Real Estate Broker License Exam Property Ownership, Land Use, and Transfer of Title Syllabus

What is an easement in gross?

An easement that benefits a person or entity rather than a parcel of land (no dominant tenement)—e.g., a utility company's right to run power lines. Commercial easements in gross are assignable.

What is an encroachment?

An unauthorized physical intrusion of an improvement (e.g., a fence, building, or driveway) onto an adjoining owner's land, which is an encumbrance that may be revealed by a survey.

What is a license in real property, and how does it differ from an easement?

A license is a revocable, personal permission to use another's land for a specific purpose. Unlike an easement, it does not transfer with the land, is not an interest in real property, and can be withdrawn.

What legal tests determine whether an item is a fixture (real property) versus personal property?

Courts apply the MARIA tests: Method of attachment, Adaptability to the real estate, Relationship of the parties, Intention of the party, and any Agreement. Intention is generally the most important factor.

What is a trade fixture, and who may remove it?

A trade fixture is personal property attached to a rented space by a tenant for use in their business. The tenant may remove it before the lease ends (and must repair damage); if left behind it may become the landlord's by accession.

List the five common-law requirements to acquire title by adverse possession.

Possession must be Open and notorious, Continuous (for the statutory period), Exclusive, Hostile/adverse (without owner's permission), and Actual—often summarized as 'open, notorious, continuous, hostile, and exclusive' (OCEAN/CHANGE).

What is 'tacking' in the context of adverse possession?

Tacking allows successive adverse possessors in privity (a continuous chain) to combine their periods of possession to satisfy the required statutory time period.

How does a prescriptive easement differ from adverse possession?

A prescriptive easement grants a right to USE another's land (gained through open, continuous, hostile use for the statutory period) but does NOT transfer ownership/title, whereas adverse possession transfers title to the land itself.

What is a deed, and what does it accomplish?

A deed is the written legal instrument by which an owner (grantor) conveys title or an interest in real property to another (grantee). It transfers ownership when properly executed and delivered.

List the essential elements required for a valid deed.

Competent grantor, identifiable grantee, consideration, words of conveyance (granting clause), legal description, signature of the grantor, and delivery and acceptance. (Many states also require it to be in writing.)

What protections does a general warranty deed provide?

It offers the greatest protection: the grantor warrants the title against all defects, even those arising before the grantor owned the property, through covenants like seisin, against encumbrances, quiet enjoyment, and warranty forever.

What does a special (limited) warranty deed warrant?

The grantor warrants only against title defects that arose during the time the grantor owned the property—not defects arising before their ownership.

What is a quitclaim deed, and when is it commonly used?

A quitclaim deed conveys whatever interest the grantor may have, with NO warranties of title. It is commonly used to clear clouds on title, release interests, or transfer between family members/spouses.

Distinguish voluntary alienation from involuntary alienation.

Voluntary alienation is the transfer of title by the owner's own choice (e.g., by deed/sale or gift). Involuntary alienation is transfer without the owner's consent (e.g., adverse possession, eminent domain, escheat, foreclosure, or descent).

What is eminent domain, and what is the process called?

Eminent domain is the government's power to take private property for public use upon payment of just compensation. The legal process of exercising it is called condemnation.

What is escheat?

The reversion of property to the state when an owner dies intestate (without a will) and leaves no heirs, or when property is abandoned, so it does not remain ownerless.

Define testate versus intestate.

Testate means a person died leaving a valid will directing distribution of their property. Intestate means a person died without a valid will, so property passes according to the state's laws of descent and distribution.

In transfer by will, distinguish a devise from a bequest/legacy.

A devise is a gift of real property made by will (the recipient is a devisee). A bequest or legacy is a gift of personal property made by will.

What is intestate succession?

The statutory scheme (laws of descent and distribution) that determines how a deceased person's property is distributed to surviving heirs (spouse, children, relatives) when there is no valid will.

What is probate, and what is its purpose?

Probate is the legal court process that validates a will (or determines heirs if intestate), settles the decedent's debts and taxes, and authorizes the distribution and clear transfer of title to the rightful heirs/beneficiaries.

What is the purpose of recording acts and the public recorder system?

Recording acts allow documents affecting title (deeds, mortgages, liens) to be entered into the public record, establishing priority of interests and giving constructive notice to the world of the recorded interest.

Distinguish actual notice from constructive notice.

Actual notice is knowledge a person genuinely has of a fact. Constructive (legal) notice is knowledge the law presumes a person has because the information is publicly recorded or could be discovered by inspection/diligence.

Compare the three main types of recording act statutes: race, notice, and race-notice.

Race: first to record wins, regardless of notice. Notice: a later bona fide purchaser without notice of a prior unrecorded claim wins. Race-notice: a later purchaser wins only if they took without notice AND recorded first.

What is a public control on land use, and what is the chief example?

Public controls are government restrictions on land use exercised under police power. The chief example is zoning—dividing a municipality into districts (residential, commercial, industrial) regulating use, density, and building.

What is a nonconforming use, and how does it relate to zoning?

A nonconforming use is a land use that was lawful before a zoning change but no longer conforms to the new ordinance ('grandfathered in'). It may continue but is usually restricted from expanding or rebuilding.

What is the difference between a zoning variance and a special use permit (conditional use)?

A variance permits use that deviates from the strict zoning rule due to hardship, without changing the zoning. A special/conditional use permit allows a use that the ordinance specifically permits with conditions (e.g., a church or school in a residential zone).

What is a subdivision, and what governs its development?

A subdivision is the division of a single tract of land into smaller lots for sale or development. It is governed by subdivision regulations and approval of a plat map, often requiring infrastructure (roads, utilities, drainage) per local ordinances.

What are private controls on land use, and give the principal example.

Private controls are restrictions placed on property by private parties (not government). The principal examples are CC&Rs (Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions) and restrictive covenants in a deed or subdivision declaration.

What is a deed restriction / restrictive covenant, and how is it enforced?

A private limitation on land use written into a deed or declaration (e.g., minimum lot size, no commercial use). It is enforced by other property owners (or the HOA) typically through a court injunction, not by the government.

How does an ad valorem property tax assessment determine a tax bill, and how is it calculated?

Ad valorem taxes are based on assessed value. Tax = Assessed Value (market value × assessment ratio, minus exemptions) × the tax rate (often expressed in mills, where 1 mill = $0.001 = $1 per $1,000 of assessed value).

Describe the metes and bounds method of legal description, including its key components.

Metes and bounds describes a parcel by starting at a Point of Beginning (POB), then following directions (bearings/angles) and distances (metes) along boundaries (bounds/monuments) around the perimeter, and must return to the POB to enclose the tract.

In the rectangular (government) survey system, what are the reference lines and the size of a township and a section?

Land is measured from principal meridians (north-south) and base lines (east-west). A township is 6 miles by 6 miles (36 square miles) and contains 36 sections; each section is 1 mile by 1 mile and equals 640 acres.

How is the lot and block (recorded plat) system used to describe property?

It identifies a parcel by its lot number and block number as shown on a recorded subdivision plat map filed in the public records. It is the most common method for describing platted urban/suburban lots.

What is a datum and a benchmark in land measurement, and what are they used for?

A datum is an established point, line, or surface (e.g., mean sea level) used as a reference for measuring elevations and depths. A benchmark is a permanent marked reference point of known elevation used by surveyors, especially for describing vertical measurements like air lots or condominium units. (Note: 1 acre = 43,560 square feet.)