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

In general, a Down payment is a one-time payment a buyer makes to diminish the risks of the seller of expensive goods like a car, or a house. In Real Estate, the home buyer makes a down ...

Fixed rate Mortgage is a type of loan that maintains a specified interest rate for the lifetime (or maturity) of the mortgage.According to the Federal National Mortgage Association, ...

The method of financing used when a borrower contracts to have a house built, as opposed to purchasing a completed house. Construction can be financed in two ways. One way is to use two ...

Deceptive practices used by mortgage loan providers and other participants in the mortgage process. Scams by Loan Providers: Lenders and mortgage brokers may employ a number of tricks ...

A lenders requirements regarding how information about income and assets must be provided by the applicant and how it will be used by the lender. The following categories have evolved in ...

A comprehensive and time-adjusted measure of loan cost to the borrower. IC on a Mortgage: IC is what economists call an 'internal rate or return.' It takes account of all payments made by ...

Authorization by the lender for the borrower to pay taxes and insurance directly. This is in contrast to the standard procedure, where the lender adds a charge to the monthly mortgage ...

A borrower, usually refinancing rather than purchasing a home, who allows a lock to expire when interest rates go down in order to lock again at the lower rate. ...

A reduction in the mortgage payment made by a homebuyer in the early years of the loan in exchange for an upfront cash deposit provided by the buyer, the seller, or both. How Temporary ...