Mortgage Price
The interest rate or rates and upfront fees paid to the lender and mortgage broker. Some upfront charges are expressed as a percent of the loan, and some are expressed in dollars. The price includes the total of each type. On a fixed-rate mortgage (FRM), one interest rate is preset for the life of the loan. On an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM), the rate is preset for an initial period, ranging from one month to 10 years, and then can change. For ARM shoppers who are uncertain about how long they will be in their house, the price includes ARM features that affect the ARM rate after the initial rate period ends. These include the margin, maximum rate, rate adjustment period, and rate adjustment caps. The margin is the amount that is added to the index used by the ARM in determining the rate after the initial rate period ends. In a stable interest rate environment, the ARM rate will become the index plus margin, called the 'fully indexed rate.' Both the index and the margin are specified in the ARM contract. The maximum rate is the highest rate permitted by the ARM contract. It tells shoppers how high the ARM rate can go in a rising rate environment. The rate adjustment period and rate adjustment caps indicate how often the rate is changed and the maximum amount of any change. Hence, they indicate whether any rate increases at the end of the initial rate period will be abrupt or gradual.
Popular Mortgage Terms
Insurance provided the lender against loss on a mortgage in the event of borrower default. In the U.S., all FHA and VA mortgages are insured by the federal government. On other mortgages, ...
The federal law that specifies the information that must be provided to borrowers on different types of loans. Also, the form used to disclose this information. Truth in Lending (TIL) is ...
The provision of the U.S. tax code that allows homeowners to deduct mortgage interest payments from income before computing taxes. Points and origination fees are also deductible, but not ...
A mortgage loan transaction in which the lender assumes responsibility for an existing mortgage. A wrap-around can be attractive to home sellers because they may be able to sell their ...
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 ...
USDA loans are a form of government-backed financing for both first-time home buyers and move up buyers looking for a second or third property. These loans have little to do with ...
The upfront and/or periodic charges that the borrower pays for mortgage insurance. There are different mortgage insurance plans with differing combinations of monthly, annual, and upfront ...
A mortgage Web site designed to provide leads to lenders. A 'lead' is a packet of information about a consumer in the market for a loan. Lenders pay for leads, and these sites are an ...
The definition of a reverse mortgage is important for homeowners 62 and older who want to supplement their retirement income. What exactly is a reverse mortgage? Some say that it is the ...

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