Relating to buying or leasing real estate

an official statement about how valuable a piece of property is

to say officially how valuable a piece of property is

American a mortgage that you pay back in regular small payments with one large final payment, which is called a balloon payment

bath (noun)

American a bathroom. This meaning is only used in advertisements for houses.

blockbusting (noun)

American the action of selling one house in an area to someone who is considered to be of a lower class than the people who already live there, in order to reduce the prices of the other houses

bond (noun)

businessSouth African an agreement to borrow money to buy a house, or the money that you borrow; a mortgage

BR (abbreviation)

American bedroom: used in advertisements for houses and apartments

bridge loan (noun)

American money that someone borrows when they have bought a house but have not yet sold their own house

building society (noun)

a financial institution in the U.K. similar to a savings and loan association

building society (noun)

an office of one of these organizations

chain (noun)

British a situation in which you cannot sell your house until the person whose house you are buying has bought their new house. This situation can involve many people because the sale of each person’s house depends on the sale of the next.

closing (noun)

American a final meeting between someone who is selling a house or piece of property and the person who is buying it

closing date (noun)

American the date on which someone who is selling a house or piece of property and the person who is buying it meet for a closing

commonhold (noun)

in England and Wales, the principle of ownership of a home in a building in which several people live, with shared areas owned by everyone

commonhold (adjective)

owned under a commonhold arrangement

completion (noun)

British the closing of a house sale

conveyance (noun)

legal a document that shows that the person who has just bought a property is now its legal owner

equity (noun)

business the value of a property after you have taken away the amount left to pay on the mortgage (=money borrowed to buy it)

eviction (noun)

the process of forcing someone to leave the house they are living in, usually because they have not paid their rent

give someone notice ()

to tell someone officially that they must leave a place that they are renting

go condominium (American)

American if a building goes condominium, it changes from having rented apartments to having owned apartments

home loan (noun)

an amount of money that a bank lends someone to buy a house

house-hunting (noun)

the activity of trying to find a house to live in, especially one that you want to buy

landholdings (noun)

formal the land that someone owns

land reform (noun)

a process in which land is given or sold at low prices to ordinary people, so that it is not owned only by a few rich people

lease (noun)

a legal contract in which you agree to pay to use someone else’s building, land, or equipment for a specific period of time

leaseback (noun)

an agreement in which you continue to use your property after you sell it, while making regular payments to the new owner

leasehold (noun)

mainly British a house or apartment that you lease

leasehold (noun)

mainly British the use of property by leasing it

leasehold (noun)

mainly British owned or used for a specific period of time according to a lease

let (noun)

British a period of time in which a house or apartment is rented to someone

mortgage (noun)

a legal agreement in which you borrow money from a bank in order to buy a house. You pay back your mortgage by making monthly payments

mortgage (noun)

the amount of money that you borrow in a mortgage agreement

negative equity (noun)

a situation in which your house has lost value and is now worth less money than the amount that you have borrowed as a mortgage

open house (noun)

American a period of time when you can go to look at a house that is for sale without making an arrangement to go there

owner-occupied (adjective)

a house that is owner-occupied is lived in by the person who owns it

property ladder (noun)

British a series of stages in which you start by buying a cheap house then buy and sell several times getting a bigger, better house each time

property tax (noun)

a tax that you pay based on the value of the land and buildings you own

rack-rent (noun)

rent that is unfairly high

rent (noun)

an amount of money that you pay regularly for using a house, room, office, etc. that belongs to someone else

rent strike (noun)

a period of time during which people refuse to pay rent for the place where they are living in order to protest against something

retainer (noun)

British a reduced rent that you pay to keep your house, apartment, etc. when you are not living in it, so that you can live in it when you return

S & L (noun)

American savings and loan association

savings and loan association (noun)

American a company that you have a savings account with and that lends you money for a mortgage when you want to buy a house

service charge (noun)

mainly British an amount of money that people who live in apartments pay for services such as cleaning and keeping the outside neat

sublease (noun)

a contract that allows someone to rent an apartment, house, or office from a person who is renting it from someone else

sublet (noun)

an apartment, house, etc. that you sublet from someone else

survey (verb)

to examine an area of land in order to decide where buildings will go, or where the edges of someone’s property are

surveyor (noun)

British someone who appraises houses or other buildings

tenancy (noun)

the period of time for which you rent a place or piece of land

tenancy (noun)

the right to use an apartment, building, or a piece of land that you rent from the person who owns it

title deed (noun)

an official document that shows who legally owns a building or piece of land

to/for let ()

available to be rented. The usual American phrase is for rent.

under offer ()

if a house or apartment is under offer, someone has offered to buy it

Synonyms and antonyms of Relating to buying or leasing real estate in American Thesaurus