Home Page - Kelowna Real Estate

EARNEST MONEY DEPOSIT:
A sum of money paid by a potential purchaser as proof of her intention to complete the purchase transaction. Held in trust, usually by the Listing Agent, and credited to Purchaser off purchase price. May be forfeited if Purchaser fails to complete transaction.

EASEMENT:
The right of the owner of one parcel of land to use all or part of the land of another for a specific purpose. Runs with the land. Requires one property to be in dominant position (enjoys the benefit of the easement) and one property to be in servient position (is subject to the right).

EASEMENT BY NECESSITY:
A land owner's right to make use of the property of another (or a portion of it) for a specific purpose, when such use is required to allow the land owner to enjoy his own land

EASEMENT BY PRESCRIPTION:
The continuing, unchallenged use of all or part of a property by the owner of a neighbouring or nearby property for a specific period of time (20 years in many jurisdictions) such that, by law, the using owner gains a legal right to continue that use.

EASTLAKE HOUSE:
A house which is remarkable for its three-dimensional ornamentation following a nineteenth-century style.

ECONOMIC BASE:
The commercial or industrial foundation of a community which provides opportunities for employment.

ECONOMIC DEPRECIATION:
The decline in value of a property which is caused by reasons outside of the property itself.

ECONOMIC LIFE:
The length of time an improvement to real estate can be expected to provide more value than the its operating or upkeep costs.

EFFECTIVE AGE:
An appraisal term for the age of improvements to a property based on an assessment of their current condition (i.e. a well-maintained 100-year-old house could have an effective age of 10 years while a ramshackle, unmaintained 20-year-old house could have an effective age of 50 years). Opposite of "actual age".

EFFECTIVE GROSS INCOME:
1. For borrowers, the actual amount of money earned from stable sources over a set period (i.e. a month) before taxes and expenses are deducted;

EFFECTIVE RATE:
The actual rate (or interest or return) once all factors are accounted for (factors include compounding of interest or costs of earning the return).

EFFICIENCY RATIO:
A comparison of the space in a building available for lease to the total space of the building.

EFFICIENCY UNIT OR APARTMENT:
A term for a small dwelling unit in which kitchen and sometimes bath areas are combined with the living area. Also known as "bachelor apartment" or "studio apartment".

EGRESS:
Means of exit from a room, building or property (often to a road).

ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION:
The placing in the public record of land-related instruments (Transfers, Charges, etc.) through computerized filing systems, where no paper documents are required.

ELIZABETHAN OR HALF TIMBER STYLE:
A two-storey or two-and-a-half storey, English-style house which has the upper storey overhanging the first, often with stone and stucco walls and half-timber beams.

EMPTY NESTERS:
Middle-aged or older couples whose children have grown up and "left the nest" to live on their own. Often looking to sell a larger house and buy a smaller one.

ENCROACHMENT:
The intrusion across the property line and into one property of an improvement to a neighbouring property. May result in a claim for adverse possession if the encroachment is unchallenged for a long period of time.

ENCUMBRANCE:
Any right, interest or other claim against land which is registered on title and affects the owner's ability to sell the property.

ENERGY EFFICIENT:
A description of a property which has special features aimed at reducing use of electrical or heating power (i.e. insulation, double-insulated windows, high-efficiency furnace, etc.).

ENTITLEMENT:
The legal right to a benefit or program.

EQUITY:
The difference, in dollars, between the market value of a property and the principal owing on debts secured against the property. The amount of money the owner will be able to keep from a sale transaction once the mortgages are paid out. Also known as "owner's interest".

EQUITY BUILDUP:
The increase over time of the owner's interest in a property, the difference between the value of the property and the amount owed on the mortgage.

EQUITY LOAN:
A loan to a home owner secured against the equity the owner enjoys in the property.

EQUITY OF REDEMPTION:
The right a borrower has to pay out in full a mortgage against a property that has gone into foreclosure or power of sale proceedings, thus redeeming the property.

EROSION:
The gradual diminishing of land or soil as a result of the action of water, wind, rain, etc.