Which lease describes a tenant occupying land with ownership of the land remaining with the landlord?

• A. Escalated Lease
• B. Index Lease
• C. Ground Lease
• D. Proprietary Lease

Answer: (C)

Ground leases describe a tenant occupying land while ownership of the land remains with the landlord. In this arrangement the land is leased for a long term, the tenant uses and may build on the land, but the underlying title to the land stays with the landlord. At the end of the term, the land remains with the landlord, and what happens to any structures or improvements is defined by the lease. This fits because the key feature is the landlord retaining ownership of the land itself. Escalated leases involve rent increases over time, index leases adjust rent with a price index, and proprietary leases are used in housing cooperatives where residents lease their unit while owning shares in the cooperative.