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BACKFILL 
The slope of the ground around a house.
BALL
COCK VALVE 
The valve inside a toilet tank that controls the
filling of the tank.
BALLOON
MORTGAGE 
A mortgage loan in which the monthly payments are not
large enough to repay the loan by the end of the term.
So at the end of the term, the remaining balance comes
due in a single large payment.
BALLOON
PAYMENT 
The final large payment at the end of a balloon
mortgage term.
BANKRUPTCY 
When a person or business is unable to pay their debts
and seeks protection of the state against creditors.
Bankruptcies remain on credit records for up to ten
years and can prevent a person from being able to get
a loan.
BEAM 
A structural supporting member.
BILL
OF SALE 
A physical receipt indicating the sale of property.
BIWEEKLY
MORTGAGE 
A mortgage where you make "half payments"
every two weeks, rather than one payment per month.
This results in making the equivalent of 13 monthly
payments per year, rather than 12, significantly
reducing the time it takes to pay off a thirty year
mortgage.
BLIGHTED
AREA 
Any region of a city or town that has fallen into
disrepair or otherwise has become undesirable.
BONA
FIDE 
Any genuine offer, made without intent to defraud or
deceive.
BRIDGE
FINANCING 
An interim loan made to facilitate the purchase of a
new home before the buyer's current residence sells
and its equity is available to fund the new purchase.
BRIDGING 
Structural members used between beams to strengthen
the structure.
BROKER 
An individual who facilitates the purchase of property
by bringing together a buyer and a seller.
BTU 
British Thermal Unit. A unit of measurement used to
describe heating or cooling capacity.
BUFFER
ZONE 
A segment of land between two disparate municipal
zones which acts as a shield to keep one zone from
encroaching upon the other. Often used to separate
residential districts from commercial areas.
BUILDING
CODE 
Regulations that ensure the safety and material
compliance of new construction within a municipality.
Building codes are localized to ensure they are
adequate to meet the risk of common hazards.
BUILDING
LINE OR SETBACK 
The statutory distance between buildings and the
property line, imposed by municipalities, home
associations, or other agreements.
BUILT-INS 
Specific items of personal property which are
installed in a real estate improvement such that they
become part of the building. Built-in microwave ovens
and dishwashers are common examples.
BUNGALOW 
A one-story, home-style dating from the early
twentieth century. Often characterized by a
low-pitched roof.
BUY
DOWN 
Extra money paid in a lump sum to reduce the interest
rate of a fixed rate mortgage for a period of time.
The extra money may be paid by the borrower, in order
to have a lower payment at the beginning of the
mortgage. Or paid by the seller, or lender, as
incentive to buy the property or take on the mortgage.
BX
CABLE 
Electrical cable shrouded in a galvanized steel outer
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