Legal Definitions - feodum simplex

Feodum simplex is the Latin legal term for what is commonly known as a fee simple. This term describes the most complete and absolute form of ownership one can have over real estate (land and any permanent structures on it).

When someone owns property in fee simple, they possess the full "bundle of rights" associated with that property. This means they have the unrestricted right to use, occupy, sell, lease, mortgage, and transfer the property to their heirs or anyone else they choose. This ownership is considered perpetual, meaning it has no set end date and can last indefinitely, passed down through generations. It is subject only to general governmental powers such as taxation, eminent domain (the government's right to take private property for public use with compensation), and zoning regulations.

Here are some examples illustrating fee simple ownership:

• Residential Home Purchase: When a family buys a house and the land it sits on, they typically acquire it in fee simple. This means they own the property outright, can live in it, make renovations, sell it whenever they wish, or leave it to their children in their will. Their ownership is not temporary, nor does it come with specific conditions from the seller about how they must use the property (beyond general laws and neighborhood covenants).

  This illustrates fee simple because the family has full, perpetual control over the property, including the right to transfer it and use it as they see fit.

• Commercial Land Development: A real estate developer purchases a large plot of undeveloped land to build a new office complex. They acquire this land in fee simple. This allows them to clear the land, construct multiple buildings, lease out office spaces to various businesses, and eventually sell individual units or the entire complex. Their ownership is not limited by time or specific use restrictions imposed by the previous owner, giving them maximum flexibility for development.

  This demonstrates fee simple as the developer gains complete control over the land for extensive development and future commercial use, without any time-bound limitations on their ownership.

• Inheritance of Farmland: A farmer passes away and, through their will, leaves their family farm, which they owned in fee simple, to their youngest child. The child now owns the farm with the same full rights their parent had. They can continue farming, sell a portion of the land to a neighbor, decide to build a new home on it, or eventually pass it on to their own children. The ownership continues indefinitely through inheritance.

  This example highlights the inheritable and perpetual nature of fee simple ownership, showing how full property rights can be passed down through generations without diminishing.