Definition of "Discretionary ARM"

An ARM on which the lender has the right to change the interest rate at any time, for any reason, by any amount, subject only to a requirement that the borrower be notified in advance. The discretionary ARM is at the opposite pole from Indexed ARM's on which rate adjustments are completely rule-based. Discretionary ARM's were long the standard mortgage in the U.K. and in other English-speaking countries that imported it from the U.K., such as India and South Africa. They never caught on in the U.S., where the indexed ARM prevails.

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 Terms

The minimum allowable ratio of down payment to sale price on any loan program. If the minimum is 10%, for example, it means that you must make a down payment of at least $10,000 on a ...

The interest rate adjusted for intra-year compounding. Because interest on a mortgage is calculated monthly, a 6% mortgage actually has a rate of .5% per month. If there were no principal ...

The monthly mortgage payment which, if maintained unchanged through the remaining life of the loan at the then-existing interest rate, will pay off the loan at term. ...

The lender's risk that, between the time a lock commitment is given to the borrower and the time the loan is closed, interest rates will rise and the lender will take a loss on selling ...

A lender commitment to make a mortgage loan to a specified borrower, prior to the identification of the property that will be mortgaged. On a pre-approval, unlike a pre-qualification, the ...

The definition of an assumable mortgage is what happens when a buyer assumes or takes over a mortgage that the seller contracted. This is a type of financial arrangement that passes an ...

A written document evidencing the lien on a property taken by a lender as security for the repayment of a loan. The term 'mortgage' or 'mortgage loan' is used loosely to refer both to the ...

The maximum allowable increase in the interest rate on an ARM each time the rate is adjusted. It is usually one or two percentage points. ...

A lender that provides loans through mortgage brokers or correspondents. ...

Popular Mortgage Questions