Encumbrances, Liens, Title, and Transfer of Ownership
Encumbrances and liens
An encumbrance is anything that burdens title without preventing transfer: easements, encroachments, CC&Rs, licenses, liens, and deed restrictions. Easements can be created by express grant, implication, necessity, or prescription, and terminated by release, merger, abandonment, or prescription. A license is permission, revocable and not an interest in land.
Classify liens two ways: voluntary (mortgage, deed of trust, mechanic's lien by contract) vs. involuntary (judgment, tax, mechanic's lien by operation of law); and specific (attaches to one parcel) vs. general (all property). Priority generally follows recording order, but real property tax liens and federal tax liens have special priority rules, and a mechanic's lien often relates back to the start of the work.
Deeds and transfer
A valid deed needs a grantor who is competent, a grantee, words of conveyance, a legal description, execution by the grantor, and delivery with intent to convey; consideration is not required for validity. Compare the general warranty deed (broad covenants), special warranty deed (only the grantor's own acts), bargain-and-sale deed, and quitclaim deed (no warranties at all - "whatever interest I have").
Title passes by voluntary alienation, involuntary alienation (foreclosure, bankruptcy, eminent domain, escheat), or descent. Recording protects a purchaser for value without notice; recording a void deed cures nothing. Title evidence may come from an abstract with an attorney's opinion, a title commitment and policy (Schedule A for the insured/estate, Schedule B for exceptions), or a quiet title suit.
Traps: a quitclaim conveys only what the grantor owns, and an unrecorded deed can still be valid between the parties. Rule of thumb: ask (1) is it an encumbrance or a defect in title, and (2) who recorded first and with what notice?