Doesn’t “FD” Stand for “Fire Department?”
“Things should be made as simple as possible — but not simpler.”
–Albert Einstein
I’m all for making things simpler when it comes to real estate terminology.
But, there comes a point where it . . . becomes kind of silly.
Exhibit A: showing instructions that refer to the front door — as in, the location of the lockbox — as “FD.”
No, Realtors don’t commonly abbreviate “Front Door” with “FD” . . .
Here’s a key to the other, genuine real estate abbreviations:
FSF: finished square feet.
FSZ: foundation size.
FR: family room.
FP: fireplace.
P.S.: Why did the names of some Presidents (FDR, LBJ, JFK) get abbreviated, but not others (Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton)?
It was based purely on length — specifically, newspaper editors’ need to fit the President’s name in a headline.
In real estate, the limiting factor is the length of each field on MLS.
