NYLE Real Property Law 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under New York law, which form of concurrent ownership can only be held by legally married spouses?
- Joint tenancy
- Tenancy in common
- Tenancy by the entirety (Correct answer)
- Community property
Correct answer: Tenancy by the entirety
Tenancy by the entirety in New York is available exclusively to married couples and includes a right of survivorship and protection from individual creditors.
Question 2: A New York seller of a one-to-four family residential property fails to deliver a Property Condition Disclosure Statement before signing the contract. The seller's obligation is:
- Void — no further obligation exists after contract signing
- To deliver the statement at closing or give the buyer a $500 credit (Correct answer)
- To rescind the contract and re-execute with the disclosure
- To pay the buyer 1% of the purchase price as a penalty
Correct answer: To deliver the statement at closing or give the buyer a $500 credit
Under the PCDA, if the disclosure statement is not provided before signing, the seller must provide it at or before closing or grant the buyer a $500 credit at closing.
Question 3: In New York, a lis pendens (notice of pendency) filed in connection with a real property action is effective for:
- 1 year, renewable for additional 1-year periods
- 3 years, with court permission to extend (Correct answer)
- 5 years from filing
- The duration of the underlying litigation automatically
Correct answer: 3 years, with court permission to extend
Under CPLR § 6513, a notice of pendency is effective for three years from filing and may be extended by court order for good cause.
Question 4: Which of the following would constitute constructive notice of a prior conveyance to a subsequent purchaser in New York?
- Oral statements made by neighbors
- A recorded deed in the grantor-grantee index (Correct answer)
- The seller's knowledge of the prior conveyance
- A title insurance policy held by the first grantee
Correct answer: A recorded deed in the grantor-grantee index
Constructive notice arises from documents properly recorded in the public records, as a purchaser is charged with knowledge of everything in their chain of title.
Question 5: Under the New York Estates, Powers and Trusts Law, which doctrine prevents a surviving spouse from being entirely disinherited by a will?
- Dower and curtesy rights
- The elective share right (Correct answer)
- Tenancy by the entirety survivorship
- The homestead exemption
Correct answer: The elective share right
Under EPTL § 5-1.1-A, a surviving spouse may elect against the will and receive the greater of $50,000 or one-third of the net estate.
Question 6: In New York, a landlord who wrongfully withholds a residential security deposit after lease termination may be liable for:
- The deposit amount plus 10% annual interest only
- Double the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorney's fees (Correct answer)
- Triple damages under the Rent Stabilization Law
- The deposit plus one month's rent as a penalty
Correct answer: Double the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorney's fees
Under General Obligations Law § 7-108, a landlord who wrongfully withholds a security deposit may be liable for double the amount wrongfully withheld plus attorney's fees.
Question 7: Under New York's condominium law, a unit owner's interest in the common elements is:
- Held in trust by the condominium board
- An undivided percentage interest that passes with the unit (Correct answer)
- A revocable license granted by the board
- A leasehold interest renewable annually
Correct answer: An undivided percentage interest that passes with the unit
Under the New York Condominium Act (RPL Article 9-B), each unit owner holds an undivided percentage interest in the common elements as a tenant in common, which automatically transfers with the unit.
NYLE Real Property Law 5
Under New York law, which form of concurrent ownership can only be held by legally married spouses?