¶ 4801
Overview
Scope of the chapter. This chapter addresses the protection of real property. It covers the exposure of land to judgment liens and notices of pending action, the rule that land is governed by the law and courts of its situs, the homestead exemption and tenancy by the entirety, the use of limited liability companies and series for real estate, equity stripping, out-of-state and foreign property and the new State restrictions on ownership by foreign persons, the tax and transfer costs of restructuring ownership, the federal reporting regimes for residential transfers, and the law of voidable transfers as it applies to land. It closes with an assessment of real estate in the Threat Matrix.
Why real estate is different. Real estate is the asset that cannot leave. A creditor can find it in public records, place a lien on it by recording a judgment, freeze it by recording a notice of pending action, and sell it through the courts of the place where it lies, whatever the location of its owner. No foreign court, foreign trustee or foreign statute can affect title to land in the United States. Protection of real estate therefore depends on the exemptions and forms of ownership that the situs recognizes, on separating the owner from the land through entities whose interests are movable, and on reducing the equity in the land available to creditors. Each of these techniques is limited by the law of voidable transfers, and transfers of land are recorded, dated and visible.
Relation to other chapters. The forms of title, including tenancy by the entirety, are addressed in chapter 11 (see supra ch. 11), and the homestead exemption in chapter 12 (see supra ch. 12). Entities and charging orders are addressed in chapters 15 and 16 (see supra chs. 15, 16). The separation of operating businesses from the real estate they use is addressed in chapter 47 (see supra ¶ 4730). The federal residential real estate reporting rule and the United Kingdom's register of overseas entities are also addressed in chapter 44 (see supra ¶¶ 4440.05, 4460.06–4460.07).