Reading real estate advertising acronyms can sometimes feel like trying to understand ancient Greek: EIL with a W/D? LR with Fplc? An FDR with a DK? Hartz Homes is here to help with this handy translation guide.
4B/2B: Four bedrooms and two bathrooms. “Bedroom” usually means a sleeping area with a window and a closet—in some areas, laws define what a room needs to be called a bedroom—but the definition varies in different places. A “full bathroom” is a room with a toilet, a sink and a bathtub. A “three-quarter bathroom” has a toilet, a sink and a shower. A “half bathroom” or powder room has only a toilet and a sink.
Assum. fin: Assumable financing.
CMA: Comparative market analysis or competitive market analysis. A CMA is a report that shows prices of homes comparable to a subject home and that were recently sold, are currently on the market or were on the market but not sold within the listing period.
Closing costs: All of the miscellaneous expenses paid by the buyer and the seller when the real estate deal closes. These costs include the brokerage commission, mortgage-related fees, escrow or attorney’s settlement charges, transfer taxes, recording fees and title insurance. Closing costs are generally paid through escrow.
Contingency: A provision of an agreement that keeps the agreement from being fully legally binding until a certain condition is met. One example is a buyer’s contractual right to obtain a professional home inspection before purchasing the home.
Dk: Deck.
Expansion pot’l: Expansion potential mean that there’s extra space on the lot or the possibility of adding a room or even an upper level—subject to local zoning restrictions.
EIK: Eat-in kitchen.
FDR: Formal dining room.
Fixture: Anything of value that is permanently attached to or a part of real property. Fixtures include wall-to-wall carpeting, light fixtures, window coverings and landscaping.
FSBO: For sale by owner.
Frplc, fplc, FP: Fireplace.
Gar: Garage.
Gard: Garden.
Grmet kit: Gourmet kitchen.
HDW, HWF, Hdwd: Hardwood floors.
Hi ceils: High ceilings.
In-law pot’l: Potential for a separate apartment, subject to local zoning restrictions.
Large E-2 plan: This is one of several floorplans available in a specific building.
Listing: An agreement between a real estate broker and a home owner that allows the broker to market and arrange for the sale of the owner’s home. The word “listing” is also used to refer to the for-sale home itself. A home being sold by the owner (FSBO) without a real estate agent isn’t a “listing.”
Lo dues: Low homeowners association dues.
Lock box: Locked key-holding device affixed to a for-sale home so real estate professionals can gain entry into the home after obtaining permission from the listing agent.
LR: Living room.
Lsd pkg: Leased parking area.
MLS: Multiple Listing Service. An MLS is an organization that collects, compiles and distributes information about homes listed for sale by its members, who are real estate brokers. Membership isn’t open to the general public, although selected MLS data may be sold to real estate listings web sites. MLSs are local or regional. There is no MLS covering the whole country.
Pot’l: Potential.
Nr bst schls: Near the best schools.
Pvt: Private.
Pwdr rm: Half bathroom or powder room.
REALTOR®: A real estate broker or sales associate who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS®. Not all real estate agents are REALTORS®.
Title insurance: An insurance policy that protects a lender’s or owner’s interest in real property from assorted types of unexpected or fraudulent claims of ownership. It’s customary for the buyer to pay for the lender’s title insurance policy.
Upr: Upper floor.
Vw, vu, vws, vus: View(s).
W/D: Washer and dryer.
Please check out these new home communities from Hartz Homes:
Armitage Pointe of Addison, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Bella Vista Townhomes of Bolingbrook, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Lago Vista of Lockport, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Leigh Creek of New Lenox, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Marquis Pointe of Montgomery, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Marywood Meadows of Montgomery, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Nantucket Lakes of New Lenox, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Park West of Manteno, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Playa Vista of Plainfield, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Shannon Estates of New Lenox, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Sky Harbor of New Lenox, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Whisper Creek of Mokena, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Hartz Homes has new home communities in:
Addison, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Aurora, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Bolingbrook, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Lockport, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
New Lenox (Chicago area new home construction)
Manteno, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Mokena, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Montgomery, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)
Plainfield, Illinois (Chicago area new home construction)