freehold

Freehold

A life estate, an interest in land the duration of which is restricted to the life or lives of a particular person or persons holding it, or an estate in fee, an interest in property that is unconditional and represents the broadest ownership interest recognized by law.

In order to be categorized as a freehold, an estate must possess the characteristics of (1) immobility—in the sense that the property must be either land, or some interest derived from or affixed to land—and (2) indeterminate duration.

Determinable freeholds are life estates created by language that provides that the estate is to terminate automatically upon the occurrence of a specified event.

West's Encyclopedia of American Law, edition 2. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

freehold

n. any interest in real property which is a life estate or of uncertain or undetermined duration (having no stated end), as distinguished from a leasehold which may have declining value toward the end of a long-term lease (such as the 99-year variety). (See: leasehold)

Copyright © 1981-2005 by Gerald N. Hill and Kathleen T. Hill. All Right reserved.

freehold

originally an estate of free tenure. Nowadays the term is used to denote a legal estate in FEE SIMPLE ABSOLUTE IN POSSESSION, the most complete form of ownership of land.

Collins Dictionary of Law © W.J. Stewart, 2006