Glossary of Real Estate and related terms.

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Acceleration Clause

A common provision of a mortgage or note providing the holder with the right to demand that the entire outstanding balance is immediately due and usually payable in the event of default.

Accrued Interest

Interest earned but not yet paid.

Acre

A measure of land equal to 43.560 square feet, 4,840 square yards, 4,047 square meters, 160 square rods or 0.4047 hectares.

Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans (ARM)

Loans with interest rates that are adjusted periodically based on changes in a pre-selected index. As a result, the interest rate on your loan and the monthly payment will rise and fall with increases and decreases in overall interest rates. These mortgage loans must specify how their interest rate changes, usually in terms of a relation to a national index such as (but not always) Treasury bill rates. If interest rates rise, your monthly payments will rise. An interest rate cap limits the amount by which the interest rate can change; look for this feature when you consider an ARM loan.

Adjustment Interval

On an ARM loan, the time between changes in the interest rate or monthly payment.

Affidavit

Written statement signed and sworn to before some person authorized to take an oath.

Agricultural Lease

Agricultural landowners often lease their land to tenant farmers, who provide the labor to produce and bring in the crop. An owner can be paid by a tenant in one of two ways: an agreed cash in advance rental amount (cash rents) or as a percentage of the profits from the sale of the crop when it is sold (sharecropping).

Amenities

Non monetary benefits and satisfactions derived from property ownership, such as a pleasant view, pride in home ownership, etc.

Amortization

Repayment of a loan with periodic payments of both principal and interest calculated to payoff the loan at the end of a fixed period of time.

Annexation

An addition to property by the act of joining or uniting one thing to another, as in attaching personal property to real property, thereby creating a fixture. For example, a sink becomes a fixture when it is annexed to the plumbing outlet.

Annual Percentage Rate (APR)

The cost of credit expressed as a yearly rate. The annual percentage rate is often not the same as the interest rate. It is a percentage that results from an equation considering the amount financed, the finance charges, and the term of the loan.

Application Fee

Fee charged by a lender to cover the initial costs of processing a loan application. The fee may include the cost of obtaining a property appraisal, a credit report, and a lock-in fee or other closing costs incurred during the process or the fee may be in addition to these charges.

Appraisal

A written estimate of a property's current market value completed by an impartial party with knowledge of real estate markets.

Assessment

The placing of a value on property for the purpose of taxation.

Asset

Items of value owned by an individual. Assets that can be quickly converted into cash are considered "liquid assets." These include bank accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and so on. Other assets include real estate, personal property, and debts owed to an individual by others.