Glossary

Tenants in common - two or more people owning property where on the death of one, the deceased person's share passes to his or her heirs rather than the other owners

Joint tenants - two or more people owning property where on the death of one, the survivors inherit the deceased's share

Easement - right to use a portion of someone else's land for a specific purpose, without requiring the owner's permission

Offer - proposal from one person to another that, when accepted, becomes a contract

Vender - seller of the property

Purchaser - buyer of the property

Encumbrances - charges, claims, liens or liabilities attached to a property

Plan of Survey - schematic sketch prepared by a licenced surveyor showing the exact legal boundaries of the property and location of all fences, structures, and rights of way

Statement of Adjustments - statement that outlines the various credits and debits against the purchase price and specifies the exact amount to be paid upon closing

Fixtures - chattels that have become attached or affixed to the real property

Personal Property - chattels; property that is not real property

Real Property - land, including everything that is attached to it

Expropriation - acquisition of land, with compensation, by the Crown for public purposes

Life Estate - right to exclusive possession of the property for the length of time of a particular person

Dower - entitlement of a widow to a life interest in the home occupied by the spouses during the marriage

Restrictive Covenant - promise by an owner of land to refrain from doing something on the property

Profit a prendre - interest created when mineral rights are acquired in the land of another person

Title - legal right to the ownership and possession of property; evidence showing such a right

Power of Attorney - document authorizing someone to deal with land or other property on the owner's behalf

Holdback - sum of money required to be deducted by the payer and held for a specified period of time from the amount owing by the payee to the payer

Insurance Binder - documented confirmation that a property has been insured

Mortgagee - lender, usually a bank or financial institution

Mortgagor - borrower and owner, usually the buyer

First Mortgage - mortgage registered first and thus taking priority over subsequently registered charges

Second Mortgage - charged registered after the first charge and thus having subsequent priority to the first

Vendor Take Back Mortgage - charge created when the vendor of a property agrees to lend the purchaser money toward the purchase price and the purchaser gives the vendor a charge on the property as security for the loan

Maturity Date - date on which any outstanding balance of loan or mortgage is to be paid

mortization Period - length of time it takes to repay a loan in full following the schedule of payments in the loan or mortgage

Interest Adjustment Date - date on which an adjustment is made for interest that accumulates between the date the loan was advanced and the charge payment date for the following month; assuming that charge payments are being made monthly, this date will one month before the date the first regular payment

High Ratio Mortgage - a mortgage for more than 75% of the value of the property

Zoning - classification of permitted land use that includes categories such as residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural

Subdivision Control - government control over the division of land into smaller legal parcels

Zoning bylaws - bylaws enacted by a municipality to regulate the use of land

Legal Non-Conforming Use - status of a building or use of a property that does not conform to the current municipal bylaw but is acceptable because the building or use existed before the passing of the bylaw and has not subsequently been altered or discontinued

Consent to Variance - committee of adjustment approval of a building or use of a property when it does not conform to a current bylaw and is not a legal non -conforming use