🪨 A burden 📜 A legal claim

incumbrance

9.9

A legal claim on property that limits its use or value

noun
/ɪnˈkʌmbrəns/

Archaic

: gravamen

Before purchasing land, make sure to check for any incumbrance such as mortgages or liens.

Examples

He could not transfer the title because there was an outstanding incumbrance on the estate.
The property was sold free of any incumbrance or legal claim against it.
The property has a significant incumbrance that affects its sale.
Many buyers avoid properties with an incumbrance.
Before purchasing land, make sure to check for any incumbrance such as mortgages or liens.
He could not transfer the title because there was an outstanding incumbrance on the estate.
Many buyers avoid properties with an incumbrance that could complicate the transaction.

Synonyms

encumbrance

vsincumbrance

Formal

1 8.9

A legal claim on property, such as a mortgage, that can stop it being sold

focuses on lowering property market value or restricting its use

Antonyms

freedom

489 1.1

Not having to do something a rule requires

How Restrictive

seizure

Formal

71 6.1

lien

Specialized

30 9.4

incumbrance

Archaic

9.9

mortgage

Specialized

526 5.4

covenant

Formal

44 7.2

easement

Specialized

9 9.5

Surface Forms

incumbrance singular

incumbrances plural

Morphology

incumbrance = encumber (semi-transparent) = encumber + ance

The legal sense is a specialized extension of 'a burden' (a claim on property) and may not be inferable by learners unfamiliar with legal usage.

Etymology

Incumbrance comes from Latin parts in- 'on' and cumbere 'to lie down'. In law, an incumbrance is a claim that 'lies on' a property, like a mortgage or lien, and the same root is in cumbersome, which helps you remember that a legal incumbrance 'sits on' the land and can limit its use or value.