Book Notes: A Theory of Property. by Stephen R. Munzer.

Book notes: A Theory of Property. By Stephen R. Munzer. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. 1990. Pp. 491. Reviewed by: Ann M. Burkhart

Fixing Foreclosure

Since the American Revolution, mortgage foreclosures have consisted of a public auction of the mortgaged property. Judges and state legislators at the time believed that an auction was the best way to obtain a fair price for the land. Though that belief soon proved to be mistaken, the sale method remains unchanged

Bringing Manufactured Housing into the Real Estate Finance System

Eight percent of the United States population - more than 23 million people - live in manufactured homes (also called mobile homes). In some years, more than 30% of the new homes sold have been manufactured. Moreover, manufactured housing is the most important form of unsubsidized affordable housing in this country. Up to two-thirds of the new affordable homes built each year have been manufactured. However, the manufactured housing industry currently is struggling to survive a meltdown in its sales and finance markets. A tremendous obstacle to the industry’s recovery is that most manufactured homes are characterized as personal property, though they have evolved tremendously from their earliest ancestor, the travel trailer. Today, only 1% of manufactured homes are moved after being sited on a lot. Recharacterizing manufactured homes as real property would reflect modern reality and would provide purchasers and owners with access to the mortgage market, which would increase credit availability and affordability and would provide manufactured home owners the same legal protections that owners of site-built homes enjoy

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Freeing Mortgages of Merger

Change in real property law often occurs with glacial speed.This rate of change in part reflects the normal inertia of established law. A more complete explanation, however, is the innate conservatism connected to a commodity that once was the primary source of wealth and power. That this conservatism is innate should not prevent application of Ockham\u27s razor as needed. The relationship of the doctrine of merger to the burgeoning law of mortgages is one such area. If the law has to bear these medieval shackles the time surely has come to examine them carefully. They may have rusted away. The modern doctrine of merger is easily stated: When a person holds two estates in property in the same right and without an intervening estate, the two estates will coalesce to one estate unless a beneficial reason exists for keeping them distinct. For example,a life tenant who acquires the reversion immediately following his life estate usually will be deemed to own the fee simple title rather than a separate life estate and reversion. Similarly, a tenant for years who acquires the landlord\u27s interest in the leased property usually will be deemed to own the fee simple title. The doctrine of merger operates in these cases as a technical, nonsubstantive rule concerning property titles. If the holder of the interests is not benefited in any way by keeping the estates distinct, they will merge to simplify the state of title. Although the application of merger to separate estates in land is generally straightforward, the application of the doctrine to lesser property rights is far from clear. Indeed, with respect to questions involving title to property and a mortgage encumbering that property, merger has been described as one of the most complex and confusing areas of the law of mortgages. Examination of the historical developments of merger and of mortgages reveals why their union has created theoretical and practical problems: the modern mortgage does not create an interest in land to which merger should apply.\u27 Furthermore, modern title and finance practices have obviated the need for merger

Third-Party Defenses to Mortgages

When the holder of a note and mortgage 1 asserts its rights, well-established law delineates what defenses are available to those who are liable for the debt. However, in some cases a person who is not liable for the debt-a third party to the loan transaction-may have a defense against the holder\u27s action. Although the third party is not liable for the debt, it may have an interest in the mortgaged land or in the mortgage itself. Unfortunately, the law is not nearly as clear in this situation. The confusion arises in large part because the laws concerning notes and mortgages have evolved with little regard for each other, despite their close association in commercial transactions

Bernhardt and Burkhart\u27s Real Property in a Nutshell, 6th

Most of the rules covered in standard real property casebooks are summarized in this concise work. For quick reference the text is divided into three sections. Part One overviews interests in land, such as adverse possession, common-law estates, and concurrent ownership. Part Two covers conveyances through real estate brokers, contract of sale, transfer of title by deed, and mortgages. Part Three concludes with a discussion on miscellaneous property doctrines.https://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/monographs/1019/thumbnail.jp

Bernhardt and Burkhart\u27s Real Property in a Nutshell, 6th

Most of the rules covered in standard real property casebooks are summarized in this concise work. For quick reference the text is divided into three sections. Part One overviews interests in land, such as adverse possession, common-law estates, and concurrent ownership. Part Two covers conveyances through real estate brokers, contract of sale, transfer of title by deed, and mortgages. Part Three concludes with a discussion on miscellaneous property doctrines.https://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/monographs/1019/thumbnail.jp

Bernhardt and Burkhart\u27s Black Letter Outline on Property, 6th

Black Letter Outlines are designed to help a law student recognize and understand the basic principles and issues of law covered in a law school course. Black Letter Outlines can be used both as a study aid when preparing for classes and as a review of the subject matter when studying for an examination. Each Black Letter Outline is written by experienced law school professors who are recognized national authorities in their subject area.https://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/monographs/1020/thumbnail.jp