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Many people dream about drafting their own legal estates and wills, rather than hiring an attorney for thousands of dollars. If a person wants to write his or her own legal will, however, there are some basic legal terms he or she ought to know. This article will discuss the most essential legal terms a person should know before drafting his or her own will.

First, a person should know that the owner of a right to possess land in the present is referred to as a possessory estate. Also, an owner with a right to possess land in the future has a future interest in that land. After understanding these fundamental concepts of ownership in property law, it is next necessary to examine the most popular types of estates that exist.

There are four possessory estates that are important to know. These are a fee simple, fee tail, life estate, and term of years. Each possessory estate has its own distinguishing feature. It is also important to recall the definition of a possessory estate, which is the right to possess land in the present. A fee simple is a type of possessory estate that has no inherent ending, and it is the largest estate out of the bunch named above. There is no ending built into a fee tail by its very nature. An example of wording describing a fee simple that might come up in a legal will is, A to B and (his or her) heirs.

Next, a fee tail is a type of possessory estate with an interest that passes automatically to the holder’s issue, upon the holder’s death. Issue is a word that refers to lineal descendants. The interest ends when the last lineal descendant dies. With this type of possessory estate, the law assumes that it is inherently limited and will end naturally at some point.

The third type of possessory estate this article will discuss is a life estate. A life estate is a type of possessory estate with an interest that will end upon the death of the person whose life is designated as the measuring life. An example of language articulating this concept is, A to B for life.

The fourth type of possessory estate this article will discuss is a term of years. A term of years is also known as a lease.

Overall, these are the basic terms to know when creating a will.

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Q: Estates and Wills: Basic Legal Terms?
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