Acceleration Clause
Definition of "Acceleration Clause"
Acceleration Clause is a contractual provision inserted in a mortgage, a bond, a deed of trust or other credit vehicles, that gives the lender the right to demand repayment of the entire loan balance. Usually, such a clause becomes operational when there has been a default in payments of interest or principal or both.
When the acceleration clause is activated, the entire principal sum is called in and becomes due and payable. This fact would precipitate a foreclosure in the case of real estate, or bankruptcy action if the monies were not paid at the time of the call.
Acceleration clauses are created to protect the lender from borrower default and other risks. It prevents/deals with payment delinquencies, but can, on rare occasions, be structured for other occurrences too.
Let's see an acceleration clause in effect scenario:
Home Seller Barbara makes a Land Contract with Home Buyer Paul. He started paying correctly and living in Barbara's former house. He has paid already $30,000 of its $100,000 contract. At the end of it, he'll be the owner of the house. BUT: he didn't pay for the last 3 months, so the acceleration clause kicked in, Barbara filed for a land contract forfeiture and now Paul has to pay the rest of the $70,000 with one swing if he wants to still be able to get the house. Or else, they're done.
Accelerate your home buying/home selling process: find a real estate agent
Popular Real Estate Terms
Federal agency that monitors the federal savings an loan associations and federally insured state-charted S&Ls. It acts as a central bank. ...
Room in a home where the occupants spend their leisure time. ...
Where property is sold to the highest bidder. ...
Sometimes, a perplexing legal term (a genuine headscratcher) emerges when buying or selling a property. You know you should know it, but its precise definition escapes you. Today's special ...
In urban areas, one way to organize urban development is to keep track of building density. The building density definition is a way to determine the concentration of buildings in a given ...
Substituting one party for another in an action giving that party full rights or claims. Foe example, an insurance company pays the insured for a fire loss caused to the home by a third ...
A written agreement between institutional investors to buy or sell ownership shares in mortgages. An institution such as a bank can agree to buy a certain number of shares in a single or ...
As a hopeful house hunter, renter, or seasoned real estate investor, you've probably come across baffling terms. One such term is "adhesion contract." It might sound complex, but don't ...
Self-employed contractor who may perform work on a structure such as residential or commercial property. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.