# Real Property & Ownership > The general common-law rules of property ownership — estate types, deeds, easements, and adverse possession. **Source:** https://www.texasreprep.com/learn/texas-real-estate/national-real-property-ownership **Published:** 2026-08-24 **Updated:** 2026-09-02 Texas RE PREP™ — independent practice for the Texas real estate license exam, National (Uniform) and Texas State portions. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or operated by the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) or Pearson VUE, who administer the actual exam. --- This is general common-law property doctrine — the rules that hold across most states, before any state-specific law gets layered on top. ## Freehold estates Fee simple absoluteThe most complete form of ownership, with no built-in condition or time limit. Defeasible feeOwnership subject to a condition — can end automatically (a fee simple determinable) or require the grantor to affirmatively re-enter (a fee simple subject to a condition subsequent). Life estateOwnership measured by a lifetime — the holder's own, or someone else's (pur autre vie). Determinable vs. condition subsequent "So long as" or "while" language signals automatic reversion (determinable). "But if... the grantor may re-enter" language signals an optional, affirmative step (condition subsequent). Courts generally disfavor forfeiture, so genuinely ambiguous language leans toward the less automatic reading. ## Future interests When a life estate or defeasible fee ends, someone else takes over. If that's a third party, it's a **remainder**. If it's back to the original grantor, it's a **reversion**. ## Co-ownership — how more than one person holds title Tenancy in commonTwo or more owners, each with an individual (possibly unequal) share, no right of survivorship — an owner's share passes to their heirs at death, not automatically to the other co-owners. This is the default form of co-ownership unless the deed specifies otherwise. Joint tenancy with right of survivorshipEqual shares among all owners, with survivorship — when one owner dies, their share passes automatically to the surviving joint tenants, not through probate. Creating it generally requires satisfying the traditional "four unities" (time, title, interest, and possession all acquired together) and explicit survivorship language in the deed. Tenancy by the entiretyA marital co-ownership form, recognized in some but not all states, combining survivorship with extra creditor protection — generally, a creditor of only one spouse can't reach the property. The exam's favorite distinction If a co-owner in a joint tenancy sells or transfers their interest to someone new, the four unities break for that share — the new owner generally becomes a tenant in common as to that interest, while the remaining original owners can still hold joint tenancy among themselves. Tenancy in common has no survivorship at all, so a co-owner's interest simply passes through their estate like any other asset. ## Liens and priority A lien is a financial claim against property, and when more than one lien exists, **priority** — who gets paid first if the property is sold to satisfy debts — generally follows the order liens were recorded, with one major exception: **property tax liens generally take priority over every other lien regardless of when they were recorded**, including a mortgage recorded years earlier. A mechanic's lien (filed by a contractor or supplier owed for work or materials) generally follows its own state-specific priority rules, which can sometimes reach back to when work actually began rather than when the lien was formally filed. ## Deeds A valid deed needs a granting clause, an adequate legal description, and delivery and acceptance. Deed types differ by how much the grantor warrants: - **General warranty** — warrants against defects from the property's entire history, even before the grantor owned it. - **Special warranty** — warrants only against defects during the grantor's own ownership. - **Bargain-and-sale** — implies the grantor holds title, with no express warranties at all. ## Easements and adverse possession An easement is a right to use someone else's land — for a specific person (in gross) or benefiting an adjoining parcel (appurtenant). Adverse possession lets someone eventually gain title to land they don't own, but only by satisfying every element: possession that is **open and notorious**, **hostile** (without permission — not actual ill will), **exclusive**, and **continuous** for the full statutory period. Common trap "Hostile" doesn't mean angry or malicious — it just means without the true owner's permission. Someone occupying land under an honest, mistaken belief that they own it can still satisfy this element. Quick Check A deed says property goes 'to A, so long as the land is used as a park.' What kind of estate is this, and what happens if the condition is violated? A fee simple determinable — ownership ends automatically A fee simple subject to a condition subsequent — the grantor must choose to re-enter A life estate — ownership ends when A dies A fee simple absolute — the condition has no legal effect “So long as” is the textbook durational language signaling a fee simple determinable, where ownership reverts automatically the instant the condition is violated — no action required from the grantor, unlike a condition subsequent's optional right of re-entry.