Memory tricks for property law

Q: What does FFAST stand for and explain the different freehold estates?

A: FFAST (Fee simple absolute, Fee simple defeasible, Fee tail, life estate, Term of years): the hierarchy of freehold estates. Fee simple absolute: the largest possible ownership interest — lasts forever, freely transferable and devisable, no conditions. Words: to A and her heirs. Fee simple defeasible: fee simple with a condition — Fee simple determinable (automatically reverts to grantor if condition occurs — so long as, while, during, until), Fee simple subject to condition subsequent (grantor has right of re-entry if condition occurs but must exercise it), Fee simple subject to executory limitation (future interest in third party, not grantor). Life estate: ownership for the duration of a life — the life tenant cannot waste the property (must maintain it), cannot encumber beyond the life estate. Remainder (vested or contingent) follows a life estate. Fee tail: passed only to lineal descendants — almost universally abolished in the US, converted to fee simple by statute. Tenancy for years (leasehold, not freehold): fixed term, ends automatically.

Q: What does OCEAN stand for and what are the five elements of adverse possession?

A: OCEAN (Open and notorious, Continuous, Exclusive, Actual, Notorious/Hostile): all five elements must be satisfied for the entire statutory period (typically 5-21 years, varies by state) before adverse possession ripens into title. Open and notorious: possession must be visible and obvious — as a true owner would use the property. Not hidden or underground. A reasonable true owner inspecting would discover the use. Continuous: uninterrupted for the full statutory period — does not mean constant (summer cabin use can be continuous if that is how owners use such property). Tacking: successive adverse possessors can add their periods together if there is privity of possession between them. Exclusive: not sharing possession with the true owner — can share with other adverse possessors. Actual: physical use and possession of the land — consistent with the character of the land. Notorious/Hostile: without the owner's permission and under a claim of right — either objective (treating as your own) or subjective (good faith belief you own it, depending on state). Payment of property taxes may be required in some states.

Q: What are the 4 PITT concurrent ownership types and what distinguishes them?

A: 4 PITT (Tenancy in common, Joint tenancy, Tenancy by the entirety, Tenancy in Partnership): Tenancy in Common (TIC): most common — each co-tenant owns an undivided interest (may be unequal shares), freely transferable and devisable, no right of survivorship. Any co-tenant can demand partition (judicial division or sale). Joint Tenancy (JT): four unities required at creation: Time (acquired simultaneously), Title (same instrument), Interest (equal shares), Possession (equal right to possess whole). Right of survivorship — when one JT dies, their share automatically passes to surviving JT(s), bypassing probate. Severed by any voluntary transfer to a third party. Tenancy by the Entirety (TBE): only between married couples in some states — cannot be unilaterally severed, protects from individual creditors of one spouse. Right of survivorship. Tenancy in Partnership: interest in partnership property held by partners — cannot be individually transferred. Partition: any TIC or JT co-tenant can sue for partition — physical division (partition in kind) or forced sale with division of proceeds.

Q: What does PING stand for in easements and explain the types?

A: PING (Prescriptive easements, Implication, Necessity, Grant): the four ways easements can be created. Prescriptive easement (similar to adverse possession for use rights): OCEAN requirements plus — open, continuous, exclusive, hostile, actual for the statutory period. Unlike adverse possession, prescriptive use does not need to be exclusive — multiple users can each acquire prescriptive easements. Implication: arises from prior use — when owner of both dominant and servient parcels severed them, and before severance there was an apparent, continuous, and reasonably necessary use of one parcel for the benefit of the other. Necessity: when a parcel is landlocked, an easement of necessity is implied for access. Continues as long as the necessity exists. Grant (express): the most common — written instrument (deed or easement agreement) satisfying the Statute of Frauds. Appurtenant vs. in gross: appurtenant runs with the land (benefits and burdens successors); in gross is personal to the easement holder (commercial utility easements run, personal easements generally do not).

Q: What does RAN stand for and how do recording acts protect bona fide purchasers?

A: RAN (Race, Race-Notice, Notice): three types of recording acts governing priority disputes when the same grantor transfers the same property to two different people. Without recording acts: first in time, first in right (prior deed controls). With recording acts, BFPs (bona fide purchasers — who pay value and take without notice) are protected. Race (first to record wins): regardless of notice — the race to the courthouse determines priority. Rare. Race-Notice (majority of states): to prevail, a subsequent purchaser must (1) record first AND (2) take without notice of the prior conveyance. Must win both the race and have no notice. Notice (minority of states): a subsequent purchaser who pays value and takes without notice prevails even without recording — but recording is still important because a later BFP could prevail over an unrecorded prior deed. Three types of notice: Actual notice (you knew), Inquiry notice (circumstances would prompt a reasonable person to investigate), and Record/Constructive notice (what is in the public record — you are charged with knowing what is properly recorded). BFP protection does NOT extend to donees or heirs — they take subject to prior unrecorded interests.