Earnest money - Money purchaser puts down at time of offer - binder money
First time homebuyer program - A type of financing available to those who have never owned a home before. Usually there is some type of financial assistance for the purchaser.

Realtor vs. Licensee - All Realtors are licensees but not all licensees are Realtors. Realtors subscribe to a “Code Of Ethics” which non - realtors do not subscribe to.

Designations:
GRI - Graduate Realtors Institute
CBR - Certified Residential Broker
ABR - Accredited
Broker Associate - a person licensed as a Broker but who works for another broker and does not run their own office
CRS - Certified Residential Specialist
CRB - Certified Residential Broker

Bridge loan - A loan obtained by a purchaser who has a house to sell which allows them to close the purchase a new home before they sell their old house. Temporary financing.

Subject to sale - A contingency written into a purchase contract when the purchaser needs to sell their present house before they can proceed with the closing of their new home.

Title opinion - A statement by the purchaser’s attorney as to the quality of the title to the property that the purchaser is buying.

Abstract - A history of the title to a particular property. The buyer’s attorney “reads” the abstract and issues his “title opinion”. See above.

Closing costs - The various expenses purchasers and sellers normally incur in the transfer of ownership of real property.

CMA - Competitive Market Analysis (same as an appraisal)

Commission - The fee that a Realtor charges for performing the duties of agency

Counter offer - A sellers response to an offer to purchase when the offer contains conditions not acceptable to the seller.
Agency - Describes the relationship that exists between a Realtor and the buyer and /or seller.

Lien - A claim that one person or entity has on the property of another.
Joint Tenancy - Undivided ownership of a property by two or more persons each having total ownership. Involves right or survivorship.

Judgment Lien - A legal claim on all property of the debtor.

Pre Qualified - A process where a lender issues a loan commitment to a purchaser based on what the purchaser has told the lender concerning their financial status. Such commitments are subject to the lender verifying that what the purchaser told them is indeed fact.

Pre Approved - a process where the lender issues a loan commitment to the purchaser after verifying the financial information the purchaser gave the lender.

Loan To Value Ratio - The %age of the purchase price that the lender is willing to loan the purchaser. If the loan to value is 80% the lender will loan the purchaser 80% of the appraised value of the property.

Contract Amendment - A change to contract terms after the contract has been agreed to, which needs to be authorized by both parties.

Legal Possession - When the buyer accepts the deed tendered by the seller.

Occupancy - When the purchaser gets to physically occupy the property. Sometimes does not occur at the same time as legal possession.

Proration (taxes) - Charging or crediting the seller for their portion of the taxes for every day that they occupy a property.

Restrictive Covenants - Limitations placed on the use of real property, usually by the developer of the property.

Special Assessment - A legal charge against real property levied by some public authority.

Personal Property - An item, which is not permanently attached to real property