© 2011 Rockwell Publishing Lesson 1: The Nature of Real Property Washington Real Estate...

© 2011 Rockwell Publishing

Lesson 1:

The Nature of Real Property

Washington Real Estate Fundamentals


Property Real vs. personal

Two types of property:Real property: Land and anything

attached to it. Also called realty.Personal property: Anything that is not

real property; usually movable. Also called personalty or chattels.


Real PropertyBundle of rights

Real property ownership includes a bundle of ownership rights, including the right to:

PossessUseEnjoyEncumberWillSellDo nothing at all


Real PropertyInverted pyramid

Imagine a parcel of land as an inverted pyramid.


• Real property• Personal property• Bundle of rights• Inverted pyramid

SummaryBasic Concepts


Appurtenances

Appurtenance: A right or interest that goes along with ownership of real property, but isn’t necessarily a physical part of the property.


Appurtenances

Air rightsWater rightsSolid mineral rightsOil and gas rightsSupport rights


AppurtenancesAir rights

Air rights: Landowner has the right to use the airspace above the property.

Subject to restrictions, including:Federal aviation lawsLocal laws and private restrictions

Air rights can be sold separately from land (as with condominiums).


AppurtenancesWater rights

Two systems for allocating water rights:riparian rights systemprior appropriation system

Either system can be applied both to surface water and to subsurface water.


Water RightsRiparian rights system

Riparian rights: Right to use water that flows through or adjacent to landowner’s property.

Allowed to make reasonable use of water without diminishing the flow.

Allowed to use water for domestic purposes on the riparian land.

Not allowed to divert water for use on non-riparian land.


Water RightsRiparian rights system

Two types of water in riparian rights system.Riparian water: Flowing water (river or

stream).Littoral water: Standing water (pond,

lake, or ocean).


Water RightsAppropriative rights

Prior appropriation system: Developed to address needs not met by riparian rights system, particularly in arid areas.

Appropriative rights have largely replaced the riparian rights system in some states (including Washington).


Water RightsAppropriative rights

Permit required for appropriative rights. Permit holder can take or divert water

from a particular source for a specified reasonable and beneficial use.

Example: irrigation Permit holder does not have to own land

beside the water source.


Mineral rights: Landowner has right to extract any solid minerals located within property’s inverted pyramid.

AppurtenancesSolid mineral rights


Minerals are:real property when in the groundpersonal property once extracted and

brought to the surface

AppurtenancesSolid mineral rights


AppurtenancesOil and gas rights

Rule of capture: Special rule for oil and gas. Landowner owns all oil and gas produced from (captured by) wells on her property.


AppurtenancesSupport rights

Support rights: Natural support provided to a piece of land by the surrounding land.

Subjacent support: Provided by underlying earth.

Lateral support: Provided by adjacent land.


• Appurtenance• Air rights• Water rights• Riparian rights• Littoral rights• Appropriative rights• Mineral rights• Rule of capture• Support rights

SummaryAppurtenances


Attachments

Attachments: Things that are permanently attached to land.

May be natural or man-made.Are ordinarily considered part of the real

estate.


AttachmentsNatural attachments

Natural attachments: Trees, bushes, and other plants; growing things that are attached to the land by roots.

Includes plants cultivated by people as well as plants growing naturally.

Transfer with the land unless otherwise agreed.


Natural AttachmentsDoctrine of emblements

Doctrine of emblements: Special rule for crops planted by tenant farmer.

Applies when tenancy for indefinite period terminates through no fault of tenant.

Tenant is allowed to return and harvest crop after tenancy has ended.


Natural AttachmentsSeverance

Once severed from the land, natural attachments become personal property.

For example, timber becomes personal property when it’s cut down.

Standing timber subject to a contract of sale or crops sold before harvest are considered constructively severed.


AttachmentsFixtures

Fixtures: Man-made attachments to real property.

Items that were once personal property.Now attached to or connected with real

property in such a way that they have become part of the real property.Example: Lumber is personal property;

fence is real property.


AttachmentsFixtures vs. personal property

Written agreement determines whether item is treated as fixture or personal property.

If no written agreement, four legal tests applied:

method of attachmentadaptation to the propertyintention of the annexorrelationship of the parties


Fixture TestsMethod of attachment test

Test 1:Is the item attached to the realty in some

way, and if so, how? Is the item movable?


Fixture TestsAdaptation test

Test 2:Has the item been specially adapted to

the realty in some way, or specially designed for it?


Fixture TestsIntention test

Test 3:Did the person who installed (annexed)

the item intend it to become part of the realty?


Fixture TestsRelationship test

Test 4:Did the person who installed the item

own the property, or was he just a tenant?An item installed by a tenant is usually

considered personal property.An item installed by an owner is

usually considered real property.


Fixture TestsTrade fixtures

Trade fixtures: Equipment and other items that commercial tenant installs to do business.

Generally remain tenant’s personal property, no matter how they’re attached.

Tenant may have to restore property to original condition after removal of trade fixtures.


AttachmentsManufactured homes

New manufactured home is considered personal property and has a title like a motor vehicle.

Manufactured home may become real property through a process called title elimination.


AttachmentsManufactured homes

After manufactured home’s title is eliminated: home is part of the real property on

which it is locatedtransferred and taxed as real property

After title eliminated, a real estate licensee may sell the home (otherwise, must have a manufactured home dealer’s license).


• Attachment• Natural attachment• Doctrine of emblements• Fixture• Fixture tests• Trade fixture• Manufactured home• Title elimination

SummaryAttachments


Methods of Legal Description

When real property is transferred, land being conveyed must be clearly identified.

Precise description of a piece of land is called the legal description.

Three main methods of legal description:metes and boundsgovernment surveylot and block


Methods of Legal DescriptionMetes and bounds

Metes and bounds description: Describes a piece of land by specifying its boundaries.

Monuments: Natural or man-made objects that mark a fixed point.

Courses: Compass directions.Distances: Length of each boundary.


Metes and Bounds DescriptionsHow they work

Starts with a point of beginning, then gives the course (direction) and distance for each leg of the boundary, until it has described the full circuit and arrived back at the point of beginning.


“Beginning at the old oak tree, go South 15° East 200 feet. Then go North 90° West 310 feet, more or less, to the centerline of Smith Creek. Then go northwesterly along the centerline of Smith Creek to a point due west of the old oak tree. Then go North 90° East 430 feet, more or less, to the point of beginning.”

Metes and Bounds DescriptionsExample


Methods of Legal DescriptionGovernment survey

Government survey description: Property identified by location in a section, township, and range on a U.S. government survey map.

Also called rectangular survey description.


Government survey system is made up of a series of very large survey grids covering much of the U.S., including Washington.

Government Survey DescriptionsGrid system


Government Survey DescriptionsPrincipal meridian & base line

Each grid has its own:principal meridian (main north-south line)base line (main east-west line)


Each grid identified by name of principal meridian.

In Washington:Willamette Meridian

Government Survey DescriptionsPrincipal meridian & base line


Government Survey DescriptionsRange & township lines

Each grid has grid lines running parallel to principal meridian and parallel to base line at intervals of six miles.


North-south lines, called range lines, divide the land into columns called ranges.

Each range is six miles wide.



East-west lines, called township lines, divide the land into rows called township tiers.



Government Survey DescriptionsTownships

Each individual square is called a township.Particular township identified by its position

in relation to base line and principal meridian.

6 miles × 6 miles

36 square miles

Township =


This township: “Township 4 North, Range 5 East.”

It’s the township created by the intersection of the fourth township tier north of the base line and the fifth range east of the principal meridian.

Government Survey DescriptionsTownships


Complete government survey description must include section, township, and range.

Name of principal meridian must also be included, to identify grid.

Example:N ½ of NE ¼ of SE ¼, T4N R3D, Willamette Meridian, Clark County, State of Washington

Government Survey DescriptionsComplete description


Government Survey DescriptionsSections

Each township is divided into 36 sections.

Each section is one mile on each side, or one square mile.

Each section is 640 acres.1 acre = 43,560

square feet.


Most individual parcels are only part of a section, so they are described in terms of fractions of sections.

For example, the N ½ of the NE ¼ of the SE ¼.

NW1/4160 ACRES

NE1/4160 ACRES

SW1/4160 ACRES

Government Survey DescriptionsPartial sections

N 1/2 OF NE1/4OF SE1/440 ACRES


Methods of Legal DescriptionLot and block

Lot and block description: Standard method for describing property in towns and cities.

Property identified by its lot number on a subdivision plat.

Plat: Survey map developer must record when land is subdivided. Also called a plat map.


Plat map shows precise location and dimensions of each lot.

Each lot is assigned a lot number.Groups of lots separated by streets within

the subdivision may also be assigned block numbers.

Lot and Block DescriptionsPlat map


Lot and Block DescriptionsExample

Once plat map recorded, a parcel can be described by giving:

lot and block numbersname of subdivisioncity and/or county

“Lot 7, Block 2, in the Lowland Heights subdivision, according to the plat thereof recorded at Vol. 22, Page 16, in the records of Spokane County, State of Washington.”


Methods of Legal DescriptionOther methods

Other methods of describing land:Reference to description in earlier recorded

document.Reference to recorded survey map or tax

assessor’s map.Generalized description, such as “all my

land in King County.”

Street address generally not considered adequate description for legal documents.


• Legal description• Metes and bounds method• Monuments, courses, distances• Government survey method• Section, township, and range• Principal meridian and base line• Lot and block method• Plat map

SummaryMethods of Legal Description

© 2011 Rockwell Publishing Lesson 1: The Nature of Real Property Washington Real Estate...

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