Real Estate Glossary
Our glossary is the largest dictionary of real estate and construction terms on the Internet with almost 10,000 definitions.
- Ranch Style
- Modern style of home with all of the rooms on one floor.
- Ranch Trim
- Window and door trim with a curved outer surface.
- Random
- Not planned. Not uniform. Unpredictable.
- Random Access Memory (RAM)
- A type of computer memory used to store programs and data currently in use.
- Random Rubble Veneer
- A veneer consisting of irregular sizes and shapes of stone.
- Random Shingles
- Shingles that are uniform in length but random in width.
- Range
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- In the rectangular survey system, it is a six-mile wide column of land running north/south.
- A cooktop, often part of a unit including one or more ovens.
- The extent between minimum and maximum for a procedure or operation.
- Range Capacity
- Total number of range grasslands acres that are needed to support one animal unit for a certain time period.
- Range, Drop-in
- A cooktop designed to be installed into a cabinet and supported by the countertop.
- Range Hood
- A shield installed over a cooktop using a fan to vent cooking vapors out of the room through installed ductwork.
- Range Lines
- Lines parallel to a principal meridian, marking off the land into 6-mile strips known as ranges; in the Government Rectangular Survey, the strips are numbered east or west of a principal meridian.
- Range Poles
- Poles used in surveying to establish midpoints between locations that are not visible to each other.
- Range Receptacle
- An electrical outlet designed for use by electric ranges (50 amp service and 240 volts).
- Rapid Curing Cutback
- Quick-drying asphalt that is liquefied with gasoline to reduce evaporation time.
- Rapid-start Fluorescent Light
- A fluorescent light that comes on instantly like an incandescent light. The filaments in the tubes are kept hot to allow the light to come on without the slow flickering typical of fluorescent lighting.
- Rasp
- A coarse file used for shaping materials.
- Ratable
- An estimated insurance risk to calculate a reasonable premium that would provide sufficient resources, while still being affordable, in the event that the company is required to pay a claim.
- Ratchet
- A mechanism that allows movement in one direction, but not another, as in a socket wrench.
- Ratchet Hoist
- A mechanism used for lifting. The device is pumped down to lift with a ratchet locking before the upstroke to prevent any slippage of object being lifted.
- Ratchet Screwdriver
- A screwdriver containing a ratchet to allow use without releasing the handle.
- Rate
- Cost or level of a fee, often on a per-hour or percentage basis (i.e. $100 per hour or 10% interest).
- Rate Cap
- Maximum interest rate charge allowed on the monthly payment of an adjustable rate mortgage during an adjustment period.
- Rate of Return
- Yield. The return on an investment.
- Rate of Return on Investment (ROI)
- Income divided by the total amount invested.
- Rate Lock
- Lender's commitment to borrower to guarantee a specific interest rate for a certain period of time.
- Rate Type
- Rate type determines how payments adjust over the loan term. Rate types include fixed-rate (does not change), balloon and adjustable rate.
- Rate-improvement Mortgage
- Loan that entitles a borrower to a one-time interest rate cut without refinancing.
- Ratification
- Approval of a prior act or contract, which gives it the confirmation to make it binding.
- Rating
- A value quantifying the capabilities or endurance of an item or substance.
- Ratio
- A proportion of one value to another, related value. For example, defective units to operational units.
- Rational Motives
- Determination proving that the motivation of a testator was rational when making the devises of a will.
- Rattail File
- A round, tapered file coming to a point. The name comes from the tool's resemblance to a rat's tail.
- Raveling
- The separation of course and fine aggregate in a road surface.
- Raw Land
- Acreage without added improvement such as sewers, utilities, streets or structures.
- Rawhide
- Leather that is untanned.
- Raw Linseed Oil
- Unprocessed oil that is produced from flax seeds.
- Raze
- To demolish.