Earnest money - The monetary deposit against the purchase of a property to show the buyer's intention to fulfill the contract. Earnest money becomes part of the down payment if the offer is accepted, is returned if the offer is rejected by the seller, or is forfeited if the buyer rescinds their offer.
Easement - A right created by grant, reservation, agreement, or prescription to allow other parties to access someone else's property.
Economic feasibility - An analysis of whether or not it is financially viable to build a project in terms of costs, revenue, and potential income or return.
Economic rent - The rental value, established by the current market, of a property, similar to "comparables" to establish sale value.
Effective date - A registration statement becomes effective and the sale of securities can start on that date.
Effective gross income (EGI) - The total income from a property from rents and other sources, minus any appropriate or established vacancy factor. EGI is expressed as collected income before expenses and debt service.
Effective gross rent (EGR) - Net rent realized after subtracting any tenant improvements and other capital costs, lease commissions and other sales expenses
Effective rent - The actual rent achieved by the landlord after subtracting any concessions allowed to a tenant, usually expressed as an average rate over the lease's term.
Electronic Authentication - Methods used to provide proof that an electronically sent document is genuine, unaltered and came from the expected source.
Eminent domain - A government's power to acquire or "take" the property owned by a private party by condemnation for a public use. In return, the government must pay just compensation.
Encroachment - When a structure extends, without permission of the property's owner, over the boundary line of a property, easement boundary or building setback line.
Endorsement - An addition made to alter or clarify a document, such as your title or insurance policy.
Engineering Report - Report on the current physical condition of a property and its major building systems, such as, HVAC, parking lot, plumbing, and roof, created by an engineer or architect. The report also determines an cost for figuring any necessary replacement reserves.
Environmental impact statement - Documents required by Federal and state laws to be filed with proposals for major projects indicating what will be the likely impact on the local environment.
Environmental Report - A report done by an environmental engineer following a study to reveal any known toxic contamination sites on or near the subject real property. The Phase I report includes a research of the public environmental databases plus a physical site inspection. The report provides lenders with an analysis of the data and recommendations for the lender. The Phase II report has the addition of an analysis of soil samples from the property. The soil samplesa are to detect any actual toxic contamination in the soil or ground water.
Escalation clause - A clause in a lease contract that calls for an increase in rent to reflect increases in expenses, such as real estate taxes and operating costs, paid by the landlord. Also a clause in a purchase offer for a property that allows the offer to be automatically raised if a higher offer is received.
Estate - An individual's ownership interest in real property. Also total of all real and personal property a person owns at their time of death.
Exclusive agency listing - A written contract between a property owner and a real estate broker in which the owner agrees to pay a fee or commission to the broker if the specified real property is leased during the listing period.