Partnership There are several
partnership options for unmarried
individuals to buy a piece of property, such
as live-in partnerships (in which both
buyers share the residence) or a
shared-equity partnership (in which one
buyer lives in the home and the other is an
investor in the property).
Passive loss A tax term that
refers to any loss from a passive activity,
such as the ownership but not the operation
of a piece of rental real estate.
Passive solar system A system
that supplies solar heat without the use of
electric fans or pumps.
Patent defect A visible
deficiency in a piece of property, such as a
cracked basement slab or a sagging porch.
Payment cap A legal limit on
the amount a monthly payment can increase on
an adjustable-rate mortgage.
Percolation test A test used to
determine the ability of soil to accommodate
a septic system.
Per-diem interest Interest
charged or accrued daily.
Panel A section or division of
a wall, ceiling or a flat piece of building
material that forms the part of the surface
of a wall, door or cabinet.
Paneling Strips of wood or wood
material applied as a finish to a wall.
Parking strip The strip of
grass between the sidewalk and the street in
front of a house.
Partition Any kind of structure
dividing one room or space from another.
Patio An interior courtyard or
a paved backyard area.
Perennial Any plant that
produces leaves, flowers and seeds from year
to year, such as irises or peonies.
Pergola An arbor with an open
roof of rafters supported by posts or
columns.
Personal property Any moveable
property in a house such as furniture or
appliances.
Pest-control inspection A
common pest-control inspection is a termite
inspection, which is required in some
states, such as California.
Pier A rectangular masonry
support column.
PITI (Principal, Interest, Taxes,
Insurance) When a buyer applies for a
loan, the lender will calculate the
principal, interest, taxes and insurance.
The figure is designed to represent the
borrower's actual monthly mortgage-related
expenses.
Planned communities The concept
began in the 19th century and describes any
town or neighborhood built with certain
guidelines and goals.
Planned-unit development Residents
own the home and the land, and share the use
and financial responsibility for common
areas.
Plaster A labor-intensive and
more costly wall finish.
Pocket door A sliding door that
retreats into the wall when opened.
Point Fees charged by lenders
at the time a loan is originated. A point is
equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount.
Porch The structure can be a
simple covered entrance to a home or a fully
enclosed room on the outside of a residence.
Porte cochere A porch-like roof
extending over a driveway.
Portfolio lender A lender who
makes loans with its own funds and keeps the
loans on the company's books--in other
words, inside the institution's
"portfolio"--rather than selling the loan on
the secondary market.
Portico A porch supported by a
row of columns.
Possession When a buyer signs
the papers and receives the keys to the
house, the buyer officially takes
possession.
Power of attorney A document
that authorizes an individual to act on
behalf of someone else.
Pre-approval letter A letter
from a lender that informs a seller about
the amount of money that a potential buyer
can obtain.
Prepaid expenses The costs for
taxes, insurance and assessments paid before
the due date.
Prepaid interest Interest paid
before it is due. For example, at the close
of a real estate transaction borrowers
usually pay for the interest on their loan
that falls between the closing period and
the first monthly payment.
Prepayment penalty Lenders can
impose a penalty on a borrower who pays a
loan off before its expected end date.
Prequalification Many lenders
will pre-qualify a borrower who is shopping
for a loan by completing a preliminary
assessment of the buyer's ability to pay for
a home.
Pre-sold home Homes that are
sold before they are built.
Pressure relief valve A safety
vent that relieves excess pressure in a
water heater.
Price range The range of how
much a buyer is willing to pay for a home.
Primer The initial coat of
paint that is applied before the final
topcoat.
Principal The amount of money
that the borrower owes on a mortgage.
Principle of conformity The
idea that a house will more likely
appreciate in value if its size, age,
condition and style are similar to, or
conform to, other houses in the
neighborhood.
Principle of progression An
appraisal term which states that real estate
of lower value is enhanced by the proximity
of higher-end properties.
Principle of regression An
appraisal term which states that the value
of higher-end real estate can be brought
down by the proximity of too many lower-end
properties.
Privacy fence A structure
erected between two pieces of property.
Private mortgage insurance (PMI) A
special type of loan insurance that many
lenders require borrowers to purchase if the
borrower's down payment is less than 20
percent of the home's purchase price.
Probate sale A real estate sale
triggered by the death of the owner, with
proceeds to be divided among heirs or
creditors.
Procure / Procuring Cause
The originating cause of sale. To
bring about.
Production home Homes that are
mass-produced by one builder in a project.
Programming A written summation
by an architect of a project's design
objectives, constraints and criteria.
Project budget A fiscal outline
that includes the construction budget and
all costs for land, furniture, equipment,
financing, professional services,
contingencies and owner-furnished goods and
services.
Property line The official
dividing line between properties.
Property report A disclosure
issued by the state when a time-share
project is located or sold.
Property tax Property taxes are
calculated at about 1.5 percent of the
current market value.
Property tax deduction The U.S.
tax code allows homeowners to deduct the
amount they have paid in property taxes.
Property value The value of a
piece of property is based on the price a
buyer will pay at a certain time.
Property Transfer Affidavit
Legal document used for recording property
transfer at local municipality.
Pro-ration Agreed-upon
percentages of certain expenses associated
with a piece of property that must be paid
by the buyer or the seller at the time of
closing.
Punch list Buyers compile a
punch list during the final walk-through
detailing items to be fixed before closing.
Purchase agreement A document
which details the purchase price and
conditions of the transaction.
Purchase-money mortgage A
mortgage that a borrower obtains to acquire
a property.
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