Absent Landlord A Landlord who cannot be contacted is defined as 'absent'.

Consequently,
Legal recourse is available to acquire the right to manage property.
Abstract of Title A document prepared by the Vendor's solicitor which relates to
unregistered land proving the Vendor owns the land, and that any previous mortgages have
been paid settled.
Acquisition Date The Acquisition Date identifies the starting date for the Right to Manage
Company's assumption of the legal responsibility for the running of the designated property.
Additional security fee An upfront one-off fee paid to the lender, in order to protect them
against the borrower defaulting on the loan. Also known as a Mortgage Indemnity Guarantee.
Additional security fee Also known as an MIP (Mortgage Indemnity Premium) or an MIG
(Mortgage Indemnity Guarantee), this is an advance fee that is charged on mortgages that are
over 75% of the value of the property. It is designed to protect the Lender against the
Borrower defaulting on the loan. Therefore, the fee is paid to the Lender.
Administrator The person appointed by the courts to manage the affairs of a deceased
person who died without specifically naming someone in their will to carry out that work.
Ancient covenant A restrictive covenant preventing certain work to a property which may
have been imposed hundreds of years ago. It can be possible to take out insurance against
such a covenant being enforced.
Annual Percentage Rate (APR) The total cost of a loan, which includes the costs, interest
charges, and arrangement fees.
ARLA The Association of Residential Letting Agents.
ARMA The Association of Residential Managing Agents.
Arrangement fees Where a special interest rate is to be used, an additional fee is also
charged for the arrangement of the loan.
Assignment A term used to describe the transfer of the ownership of either a lease or an
insurance policy.
Auction The sale of a property to the highest bidder, provided the amount exceeds any
reserve. Buyers are required to sign a contract and pay a deposit immediately.
Basic variable mortgage rate The mortgage lender's standard rate of interest which may be
increased or decreased, depending on prevailing economic conditions.
Basic variable mortgage rate This is the standard interest rate used by the Lender. It can be
changed from time to time, usually in response to economic conditions in general of to
changes in the Bank of England's base rate.
Beneficiary A person for whose benefit property is being held by trustees, executors or
administrators.
Bridging loan A temporary loan, which allows a buyer to complete on the purchase of a
property before selling their previous property.
Buy to let mortgage A type of mortgage specifically for investors buying a property with the
intention of then letting it out
Capital Gains Tax A tax upon any profit realised on the disposal of an asset. Owner
occupied properties are generally exempt from Capital Gains Tax.
Capitalisation rate (sometimes called the yield) An investment valuation term that
represents the perentage rate by which the right to receive either an income or a future capital
value is capitalised. Principle rent x yield/capitalisation rate = Value.
Capped mortgage If agreed between the Lender and the Borrower, the interest rate on the
mortgage has a ceiling, or a 'cap'; a maximum percentage of interest to be charged. The
'ceiling' is valid for a fixed period during the lifetime of the loan. Where the standard interest
rate during that lifetime is below the 'cap' then the Borrower is charged interest as per the
standard rate. Should the standard rate exceed the 'cap', the Borrower is only charged the
'ceiling' interest rate.
CCJ County Court Judgement, any person who has defaulted on payments or has bad debts
could have a CCJ taken out against them by the courts, which could prevent that person from
obtaining a mortgage offer.
Chain If a Buyer can only complete the purchase of a property subject to the completion of
the sale of his current property, the purchase is 'chained' to the sale.
Charge A legal term covering a registered claim against a property as security for money
owing.
Claim Dispute Reasons The Landlord has recourse to three reasons for disputing the Clam
Notice. In the Counter Claim Notice, he will either claim that the units in the property do not
qualify for Right to Manage status, or that the Right to Manage Company does not comply
with legislation, or that the Members insufficiently represent the qualifying Flat Owners
within the properties.
Claim Notice - Section 79 A notification issued to the Landlord by the Right to Manage
Company advising him that the Company is utilising the legal right to manage the units in the
Property.
CML The CML (Council of mortgage lenders) produced the Mortgage Code that ensures
customers are treated fairly by lenders.
Commercial Purposes Commercial Purposes is a general terms explaining the usage of those
parts of a property not used for residential purposes.
Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 This Act of Parliament permits Flat Owners
to assume the responsibility for running their block in a property.
Company Law Company Law governs the activities of a company.
Company Secretary A Company Secretary is legally accountable for the Right to Manage
Company's adherence to Company Law. He, or she, can also be a director of that company.
Competent Landlord (in the context of Lease Extensions & Freehold Purchase) The
landlord with a sufficiently superior interest in the property as to be able to grant the 90 year
extension - that is, an interest over 90 years longer than your present lease. In most cases this
will probably be your immediate landlord if he is the freeholder or if he is a headlessee with a
lease which is sufficiently long. However, in some cases your immediate landlord may be a
headlessee with a lease only a few days, or a few years, longer than yours and therefore you
need to identify the landlord with sufficient interest to grant you the new lease. To identify the
competent landlord you will need to know the details, especially length of term, of any
intermediate landlords who may be between you and the freeholder.
Completion Legal transfer of ownership of a property to a Buyer only occurs after
completion (when all transactions involved in the sale have been completed).
Completion date The date of payment of the balance of the purchase money, when the buyer
is entitled to take possession of the property.
Condensation The lack of adequate ventilation in a room causes an accumulation of moist
air, which when it meets a cold wall or window deposits moisture in the form of
condensation. Can easily be cured by an increase in ventilation and improving insulation.
Conditions of sale The details that determine the rights and duties of the buyer and seller.
Conditions of sale Conditions of Sale are list all rights and obligations due to the Buyer and
the Seller, and are usually determined by law or by industry regulations or both.
Contents insurance Insurance that protects the contents of the property.
Contract A legally binding written document of agreement between two parties approved by
both sides' solicitors, and setting out the agreed terms by which both sides are committed to
proceed to completion.
Contract race This occurs when two parties have made an offer on the same house, usually
at the same price. The vendor will sell to whichever party exchanges contracts first.
Conveyance Is either taken to mean the act of transferring ownership of a property, or
alternatively the legal document which effects the transfer.
Conveyancer A Conveyancer is a qualified advisor of the legal requirements of buying or
selling a property.
Conveyancing The legal work involved in buying or selling of a property.
Counter Notice - Section 84 A Counter Notice responds to the Right to Manage Company. It
is issued by the Landlord and either conceding or contesting the entitlement sought by the
Claim Notice.
Covenant A binding promise in a deed to do or not to do something i.e., maintenance of a
fence, or restrictions to trading from a premises.
Covenants Covenants are rules and regulations relating to the property, which are contained
in its lease or title deeds.
Deed of variation See "Defective Lease" below.
Deeds Deeds are legal proofs of ownership, held by the Lender.
Defective lease A badly drafted lease. If this is serious, the vendor may have to obtain a
"deed of variation" getting the freeholder's permission to change the original terms of the
lease.
Deferment rate An investment valuation term that represents the perentage rate by which the
right to receive either an income or a future capital value is postponed
Deposit This is a sum of money required from the buyer when he enters into an enforceable
agreement. This is usually on the signing of the contract, and can be between 5 and 10 per
cent of the purchase price.
Detached A property that is physically separate from the neighbouring properties.
Determination Date The determination date is the Landlord's deadline (typically at least 30
days after the issuance of the Claim Notice).for response to the Claim Notice.
Development A Development is a general term used to describe either modernised &
renovated existing property or a newly built property.
Dilapidations These refer to disrepair or damage done to a rented property.
Dilapidations Dilapidations are any decay, damage, or disrepair in a property.
Director A Company Director is legally accountable for the running of the Right to Manage
Company. He, or she is legally obliged to comply with Company law and with Health &
Safety law.
Disbursements These are fees paid by the buyer's solicitor on the buyer's behalf, such as
stamp duty, land registry fees, and search fees.
Discharge The discharge of the mortgage is the process of paying it off.
Draft contract This is a preliminary unconfirmed version of the contract, prepared by the
vendor's solicitor
Dutch auction The original meaning refers to an auction in reverse, where an offer price is
announced and the auctioneer gradually reduces it until a bid is made. However this meaning
has been lost, and a Dutch auction now refers to the informal bidding that takes place when
two or more potential buyers are outbidding each other for a property.
Duty to Provide Information Notice - Section 93 A request that can be sent after the
issuance of the Claim Notice to the Landlord by the RTM Company for the information
required to run the Block.
Easements A term given to a right which someone may enjoy over another property. These
can be rights of way, drainage rights, or more likely access to a neighbour's land in order to
carry out repairs to their own property.
Encumbrance A liability imposed on the owner of a property, which is then binding on
subsequent owners.
Endowment mortgage These are not as popular as they were, and involve both building
society and an insurance company. Repayments to the building society are in respect of
interest only. The capital sum outstanding remains constant throughout the term, and is repaid
by means of an endowment policy taken out with the insurance company when the policy
matures or in the event of death of the policy holders.
Endowment mortgage This is a form of mortgage where monthly premiums are made into
an endowment policy that pays off the loan at the end of the term. At the same time, the
interest is repaid monthly.
Engrossment Deeds are usually drawn up in draft form for approval by each party's
solicitors. When the deeds are approved, sometimes after amendments, the final drafts are
then engrossed for all parties to sign.
Equity The difference between the value of a property and the amount of mortgage owed.
ERC (Early redemption charge) The Lender may charge the Borrower a fee determined in
the mortgage contract, if the Borrower re-pays the mortgage before the end of the term agreed
in that mortgage.
Excess The initial sum paid on an insurance claim.
Exchange of contracts The occasion where signed contracts are physically exchanged and
the Buyer and the Seller become legally bound to the price and terms of the purchase and sale
of a property.
Failed valuation survey The Lender may reject a mortgage application if the surveyor's
valuation report shows that the property is worth less than the mortgage sought.
Financial Obligations Financial Obligations identify those obligations to be paid on behalf
of all the Owner(s) in a property, and typically covers maintenance, insurance, and repairs.
Fixed rate mortgage A fixed rate mortgage fixes the rate of interest for a given period of
time.
Fixtures & fittings All non-structural items included in the purchase of a property.
Flat Owner The Flat Owner owns the lease of the flat.
Flexible mortgage A mortgage that allows for agreed increases or decreases in the
repayments to be made.
Flying freehold This can occur when first floor accommodation forming part of one freehold
is located over ground floor accommodation forming part of another freehold. The first floor
freeholder does not own the land beneath the property, and is then said to own a "flying
freehold"
Forced sale value A price one would expect to obtain for a property on the open market
without delay, assuming that a normal or reasonable amount of time is not available in which
to market that property.
Freehold Where, the ownership of the property by the owner has no time limit.
Freeholder A person who grants the lease (i.e. the landlord).
FRICS Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Gazumping In the event of two people wishing to purchase the same property, one buyer
may offer more than the other to tempt the seller into proceeding with him. This is despite the
fact that the seller may have already accepted the other buyer's offer, subject to contract.
There is no legal obligation to the first buyer, only a moral one.
Gazundering This is similar to gazumping, except on this occasion it is the purchaser
reducing his offer prior to exchange of contracts. It probably goes without saying that
gazumping is prevalent in an active market, and gazundering in a slow market.
Gilts Government stocks, sold on the stock exchange. An alternative form of investment to
putting your money in the bank
Ground rent The annual sum the Freeholder charges to the leaseholder.
Guarantor A mortgage lender may require a borrower to appoint a guarantor. This is
someone who promises to pay the borrower's debt if the borrower defaults, could for example
be a parent taking personal responsibility should their child default on payments.
Head Lessee The Head Lessee owns the Head Lease, out of which all sub leases have been
issued.
Home buyers survey and valuation report This is a survey report which is not as detailed
as a full structural survey and is carried out by a chartered surveyor.
Hope value The amount by which a prospective purchasers bid for a property would be
increased due to expectations of an increase in value, for example, by knowledge that it might
be easy to get planning permission for a more valuable use.
IFA Independent Financial Advisor.
Improvement rate (in the context of Lease extension & Freehold Purchase) The rate by
which the value of a flat increases by virtue of it having a long lease as opposed to a short
lease
Indemnity Building societies operate in accordance with the Building Societies Act. This
provides that the maximum advance they can make on a property without additional security
is 75% of the purchase price or surveyor's valuation for pre 1919 properties, and 80% for post
1919 properties. When a society lends in excess of this percentage, the excess is guaranteed
by an indemnity policy. A single premium is payable by the purchaser when the mortgage is
taken out.
Individual savings account (ISA) mortgage An interest-only mortgage linked to an
Individual Savings Account fund. It is designed to pay off the loan at the end of the period.
Informal tender Requires competing buyers to submit their best bids by a specific time and
date. It is not a legally binding contract.
Interest charges (mortgage) Interest charges are the percentage of the amount borrowed that
the Lender then charges to the Borrower.
Interest only mortgage An interest only mortgage stays the same throughout the mortgage
term. When choosing an interest only mortgage, the purchaser is responsible for ensuring that
they have sufficient funds available to repay the mortgage at the end of the term.
Intermediate Landlord An intermediate landlord (often called a head lessee) may be the
person to whom you pay ground rent, as the intermediate landlord holds a finite leasehold title
(as you do) they in turn will have to pay ground rent to the Freeholder. An intermediate
landlord may make profit from his title, this would be because the ground rent he collects
from all the lessees in the block exceeds the ground rent he has to pay the freeholder. And/or
an intermediate landlord may hold a reversionary interest this could arise because the head
lessee was granted an interest in the building for say 125 years and you as an under lessee
were only granted a term of 99 years. This would mean that for 26 years the head lessee has a
right to your flat before he would have to give it back to the Freeholder.
Inventory A list describing the condition of furnishings and the contents of a leased property
at the start and end of a tenancy, in order that any dilapidations during the tenancy can then be
identified.
Joint agency The appointment of two estate agents to act jointly in the sale of a property.
Normally the commission is shared between both agents irrespective of who introduced the
buyer, although generally a slightly higher percentage is awarded to the introducing agent. In
a multiple agency, where several agents are involved, the commission is payable solely to the
agent who introduces the buyer.
Land Registry fee Payable to the Land Registry to register ownership of a property.
Land registry fee The Land registry's fees are for registering ownership of a property.
Lands Tribunal The Tribunal is a court of law, and appeal from its decisions lies to the
Court of Appeal. Cases are usually heard by a single Member, but they may sometimes be
heard by two Members (where substantial issues of both law and valuation arise, a lawyer and
a valuer) or, in exceptional cases, by three members. The Tribunal has its own hearing rooms
in London, at Ludgate Hill, but it sits wherever in the country the proper disposal of the case
requires. Decisions are given in writing.
Lease A legal document by which the freehold or leasehold owner of a property lets the
premises to another party for a specific length of time, after which point it may revert to the
freeholder or superior leaseholder.
Lease A Legal document that establishes the let a property (in part of in its entirety) by a
Freeholder or Leasehold owner for a specified duration of time, after which that Freeholder or
Leasehold owner recovers ownership.
Leasehold Leaseholds show that the ownership of a property is by determined in a lease.
Leasehold Property A property governed by a Lease.
Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 This Act of Parliament
allows those Lessees who meet the necessary qualification criteria to acquire an extension to
their lease.
Leasehold Valuation Tribunal The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal ("LVT") is the formal
name given to the body appointed to make decisions on various types of dispute relating to
residential leasehold property. The LVT is an independent decision making body which is
completely unconnected to the parties or any other public agency. The Tribunal will look at
the matter of the Leasehold Dispute for the property following an application to the Tribunal.
Leasehold Valuation Tribunal The Public body that oversees disputes regarding Leases,
Service Charges and the management of discrete units in a property (i.e. blocks of flats).
Leaseholder A lessee is a person who holds a lease (i.e. the tenant).
Lender's arrangement fees The Lender's fees to the Buyer for arranging a loan are known as
their arrangement fees.
Lender's legal fees The Lender's legal fees for arranging a mortgage are borne by the buyer.
Lessee A lessee is a person who holds a lease (i.e. the tenant).
Lessor A person who grants the lease (i.e. the landlord). The Lessor grants a Lease to the
property because they own the Freehold to that property.
Loan Offer A Loan offer is the Lender's formal approval of the Buyer's request for a
mortgage. It notes all the applicable terms and conditions.
Loan to value (LTV) LTV show the mortgage loan as a percentage of the property's value.
Local authority search A search made at the local council office by a buyer's solicitor to
check whether or not the property is affected by such matters as any outstanding enforcement
or future development issues which might affect the property, or the immediate surrounding
area.
Long Lease A long Lease is a Lease granted for more than 21 years to a property.
Maintenance charge (or service charge) The cost of repairing and maintaining external and
/ or internal communal parts of a building, which are then charged to the tenant or
leaseholder.
Maisonette Technically a maisonette is an apartment which is on two levels, with its own
separate access. Although generally properties on two levels, with or without separate access,
are referred to as maisonettes.
Marriage Value (in the context of Freehold Purchase & Lease Extension) Marriage value
represents the increase in the value of the flats following the completion of the
enfranchisement; their additional market value arising from the ability of the enfranchising
leaseholders to grant themselves longer leases. In that this potential "profit" only arises from
the freeholder's obligation to sell, the legislation requires that it be shared equally between the
parties
Memorandum and Articles of Association The defining documents of the running of the
Right to Manage Company
Mortgage A sum of money lent by a bank or building society and repaid over a fixed (and
usually long) period of time where the loan security is the property.
Mortgage deed The Mortgage deed legal codifies the terms of the mortgage and the Lender's
interest in the property.
Mortgage indemnity guarantee An insurance policy that a mortgage lender may require the
purchaser to pay if their loan is above a specified amount of the purchase price.
Mortgage indemnity guarantee (MIG) See Additional Security Fee.
Mortgage payment protection (MPP) An MPP is an insurance policy that protects the
Borrower against inability to work (through illness, redundancy, or disability) by paying the
monthly mortgage payment for a fixed period of time.
Mortgage rate The standard variable interest rate all mortgage lenders use as the basis for
their discounted mortgage rates. This tends to vary according to the Bank of England base
rate.
Mortgage term The time over which the mortgage is to be repaid in regular payments, or the
time at the end of which the mortgage is repaid in its entirety.
Mortgage valuation A valuation carried out by a Chartered Surveyor for bank security
purposes usually in connection with the purchase or remortage of a property
Mortgagee The lender of a mortgage i.e. a bank or building society.
Mortgagor The recipient of the mortgage.
MRICS Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Multiple agency See joint agency.
NAEA The National Association of Estate Agents.
Negative equity If the outstanding value of the mortgage exceeds the market value of the
property, the Borrower is said to have negative equity.
NHBC (National Housebuilding Council) A non-profit making, independent body approved
by the Department of the Environment, which lays down standards for housebuilders who are
registered with them. The council issues 10 year certificates, which allow for the remedying
of any serious defects developing during that time, on new-build properties. It is unlikely that
a mortgage lender will grant a mortgage on a new property which does not have either an
NHBC guarantee or an architect's certificate.
Non-Residential Any part of a Premises not used for residential purposes
Notice of Invitation to Participate - Section 78 After its formation but before its issuance of
the Claim Notice, the Right to Manage Company can invite all Qualifying Flat Owners in the
property to join it.
Offer The offer is the Buyer's proposed sum to pay for a property.
Office copy entries If the property has a registered title, the vendor's solicitor will need to
apply for office copy entries from the Land Registry before a draft contract can be prepared
Officers The Company Secretary and the Directors of the Right to Manage Company
Ombudsman An independent organization that investigates professionals such as estate
agents, or solicitors when complaints by made by their customers.
Open market value The price a property should achieve when there is a willing buyer and a
willing seller.
Outline planning permission This is planning consent which is subject to certain reserved
matters, such as design, appearance and siting of proposed buildings.
Parapet The wall which projects above the level of the roof.
Party wall A wall which separates the properties of two adjoining owners, each of whom
have certain rights over the wall.
Payment break A Payment break is a window in flexible mortgage repayments that allows
Borrowers to suspend payments for a fixed period of time.
Penalties Penalty charges are incurred by Borrowers when they either transfer mortgages to
different Lenders or fully repay the loan before the end of the term.
Peppercorn rent A nominal rent where the landlord does not receive an annual payment in
cash. When the owner of land or property wishes to grant a lease, he must charge a rent as an
acknowledgement of the existence of the lease. Where the owner does not want to charge any
rent but simply wishes to establish the lease exists, he can ask for a peppercorn each year as a
token payment. In practise, this is not generally handed over!
Pied a terre A property kept for temporary, secondary, or occasional occupation
Power of attorney A document granting power to some person to act in the name of another.
Normally left with a solicitor to enable a purchase to proceed in the absence of either the
vendor or purchaser.
Preliminary or pre-contract enquiries These are enquiries made by the purchaser's
solicitors, requesting information on a property prior to exchange. It is at this stage that
fixtures and fittings to be left or taken are agreed.
Premium The monthly payment on an insurance policy is the Premium.
Premium lease A lump sum paid up front as rental payment for a property. Most normally
used by City firms for corporate lets.
Premium lease The advance rental for a property is the Premium Lease
Present Value An investment valuation term used to calculate the current value of a future
interest. For example, the freeholders interest in a building on which sub-leases have been
granted is significant but only when the leases have expired. The 'present value' of this
interest is a mathematically derived value of what that interest is worth today, put simply the
future value, postponed by the term of years until the lease expires.
Principal The basic loan upon which interest is calculated
Probate A document which is issued by a court to an executor, to show that the will of a
deceased has been proved and that the executor can distribute the assets.
Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 Brought in to ensure agents' descriptions of properties,
either written or oral, and room measurements were accurate, and to ensure that agents carry
out due diligence at all times.
Public liability insurance Insurance which covers injury to, or death of anyone on or around
a property.
Purchaser The Purchase is the Buyer of a property.
Purpose built flats These are properties which have specifically been designed and built as
individual flats, as opposed to flats which are created by conversion of an existing building,
such as a large Victorian house.
Qualifying Leaseholder The Qualifying Leaseholder owns a long Lease on a property (a
lease for more than 21 years).
Qualifying Tenant The Qualifying Tenant owns a long Lease on a property (a lease for more
than 21 years)
Quantity surveyor (q.s.) A person trained in construction costs and contract procedures. He
makes feasibility studies, advising the client on selection of contractor, prepares contract
documents such as the bill of quantities, controls costs, provides financial statements during
building and helps to settle the final account. This profession, unique to the UK, originated in
the 19th century, when groups of competing contractors shared the cost of employing one
man draw up a bill of quantities as a basis for tender. Chartered quantity surveyors belong to
the RICS.
Redemption Redemption describes the point where the mortgage has been repayment in full
Reinstatement Cost Assessment For Insurance A survey that estimates the cost of re-
construction of a building damaged under an insured risk.
Re-mortgage Re-mortgaging occurs when a property is used to finance a second mortgage if
the property has risen in value since the initial mortgage was agreed. Otherwise, this describes
the transfer of an existing mortgage to a new Lender.
Repayment mortgage Distinct from an interest-only mortgage, this is a mortgage requiring
monthly payments that cover both interest and principal so that the amount mortgage
gradually reduces until redemption.
Repossession The lender's assumption of the ownership of a property once the Borrower is
deemed unable to pay the outstanding mortgage.
Reserve Fund Funds collected from Flat Owners over time to finance anticipated Major
Works to the property.
Restricted covenant An obligation restricting the use of land which is binding on subsequent
owners, for example not allowed to keep animals on the premises, or a house builder may put
a covenant on a property forbidding extension without his approval.
Retention The holding back of part of the mortgage until repairs or specified works to the
property are satisfactorily completed.
Retention That part of a sales proceeds withheld from the seller until service charge cost for
the period of his ownership have been finally computed.
Reversion The term used to describe what happens at the end of the lease when the
leaseholder no longer has rights to reside in the property and the flat reverts to the Freeholder
Reversionary interest The term used to describe the landlords interest once any under leases
granted have expired
RICS The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Right to Information Notice - Section 82 A request for information sent to the Landlord by
the RTM Company, issued after the RTM Company has been formed but before the Claim
Notice is issued
Right to Manage The right of Owners to take over from the Landlord (or from that
Landlord's appointed manager) the management of their units in a property by means of a
Right to Manage Company (see RTM Company)
RTM Company Not to be confused with a Limited Company, an RTM Company (Right to
Manage Company) is separately registered at Companies House as a company that it limited
by guarantee (rather than by share ownership). This type of company is usually designed to
take over the management of a Block of units within a property.
Search The enquiry of information about the property held by the Land registry or by the
Local authority.
Self-Contained A Building or Block that is either detached or otherwise capable of being
redeveloped as if it were.
Semi-detached A property physically joined to one other property.
Service charge See Maintenance charge.
Servitudes The rights of a landowner over the land of another i.e. rights of light etc.
Sole agent The one estate agent authorised to handle either a sale or let.
Solicitor The legal professional handling all legal documentation involved in buying or
selling a property.
Stamp duty A government levy payable by the purchaser of a property based on the purchase
price.
Stock Condition Survey A Stock Condition survey assesses the condition of an
organization's current building stock prior to the use of that stock in maintenance
programmes.
Structural survey See Building survey
Studio flat A studio flat has one bathroom/shower room and an open-plan living area that
incorporates kitchen and bedroom facilities.
Subject to contract When an offer is made to purchase a property subject to contract, it
means that all dealings are subject to the actual exchange of the contract itself. Nothing is
binding on either seller or buyer until the contracts are exchanged.
Surveyor A professional qualified to carry out the survey.
Tenancy The tenancy is the temporary possession of a property by a tenant.
Tenancy agreement The Tenancy agreement legally identifies the rights of both tenants and
landlords by detailing all the terms and conditions of the rental arrangements.
Tenant The Tenant is the party legally entitled to temporary possess a property.
Tenants in common 'Tenants in Common' describes a form of ownership by two or more
parties. Should one of them die, the other party does not automatically receive the deceased's
share of the property as that share forms part of the deceased's estate.
Tender This is an arrangement whereby prospective purchasers are invited to submit sealed
bids by a previously stated date and time. The moment the offer is accepted by the seller, the
arrangement becomes a legally binding contract.
Tenure A collective term which relates to the nature of the owners title to a property i.e. is it
freehold or leasehold.
Tenure The tenure is the length of the lease by which a property is held.
Terraced house A terraced house forms part of a connected row of houses.
The Ombudsmen for Estate Agents This is an independent professional body that
investigates complaints on behalf of customers, and is answerable to the Trading Standards
Department. If using an estate agent to sell your property, it is always worth ensuring that
they are members of the Ombudsmen Scheme so you do have some form of redress, should
things not go according to plan.
Title deeds Documents showing the legal ownership of a property, which are normally held
by a vendor's mortgage lender.
Transfer deeds Transfer deeds are documents from the Land Registry that transfer legal
ownership to Buyer from Seller.
Transfer of deeds A Land Registry document that transfers the ownership of a property on
completion in registered land transactions.
Under offer Status of a property indicating that an offer has been made and accepted for a
property, subject to contract.
Valuation (Mortgage Valuation) A valuation of the property prepared for Lenders. They
require this basic survey of a property to estimate its value for mortgage purposes before
lending. It only answers the Lender's queries on the property and does not necessarily address
the concerns of the Borrower.
Variable base rate A basic rate of interest charged on a mortgage. This may change in
relation to market conditions - in other words, monthly payments could either go up or down.
Vendor The legal term used to describe the Seller of a property.
Wayleaves Rights of way granted to enable obligations and duties to be fulfilled by the
electricity board, telephone company etc to allow them to maintain pipelines and cables.
Yield The income from a property calculated as a percentage of its value.