ground rent

noun

: the rent paid by a lessee for the use of land especially for building

Examples of ground rent in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
All ground lease co-op shareholders are made aware that ground rents might occasionally increase, that their apartments will lose value as the ground lease agreement approaches expiration, and that their ownership interest in the co-op will end when the long-term ground lease expires. Jay Neveloff, New York Daily News, 11 June 2025 Annual building service charges are £4,520 ($5,600), and ground rent is £150 ($185). Michael Kaminer, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025 The best predictor of future ground rent stability is the tenant’s success at the property. Joshua Stein, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024 In another ongoing case, a landowning family recently took back the midtown skyscraper Tower 57, where the real-estate firm owned by Charles Cohen stopped paying ground rent after failing to agree with the family on a residential conversion plan. Paula Aceves, Curbed, 31 Oct. 2024 All other monthly payments: £11 phone; £200 towards quarterly property management and annual ground rent; £35 gym membership; £10 annual yoga app membership; £600 to savings account monthly. refinery29.com, 12 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1667, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ground rent was in 1667

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ground rent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ground%20rent. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Legal Definition

ground rent

noun
1
: the rent paid by a lessee for the use of land especially for building
2
: a rent charge reserved to himself or herself or his or her heirs by the grantor of land in fee simple, on perpetual lease, or on lease for a renewable term of years

Note: Ground rent in this sense is found chiefly in Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!