[T]

T lot  A lot that faces a T intersection.

table  Negotiations, or the negotiating table.  The buyer brought a lawyer to the table.  Or, the seller placed a red herring upon the table.

take-out financing  syn  permanent financing  The long-term financing that replaces (takes out) a construction loan once a project is completed.  An open-ended construction loan may automatically become a permanent loan.  If not, the proceeds of the take-out loan are used to pay off the construction loan.  Often a construction loan will not be approved unless the developer first obtains commitment from a permanent lender.

target housing  Pre-1978 housing.  Federal law requires disclosures by owners relative to lead-based paint hazards in the sale, lease or rental of housing built before 1978.  Foreclosure sales, however, are exempt from this disclosure requirement.

tandem homes  Two homes on one lot.  The home in front usually houses a family that cares for an aging relative living in the smaller home in the rear.

tax-assessor  syn  assessor  See assessor.

tax basis  The cost of property.  See adjusted tax basis.

tax deductibility  An expenditure that is entitled to be deducted from taxable income.  A  business trip, under IRS regulation, is deductible.
 
tax-free exchange   syn  like-kind exchange  An exchange, or trade, of real estate qualified for deferral of capital gains taxation.  The benefit is to use equity in a property to acquire a larger property without suffering the shrinkage of equity that would otherwise occur because of the capital gains tax.  See also delayed exchange.

TDR  syn  transferable development rights  See transferable development right.

teaser rate of interest  An especially low rate of interest charged by lenders of adjustable rate mortgages during the first year or so of the loan.

tenancy by the entirety  An ownership form for husband and wife under which there is right of survivorship.  Under its traditional form, neither husband nor wife can convey away their respective interest, voluntarily or involuntarily, without the consent of the other.  This feature is unlike a joint tenancy with right of survivorship held by a husband and wife.  Tenancies by the entirety, although popular in common law  states, are not permitted in California, a community property state.

tenancy for years   syn  estate for years  A leasehold interest that expires at a specific future time, often one year, with rent collected monthly.  See also periodic tenancy, tenancy at will, and  tenancy at sufferance.

tenancy in common  See co-ownership.

tenant  A renter of commercial or residential property.  The lessee in a lease is the tenant, the lessor is the landlord.

tenant at sufferance  syn  holdover tenant  See holdover tenant.

tenant improvement, (TIs)  The cost of preparing leased space for occupancy by a new tenant.

tenants' union  A group of tenants joined together to negotiate for better terms and conditions in their leaseholds.  A tenants' strike would involve the withholding of rent.

telecommunications enhanced real estate, (TERE)  syn  intelligent building,  smart office building,  shared tenant services, (STS)  See smart office building.
TERE  syn  telecommunications enhanced real estate,  intelligent building,  smart office building,  and shared tenant services, (STS)  See smart office building.

termite inspection  An inspection by a licensed contractor of commercial or residential real property to determine the presence of termites or vermin, or damage from water or dry rot, or conditions that ought to be rectified to minimize future damage.

testilying   A slang composite of “testifying” and “lying”.  The term highlights the reality that many witnesses can and do manipulate their testimony in court or arbitration to serve their perceived self-interest.  There are few convictions for lying in court, especially in civil court.  There are virtually no convictions for lying in arbitration.  Clever persons, such as the white collar type of persons found in the real estate industry, can and do use “flexible facts” and qualifications on their testimony and other tactics to essentially lie or mislead in court or in arbitration proceedings.

the check is in the mail  A debtor's response to a persistent creditor.  Often the response will "buy a little time" for the debtor to come up with additional financing.

thin equity  When the sum of all the financing on a property is almost equal to its market value.  That is, equity is "thin" when it is almost nonexistent!

thread  The centerline of a nonnavigable stream or lake.

three & two, or 3 & 2  A three-bedroom, two-bath house.

three-two-one buy-down  A mortgage interest rate buy down of three percent below market interest during year one, two percent below market for year two, and one percent below market for year three.  Buy downs are offered by sellers of new homes as a sales inducement when market interest rates are very high.  Buy downs may result in a higher sales price if the amount of the buy down is added to the price set by the seller.

thrift  syn  savings and loan  See savings and loan.

tight contract  Any carefully drawn contract that covers or takes into consideration all important factors relative to a transaction.  The opposite of a tight contract is a loose or sloppy contract.

tight house  A home designed and built to provide for improved air quality through a controlled indoor environment, using an integrated heating, air conditioning, and ventilation system.

tight market  A rental market is said to be tight when there is a lack of available vacancies.

tight money market  A lack of acceptable real estate financing.

time-is-of-the-essence  A phrase often inserted as boilerplate in real estate contracts which supposedly will cause a court to enforce agreed upon time limits.  However, rarely are time limits in real estate deals strictly enforced due to customs and practices in the industry.  Nonetheless, the phrase can be used for advantages.

tired listing  A house that has been listed for a long time without selling.  Some professionals recommend "resting" a tired listing before putting it back on the market.

title company  A business organization that maintains records, either print or electronic, of all documents that pertain to real estate that are recorded in the official records of the county.  These records are used to prepare preliminary title reports as well as to support the issuance of policies of title insurance.  Many title companies also perform the services of escrow companies.

title insurance  A form of protection against surprise encumbrances on or claims to real estate.  A title company prepares a report that refers to all recorded documents that affect the ownership of or possession to a specific parcel of real estate.  Some unrecorded encumbrances, such as property taxes, are reported as well.  Ordinarily, no attempt is made to include unrecorded claims in the report, other than taxes.  Title insurance, in general, is a form of guarantee that the title company's report is accurate.  That is, the insured property owner is protected from losses that may be caused by the failure of the title company to properly report all encumbrances of record that effect the property.  The protection is against surprise encumbrances.  Additionally, title policies may protect against losses from forgeries, as well as from specified unrecorded claims if a special premium is
paid.  All institutional lenders require that their borrowers (mortgagors) obtain title insurance.  The three most important owner's and lender's forms of title insurance are the American Land Title Association (ALTA) forms, the California Land Title Association (CLTA) forms, and the New York Board of Title Underwriters (NYBTU) forms.

title search  An analysis of the official records to identify and catalog those documents that pertain to a particular parcel of real estate.  A title search ordinarily is performed by an attorney or a title company, but may be performed by anyone because official records are open to the public.

tort litigation  Certain types of lawsuits in which compensation may be allowed for pain and suffering, bodily injury, loss of future profits, out-of-pocket costs, and punitive damages in some instances.  In real estate, tort litigation may result from misrepresentation (called fraud), for example.  Attorneys often accept tort cases upon a contingent fee basis, sharing in any recovery.

townhouse  A single family residential unit, normally two or more stories, with one or more common walls.  Townhouses may be condominiums or apartments.

township  See legal description.

tract house  A residence that is similar in style and floor plan to other houses in that tract, or neighborhood.

tract index  An official filing system used by local government in recording documents pertaining to real estate.  Transactions are indexed by reference to property descriptions.  See also grantor-grantee index.

trade down  An exchange of real estate of considerable value for property of less value plus cash.  The cash, called "boot," is taxable even though the exchange may qualify for a tax deferral.

trade fixture  A fixture that is used in a tenant's trade or business.  (For example, a meat counter would be a butcher's trade fixture.)  Ordinarily, a trade fixture is intended to remain personal property regardless of its attachment to the real estate, and it is therefore subject to the claims of creditors of the tenant, or it may be removed by the tenant on termination of the lease.

trade-up buyer  syn  move-up buyer  See move-up buyer.

trading down  Buying a less expensive home than is owned.

traditional mortgage  syn  fixed rate mortgage  See fixed rate mortgage.

trailing spouse  A spouse in a dual income family that has "trailed" the other spouse who has accepted employment, perhaps a promotion or new job, in a different city.  Because only one spouse then is employed, and their combined income lessened, they may not qualify for a mortgage loan consistent with their desires.  Some lenders qualify borrowers under such circumstances on the basis of the potential earning power of the trailing spouse.

transaction coordinator  A person who assists real estate sales agents with the processing and closing of transactions.  Transaction coordinators help arrange property inspections, and interface with inspectors, bankers, attorneys, escrow, other agents and anyone else involved in a transaction.  No real estate license is required so long as the transaction coordinator does not engage in the negotiating processes underlying the sales transaction.

transfer tax  A federal tax imposed on transfers of interests of real property.  The tax is computed by reference to the value of the interest conveyed.  It is collected by the sale of documentary transfer stamps, which are affixed to the deed when it is recorded.  Since the transfer tax stamp is a matter of public record, examination of the records will reveal the sales price of all transfers.  To conceal sales data, some real estate players purchase more stamps than are necessary, simply to make the sales price appear greater than it actually was.  The tax is computed at the rate of $.55 for each $500 of value or fraction thereof.

transferable development rights, (TDRs)  The rights issued to owners within a conservation area of restricted development that authorize development in a transfer area where development is favored.  TDRs are fully transferable and may be sold, which serves to compensate owners within areas restricted from development.  They are often used to preserve historical buildings or to create open space areas.  For example, local government may determine that, for environmental reasons,  no development ought to take place on Greenacre owned by the Smiths.  To accomplish this goal, the government issues a scrip (called TDRs) to the Smiths that can be sold to other developers in the area who can use the TDRs for a variety of advantages on other properties, such as increased densities.  If the value of the scrip paid to the Smiths is equal to or greater than the loss in value to their property, they have received “Just Compensation” for the “taking” that has occurred of their valuable property rights.  Ideally the market value of the TDRs that are paid to such owners of property that is denied its development opportunity is reasonable.  But like the market value of most assets, changes occur and there is opportunity for unfairness.

trial courts  Tribunals that conduct trials, as distinguished from courts that conduct appeals of cases decided by trial court.

triple A tenant  See AAA Tenant.

triple net lease  syn  net lease  See net lease.

triplex  A multi-unit residential dwelling containing three separate living units.

trust account  Any account held by a fiduciary for the benefit of another.  A real estate broker is required by law to maintain a trust account in which earnest money deposits are maintained.  Attorneys often maintain trust accounts of clients' funds.  In all cases, the fiduciary cannot deposit personal funds in a trust fund, nor can he use trust funds for personal benefit.  Violation of trust account law can result in suspension or revocation of professional licenses.

trust deed  A mortgage.  A trust deed conveys the legal title to real estate from a debtor to a third party trustee, to hold the property "in trust" for the benefit of the lender so long as the debt is unpaid.  Cf. trustee's deed.

trustee  A person who is paid to hold property for the benefit of another person, called the beneficiary.  Trustees in deed of trust transactions are often attorneys or title companies.

trustee in bankruptcy  A professional appointed by the U.S. District Court to supervise a particular bankrupt's affairs in accordance with the bankruptcy law.

trustee's deed   A variety of deed used by trustees under deeds of trust to transfer ownership to the highest bidders at foreclosure sales.
 Trustees holds legal title to the encumbered properties until one event or the other occurs:  either the debtors (trustors) pay off their secured loans or defaults.  In the former situation, the title is returned to the debtor by deed of reconveyance (signed by the trustee) and the whole transaction is over.  In the default situation, however, the trustee will, on the creditor's request, initiate foreclosure proceedings.  Foreclosure proceedings, unless terminated in midstream, will result in a public sale of the property securing the unpaid debt.  The high bidder will receive ownership, both legal (title) and beneficial ownership (possession), by trustee's deed.  See  deed.

truth in lending  A federal consumer law that requires lenders to compute and disclose to prospective borrowers, among other things, an annualized percentage rate (APR).  As of this date, there is no standardized disclosure requirements relating to adjustable rate mortgages.

two-step or 7/23 loan  A variety of adjustable rate mortgage that “triggers” a new interest rate only once at the end of 7 years.  The remaining 23 years remain at the adjusted interest rate.  (Note that most homes resell every 7 years, at which time due-on-sale clauses compel loan payoff).  Another version of the 7/23 is the 5/25, i.e., an interest rate adjustment once after 5 years, thereafter the rate is constant.  Borrowers may be able to refinance when the rate adjustment “triggers” but only if the market has been sufficiently favorable to maintain a sufficient equity.  In a falling or even static market, homeowners may not be able to refinance when the adjustment takes a steep jump.  Refinancing always requires a sufficient LTV ratio that necessarily erodes in a falling market.