A sale of real property ordered by the court in
order to raise money to cover delinquent taxes
Tenancy in common
A version of joint tenancy of a property, but
without any right of succession by survivorship among the
owners
Testate
To die having prepared and left a valid
will
Testator
The individual who makes out a last will and
testament
Time is of the essence
A condition in a contract requiring the
completion of a certain act within a designated period of time
Time-share
A form of ownership interest which allows use of
the property only for a fixed or variable period of time
Title
A legal document that evidences a person's
ownership of and right to possess a property
Title insurance
Insurance that protects the owner or mortgagee
against loss arising from disputes over or defects in the title to a parcel of
real estate that arise after ownership has been transferred
Title search
Research into public title records to determine
the current status of ownership of a piece of property; a licensed attorney
must provide any legal interpretation of the records found
Torrens Title
Now a dated system (only used in a few US
states) whereby the court issues a certificate establishing the extent of an
individual's estate, including any exceptions noted
Township
A division of land that is six miles square,
containing 36 square-mile sections
Tract
A specific parcel of land
Transfer of ownership
Any circumstance in which the ownership of a
property changes hands, e.g., via outright, titled purchase, or the assumption
of an existing on a property, or possession of the property via a land sales
trust, even any transfer of a beneficial interest in the trust
Transfer tax
State or local taxes imposed on a transfer of
ownership of real property
Trust
A right to a piece of property that is held for
the benefit of another
Trust deed, or a Deed of
trust
A written document that grants the trustee the
title to a piece of property for the benefit of another, and which gives the
trustee the power to sell, mortgage or subdivide the property
Trustee
A party who holds property for the benefit of
another
Trustee's deed
A deed conveying land ownership executed by the
trustee who holds the land in trust
Trustor
The borrower in a trust loan
transaction
Truth-in-Lending
A federal law that requires disclosure by a
credit institution or lender of the terms and conditions of a loan or mortgage,
including the annual percentage rate and any other charges, to the borrower
when they apply for the loan. Also see Regulation Z
Two-step mortgage
An adjustable-rate mortgage that charges a
below-market interest rate for a designated number of years (usually 5 or 7)
after which the interest rate is adjusted to the current market
conditions
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