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Basic Defnitions and Concepts:

1. Land- the surface of the ground and all natural objects within it or on top of it.- the section of the earths sphere, and includes all earth down to the center, and upward into

space

2. Real estate- land and any additions and improvements, such as buildings, sewers, sidewalks, and anything

else considered to be permanently attached to the land- there are practical, technical, and legal limitations to real estate ownership

*** The reality is real estate is basically the surface, anything permanently attachedto it, anything that can be extracted from the surface, and certain air rights.

*real estate doesnt extend into space, as some textbooks on the subjectclaim, because space isnt attached to it !s the earth rotates, and revolvesabout the sun, which in turn is revolving around the center of the galaxy, andso on, the space over real estate is always changing"* !nd there are problems with claiming ownership beneath the surface of yourland. #o you own the oil down below, for instance$ Technically you do, but oilhas % characteristics that might make it di&cult for you to retain ownership. 'tis li(uid, and usually extends over a large area, crossing many real estateboundaries. 'f your neighbor, who might be miles away and where the oil

might be closer to the surface, drills a well and starts pumping it out, the oilwill start to )ow from under your land to under his.

3. Fixtures- articial improvements to the land or any of its buildings.- considered to be real property if

a. that is how it is treated by the owners,b. the attachment is considered permanent, andc. the parties to any sale treat it as such.

- 'f there is any doubt as to what is a xture and what is personal property, then any salesagreement should remove that doubt.

- +xamples of ambiguous items are satellite dishes, carpeting, bookcases, and appliances

4. Trade fxtures

- xtures used in the conduct of a business, and thus, are considered the personal property ofthe business owner even when the xture is physically attached to the real estate"*** ! vacating business tenant has the duty to remove all xtures to his business, torestore the real estate to its original condition. therwise, the xtures become part ofthe real estate by accessionthey become a part of something that is alreadyowned, the real estate

5. ersonal propert!- also known as c"attels- includes anything that is movable, and thus, not real estate- includes not only personal belongings, but also annual crops e#$le#ents" that were

planted*** The planter is entitled to the fruits of his labor even if the land is owned bysomeone else.owever, perennial plantsare considered to be part of the land"

*** %o$ile "o#esare also generally considered personal property because they aremovable, and registered as motor vehicles, but they can be considered real propertyif, for instance, the mobile home is attached to a permanent foundation.

- can also be converted from real property by se&erance, where the property is severed fromthe land

***such as cutting a tree down, or picking fruit

'. Real propert!- also known as realt!

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- the real estate and the legal conse(uences of owning the real estate, which is sometimesreferred to as a $undle o( le)al ri)"ts, or appurtenances, that the owner has with respectto the real estate, and that transfers to any subse(uent owner.*** ! real estate owner has the same rights as an owner of personal property/a. the right to possess it,b. to control it,c. to enjoy it, and

d. to exclude it from others, as well as the righte. to dispose of it by selling it, gifting it, abandoning it, or be(ueathing it.

- owever, real estate ownership is restricted in many ways by the law. *onin) la+srestrict what the land can be used for,

en&iron#ental la+srestrict what can be done to the land,

ease#entsrestrict exclusions, and

(air "ousin) la+sgovern the sale of real estate

- 0eal estate rights can also be restricted to certain aspects of the real estate, such as mineralrights

***real estate benets the owner, but real estate ownership also benets society by avoiding thetra)ed! o( t"e co##onsexploiting the land for ones benet, but not contributing to therenewal of the exploited resources.

1o, for instance, if a parcel of land is not owned, then people could cometo cut down the trees to make rewood or furniture, but they would haveno incentive to plant new trees, because they do not own the property,and thus, would not benet by renewing the resources for others. Thus,real estate ownership promotes conservation and renewal of resources,and it also allows improvements. 2o one would spend money, forinstance, to construct a building on land that they did not own.