In modern-day real estate transactions, title companies ensure that sellers have the right to transfer ownership, that no liens exist on the property and that the boundary lines are where they are said to be. But in the Talmud’s day, transactions were executed directly by the parties, who weren’t always as precise about things as they could have been, as we see in a mishnah on today’s daf.
If one says to another: I am selling you a plot of earth (the size of a) beit kor, measured with a rope, and the seller gave the buyer the slightest amount less, the seller must deduct. If the seller gave the buyer the slightest amount more, the buyer must return.
If a seller precisely stipulates they are selling a beit kor of land, then the parcel that changes hands should be exactly a beit kor. If not, the parties are required to correct for any deviation. If the transferred land is even slightly less than this amount, the seller must deduct the difference from the purchase price. And if the land is slightly more than this amount, the buyer must return the difference to the seller.
The mishnah goes on to say that if the seller stipulates that they are selling “more or less” a beit kor, then there is more wiggle room, establishing an acceptable margin of error of 1/24th. In other words, if the land sold is within 1/24 of a beit kor in either direction, the sale is final. But if the variance is larger than 1/24th of the total area, then the difference is considered to be significant and the party who lost out should be compensated.
Next, the mishnah turns to the particulars of the compensation:
What does the buyer return to the seller? Money. And if the seller wishes, the buyer returns land.
If a buyer got too much land and has to make restitution to the seller, how is this done? The mishnah establishes that the default position is for the buyer to pay for the extra land they have acquired. But if the seller prefers, returning land is acceptable as well. Giving the seller the power to decide prevents the seller from ending up with a piece of land that is too small to serve a practical purpose.
It’s worth pointing out that the mishnah does not ask about what happens if the buyer receives a smaller parcel. Perhaps, it is clear that the rule in this case is the same as in the first case — if the land that the buyer received is smaller than it should have been, they should get back a proportional amount of the purchase price. This makes sense as the seller may not own a small plot of land adjacent to the original parcel that can be turned over to the buyer to complete the transaction and it would be unwieldy to require the seller to purchase such a plot and then transfer it to the buyer. It’s much more practical to have the seller refund the difference in cash.
In general, the Mishnah prefers specific statements that leave no doubt about what the speaker intends. If you’re selling land, it’s best to be precise. But regardless of how precise the seller’s language is, the mishnah is clear that a transaction is problematic when the property being sold does not line up with the terms discussed. Given the complications described by the mishnah, I have developed a new appreciation for the value of title companies and the services that they provide.
Read all of Bava Batra 103 on Sefaria.
This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on October 6, 2024. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.
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