Definition of "Penalty"

Amount to be paid by a person or business for violating a statute or legal court order. It may also be assessed for violating the provisions of a contract. Examples of penalties are a charge made by the Internal Revenue Service for underpaying corporate income taxes, penalty assessed by a municipality for failing to pay property taxes, penalty due to prepaying a mortgage, amount arising from breaking a real estate contract, and fee due from prematurely terminating a lease.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

Property deriving at least 75% of the income from personal residences. ...

Funds that are retained in an account until a certain event occurs. For example, a downpayment on a contract held until full payment is received whereupon the holding funds are credited to ...

Same as term closing: legal process of transferring a piece of real estate to a buyer. Typically it occurs in the office of the lender, attorney, or an escrow company. ...

When we think of rural property or rural real estate, most of us think of farms, properties with large areas designated to agricultural land. That’s how rural communities generally ...

A right or interest in property held by a third party, which often limits the use and diminishes the value of the property, but usually does not prevent the transferring of title. The more ...

What is reconciliation in real estate? Both aspiring appraisers and wannabe real estate agents know the definition of reconciliation in real estate. In appraisal, it refers to the process ...

Commonly, a covenant refers to a legal treaty or agreement between various parties. Explicitly, a stipulation comes into existence and is signed to confine particular financial transactions ...

Process determining an individual's financial ability to meet the terms of a loan. When selling real estate, the sales broker must qualify the buyer to make certain he/ she has the ...

Any gain or loss from selling of capital assets. The gain or loss is the difference between the net selling price and cost basis. The two types of capital gains or losses for tax purposes ...

Popular Real Estate Questions