Definition of "Obligor"

Joshua L. Cole real estate agent

Written by

Joshua L. Coleelite badge icon

Venture Realty Group

The definition of obligor is a position that comes from obligation and indicates a party that has ‘promised’ to perform a specific act. In the financing world, an obligor is also known as a debtor. It can apply to someone who is obliged legally or through a contract to pay a debt, to provide a service, to transfer a title, or provide benefit to another. 

The meaning of the term “obligor” is used in financial context to refer to an issuer of a bond. The bond issuer is contractually obliged to meet the required repayments and interest payments for an outstanding debt. The one who receives the compensation or benefits is the obligee.

How does an obligor work?

As mentioned above, an obligor’s position comes with an obligation that legally bounds the obligor to the obligee. The most common types of obligors are debt holders. The obligor is required contractually to repay their debt and to repay interest. Obligors can be found in corporate settings or personal settings. We’ll take a look at their obligations in each situation.

Corporate Setting Obligor

In the corporate world, an obligor doesn’t only deal with the payment requirements, but also with covenants which can be affirmative or negative. The affirmative covenant is a requirement of the obligor, like meeting a target or benchmark in performance. The negative covenant is a restriction that limits the obligor’s ability to do something, like changing the structure of a company’s leadership.

 

Because obligors are contractually obliged by these covenants, they have little freedom from them regarding payments. A delay in payments can have long-term repercussions and can be seen as a default for the bond issuer.

Personal Setting Obligor

A person can become an obligor in their personal life as well. In family disputes, divorce affects real estate, but there are situations when the court issues an order that obliges one of the parents to pay a monthly fee in child support so that the other parent can use it to raise the children. This would make the paying parent an obligor. A personal setting obligor can request a recalculation of the child support if their financial status changes as child support result from the obligor’s salary.

In case the obligor loses their job, and they do not request a recalculation of child support, they can face other problems. The court can impose wage garnishments and loss of driver’s license, amongst other things.

 

When an insurance company has a life insurance policy, and the insured individual dies, the insurance company becomes the obligor. Through the life insurance policy the insurance company is contractually obliged to compensate the beneficiary of the life insurance policy as stipulated within the policy itself.

Real Estate Tips:

We at RealEstateAgent.com feel it is our obligation to pass good real estate knowledge forward, so free feel to use our real estate glossary terms.

And contact a real estate agent; they’re the obligor when it comes to responsible services for people buying or selling a home!

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

Provision at the end of a document, such as a will, wherein the witnesses sign that the instrument has been executed before them. This may be useful involving transfers of real estate. ...

An idiomatic expression indicating the desire of an individual to understand new surroundings and all of its nuances including its quality and character. The derivation of the expression ...

Also called biannual; twice a year. An example is when lease payments are due January 1 and July 1. ...

Generation X, also known as Gen X , is the generational extract of Americans that are sandwiched between the Baby Boomer Generation and the Millennial generation (also called ...

In a mortgage, a provision that allows part of the security to be released from any further lien obligations upon the borrower's making a given payment. For example, a person may get a ...

Method of eliminating the spaces between the solid fragments in fresh cement or mortar during the mixing process. This is done by a combination of constantly mixing, turning, centrifuging, ...

Same as term soil porosity: Extent to which soil has cavities or pores, thereby allowing water to pass through. ...

Also called triple net lease. The lessee pays not only a fixed rental charge but also expenses on the tented property, including maintenance. ...

Multiple Listing is the kind of Listing that is registered by a broker or a real estate agent at the Multiple Listing System (MLS). If a house is directly sold by an owner – the ...

Popular Real Estate Questions