Which statement correctly defines a remainder?

• A. A future interest retained by the grantor after a life estate.
• B. A future interest created elsewhere.
• C. A remainder must vest before possession and is created in a different conveyance.
• D. A remainder is a future interest created in a grantee that can become possessory upon expiration of a prior possessory estate, created in the same conveyance in which the remainder is created.

Answer: (D)

Remainder is a future interest that sits in a grantee and becomes possessory when the preceding possessory estate ends, and it must be created in the same instrument that created that preceding estate. This is why the defining statement is the one describing a future interest created in a grantee that can become possessory upon expiration of a prior possessory estate, created in the same conveyance in which the remainder is created. The other descriptions miss key points: a future interest kept by the grantor after a life estate is a reversion, not a remainder; a remainder created elsewhere wouldn’t follow the life estate in the same instrument; and saying it must vest before possession and be created in a different conveyance misstates both when vesting occurs and where the remainder is created.