What Is A Lease Purchase Mortgage?

Definition of "What is a lease purchase mortgage?"

Wondering what is the best  lease purchase mortgage definition?

A lease purchase mortgage is a financing option that allows potential homebuyers to lease a property with the option to buy that very property at the end of the set term.

Rent-to-own properties come in two forms: a lease option and a lease purchase. While the former gives the Tenant the option but not the obligation to buy the home, a lease purchase mortgage can legally obligate you to buy the property at the end of the term, whether you have the money to do it or not.

With it, Tenants pay the monthly rent, which covers the owner's first mortgage payment plus an additional amount – typically deposited in an escrow account - as a savings deposit to accumulate cash for a down payment. Lease purchase mortgage typically last 2 to 3 years, after which the Tenant pays up the rest of the house and becomes the actual homeowner. Lease purchase mortgages are usually given to home buyers with poor credit score and/or to home buyers who are pending on the sale of their own home, so they need the time to collect the money and pass it forward.

The lease purchase mortgage is great for the home buyer but why would a home seller agree to a lease purchase mortgage?- you ask.

Well, if the housing market is saturated and they are having difficulty selling the property, this might be a way to attract home buyers that wouldn’t qualify for a regular mortgage. The home seller will still get the money in the end and in the meantime will, at least, have the rent income.

 

Real Estate Advice:

The legal terms can sometimes be tricky. Not to mention that certain aspects change from state to state. Have a local real estate agent review the contract when you sign your rent-to-own contract to make sure you are signing a lease option contract - if that’s the case - and not a purchase mortgage agreement.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Mortgage Questions

Popular Mortgage Glossary Terms

Standards imposed by lenders as conditions for granting loans, including maximum ratios of housing expense and total expense to income, maximum loan amounts, maximum loan-to-value ...

A government-owned or -affiliated lender that makes home loans directly to consumers. With minor exceptions, government in the U.S. has never loaned directly to consumers, but housing banks ...

A provision of a loan contract stipulating that if the property is sold the loan balance must be repaid. A mortgage containing a due-on-sale clause is not assumable. This prevents a home ...

On an ARM, the assumption that the value of the index to which the interest rate is tied does not change from its initial level. ...

Total costs charged to the borrower that must be paid at closing, by the borrower, the home seller, or the lender. In dealing directly with a lender, settlement costs can be divided into ...

A lender that holds the loans it originates in its portfolio rather than selling them. ...

The most recently published value of the index used to adjust the interest rate on an indexed ARM. ...

A lender who offers mortgage loans directly to the public. ...

When a borrower has difficulty making the scheduled payment. Position of the Lender: A good place to start is by understanding the position of the lender. A game plan for survival ...