Your Online Legal Resource Center for Property Management

IMPLIED - Indirectly inferred.

IMPLIED AGENCY - Established by the conduct of a principal rather than by written agreement.

IMPLIED CONTRACT - A contract in which the terms are not expressly stated but which all parties understand by inference..

IMPACT FEES - Fees collected from developers of new homes to pay for schools, parks and other facilities.

IMPLIED WARRANTY OF HABITABILITY - Court cases which determined that all new homes are assumed to be fit for human habitation and meet all building codes.

IMPOUND ACCOUNT - See Reserve account/ Impounds A portion of the monthly mortgage payment that is placed in an account and used to pay for hazard insurance, property taxes and private mortgage insurance.

IMPROVED LAND - Land either on site improvements or off-site utilities, such as sewer, water, and electrical power.

IMPROVED VALUE - The combined total worth of land and its improvements.

IMPROVEMENTS - Structures, buildings or facilities placed on or in land, including streets, sewers, water lines, etc.

IMPUTED INTEREST - An interest rate established by law when it has not been stated on the face of a negotiable instrument.

INACTIVE LICENSEE - A real estate agent who has voluntarily placed his license in an inactive state with the real estate commission, rather than activating it by placing it with a broker's office.

INCHOATE - Not completely finished.

INCINERATOR - An enclosed trash burner usually located indoors.

INCOME - Money received for services performed or as profit gain from an investment.

INCOME APPROACH - Estimating income after expenses on a rental or income property to determine its value; an appraisal method.

INCOME AVERAGING - Averaging income over several years to reduce the tax rather than paying taxes on the full amount earned during one year.

INCOME PRICE RATIO - Equals the net income divided by the sales price of a property.

INCOME PROPERTY - Property that is not occupied by the owner but is used to generate income.

INCOMPETENT - The inability because of mental defect to manage one's personal or business affairs with intelligent reasoning, thereby disqualifying them from entering into legally binding contracts.

INCORPOREAL RIGHTS - The right to access rather than to possession, such as through an easement; an intangible right.

INCREASING AND DIMINISHING RETURNS - An economic theory based on increased productivity resulting in increased profit, and vice versa. When an increase in production is proportionately greater than the addition, the return increases; the return will diminish if production is proportionately less than the addition.

INCREMENT - An additional increase.

INCUMBRANCE - See Encumbrance

INCURABLE DEFECT - A defect in a property that cannot be fixed, such as an adjacent hazardous waste site, or would cost too much to repair relative to the value of the property.

INCURABLE DEPRECIATION - Diminished value of property caused when it becomes too expensive to repair it; there is no cure for it.

INDEMNITY CLAUSE - A clause in an agreement which guarantees one party they will be held harmless (not responsible) for any damages or expenses resulting from the actions by another party to the agreement.

INDENTURE DEED - A deed singed by the buyer (grantee) as well as the seller (grantor) agreeing to specific terms and conditions, such as to abide by the covenants and conditions stated or to assume liability for a mortgage on the property covered.

INDEPENDENT APPRAISAL - An appraisal made by a disinterested neutral party for a fee.

INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR - Any person who does not receive a set salary or hourly wage, but rather a commission or fee for services performed and who is independently responsible for payment of their own taxes (self-employed); most real estate salespeople are independent contractors.

INDEX - Financial tables used by lenders to calculate interest rates on adjustable mortgages, including the yield on Treasury bills.

INDEX LEASE - A lease arrangement that provides for increases in rent according to increases in the consumer price index.

INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNT - A savings program for self-employed (independent contractors) individuals which provides them with retirement funds in later years by sheltering a portion of current income from taxes when it is deposited in an IRA account..

INDIRECT CONSTRUCTION COSTS - Costs not directly paid out for material and labor, such as loan fees and interest, taxes and insurance.

INDUSTRIAL MULTIPLE - See multiple listing.

INDUSTRIAL PARK - A subdivided industrial area customized to the need of its users.

INDUSTRIAL TAX EXEMPTION - A tax break given to entice businesses or industry into an area.

IN-FILE CREDIT REPORT - Computer-generated reports drawn from credit repositories that are generally regarded as objective histories.

IN-FILL DEVELOPMENT - Any significant new construction in an established area.

IN-FILL HOUSING - Home construction in established areas.

INFLATION - This event occurs when there is more money available than there are goods and services to be purchased. Mortgage rates, which are determined by the marketplace and the actions of the Federal Reserve Board and Wall Street, are sensitive to inflation fears.

INFRASTRUCTURE - The roads, schools, parks, utilities, bridges and communications systems in a community.

INGRESS AND EGRESS - Access to and from land.

IN GROSS - An easement given to a person rather than one which is attached to and passes with land.

INITIAL INTEREST RATE - The original interest rate on an adjustable mortgage.

INJUNCTION - A court order which halts or prevents a particular action from occurring.

IN-LIQUIDITY - The inability of assets to be easily or quickly sold for cash.

INNER CITY - An economic rather than geographic location; an area of a large city that is occupied by low-income residents, usually a high crime rate as a result of unrest.

IN PERPETUITY - Lasting forever.

IN PERSONAM - Affecting particular people rather than property.

INSOLVENCY - Inability to repay debt.

INSPECTION - An examination of a home's exterior, foundation, framing, plumbing, electrical system, heating, air conditioning, fireplace, kitchen, bathroom, roofing and interior for potential defects.

INSTALLMENT CONTRACT - A purchase agreement in which the buyer does not receive title to the property until all installments are paid.

INSTALLMENT NOTE - A promissory not which is to be repaid over a period of time, rather than in one lump sum.

INSTALLMENT SALE - A tax term referring to a qualified sale; a land contract repaid over two years or more and which accepts no more than 30% of the purchase price during the first year and 30% during the second year, the balance to be repaid thereafter.

INSTITUTE OF REAL ESTATE MANAGEMENT - The training school which offers Certified Property Manager (CPM) designations to qualified individuals.

INSTITUTIONAL LENDERS - Lenders who are in the business of loaning money, as opposed to private individuals or companies lending to employees.

INSTRUMENT - A deed, mortgage, lease or promissory note used to convey an interest in property. Insulation Materials including cellulose, glass fiber, rock wool, polystyrene, urethane foam and vermiculite that slow heat loss.

INSURABLE INTEREST - An interest in property, which if destroyed would cause a financial loss.

INSURABLE TITLE - Title to a property that a company agrees to insure against defects and disputes.

INSURANCE OWNERS AND BUYERS - can purchase various types of insurance: hazard, private mortgage and earthquake The policies guarantee compensation for specific losses.

INSURANCE BINDER - A temporary insurance arrangement usually put in force until a permanent policy can be obtained.

INSURANCE RISK - The degree of hazard involved in insuring a particular property which determines the cost of insuring.

INSURED MORTGAGE - Insurance purchased by a borrower to guarantee a mortgagee (lender) that in the event of default, the mortgage balance will be fully repaid.

INTANGIBLE - Something which has a value but cannot be physically touched, such as business goodwill or an easement.

INTEREST - The fee borrowers pay to obtain a loan. It is calculated based on a percentage of the total loan.

INTEREST ACCRUAL RATE - The rate at which interest accrues on a mortgage.

INTEREST EXTRA RATE - Interest charged on a note according to the decrease in principal balance; payments decrease on interest, but remain equal on principal.

INTEREST INCLUDED NOTE - Equal monthly installment payments on which the amount applied to interest decreases while the amount applied to principal.

INTEREST-ONLY LOAN - The pays only the interest that accrues on the loan balance each month. Because each payment goes toward interest, the outstanding balance of the loan does not decline with each payment .

INTEREST RATE - The sum, expressed as a percentage, charged for a loan.

INTEREST PAYMENTS - on most home loans are tax- deductible.

INTEREST RATE BUY DOWN PLANS - For cash-short buyers, some sellers are willing to advance funds from the sale of the home to buy down the interest rate and reduce the buyer's monthly obligation.

INTEREST RATE CAPS - A limit on the amount that can be charged to the monthly payment of an adjustable rate mortgage during an adjustment period.

INTEREST RATE CEILING - The highest interest a lender can charge for an adjustable rate mortgage.

INTERIM FINANCING - See Gap financing.

INTERIOR LOT - A lot in a subdivision, not on a corner.

INTERPLEADER - A legal action filed by a neutral party to settle a dispute or a claim between two opposing parties who have an interest in the same property.

INTERSTATE LAND SALES - Federal regulation regarding the sale of land to buyers residing in other state, which allows them three days to rescind a purchase agreement after signing it.

INTERS VIVOS - Involving living persons.

INTERSTATE - Without a will

INTRINSIC VALUE - The worth of an item itself; such as the worth of the paper a deed is printed on rather than the value of the property stated in it.

INURE - To be used.

INVENTORY - A list of merchandise or property.

INVERSE CONDEMNATION - Property not actually taken by the government , but which loses value as a result of the taking of nearby property; the loss must be compensated for just a though it were condemned.

INVESTMENT - Utilizing money n a manner that will cause the original amount to increase.

INVESTMENT CREDIT - A federal tax regulation that allows 10% of the amount invested in equipment to be used for business, as a deduction from taxes otherwise owed; the equipment must have an economic life of seven years or longer.

INVESTMENT INTEREST - Interest cost on business investments.

INVESTMENT PROPERTY - Real estate that generates income, such as an apartment building or a rental house.

INVESTMENT TRUST - A business which sells stock in itself to general money for investment in real estate, stock, etc.

INVESTMENT YIELD - The amount of money gained compared to the amount of money initially placed in an investment.

INVOLUNTARY CONVERSION - Exchanging condemned property for other real property without paying a tax on the gain, within three years of the actual taking.

INVOLUNTARY LIEN - A lien made against property without the owner's consent, such as in a tax lien, judgment, etc.

IRA- See Individual Retirement Account.

IRON-SAFE CLAUSE - A fire insurance policy clause that requires records to be kept in a fireproof safe.

IRREVOCABLE - An agreement that may not be rescinded.

IRRIGATION DISTRICT - A local authority empowered to levy assessments in exchange for supplying irrigation water. .