Encyclopedia of Real Estate Terms (Second Edition)

Citation

Plimmer, F. (2001), "Encyclopedia of Real Estate Terms (Second Edition)", Property Management, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 103-104. https://doi.org/10.1108/pm.2001.19.1.103.1

Within real estate, there is traditionally a history of having to explain terminology before agreement can be reached. Such activities as basic as measuring a building have only recently received some definitive guidance from professional bodies and debate surrounding the meaning of such terms as Open Market Value continues.

As the real estate industry extends across international boundaries and with the increasing influences of both Europe and North America, the problem of terms and their meanings expands, and the need to have an authoritative and comprehensive source of terms and their meanings becomes greater.

The Encyclopedia of Real Estate Terms (second edition) is described as “the most comprehensive single‐volume reference book on real estate terminology”, and it is hard to argue with this statement because the volume defines over 8,000 terms which are both explained and referenced. The terms are mainly based on English and North American practice, although terms from civil law, from Australia, France, Hong Kong, India and New Zealand are also included. A special mention is given to French and Scottish law terminologies.

Uniquely, the Encyclopedia chronicles the meaning and significance of a particular term and provides an explanation of the legal and practical significance of the entry. It thus combines the functions of a dictionary, a thesaurus and an encyclopedia, with references to further sources of information for further research.

The Encyclopedia is described as covering economics, finance, investment, law, taxation, town and country planning, property management and valuation; as well as related areas of contract, tort, investment, finance, insurance and historical aspects of land law – every facet of real property and thereby an essential reference guide for property lawyers, real estate practitioners, valuers, estate agents and students, as well as a useful source for non‐property lawyers, accountants, bankers, builders and architects.

The volume contains more than 11,000 references, including over 3,900 cases, 2,100 statutory or code references and 4,750 bibliographical references. In addition, over 30,000 entries are cross‐referenced. Included is a bibliography of over 900 books and appendices covering major law and enactments; professional associations; measurements; financial formulae; and acronyms.

This is an impressive tome, running to over 1,400 pages and, unsurprisingly, the author has been compiling the information over 25 years. The US influence is obvious, but with increasing globalisation, this trend can be justified bearing in mind the importance of good international communications.

In forming an opinion about the ease of using the Encyclopedia, I tried to look up a few terms. Legal terms are well represented, from a variety of jurisdictions, including the use of case law, cross‐referenced to the case itself and the principle it established. Inevitably, it is my own professional interest which directed my search through the book and they were all there, from “Crawley Costs” to “Depreciated Replacement Costs”, and from the French “expert” to the “Torrens title system”.

Curiously, the Red Book, (cited as a source of information for other terms), proved illusive within the main body of the book, although I found “the legal” (a US term), “red herring” (another US term); and “book value” (of course). Reverting to the formal title for the UK’s Appraisal Manual, I found “appraisal standards (see Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice)”, “valuation” (and eight other entries with the word “valuation”, from “valuation by abstraction” to “valuation tribunals”); and “manus mortua” (latin).

The RICS Appraisal and Valuation Manual (The Red Book) appears as a reference, contained in Appendix A, which is grouped into topics (from Agency and Brokerage to Zoning and Planning Law, United States) and then into jurisdictions (Australia; Canada; England and Wales; Europe; France; Ireland; New Zealand; North America; Scotland; United Kingdom; and United States). There is no entry for The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), nor for the (US) Appraisal Institute although there are entries for the Royal Fine Arts Commission and the National Trust.

This book is impressive and the work behind it even more so. As a second edition, it was produced 14 years after the first edition, its range (geographical and topical) is vast and its approach (providing such additional information as references) valuable. It should make an important contribution to ensuring that property professionals have a clear understanding of the terms used in other countries and, thereby, it makes an important contribution to international communications within the global real estate profession. Every academic institution and major property organisations should have a copy – you may need it to find out what the US means by a “red herring”.