Your Online Legal Resource Center for Property Management

GABLE - A triangular wall enclosed by the sloping ends of a ridged roof or a triangular decorative feature.

GABLE ROOF - A ridged roof forming a triangle at each end.

GAG RULES - A provision in contracts signed by new buyers that prohibits the owners from publicizing complaints about the builder.

GAIN - Taxable Profit Gambrel roof A roof with two slopes, often seen on barns.

GAP FINANCING - Temporary financing of the difference between a floor loan and the total amount required for an investment.

GARBAGE DISPOSAL - Located beneath a sink, it is a small tank device with teeth that grinds large chunks of garbage into small pieces which may be flushed into a sewer with water for disposal.

GARDEN APARTMENT - A multiple dwelling unit which allows room for a lawn and garden areas outdoors.

GARNISHMENT - A legal cure for a debt which allows a creditor to take money or property belonging to a debtor when it is in the possession of a third party, such as wages owed by an employer to an employee (debtor). Must follow legal process.

GENERAL BENEFITS - Benefits created by the condemnation of property, not actually taken.

GENERAL CONTRACTOR - The person who hires all of the subcontractors and suppliers for a project.

GENERAL INDEX - A book which lists liens against individuals which may have an effect on the purchase of real property, such as a lien against a borrower which may diminish his ability to repay a long term mortgage; used by title insurance companies.

GENERAL LIEN - Rather than attaching to a specific property, a general lien attaches to all property of a particular person; must be prearranged by agreement.

GENERAL PLAN - A government's long-range land-use plan.

GEODETIC SYSTEM - A system of nationwide survey marks (bench) at longitude and latitude points, created by the federal government.

GEODESIC DOME - A structure constructed of light weight bars forming a grid of polygons.

GEORGIAN ARCHITECTURE - Characterized by windows on the first floor which almost touch the ground.

GEORGIAN STYLE - Popular throughout the 18th century, this type of architecture is distinguished by a symmetrical facade, prominent front entrance and quoins-decorative blocks of masonry or wood set in the corners of the house..

GERRYMANDER - A method of establishing political power of an illegal purpose, such as to prevent racial integration.

GIFT - A cash gift a buyer receives from a relative or other source. Lenders usually require a "gift letter" stating that the money will not have to be repaid.

GIFT DEED - A deed given for nominal consideration.

G.I. LOAN - See Veteran's Administration.

GINGERBREAD DECORATION - An intricate, almost lacy, wood trim.

GINGERBREAD WORK - Intricately designed woodwork on homes built in the late 1800's and early 1900's.

GIRDERS - Crossbeams that support floor joists.

GLASS BLOCK - A decorative, hollow glass building block, not used for support.

GLASS-WOOL INSULATION - A spun-glass heat insulator.

GNMA - Government National Mortgage Association. A secondary lender or wholesale mortgage buyer specializing in FHA loans. Also called Ginnie Mae.

GOOD FAITH - An act performed on the basis of trust and with no intent to misrepresent or defraud.

GOOD FAITH ESTIMATE - An estimate from an institutional lender that shows the costs a borrower will incur, including loan-processing charges and inspection fees.

GOOD WILL - The intangible value of a business based upon past utilization or purchase of services or goods by its customers who will return to do repeat business.

GORE - A triangle-shaped piece of land.

GOVERNMENT LOTS - Waterfront property or other odd pieces of land which would not be divided evenly into government survey sections.

GOVERNMENT NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION - (Ginnie Mae) An agency that buys home loans from lenders, pools them with other loans and sells shares to investors. Ginnie Mae differs from its cousins (Fannie Mae) (Freddie Mac) because it only purchases loans backed by the federal government.

GOVERNMENT PATENT - The original method of conveying government-owned land to individuals.

GOVERNMENT SURVEY - The survey by the government that created or established townships and sections.

GRACE PERIOD - A specified amount of time to make a loan payment after its due date without penalty.

GRADE - The elevation of land above level ground.

GRADED LEASE - A lease in which rent payments are increased gradually at specified time periods.

GRADED TAX - A tax rate that places grater value on land and less on improvements in order to encourage development.

G.R.I. - Graduate, Realtors Institute. A designation given by the National Board of Realtors to a licensee who successfully completes their educational program.

GRADUATED LEASE - A lease agreement where rent increases are steeped-up gradually over a period of time.

GRADUATED PAYMENT MORTGAGE - (GPM) A mortgage that requires a borrower to make larger monthly payments over the term of the loan The payment is unusually low for the first few years but gradually rises until year three or five then remains fixed.

GRADE LEVEL - The flat or sloping surface upon which a house is built.

GRANDFATHER CLAUSE - A common term given to the law that permits the continued use of a property according to older laws which have been changed to outlaw that particular use, such as the sale of a lot which does not conform to present day zoning laws, but which was subdivided in the records prior to the change in zoning laws.

GRAND LIST - New England tax roll.

GRANNY FLAT - Slang term for a separate unit in a house or above the garage, which in the past may have been occupied by an elderly relative.

GRANT - Give or transfer.

GRANT DEED - A general type of deed containing warranties, used to transfer real property.

GRANTEE - A person conveyed an interest in a piece of property.

GRANTOR - The person who conveys an interest in a piece of property to another person.

GRANTOR/GRANTEE INDEX - The county records of real property transfers according to names, rather than descriptions.

GRATUITY - A voluntary reward to another in exchange for a service, such as a tip.

GRAVITY FURNACE - A furnace whose heat moves or flows as a result in differences in air density between warm and cold; one moves toward the other naturally.

GRAYING OF AMERICA - The increase in ratios of older people to young in America created by the fact that more people are surviving to age 75.

GREEK REVIVAL STYLE - A style introduced in the US at the end of the 18th century. Its most prominent feature is a pillar-anchored pediment forming a portico in the front of the house.

GREENBELT - Any stretch of park, open space or other natural setting in a community.

GREEN LUMBER - Wood that is not fully dried or has been recently cut and not kiln dried; tends to warp if used prematurely in construction.

GREENSBORO PLAN - A plan designed to speed the process of obtaining an FHA loan.

GRID - An overlay of horizontal lines used to coordinate statistics.

GRIDIRON PATTERN - A rectangular or square plan of streets in a subdivision.

GROSS - Total amount before deductions Gross income The total income of a household before taxes or expenses are subtracted.

GROSS INCOME MULTIPLIER - A general appraising rule of thumb which when multiplied by the annual gross income of a property will estimate the market value.

GROSS LEASE - Lease of ground space without buildings.

GROUND FAULT CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER - Devices that detect leakage of electrical current to the ground and prevent accidental shock.

GROUND RENT - The amount of money paid for the use of a piece of property when it is a leasehold estate.

GROUND WATER - Water in the top layer of earth and subsoil.

GROUP HOME - A single-family residence used as a living space for unrelated developmentally disabled or mentally disabled people.

GROWING EQUITY MORTGAGE - A fixed rate mortgage that increases payments over a specific period of time. The extra funds are applied to the principal.

GUARANTEE SALE - A guarantee in a listing agreement which states that after a specified length of time, if the subject property has not been sold, the brokerage firm will buy it, under particular terms and conditions, usually at a substantial discount from the listed price.

GUARANTEE MORTGAGE - A loan guaranteed by a third party, such as a government institution.

GUTTERS - Horizontal channels installed at the edge of a roof to carry rainwater or melted snow away from the house

GYPSUM - Hydrated calcium sulfate, an ingredient used in plaster and cement.