Real estate words, in plain English

Closing costs that, added together, can rise by no more than 10% above their Loan Estimate total, unless a reason the rules allow comes up. Recording fees are in this group.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

Trading real property held for business or investment for other real property held the same way, which can defer the tax if you meet the 45-day and 180-day deadlines. The deferred gain, including the depreciation, carries into the replacement property's basis.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

For a home of one to four units you intend to live in, a liquidated damages amount up to 3% of the price is presumed valid unless you prove it unreasonable. It decides who must prove what; it is not a cap.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

The interest rate on a home loan that is paid off over 30 years and keeps the same rate the whole time.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

A home loan interest rate that stays the same for all 30 years of the loan. Freddie Mac publishes a weekly average of it.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

A sale that closes for more than the asking price. It can come from several buyers competing, strategic pricing, or thin supply.

Learn more: Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

A second, smaller home on the same lot as a main house. It can be attached to the house or built as a separate backyard unit.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back, Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor, California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

A home currently for sale. It shows what buyers can choose from now and the seller's asking price, not the price someone will pay.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

Whether a specific address qualifies for a particular school or program. Confirm it with the district or school; a city name, a listing or a rating can't guarantee placement.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

A loan whose rate changes according to its own adjustment terms. Your servicer or lender can explain the terms of the loan you have.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

What you paid for a property, plus improvements and certain purchase costs, minus depreciation. Your gain is measured from it.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

A city's own written rules for ADUs. Where it is stricter than state ADU law, state law applies instead.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

What a home is expected to sell for once the work is done. It has to be backed by real buyers and recent comparable sales.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

Buying without a purchase loan. There is no mortgage payment, but taxes, insurance, upkeep and the cash tied up in the home still matter.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

Everything the home costs each month: principal and interest, property tax, insurance, mortgage insurance if any, HOA dues, utilities and maintenance.

Learn more: Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The sale price minus selling expenses. For FIRPTA withholding it means the price the buyer pays, including any debt the buyer takes on, with no subtraction for selling costs.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

An appraiser's estimate of what a property is worth, based on comparable sales.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask, What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California, What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

Protects you if the lender's appraiser values the home below your price. The standard form prints a default deadline that can be negotiated, so check your own contract.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

The difference between your price and a lower appraised value. The lender lends against the lower number, so the difference has to be settled: with your cash, a larger loan if your loan program allows a higher loan-to-value, a lower price, a split, or, if your appraisal contingency is still in place, by canceling.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

A rise in a home's value over time.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

The yearly cost of the loan, including certain fees, shown as one percentage so loans are easier to compare.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The price a seller lists the home for. It is not necessarily the price a buyer will pay.

Learn more: Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

The value the county uses to figure property tax. For a home bought decades ago, it may be far lower than the current market value.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

An ADU that shares a wall or part of the main home.

Learn more: Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

The value set when you buy: the market value on the purchase date. Each later year it can rise with inflation by no more than 2%.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

The Bay East Association of REALTORS, a local association of real estate agents that runs an MLS.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

Temporary financing that can help cover the gap when you buy before your sale closes. It has its own terms and approval requirements.

Learn more: Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

In California, a broker holds a real estate broker license and may run a brokerage; agents with a salesperson license must work under a broker who supervises them. People often say "the broker" to mean the agent and brokerage handling the sale.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

In the federal loan disclosure rules, it depends on the deadline. For sending the Loan Estimate, it is a day the lender's offices are open; for the waits before you become bound on the loan, every day counts except Sundays and federal holidays.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The FBI's category for fake payment emails, which includes fake closing-payment emails. It covers all industries and does not count home purchases separately.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

How many buyers want homes in an area or of a certain type. An area closer to jobs or transit may have stronger demand.

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

A way of grouping buyers by how they pay: cash or luxury buyers, high-income buyers using a loan, and first-time buyers limited by the monthly payment. Each group can react to the same home differently.

Learn more: Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

The buyers realistically shopping for a home in that area and price range.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

A market where buyers, on the whole, have more choice and more room to negotiate than sellers. It describes an average, so one area can hold listings of both kinds.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

When one co-owner pays the others for their shares so they can keep the property.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children

The California state agency that ran the ADU grant program of up to $40,000. Its funding has been fully allocated since December 28, 2023.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A statewide trade group for real estate agents. It publishes reports on California home sales and prices.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move.

The state agency whose official online lookup lets you verify a real estate license.

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

Instructions signed by both buyer and seller that tell escrow to release the deposit after a cancelled purchase. Escrow may charge a cancellation fee.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

The gain when you sell for more than your tax basis. Capital gains tax is measured from that basis.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?, What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

The ongoing cost of holding a property, such as property taxes, insurance, repairs, mortgage payments and utilities.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

The amount still due from you at closing, after your deposit, credits and other adjustments are counted.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

A new loan that replaces your mortgage and lets you take out part of your home's value as cash. Some loan channels won't count ADU rent on this kind of loan.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A city's main downtown business area.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

A transfer the county counts for property tax, such as deeding a home outright to someone else. It is generally followed by a reassessment unless an exclusion applies.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

A city that governs itself under its own charter. Whether SB 9 can apply to charter cities is a constitutional question a court has not finally answered.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A completed sale. It shows an actual agreed result, not just an asking price.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

Fees and charges for getting the loan and completing the purchase, on top of your down payment.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The five-page final statement of your loan terms and closing costs. It uses the same labels in the same order as the Loan Estimate, so you can compare the two line by line.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not, What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

A form of title for married couples. When a spouse dies, that spouse's half passes by will or to the survivor, and the tax basis on the whole home can reset; the IRS says that basis rule does not apply to registered domestic partners.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

Community property that passes automatically to the surviving spouse, for deeds dated July 1, 2001 or later that use those words. No IRS ruling addresses whether California's version gets the full basis reset.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

The time, stress and energy a commute takes from your week, not only the distance on a map.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

The city's written answer on whether your ADU application is complete. It is due within 15 business days after you submit.

Learn more: Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

Recent sales of similar homes nearby, used to judge what a home may sell for.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back, California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?, What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

Something of value a seller agrees to give the buyer as part of the deal. It is one of the selling costs to subtract.

Learn more: Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

A home you own inside a larger building or complex, where an HOA manages the shared parts.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

A lender's check of the whole condo building and association, such as the budget and reserves, not only your unit. It can affect whether a loan is available.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework

One-time charges a water or sewer district may collect when new construction connects to its system. They are a separate bill from the city's impact fees, and some districts charge them only when a new water meter is installed.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

The moment you become legally bound on the loan.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

A condition in the purchase contract, with its own deadline. Whether it lets you ask for repairs, cancel or get your deposit back depends on the contract's terms.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask, What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California, Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?, What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

Extra money set aside in a project budget for surprises such as utility work, drainage, fire access, fees and delays.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

Money set aside in a project budget for surprises, such as hidden problems found once work starts.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

What a feature such as an ADU adds to a property's appraised value. It can come in well below what the feature cost to build.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A mortgage that is not insured or guaranteed by a government agency such as FHA or VA, and is no larger than the conforming loan limit, the cap on loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

An existing garage, basement or accessory structure turned into a permitted home.

Learn more: Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

A room or area changed from its original use. Ask whether the work has permit records and, for a bedroom, about escape-opening requirements.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

Changes to how a home looks, such as paint, lighting or carpet cleaning, rather than fixes to its structure or systems.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste

How the home looks from the street: the first impression before a buyer walks in.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste

For covered loans, an extra amount federal rules let a servicer keep in the escrow account, up to a limit. State law or your loan papers may set a lower amount.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

How many days a home has been listed for sale.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

A condition recorded in the property's official documents. State law requires one for a junior ADU, and a city cannot impose one on an ADU.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

If the agency does not approve or deny a complete ADU application within the required period, the law treats it as approved. The project still has to meet building code and local standards.

Learn more: Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

Repairs and upkeep that have been put off, which the next owner may have to handle.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

A listing shared through the MLS while certain public distribution is held back for a time.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

A yearly deduction for a rental building; a residential rental building is spread straight-line over 27.5 years, and land is never depreciated. It lowers your basis by the full amount you could have deducted, even in years you did not claim it.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

An ADU in its own separate building, not part of the main house.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

Amounts on a property tax bill such as sewer, parcel taxes, lighting districts or a Mello-Roos special tax. They are flat or formula amounts, not a percentage of the home's value.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

The seller's written statements about what is known of the home's condition and history.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room, Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

The total dollar value of sales added together. A few large sales can move it without more homes selling.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

The part of the home's price you pay yourself, which lowers the amount you borrow.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?, Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

How water moves away from the house. A dry day doesn't show how the property handles rain.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

Checking the facts about a property before you commit to buying it.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

The deposit you make once your offer is accepted. It goes to escrow, not to the seller, and if the deal falls apart, the contract and both sides' instructions decide where it goes.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California, What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

A right for someone else to use part of a property for a set purpose, such as utility lines or access to a rear lot. A city may require easements for an SB 9 split.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

The home's main electrical box. Don't open it on a showing; electrical safety and capacity checks belong to qualified professionals.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

The California Geological Survey's lookup for mapped fault rupture, liquefaction and earthquake-induced landslide zones. Coverage may be incomplete, and it is not a full assessment of shaking or of how a building would perform.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

The part of a home's value you own outright: what it is worth minus what you still owe on it.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

A window or door someone can get out through in an emergency. Ask the inspector or a local official about the requirements, especially in converted rooms.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

A neutral third party that holds the money and documents for a home sale until the deal's conditions are met, then pays them out on the buyer's and seller's written instructions.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not, What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California, Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?, What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?, What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

An account your loan servicer holds to pay covered bills such as your property tax and home insurance. You pay into it with your monthly payment.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The servicer's review of your escrow account. It sets the amount for projected bills and can find a shortage or a surplus.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

The written instructions a buyer or seller signs for escrow. The escrow instructions themselves must show, in at least 10-point type, the holder's license name and the agency that issued the license; later supplemental or modified instructions are not covered by that rule.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

The amount an escrow review finds the account is short. Repaying it is a separate step from saving more for higher future bills.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

Skipping a mortgage escrow account, which depends on the loan, the rules and the lender's policy. You still owe the taxes and insurance yourself.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

The claim filed with the county assessor to use the parent-child exclusion. It has to be filed on time, so check the assessor's requirements.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children

A stand-alone house that is being resold, rather than a newly built home sold by its builder.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move.

How many potential buyers have a chance to see and compare the home.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

Extra time added to a contract deadline. Ask before the deadline passes, and don't assume it will be granted.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

FEMA's official flood-map lookup for an address. Being outside a mapped high-hazard area does not mean flooding is impossible.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

An FHA renovation loan. It covers adding an ADU attached to the house and renovating an existing ADU, but building a new detached ADU is not on its eligible list.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A last visit to the home before closing. It may find that something has changed since the inspection.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

What it costs to borrow money for a home, such as the loan's interest rate. Changes in them affect what buyers can afford before they show up in median prices.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move.

A letter from HCD, the state agency that reviews city ADU rules, telling a city its ordinance does not follow state law. The city can respond, and a response can resolve the finding.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

CAL FIRE's map zones that describe wildfire hazard. They describe hazard, not one property's own risk after steps taken to reduce it.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

A federal rule under which, when a foreign person for U.S. tax purposes sells U.S. real property, the buyer generally must withhold 15% of the amount realized and send it to the IRS. Lower rates can apply when the buyer will live in the home and the amount realized is $1,000,000 or less.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

Buying a home that needs work, renovating it and selling it, often within a year.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

A loan whose interest rate is set for the whole term. On a standard one, the scheduled principal-and-interest payment does not change when market rates move, but the total you pay each month can still go up when taxes or insurance go up.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not, Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

A home that needs repairs or updating.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

A drawing of the home's layout seen from above, showing the rooms and how they connect.

Learn more: What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters

Value the owner creates, for example by adding an ADU, fixing the layout or renovating.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

A status for U.S. tax purposes. For an individual it means a nonresident alien; the IRS says it does not include a resident alien.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

The California form a seller gives escrow before closing to claim an exemption from, or work out, the state's real estate withholding. The standard withholding is 3 1/3% of the sales price, a prepayment claimed on your return, not an extra tax.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

A note in an inspection report meaning someone qualified should look further. It is an open task, not confirmation of the cause, how serious the issue is or what a repair would cost.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

Turning an existing garage into an ADU instead of building a new one.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026)

The federal form generally required in 2026 when you give one person more than $19,000 in a year. Gift tax is owed only after the giver's lifetime taxable gifts use up the basic exclusion, $15,000,000 per person in 2026.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

For a Loan Estimate, the lender's figure had to be honest and reasonable for what it knew or should have known at the time. An estimate that is unreasonably low, or leaves out a charge the lender should have known about, is not in good faith.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

Under California's rule for releasing an escrow deposit, a dispute in which the side holding back the money reasonably believes it has a legal right to. Money held back over one does not bring the penalty for refusing to sign within 30 days of a written demand.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

The resale price minus the purchase price. It does not subtract renovation, financing, holding or selling costs, so it is not the profit the investor keeps.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

Income before taxes and deductions. Lenders can use it, with debt measures, when deciding whether you qualify.

Learn more: Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The regular amount owners pay the association, usually each month. Check what the dues include and whether they have gone up recently.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The association's documents: the budget, reserve study, rules, meeting minutes, and any pending repairs, lawsuits or insurance issues.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework

Money a homeowners association sets aside for future repairs and replacements.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

Costs that keep running while you own the property until it sells, such as loan interest, property taxes, insurance and utilities.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

The criteria you set before touring, such as a commute test, payment comfort, property type, condition risk and resale story, used to check every home the same way.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

A check of the home's condition by an independent inspector you choose. On a showing you collect questions; the inspector evaluates them.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask, How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

A federal tax rule that lets you leave out up to $250,000 of gain, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly, when you owned the home and lived in it for at least 2 of the 5 years before the sale.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?, What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

How long current owners have owned their home so far, counted from when they bought it.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

The organization that runs a condo building or shared community. Owners pay it monthly dues for shared costs, and it can also bill extra charges called special assessments.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

A property tax exemption filed with the county assessor. For a qualifying inherited family home, the child generally needs to file it on time, along with the exclusion claim.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

Fannie Mae's renovation loan. It permits building detached accessory units where zoning and building codes allow.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A one-time charge a city may add to new construction to help pay for parks, roads and other public services. It is separate from permit fees and from water and sewer charges.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

Money put into your escrow account at closing, to help pay bills that may come due before enough monthly deposits build up. The amount depends on the due dates, so it is not always the same number of months.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

Money put into your loan's escrow account at closing, set aside for the future tax and insurance bills the account covers. It is separate from the escrow company's fee.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?

A professional check of a home's condition, usually done for the buyer before the purchase is final.

Learn more: Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

Your written agreement with the inspector. It says what the inspection includes, what it excludes and its limits.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

A court case escrow may file on its own whenever there is a dispute over the deposit, so the court settles who is entitled to it.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

The number of homes for sale at a given time.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

Protects your right to inspect, read the disclosures and walk away over the home's condition. The standard form prints a default deadline that can be negotiated, so check your own contract.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

When homes near major job centers are scarce, so many workers live farther away and commute to distant jobs.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

A form of title in which the owners hold equal shares, and when one dies, the share passes to the surviving owners without probate. Between spouses, generally only the half of the spouse who died gets the basis reset.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

A mortgage larger than the conforming loan limit. Freddie Mac's weekly national average does not cover these loans, so it does not describe their rates.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

A smaller category of ADU: no more than 500 sq ft of interior living space, entirely inside a single-family home, including an attached garage. It may share a bathroom with the main home, and if it does, owner-occupancy rules apply.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

A market where one group of buyers is doing well while another is squeezed, so the two go in different directions, like the two arms of the letter K.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

Money from the lender that can cover eligible closing costs, often in exchange for a higher interest rate.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?

A buyer's room to negotiate on price or terms. It is decided by the specific listing, not by the region as a whole.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

A legal entity that owns property as a separate owner from you. Deeding a home to one is a change in ownership unless every owner keeps exactly the same share.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

An amount agreed in advance that the seller can keep if you back out for a reason the contract does not allow, instead of proving its actual losses. Both sides must separately sign or initial the clause.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

Money already available to you. Money that still depends on a home sale, stock vesting or other timing does not count yet.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

The asking price the seller sets when the home goes up for sale.

Learn more: Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

A home advertised for sale, with its photos, details and price.

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

The agent who represents the seller and markets the home for sale.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room, Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes

The real estate broker, and the brokerage, that represents the seller in a sale.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

The real estate company the seller's agent works through.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

The finished space people live in, reported in square feet.

Learn more: Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

A trust you set up to hold your property; if it is revocable, you can undo it. When you die the successor trustee follows the trust, and a home skips probate only if the deed put it in the trust.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

Under the federal Loan Estimate rules, your application counts as made once the lender has six things: your name, income and Social Security number, the home's address, an estimate of its value, and the loan amount you want. The lender's three-business-day deadline to send the Loan Estimate starts then.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The set of rules a mortgage follows, such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA. Each sets its own conditions for counting ADU rent.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

Protects you if final loan approval does not come through. The default deadline depends on the form version and can be negotiated, so check your own contract.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

The lender's three-page written estimate of your loan: the rate, the monthly payment and the closing costs.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The company that handles your loan after closing: it collects your monthly payments and, if you have an escrow account, pays the covered tax and insurance bills from it.

Learn more: Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

The extra value a home can carry because of where it is, such as near a major job center, transit and services.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

When owners stay put because selling would mean giving up a low mortgage rate or a low property tax bill, so fewer of them sell.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

Dividing one lot into separate parcels. In an eligible case, the new parcels can hold additional homes.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

Value growth that comes from the wider market, such as scarce land, high building costs, wages and inflation. It is not guaranteed every year.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

A slice of the market defined by city, neighborhood, price range or home type. Different segments can be busy or slow at the same time.

Learn more: Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?

The middle asking price of homes for sale. It is different from the median price homes actually sold for.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

The middle sale price in a period: half the homes sold for more, half for less. It describes what sold, not what any one home is worth.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?, Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

A main city together with the surrounding area counted with it in the data, such as the San Jose metro.

Learn more: Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?, Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

Value growth from changes around the home, such as new transit, shops, jobs or renewal on the block.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

The yearly income needed to qualify for a loan on a given home. C.A.R. estimated $204,800 for a median-priced existing California single-family home in the first quarter of 2026, under its own assumptions.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

A review where city staff check an application against fixed, measurable rules, instead of making a discretionary decision about whether they like the project.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

How many months it would take to sell every home now for sale at the current pace of sales, if no new homes were listed. A low number means supply is tight.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

The amount needed to pay off the existing home loan in full when the home sells.

Learn more: Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

The shared database where agents list homes for sale, so other agents and their buyers can see them.

Learn more: What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

When more than one buyer makes an offer on the same home.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

Something that would make the home fail for you if it were missing, such as a monthly payment you are comfortable with or a commute limit.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

A form that says whether the property is in certain mapped hazard areas: a flood hazard area, a dam inundation area, a high or very high fire hazard severity zone, a wildland fire area, an earthquake fault zone or a seismic hazard zone.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

A 3.8% federal tax that can apply to gain from selling investment real estate. It applies only above $200,000 of modified adjusted gross income for a single filer, $250,000 married filing jointly or $125,000 married filing separately, and those amounts are not indexed for inflation.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

The money left from a sale after paying off the mortgage and the selling costs, before any personal taxes.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

An emotional bonus, such as a view or luxury finishes.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

The assessor's notice that comes before a supplemental bill, showing the new value, the prior value and the event date. You generally have 60 days from its mailing date to appeal the value; some counties count from a different date, so check your county's deadline.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

A written notice the seller can serve after a contingency date passes. It gives you a short window to remove the contingency or cancel.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

Rules a city can measure or check, such as height or setbacks, rather than a matter of taste.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look

Rules a city can measure or check, such as setbacks, access or design requirements, rather than a matter of opinion.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

A loose label for a home sold without full public marketing. It can mean different arrangements, so ask which one is meant.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

How you plan an offer, including how to compete without losing discipline.

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

A listing offered only within the listing brokerage, not shared more widely.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

A single home that you live in as your main home.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A scheduled time when a home for sale is open for visitors.

Learn more: Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes, How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors, Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist, How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

Income taxed at the regular rates, with no lower rate for capital gains. California taxes all capital gains this way.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

Spending on upgrades beyond what local buyers are willing to pay for, so the cost may not come back at sale.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste

How many units are lived in by their owners rather than rented out.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework

A signed statement that the owner will live on the property. For SB 9 it generally applies for three years.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A rule that the owner must live on the property. A city can never require it for an ADU.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

The piece of land a home sits on. The house can change, but the parcel's location cannot.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

The map that shows how a lot is divided. It is only one part of a development plan.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A rule that can let a home pass from a parent to a child without a full reassessment. Under Prop 19 it generally covers only a qualifying family home that the child makes a principal residence, and a value cap applies.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children

When a project's numbers work: the realistic finished value supports the all-in cost of survey, design, permits, fees, construction, financing and carrying costs.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A buyer and seller have signed a purchase agreement, but the sale has not closed yet. It does not guarantee the sale will close.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

A home with an accepted offer that is under contract but has not closed yet.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

A cutoff based on rank, such as the top share of sale prices. Defining luxury this way differs from using a fixed price like $3 million.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

A city or county approval for construction work. A permit record may show an application, an approval or completed work, which are different stages.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room, Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

What the city charges to review your plans and issue the building permit. Every city charges them, separate from impact fees.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026)

The city or county office to ask about zoning, permits and whether a remodel or addition is feasible at an address.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

A public home-search website that displays listings. What it shows may not explain every stage of a sale.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

A lender's letter saying it may lend you a certain amount, based on information such as your income, credit, debts and assets. It is a starting point, not a guaranteed loan.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California, Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

An ADU design the city has already checked, so the permit can move faster. Since January 1, 2025, state law has required every city to offer a pre-approved plan program.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

An inspection a seller may order before the home is listed, when appropriate. Its report is one of the documents that can help explain the home to buyers.

Learn more: What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters

A form the buyer signs, BOE-502-A, that normally goes to the county with the deed when it is recorded. If it does not, the recorder may charge an extra $20.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

A report from a title company, prepared before closing, showing who owns the home on record and the loans, liens and other recorded items against it. You will usually receive it along with the seller's disclosures, and title issues can surface in it before closing.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

Costs for the new home that are paid ahead of time at closing. They are separate from the down payment.

Learn more: Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

Bills paid ahead at closing, such as interest for the relevant days or an insurance premium. They pay real expenses; they do not add to your down payment.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not

Learning what buyers will actually pay by letting them see and compete for the home.

Learn more: Should You Sell Privately or Go on the Open Market?

The record of a home's asking prices, including any price cuts, and its past sales.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

The price range a home realistically falls in before any upgrades, shaped by things like location, size, layout, condition and recent nearby sales.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste

The sale price divided by the home's living area. It is a quick comparison that can miss differences in layout, condition and daily use.

Learn more: Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

Freddie Mac's weekly national average mortgage rates. It covers conventional purchase applications within conforming loan limits, so it is not a personal or jumbo quote.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently

The part of the mortgage payment that pays back the loan and its interest. It is only one part of what owning costs.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The home a person actually lives in as their main home. Prop 19 treats it differently from investment property, rental property and second homes.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children

A visit to a home arranged just for you. The seller or listing agent may ask for pre-approval or proof of funds first.

Learn more: Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes

The court process for passing on what someone owned after they die. In California the executor's and attorney's fees are set by formula on the estate's gross value, with no deduction for the mortgage.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

Evidence of the money you have, which a seller or listing agent may ask for before a private showing.

Learn more: Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes

A California property tax rule that can make a home you have owned for a long time much cheaper to keep than to replace.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

A California measure that, among other changes, changed how a parent's low property tax base can pass to a child. It generally narrowed the parent-child exclusion to qualifying family homes, not all real estate a parent owns.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

The legal edge of the lot. A fence does not necessarily mark it.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

The yearly tax a county charges on real estate. In California it is 1% of the property's taxable value plus local voter-approved debt rates, and the bill also lists flat or formula direct charges.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

The value a home's property tax is figured from. A parent who bought decades ago may have a very low one compared with today's market value.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children

The kind of home, such as a townhome or a single-family home.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs, Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

A development someone has proposed nearby that is not necessarily approved or built. Proposals can change.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist

For ADU parking rules, any place the public catches buses, trains or subways that charge set fares and run on fixed routes. An ordinary bus stop counts.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

The party that holds the sale money in a 1031 exchange, so you never receive it. It cannot be a related person, or anyone who acted as your employee, attorney, accountant, broker or real estate agent within the two years before the sale.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

The income a lender counts when deciding how much you can borrow. For Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA loans, ADU rent can be at most 30% of it.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

A payment made up front to lower the interest rate on the loan.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

The lender's agreement to lend at a set interest rate until a set date, on the conditions in the lock agreement.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

A licensed professional who helps people buy or sell a home. In California you can verify an agent's license with the Department of Real Estate (DRE).

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

When the county sets a new assessed value for a property. It can change the yearly property tax a great deal.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

The price on the public record after a sale. It may not show every concession or other term of the deal.

Learn more: Your Neighbor Sold for More: Is Your Home Really Comparable?

The public record showing that ownership changed hands. It can be used to verify that a sale happened.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

Replacing your loan with a new one later, which is a new financing decision. It may not be available or helpful, and a lower future payment is not guaranteed.

Learn more: Why Higher Rates Affect Bay Area Buyers Differently, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The idea that many households who cannot afford to buy keep renting, which can support rental demand.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

A written price for defined work that lists the work, assumptions, exclusions, access needs and any permit questions. Compare estimates only when they cover the same work.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

Money you set aside yourself for repairs on a home you own.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework

In housing-market talk, what it would cost to build a similar home today, counting land, labor, materials, permits, design, financing, insurance and the builder's profit. A home insurance policy uses the same words more narrowly: the cost to rebuild the house itself, without the land.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor, California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

Selling the home later. Ask whether the home would still be sellable, rentable or understandable to the next buyer if your life changes.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

The people likely to want the home when you sell it later.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

Cash a household chooses to keep set aside after the move instead of spending it. The right amount differs from one household to another.

Learn more: Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

A study the association uses to plan how much to set aside for future repairs. Ask for it with the HOA package.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework

Money you keep after paying the down payment and closing costs, for emergencies.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back, Why First-Time Buyers Should Get Pre-Approved Before Touring Homes, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

Profit as a percentage of the money put in. The same dollar profit is a smaller return on a bigger investment. A "gross ROI" in flipping reports uses only the gap between the resale and purchase prices, before renovation and other costs, so it is not the investor's real return.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math

How much of a project's cost comes back in the home's sale value. Remodeling reports give national averages, which work as a filter, not a rule for one home.

Learn more: Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste

The sale price compared with the asking price, as a percentage. Near 100% means homes sold close to their asking price.

Learn more: What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters

Which kinds of homes made up the sales in a period, from entry-level to high-end. When the mix changes, the median can move even if individual homes keep their value.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

A California law, effective January 2025, that amended SB 9 and stated that it applies to charter cities. It also gave cities 60 days to approve or deny a complete application.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A California law that creates a path to divide one qualifying single-family parcel into two and to add homes. It is in effect statewide in 2026.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

A per-square-foot fee the school district may bill on an ADU over 500 sq ft. No city can waive it.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026)

One month's sales scaled up to a full-year pace, with the usual seasonal ups and downs taken out, so different months can be compared.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move.

Money the seller agrees to put toward the buyer's costs at closing, which lowers the cash the buyer needs.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

Money the seller agrees to credit to the buyer at closing, usually toward the buyer's closing costs. A repair credit is one given in place of the seller doing repairs.

Learn more: Are Bay Area Buyers Finally Gaining Leverage? It Depends on the Listing

The costs of selling a home, such as agent commissions, staging (furnishing the home for showings) and closing costs.

Learn more: Is Flipping Bay Area Fixers Still Profitable? How Labor, Materials, and Higher Prices Changed the Math, Before You Sell, What Will Your Next Move Cost?

The required distance between a building and the property line.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know, Can You Build an ADU in California? Basic Rules, Fees, and Approval Timing

The pipe that runs from your house to the public sewer main. Some East Bay cities require a certificate that it meets the rules when construction is valued over $100,000.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

A separate inspection of the underground sewer line using a camera. A general home inspection may not cover that line.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

Something meaningful but negotiable, such as a yard, a garage or office space.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

A scheduled visit to see a home for sale. You look only at the areas you are permitted to enter.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room

A house that stands on its own lot and is not attached to other homes.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

An area the city has zoned for single-family homes. SB 9 generally requires the parcel to be in one.

Learn more: Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

Project costs other than construction itself, such as design and structural engineering.

Learn more: How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026)

A status Bay East announced for launch on April 15, 2026, that lets the listing broker choose to report, within 30 days after closing, a completed sale that was never entered in the MLS before it sold because the seller asked. A later sale record does not prove the home was widely shown before the deal.

Learn more: What Public Listings Can—and Can't—Tell You

A one-time charge an HOA bills owners on top of their regular dues, often for a large repair.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, Are San Francisco and San Jose Getting Competitive Again in 2026?, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

Furnishing and decorating a home for sale so buyers can picture living in it.

Learn more: How to Tour a Bay Area Home: What to Look At in Every Room, Where to Spend Money Before Selling a Home: Upgrade for Market Fit, Not Personal Taste, What to Fix Before Selling a Home: The Prep That Actually Matters, California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

Guidance published by ASHI (the American Society of Home Inspectors), a professional association of home inspectors, describing a visual check of the systems and parts of a home that can be readily reached. It is industry guidance: not every inspector follows it, and it does not promise that every part of the home was tested.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

A qualified professional who evaluates structural questions, such as what a crack or a sloping floor means. A general home inspection is not a structural engineering assessment.

Learn more: Home Inspection: Roof, Plumbing and Foundation Questions to Ask

A smaller area inside a larger market, such as San Francisco, the Peninsula, the South Bay or the East Bay inside the Bay Area. Sub-markets do not always move together.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move.

A building that is unsafe under state housing safety law. It is the reason a city can give for refusing to permit an ADU that existed before January 1, 2020.

Learn more: East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require

A separate California property tax bill that a purchase or new construction can trigger. It goes to the owner, not the lender, and is apart from the regular annual bill.

Learn more: Down Payment vs. Closing Costs: What Cash Do You Need?, Mortgage Escrow: What It Pays and What It Does Not, How Much Does an ADU Cost in the East Bay? Every Fee, Explained (2026), East Bay ADU Rules 2026: Fees, Permits, and What Your City Cannot Require, Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval, Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

A market with fewer good homes for sale than buyers want, so the few strong options can still draw competition.

Learn more: California Hit Another Record Median Home Price. Is the Market Hot or Just Supply-Constrained?

The money you actually receive after taxes and deductions. A household budget starts from this number.

Learn more: Comfortable Home Budget vs. Mortgage Preapproval

The starting point for measuring capital gains: what you paid, plus improvements. When an owner dies, the basis of what they owned generally resets to its market value on the date of death, up or down.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

The status a county gives a property whose property taxes are still unpaid after the deadlines. An unpaid supplemental bill alone can put the whole property in this status.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

An area with its own set of local debt rates added on top of the 1%, which is why rates differ within one county. The county rate book lists the rate for each one.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

California's property tax year runs from July 1 through June 30. The annual bill is based on the value on January 1.

Learn more: Your First Property Tax Bills After Buying a Bay Area Home

A form of title in which shares can differ, and each share passes by its owner's will or by state law.

Learn more: Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

Legal ownership of a property. Changing title changes who owns it.

Learn more: California Prop 19 Parent-Child Transfers: What Bay Area Families Should Check Before Moving a Home to Children, Joint Tenancy, Community Property or a Trust: How Should You Hold Title to a California Home?

A title insurance company licensed by the Department of Insurance. In Northern California, it most often handles escrow.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

A home that shares one or more walls with its neighbors. It can be a middle ground between more space and a lower price, but shared costs and duties still matter.

Learn more: Condo vs Townhome vs Single-Family: A First-Time Buyer Framework, Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

Giving up one thing to get another, such as accepting a longer commute for more space.

Learn more: How to Filter Homes Before You Buy: Commute, Space, and Lifestyle Tradeoffs

The seller's form reporting known defects in the home.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

How often homes change hands. Low turnover means few existing owners sell, so fewer homes come up for sale.

Learn more: California Homeowners Are Staying Put. That Changes How Bay Area Homes Appreciate

To check the numbers and risks of one specific property before deciding: its location, insurance, rent, repair budget and who would buy it later. Lenders use the same word for their own review of a borrower's loan application.

Learn more: Why California Housing Is Hard to Crash: Labor, Replacement Cost, AI Cash, and the Rent Floor

The lender's full review before final loan approval. It re-checks your job, deposits and debts, so avoid changing jobs, financing a car or moving large sums between accounts while in escrow.

Learn more: What Happens After Your Offer Is Accepted in California

A unit built or converted without the city's permits. Freddie Mac won't use its rent at all, and FHA requires the appraiser to say whether a unit can be legally rented.

Learn more: What an ADU Actually Costs You to Finance, and What It Adds Back

The part of the gain on a rental building held more than a year that comes from depreciation. Federally it is taxed at a maximum of 25%.

Learn more: What Taxes Do You Owe When You Sell a California Rental Property?

The SB 9 path that can divide one qualifying single-family parcel into two roughly equal parcels. When the requirements are met, each resulting parcel can have up to two units.

Learn more: Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look, Can You Split a Bay Area Lot Under SB 9? What Owners Need to Know

The highest price you agree on before making an offer, with the reasoning written down so emotion can't move it later.

Learn more: How to Choose a Good Realtor: More Than Opening Doors

A scam where fake emails or calls send new wiring instructions, so a buyer's money goes to the wrong account.

Learn more: What Happens to Your Earnest Money Deposit in California?

Compared with the same month a year earlier.

Learn more: California Sales Rebounded in June. Bay Area Prices Did Not Move., Is the Bay Area Housing Market Splitting in Two in 2026?

A cost that can't go above the Loan Estimate unless a reason the rules allow comes up. Lender fees and transfer taxes are in this group.

Learn more: How to Read Your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and Which Costs Can Change

The city or county rules for how land at an address may be used and built on. A remodel or addition can depend on it.

Learn more: Location First: A Bay Area Homebuyer’s Due-Diligence Checklist, Why Bigger Lots Near Bay Area Job Centers Can Be Worth More Than They Look