Conveyancing Jargon Buster [M to Z]

When you choose Furley Page to help you buy or sell your home, our legal team explain the conveyancing process to you.  The legal system is filled with new terms, so it can be helpful to have something to refer to.  We hope you find our Conveyancing Jargon Buster useful. It is organised across two pages alphabetically, the page below is continued from Conveyancing Jargon Buster [A to L].  For further advice on buying or selling your home contact our Residential Property team.

Managing Agent :  Someone appointed to oversee the day-to-day maintenance of a property, eg, a block of flats or a shopping centre.
Marriage Value :  The amount payable to the Freeholder on the grant of an extension of a Leasehold Interest where the unexpired term of the Lease is less than 80 years. This is paid in consideration of the increased value of the Leasehold property following the extension of the term of the Lease.
Mesne :  Intermediate.
Mesne Profits :  Compensation due to a landowner for the unlawful occupation of his land, eg, by a tenant who holds over without the landlords consent.
Minor Interest :  Under Land Registration Act 1925, an interest which had to be protected by an entry on the register in order to bind a purchaser.
Mortgage or Legal Charge :   An arrangement by which a borrower (the mortgagor) provides a lender (the mortgagee) with security for the repayment of a loan.  In the typical case of a house mortgage, the borrower continues to occupy the property and will the borrower continues to occupy the property and will assume full ownership again when the loan is repaid.  However, if payments are not made to the lender, he may take steps to enforce his security, usually by selling it, but he will need to approval of the court.  If the proceeds of sale exceed the outstanding debt, the excess must be refunded to the borrower.  [See also endowment mortgage, interest free mortgage, pension mortgage and repayment mortgage.]
National House-Building Council [NHBC] :  is the standard setting body and leading warranty and insurance provider for new and newly converted homes in the UK. Their role is to work with the house-building and wider construction industry to provide risk management services that raise the standards of new homes, and to provide consumer protection to new home buyers.
Negative Equity :  When the amount owing to the mortgagee exceeds the market value of the property provided as security, the difference is called the negative equity.
Official Copies :  Copies of the register entries relating to title held at the Land Registry.
Party Wall (or Fence) :  A wall (or fence) owned jointly by adjoining landowners over which both have rights and responsibilities as to maintenance.
Peppercorn Rent :  A nominal rent
Personal Property :  All property other than real property.  Personal property, or personalty, is contrasted with interests in land, or realty, for historical reasons but there are still important differences, for example in the way they can be transferred.
Perpetuity :  Forever
Planning Permission :  Permission required from the local authority to develop land.
Possessory Title :  Once of the classes of title the Land Registry may grant.  Often granted when the owner claims to have lost the title deeds, or to have acquired ownership by adverse possession.
Prescription :  The acquisition of legal easements by long user – often 21 years user as of right will suffice.
Rack Rent :  Open market rental
Real Property, Realty :  The ownership of freehold land and certain interests over land such as easements.  Contrast Personal property.
Redemption :  Any compounding of future payments but especially the discharge of a mortgage by paying off the loan and obtaining the release of the property.  A redemption penalty may sometimes be payable for early redemption of a mortgage.
Reddendum :  The part of a lease which specifies the rent payable.
Registered Land :  Land or buildings the ownership of which is registered at HM Land Registry.  The Land Registration Act 2002 which came into force on 14 October 2003 has greatly extended the categories of compulsory registration, e.g. they now include all leases of seven years or more.
Remortgage :  Paying off an existing mortgage and entering into a new one, usually to obtain a lower rate of interest or a larger loan.
Rent charge :  A sum of money payable by the owner of freehold land.
Repossession :  Regaining or retaking of possession of property when a purchaser or borrower defaults in making payments.  Typically a finance company may repossess goods sold on hire purchase or a mortgagee may repossess a borrower’s property in order to sell it to meet outstanding payments due under a mortgage.
Restrictive Covenant :  An agreement by the owner of land (the servient land) not to do something, such as build on the land.  If such a covenant is made with the owner of land nearby, it may be enforceable against subsequent owners of the servient land.
Riparian Rights :  The rights of a landowner over a non-tidal river adjoining his land, eg, rights to fish.
Sale and Leaseback :  An arrangement in which a landowner sells the freehold and then takes back a lease of the property from the new freeholder.  Often used to free up capital tied up in freehold land.
Service Charge :  A charge made to tenants by the landlord or the management company to pay for services  or the upkeep of 'common parts' provided for benefit of all the tenants of a property. eg The repair and maintenance of a block of flats.
Severance of a Joint Tenancy :   The act of converting a joint tenancy into a tenancy in common.  Any joint tenant can do this unilaterally at any time by executing an appropriate document and notifying is fellow joint tenants. The property will then be deemed to be owned in equal shares.
Seisin :  Old-fashioned term denoting the possession of freehold land.
Shared Ownership :  Is a part buy part, part rent scheme which enables purchasers to buy a home in stages.  The initial share is between 25% and 75% of the value of the property. [See Staircasing.]
Staircasing :  As income increases you can buy further shares of your home until you own 100% of the value and no longer share the ownership.  [See Shared Ownership.]
Stamp Duty Land Tax :  Tax payable to the Government (inter alia) on the purchase of property or the grant of a lease.
Sub-lease :  A lease granted by a person who is himself a tenant.  Must be of a shorter duration than the head lease.
Sub-lessee and Sub-lessor :  The parties to a sub-lease.  The sub-lessee is the person to whom the sub-lease has been granted, a tenant. The sub-lessor is the person who grants the sub-lease.
Subject to Contract :  A useful expression to prevent a binding agreement arising accidentally during negotiation.  It means, “I am making no binding commitment at this stage because, in due course, there is to be a proper written agreement”.  Not to be confused with “without prejudice”
Surrender :  The premature termination of a lease by agreement between landlord and tenant.
Telegraphic Transfer /TT :  Term used to signify the transfer of money from one back account to another, eg, from the buyer’s solicitor’s bank to the seller’s solicitor’s bank on completion.  Also referred to as a CHAPS payment.
Tenant :  The person to whom a lease is granted.
Tenants in Common :  Persons who own property jointly in distinct but not necessarily in equal shares.  If one dies his share passes by Will or Intestacy.  [See our pages on Joint Ownership and Buying a Property with Someone Else.]
Term :  The duration of the lease.
Title Deeds :  Original documents proving legal ownership of property. Where land is registered at HM Land Registry, the Register itself proves title and, since October 2003, the Land Registry has not issued Land Certificates.
Transfer :  The document used to pass the ownership of land to another.  Usually used in relation to registered land..
Trust :  A legal relationship when one person (a trustee) holds property for the benefit of another (a beneficiary).  There are countless trusts – charities, pension funds, private trusts – and they may be express, created by Deed or Will, or implied, by operation of law. [For more information see Wills, Tax and Estate Planning and Responsibilities of a Trustee.]
Trustee :  A person appointed to hold property or assets upon trust for another.  Trustees have a duty to act in good faith, which means they cannot enrich themselves at the expense of their beneficiaries.
Under Offer :  A property that has an offer accepted by the Vendor but contacts have yet to be exchanged.
Unregistered Land :  Land or buildings the ownership of which is not registered at HM Land Registry.  It is possible to find out whether land is registered by searching the Index Map at the Land Registry.
Vacant Possession :  Empty.  On completion of a sale a seller is obliged to deliver the property with vacant possession which means clear of occupants and of objects which are not included in the sale.  The same applies at the end of a tenancy.
Yield Up :  To give up possession at the end of a lease