Capital Assets
Assets such as land, buildings, and equipment acquired to carry on the business of a company, with a life exceeding one year.

Capital Gain
The profit you make when your house or business is sold above the original purchase price.

Capital Value
See also Rateable Valuation (New Zealand). It’s the probable price your property would have fetched had it been sold on the date of the valuation. The valuation includes land and buildings but not chattels such as light fittings, carpets and curtains.

Capped Interest Rate
Where the interest rate can go up or down, but it can’t go over a certain level for a set time.

Caveat
A caveat is a legal document that gives the caveator the opportunity of protecting an existing right or of establishing an existing claim in property. The most common form of caveat is the caveat against dealings with the land concerned. If effect, while the caveat is in place, it forbids any dealings in the land from being registered.

Certificate of Title
The document that states the legal owner of the property, the legal description of the property, and any mortgages held over the property.

Chattels
Items of property that can be physically removed from your house or business because they are not attached to it in some way. Examples may include fridges, curtains, carpets, easily removable light fittings and wall heaters, and sometimes furniture. If chattels are to be included in the sale, the seller should specifically state this in the Sale and Purchase Agreement.

Commission
The fee that the seller pays the real estate agent when their home or business sale becomes unconditional.

Company Title
If you buy a flat or apartment with company title, you buy ‘shares’ that give you the right to live there (and you have a ‘licence to occupy’). The company administers and maintains the block of flats or apartments.

Completion Day
The day you become the official owner of the property and can move into your new home.

Conditional Contract , Conditional Agreement
Any contract that includes conditions that must be satisfied before the parties become bound to carry out the terms of the contract. The contract is called “conditional” until the conditions listed are satisfied. Both the buyer and the seller can put conditions in the offer. Buyers often ask for conditions about checking the Certificate of Title, and getting finance or a building consultant’s report. A conditional contract is still legally binding, but the obligations under it are suspended until it becomes unconditional.

Contract
A contract is a legally enforceable agreement. Used in Real estate to mean the Sale and Purchase Agreement.

Conveyance
An instrument or document which transfers property, or a right in property, from one person to another.

Conveyancing
The legal process of drawing up of documents and other actions that are necessary to transfer the ownership of the property when you buy (or sell) property, including the checking and registration of documents to transfer the ownership.

Cross-lease
A hybrid form of multi-unit tenure in which each owner has an undivided share of the underlying freehold as tenants in common. In the residential context, where there are two or more homes on a piece of land, all the owners own the land together and each owner leases their home from the others. All owners of the common land must agree to improvements such as fences and paths and external alterations to the buildings. Cross leases are long term.

Covenant
A legal restriction or agreement recorded on the title of your property. Covenants relate generally to the relationship between vendor and purchaser or lessor and lessee. For example, a protection order for a specimen tree on the land, or restrictions on the quality and type of future buildings or tenants.

Current Assets
Items such as cash, inventory, and accounts receivable that are currently cash or expected to be turned into cash within one year.