seasoning period

Definition

The minimum time you must own a property or have a mortgage before certain transactions are allowed. Real estate's way of preventing you from flipping too fast.

Example Usage

The lender required a six-month seasoning period before she could refinance the property.

Origin

Borrowed from financial terminology where 'seasoning' refers to establishing a track record over time

Fun Fact

FHA loans require a 90-day seasoning period specifically to prevent rapid house flipping fraud schemes.

Source: Mortgage lending and anti-fraud terminology

Related Terms

Intermediate

grant deed

A deed conveying property with implied warranties that the grantor owns the property and hasn't already sold it to someone else. The 'I'm pretty sure this is mine to sell' document.

🏠 Real Estate

Beginner

assess

The formal process of determining value, typically involving clipboards, spreadsheets, and someone walking around your property looking concerned. In real estate, it's how governments decide how much they can tax you; in business, it's how managers justify their existence by evaluating everything constantly. The corporate cousin of "let me take a look at that."

🏠 Real Estate

Intermediate

points

Upfront fees paid to the lender at closing to reduce your interest rate, where one point equals 1% of the loan amount. It's buying a discount on money you're borrowing—capitalism at its finest.

🏠 Real Estate

Intermediate

Zoning

Government rules about what you can and cannot do with your own property, because apparently buying it doesn't mean you get to decide what happens on it. Want to build a shed? That'll be six permits and a public hearing.

🏠 Real Estate

Advanced

replacement reserves

Funds set aside for replacing building components and systems that wear out over time, essential for multifamily and commercial property management. The 'we know the roof will eventually die' savings account.

🏠 Real Estate

Intermediate

Flip

The practice of buying a terrible house, slapping on some gray paint and vinyl plank flooring, then selling it for twice the price. Thanks to reality TV, every person with a hammer now considers themselves a real estate mogul.

🏠 Real Estate

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