A to Z · 1055 Terms

Real estate & finance, demystified.

The jargon can be exhausting. Here’s a plain-English glossary covering real estate, lending, investment, and the business-finance ecosystem that surrounds them.

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Affordable Housing & Government

LIHTC

Low-Income Housing Tax Credit — a federal program incentivizing affordable rental development.

Affordable Housing & Government

Mixed-Income Development

A property combining market-rate units with subsidized affordable units.

Affordable Housing & Government

Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing (NOAH)

Older market-rate housing that’s affordable without subsidies.

Affordable Housing & Government

Project-Based Voucher

A Section 8 voucher attached to a specific unit rather than to a household.

Affordable Housing & Government

Section 8

A federal housing-choice voucher program that subsidizes rent for low-income tenants.

Affordable Housing & Government

VLI

Very Low Income — households earning 30-50% of AMI.

Affordable Housing & Government

Workforce Housing

Housing affordable to households earning 60-120% of area median income.

Appraisal & Valuation

Adjustment

Dollar additions or subtractions to comparable sale prices to account for differences.

Appraisal & Valuation

AMC

Appraisal Management Company — a third party that orders and reviews appraisals for lenders.

Appraisal & Valuation

Appraisal

A professional estimate of a property’s market value.

Appraisal & Valuation

Appraisal Gap

The difference between an offer price and a lower appraised value.

Leasing & Operations

Cancellation Option

A tenant’s right to terminate the lease early, usually with notice and a fee.