A method of selling and financing real estate; also called a land sale contract or a contract for sale.The owner signs a contract agreeing to transfer the property to the buyer after the buyer makes all required regular payments over a certain period of time.Unlike a mortgage,the seller avoids many problems associated with foreclosure and possibly bankruptcy if there is a default. The practice is looked upon with disfavor by courts, which typically try to find ways to convert the relationship in some sort of equitable mortgage,and thus grant the consumer protections afforded by the law.