all future debts of the owner to the lender.
DRAIN:
A means, whether natural or otherwise, by which water is allowed to flow
off a property.
DRY MORTGAGE:
Also known as "non-recourse loan" because the lender has no personal
right of action against the property owner in the event of default. The lender
may only sell the property to enforce the loan obligation.
DUAL AGENCY:
A breach of agency rules which must be disclosed to the parties. Where
one agent (often a real estate broker or agent) represents both sides in a
contract (i.e. the Vendor and the Purchaser) such that the agent has a conflict
of interest.
DUE DATE:
The date established in the loan agreement upon which all moneys then
outstanding on the loan become due and payable in full.
DUE ON SALE CLAUSE:
A clause in a mortgage which requires that the mortgage be paid out in
full upon the sale of the property against which it is secured. A mortgage with
this clause may not be assumed by a purchaser.
DUMMY:
Slang term for the trustee in an undisclosed trust situation where a
nominee holds legal title of property for an unnamed principal.
DUPLEX:
A building which houses two separate dwelling units.
DURESS:
Unlawful constraint exercised upon a person whereby he is forced to do
some act against his will.
DWELLING:
A house, home, living unit. Generally refers to a building designed for
use as a living space.
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