Real Estate Glossary

Ownership by two or more persons with rights of survivorship; all joint tenants own equal interest and have equal rights in the property; each owner is possessed of an undivided part of the whole.

A joining of two or more people in a specific business enterprise.

The final determination of the rights and liabilities of the parties by a court in an action before it.

A mortgage which is subordinate to a prior existing mortgage on the same real estate.

Compensation that is fair to both the owner and the public in condemnation proceedings. The theory is that to be just, the property owner should be no richer or poorer than before the taking. In Louisiana, just means the entire loss of property to the owner including moving expenses and loss of business.