I was writing the last article/post and thought about the various terms used in real estate that may be a bit confusing for some people. Words or terms that essentially mean the same thing or terms that have a certain definition for San Diego, but will have a different meaning elsewhere in the USA. Here are a few examples:
Pending Sale, In Escrow, or Sold: When there is an accepted offer on a property, many people will say it just sold, it’s in escrow or it’s a pending sale. Escrow and pending mean the same thing, that there is an accepted offer. However, when someone says it’s sold, that usually means that the deed conveying interest to the buyer has been recorded.
Escrow: (1) When documents and money are deposited with a neutral third party (the escrow company) to be delivered when the terms and conditions of the real estate purchase agreement are met. For example, the deed is recorded in buyer’s name and the money is delivered to the seller. (2) An account held by the lender which the homeowner (borrower) pays into for real estate taxes and insurance.
Condominium: (1) A legal form of home ownership whereby the homeowner owns the unit (inside air space) plus an interest in the common areas of the complex or subdivision. The unit can be an apartment, townhome, twinhome, or even commercial offices or warehouses. (2) A type of home that is defined as an apartment in a building. As a realtor, I can search our Multiple Listing Service for different types of properties: detached homes, twinhomes, townhomes, or “other attached” such as a loft or apartment/condominium style home. All of these can actually have the “condominium” form of ownership. Confusing? Yes!
Duplex and twinhome: A duplex is two units side-by-side that are owned by the same person; while a twinhome is actually a duplex, 2 units side by side, that are owned separately. The duplex will have one assessment parcel number and the twinhome will have two separate numbers.
There are many more terms and, as I think of them, I’ll write about them. WHAT real estate TERMS or LANGUAGE do you have questions about?
