​Real property - parcel of land and structures that are permanently attached to the land. 

 

Personal property - a class of property that can include any asset other than real estate.

 

Conveyance - is the act of transferring property from one party to another​

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Metes and bounds - the limits or boundaries of a piece of property as identified by its natural landmarks. Examples of metes and bounds landmarks include rivers, roads, stakes, or other such natural or manmade markers.

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Lot and block - a type of legal description used for platted property. It identifies a parcel of land by reference to lot and block numbers within a subdivision, as identified on a subdivided plat duly recorded in the county recorder’s office.

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Rectangular Survey System/Government Survey System/Public Land Survey System - a method of plotting land boundaries in the United States using a large grid made up of rectangles.

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Linear footage - measure of distance in feet.

 

Square footage - measurement of area.  

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Encumbrance - a claim against a property made by a party who is not the property owner. 

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Lien - legal notice that’s put on file as the consequence of an unpaid debt.

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Mechanic’s lien - When general contractors, carpenters, plumbers, painters, or other repair companies work on your home, they may file a claim on the property as insurance to make sure they’re paid.

 

Judgment lien - If you have lost a court case and there was a judgment against you, the winning party of the lawsuit can file this against your home until the payment is collected. This type of lien is also sometimes imposed by an attorney if you do not pay your bill for legal services.

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Tax lien - If you do not pay your federal, state, or county taxes, the government may file a tax lien on your home for what you owe on your property.

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Easement - the legal right for someone else to use a portion of your property for a specific purpose. Here are some common types of easements:

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Right of Way Easement -  This allows a neighbor or utility company to access your property. For example, a neighbor might need to use your driveway to reach the main road, or there could be a pathway through your land to a neighborhood playground or trail.

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Utility Maintenance Easement - Utility companies often have easements to run power lines, cable, or other utilities on your property.

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Private Easements - These are specific agreements between property owners, such as sharing a driveway or granting access to a lake or beach.

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Encroachment - a situation in real estate where a property owner violates the property rights of his neighbor by building on or extending a structure to the neighbor's land or property intentionally or otherwise.

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Probate - the court-supervised process of reviewing a deceased person’s assets and making sure they get distributed to their rightful heirs.

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Lease - an agreement to rent a property for an agreed-upon rate and period of time.  If a property is under a lease contract, the leaseholder has the right to continue residing in it even if it is sold.

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Adverse Possession - a legal principle that grants title to someone who resides on or is in possession of another person's land. The property's title is granted to the possessor as long as certain conditions are met including whether they infringe on the rights of the actual owner and whether they are in continuous possession of the property.

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Subsurface rights/mineral rights - are legal rights to the minerals located beneath the surface of a piece of land. These rights are distinct from surface rights, which are the rights to use the surface of the land for residential, agricultural, commercial, or other purposes.

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Air rights - the legal rights of property owners to use the airspace above their property, extending out vertically. 

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Water right - the legal rights of property owners to access and use bodies of water adjacent to lands they hold. Water rights can be based on different types of water, such as lakes, seas, oceans, rivers, or streams.  Water rights give landowners access to bodies of water adjacent to one's property.

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Riparian rights - are a type of water rights that give landowners access and usage of flowing bodies of waters like rivers and streams.

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Littoral rights - are a type of water rights that guarantee access to lakes, seas, and oceans.

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Ownership in severalty/tenancy in severalty/sole and separate ownership - is a way of titling real estate to signify that you own the property by yourself rather than jointly.

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Sole ownership - exclusive ownership of a property or a business by one person.

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Tenancy in Common (TIC) - a legal arrangement in which two or more parties have ownership interests in a real estate property or parcel of land.

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​Joint tenancy - refers to a legal arrangement in which two or more people own a property together, each with equal rights and obligations. Joint tenancies can be created by married and non-married couples, friends, relatives, and business associates.

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Timeshare - a collective model of vacation real estate in which multiple buyers own or lease allotments of usage, typically in one-week increments, for the same property.

 

Condominium (Condo) - a large property complex comprised of individual units, and each unit is owned separately.

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Cooperative housing/co-ops - look just like apartment buildings, but instead of buyers owning their unit, they own shares in the whole complex. Co-op home owners buy stock in the housing complex—and the ownership of that stock comes with a proprietary lease to their home.

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​Real estate trust - a legal arrangement in which the owner of a property transfers ownership to a trustee. The trustee holds and manages the property for the benefit of the owner or the beneficiaries of the owner's estate. A real estate trust can also be a company that owns, operates, or finances income-generating real estate. This allows investors to pool their capital and invest in large-scale real estate projects.

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Joint tenancy - occurs when two or more people hold title to real estate jointly, with equal rights to enjoy the property during their lives.

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tenancy in common (TIC) - two or more persons hold title to real estate jointly, with equal or unequal percentages of ownership. 

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Tenants by entirety (TBE) - is ownership in real estate under the assumption that the couple is one person for legal purposes. 

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Sole ownership - can be characterized as ownership by an individual or entity legally capable of holding the title.

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Community property - is a form of ownership by spouses during their marriage that they intend to own together. 

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Corporation Ownership - Ownership in real estate can be done as a corporation, whereby the legal entity is a company owned by shareholders but regarded under the law as having an existence separate from those shareholders.

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Partnership Owners - Real estate can also be owned as a partnership. A partnership is an association of two or more people to carry on business for profit as co-owners. Some partnerships are formed for the express purpose of owning real estate. These partnerships can also be structured as limited partnerships, where investors take limited liability by not making managerial decisions regarding management or transaction decisions. In these cases, one general partner is typically responsible for making all business decisions on behalf of the limited partners.

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Trust Ownership - These legal entities own the properties and are managed by a trustee on behalf of the beneficiaries of the trust. There are many advantages and disadvantages to holding real estate that falls outside the scope of this article, but all have to do with benefits surrounding managerial influence and financial and legal liability, in addition to tax and beneficiary considerations.

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Life Estate Ownership - is a form of joint ownership that allows the current property owner to remain in the home until they die, at which point it’ll pass to the other specified owner. A life estate can be thought of as a way to pre-gift your home to your heirs while still maintaining ownership through your lifetime.

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