Real Property Flashcards
6 cards from real Bar Exam practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Real Property flashcards as text
A grantor conveys Blackacre 'to A for life, then to B and her heirs.' B dies before A. What is the state of the title?
Answer: B's remainder passes to B's heirs or devisees, and A's life estate continues
B holds a vested remainder in fee simple. A vested remainder is alienable, devisable, and descendible. When B dies before A, B's vested remainder passes by will or intestacy to B's heirs. The remainder interest survives B's death because it was already vested — A's life estate is unaffected.
Under the common law Rule Against Perpetuities, an interest is void if it might not vest within:
Answer: A life in being at the creation of the interest plus 21 years
The common law Rule Against Perpetuities (RAP) voids any future interest that might not vest or fail within a life in being at the creation of the interest plus 21 years. The interest must be certain to vest or fail within this period — any possibility, no matter how remote, of vesting outside the period voids the interest.
O conveys Blackacre 'to A and her heirs so long as the land is used for farming, and if not, to B and his heirs.' What interest does B hold?
Answer: A shifting executory interest
When a fee simple determinable is followed by a future interest in a third party (not the grantor), the third party holds a shifting executory interest — it divests the first grantee upon occurrence of the limiting condition. A right of entry/power of termination can only be retained by the grantor, not given to a third party.
In a general warranty deed, which covenant is breached at the time of delivery if the grantor does not have the title she purports to convey?
Answer: Covenant of seisin
The covenant of seisin is a present covenant that warrants the grantor is currently seized of the estate being conveyed. It is breached at the moment of delivery if the grantor does not own the title purported to be conveyed. Present covenants (seisin, right to convey, against encumbrances) are breached at the time of delivery if false.
Which recording act type protects a subsequent bona fide purchaser who records first, even if the prior grantee had not yet recorded?
Answer: Race-notice statute
Under a race-notice statute, a subsequent bona fide purchaser (BFP) prevails over a prior grantee if: (1) the subsequent purchaser takes without notice of the prior conveyance, AND (2) the subsequent purchaser records before the prior grantee. Both elements must be satisfied. This is the most common type of recording act.
A landlord leases an apartment to a tenant for one year. The landlord's furnace fails during a harsh winter, leaving the apartment without heat for six weeks despite the tenant's repeated complaints. Under the implied warranty of habitability, what is the tenant's remedy?
Answer: The tenant may vacate and terminate the lease, or remain and withhold or reduce rent, or repair and deduct
The implied warranty of habitability (IWH), recognized in most jurisdictions after Javins v. First National Realty Corp. (1970), requires residential landlords to maintain premises in habitable condition. Tenant remedies for breach include: termination and vacate, withhold/reduce rent, repair and deduct (in many jurisdictions), and damages for the reduced value of the premises.