Property Rights & Ownership

    Fee Simple Defeasible

    A fee simple estate held subject to a condition, so ownership can be lost or revert if the condition is violated.

    Fee simple defeasible is ownership that continues only as long as a stated condition is met. If the condition is broken, the estate can end. In one form, title automatically reverts to the grantor; in another, the grantor has the right to retake the property.

    It differs from fee simple absolute, which carries no such condition and lasts indefinitely.

    On the exam

    If ownership carries a condition that could end it, the estate is defeasible, not absolute.

    Exam trap

    Fee simple absolute has no conditions. The presence of a condition that can cut the estate short makes it defeasible.

    Tested in

    Property Rights (8% of the exam)

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    This definition is Florida real estate exam-prep education, not legal, tax, or professional advice. Verify current rules against the official source before relying on them for a real transaction. Back to the full glossary.