This page will help you to master the difficult-to-understand language of real estate and finance, using simple definitions and examples written in plain English.
Buying, selling or renting property in Australia and having trouble understanding what they’re saying? To help you figure it out, we’ve created brief explanations of the words used. For more complete information, see your local real estate agent, financial advisor or solicitor.
A B C DE F GH IJK L MN O PQ R S T UVWXYZ
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| Fair Trading | Office of Fair Trading and Business Affairs, an office of the Department of Justice in Victoria and in New South Wales. It is known by other names in other states: Consumer Affairs in Queensland, Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory; the Ministry of Fair Trade in Western Australia; Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading in Tasmania; the Consumer and Business Affairs in South Australia. |
| FID | Financial Institutions Duty is the state duty on the receipts of financial institutions. |
| fittings | Items that can be removed from a property without causing damage to it. |
| fiduciary | A person who essentially acts as a trustee. Real estate agents and salespersons are considered by law to be fiduciaries. As such they have a duty to act primarily for the benefit of the person who employed them and not their own. |
| fixed interest | An interest rate set for an agreed term. |
| fixed rate mortgage | A mortgage in which the interest rate does not change during the term of the loan. |
| fixtures | Fixed items that cannot be removed without damaging either the property or the fixture itself such as cupboards. |
| footing | The footing supports the building on its foundation. |
| foreclosure | The legal process by which a borrower in default under a mortgage is deprived of his or her interest in the mortgaged property. |
| frozen account | An account in which all transactions have been suspended. |
