RES Property Ownership & Land Use — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is 'fee simple absolute' ownership?
- The highest form of property ownership with complete rights to use, sell, or transfer the property (Correct answer)
- A temporary lease agreement
- Ownership shared equally with the government
- A mortgage arrangement with a bank
Correct answer: The highest form of property ownership with complete rights to use, sell, or transfer the property
Fee simple absolute is the most complete form of real property ownership, granting the owner full rights to use, possess, transfer, and encumber the property without limitations except governmental powers.
Question 2: What is an easement in real estate?
- A legal right to use another person's property for a specific purpose (Correct answer)
- A type of mortgage
- A property tax exemption
- A building code violation
Correct answer: A legal right to use another person's property for a specific purpose
An easement grants a non-owner the right to use another's property for a specific purpose (e.g., utility access, driveway), without conferring ownership. Easements run with the land and survive property transfers.
Question 3: What is the difference between joint tenancy and tenancy in common?
- Joint tenancy includes right of survivorship; tenancy in common allows separate, transferable shares (Correct answer)
- They are identical forms of ownership
- Joint tenancy is only for married couples
- Tenancy in common requires equal ownership shares
Correct answer: Joint tenancy includes right of survivorship; tenancy in common allows separate, transferable shares
Joint tenancy features the right of survivorship (deceased owner's share passes to surviving owners). Tenancy in common allows unequal shares that can be independently sold or inherited.
Question 4: What is eminent domain?
- The government's power to take private property for public use with just compensation (Correct answer)
- A private developer's right to purchase any property
- A homeowner's right to expand onto neighboring land
- A bank's power to foreclose on a mortgage
Correct answer: The government's power to take private property for public use with just compensation
Eminent domain is the constitutional power allowing governments to acquire private property for public purposes (roads, schools, utilities) provided they pay fair market value as just compensation.
Question 5: What is a deed restriction?
- A limitation placed in a deed that controls how the property may be used (Correct answer)
- A government zoning ordinance
- A physical barrier around a property
- A bank's requirement before approving a mortgage
Correct answer: A limitation placed in a deed that controls how the property may be used
Deed restrictions (restrictive covenants) are private agreements written into deeds that limit property use, such as prohibiting commercial activities or specifying architectural standards in a subdivision.
Question 6: What is adverse possession?
- A legal doctrine allowing someone to claim ownership of land by occupying it openly and continuously for a statutory period (Correct answer)
- A hostile negotiation tactic in real estate
- A government seizure of abandoned property
- A type of property insurance claim
Correct answer: A legal doctrine allowing someone to claim ownership of land by occupying it openly and continuously for a statutory period
Adverse possession allows a person who openly, continuously, and exclusively occupies another's land for the statutory period (varies by state) without permission to potentially gain legal title.
RES Property Ownership & Land Use
What is 'fee simple absolute' ownership?