Real Estate Terms Glossary: S

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Salesperson
A person who for compensation is employed wither directly or indirectly by a licensed real estate broker to perform any number of real estate-related activities as an agent for the broker.

Section
A 1-mile-square area of land described by the rectangular survey system, consisting of 640 acres.

Security
The property that is pledge as collateral for a "secured" loan.

Seller's Broker
Agent who takes the seller as a client, is legally obligated to a set of fiduciary duties, and is required to put the seller's interest above all others.

Seller's Disclosure Statement
The actual form used by a seller when disclosing the physical condition of this property to a prospective buyer. In Michigan, the statement contains several warning to the buyer along with a comprehensive checklist and several "yes/no" questions designed to cover al like problem areas.

Seller's Market
Situation in which demand for homes exceeds the supply offered for sale.

Septic System
A sewage system, whereby waste is drained through pipes and a tile field into a septic tank.

Set Back Ordinance
Regulates the distance from the lot line to the point where improvements may be constructed.

Settlement Disclosure Statement
A list giving a complete breakdown of costs involved in a real estate transaction, prepared by the lender's agent at closing.

Shoreline
The dividing line between private land and public beach on beachfront property.

Single-Family Home
A detached house where the owner owns the whole house and has rights to or owns the land on which the house sits.

Site Condominium
Condominium unit composed of only vacant land with surface improvements or with air space within which a building is to be constructed.

Special Agent
An agent employed to act on behalf of a principal in a single transaction not involving a continuing level of service, e.g., a real estate broker hired to market the home of a seller to potential buyers. Services are also typically limited in nature.

Special Assessment
A levy by a local government against real property for part of the cost of making an improvement to the property, such as street paving, installing water lines, or putting in sidewalks.

Spot Zoning
Rezoning of a certain property in a zoned area to permit a different type of use than that authorized for the rest of the area; may be valid or invalid.

Steering
The practice of directing prospective purchasers toward or away from certain neighborhoods to avoid altering the racial/ethnic make-up of these areas.

Subdivision Control Act
Sets out the objectives and conditions for subdividing land in Michigan.

Supply And Demand
The principle stating that the greater the supply of any commodity in comparison to demand, the lower the value; conversely, the smaller the supply and the greater the demand, the higher the value.

Survey
A drawing of the boundaries that separate one piece of real estate from another. Map made by a licensed surveyor who measures the land charts its boundaries, improvement, and relationships to the property surrounding it.

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