Legal Definitions - reddendum

A reddendum is a specific clause found within a legal document, such as a deed or a lease. This clause allows the person transferring property or rights (known as the grantor) to hold back or reserve a new right or benefit for themselves from the property they are granting to another party. While it often involves a recurring payment like rent, it can also relate to other types of rights or interests that were previously part of the property being conveyed.

• Example 1: Reservation of Rent in a Lease

  Imagine a landlord who owns an apartment building and leases one of their units to a tenant. The lease agreement contains a clause stating that the tenant must pay a monthly rent of $1,800 to the landlord.

  This rent clause functions as a reddendum because the landlord, while granting the tenant the right to occupy the apartment, is simultaneously reserving a new financial benefit (the monthly rent) for themselves out of the property interest being conveyed to the tenant.

• Example 2: Reservation of Mineral Rights in a Land Sale

  Consider a rancher who sells a large tract of land to a real estate developer. In the deed transferring ownership, the rancher includes a specific clause explicitly reserving all subsurface mineral rights (such as oil, natural gas, or coal) for themselves, even though they are selling the surface land to the developer.

  Here, the rancher (the grantor) is conveying the land but is reserving a new and distinct right – the mineral rights – that was previously part of the entire property. This reddendum ensures the rancher retains potential future income from any minerals discovered beneath the sold property.

• Example 3: Reservation of an Easement for Access

  Suppose a homeowner owns a large property that includes a back parcel only accessible by crossing the front parcel. The homeowner decides to sell the front parcel to a new buyer but wants to retain access to their back parcel. The deed for the sale of the front parcel includes a clause stating that the homeowner (the grantor) reserves a permanent right-of-way (an easement) across a specific path on the sold front parcel to access their retained back parcel.

  By including this reddendum, the homeowner is granting the front parcel to the buyer but is simultaneously reserving a new right – the right to use a portion of the granted land for access – which is a benefit for their remaining property.