Definition of "Mortgage loan"

A mortgage loan is nothing more than a real estate debt instrument. Acquiring a mortgage loan is the most common method of financing a home in America. The benefits are tremendous and the availability of it is dictated both by the risk the borrower presents to the lender, and the present moment of the country’s economy.

Here’s the play-by-play to better visualize the whole idea of a mortgage loan:

Jerry wants to buy a house that costs $200,000. But he doesn’t have 200k to spend at once - or he does but spending that amount of money will damage his cash flow. Because he doesn’t want to have a house but live miserably – plus, every new house comes with hidden costs…- he goes to a mortgage lender to ask for a mortgage loan.

The lender checks Jerry’s credit score and puts it against the price of the house to figure out if they are willing to take the risk on Jerry’s dream and financial health. If they are, then the mortgage loan is on. They will pay the $200,000 directly to the home seller and sign a contract with Jerry to allow him to move the home, that is “jointly owned” by the bank and Jerry. Now, every month, Jerry has to pay a certain amount of money combined with a specified (and agreed by contract) amount of interest that is deducted from the total amount. With every payment, Jerry acquires more equity to the home.

If everything goes along smoothly, Jerry pays the mortgage loan in its entirety, erases his debt, and the house becomes 100% his, thank you very much mortgage lender bye-bye.

However, if it doesn’t… big problems ahead.

A mortgage loan basically means that, as collateral, is the house itself. If something happens and Jerry defaults too much and fails to terminate his debt in a timely manner, the house goes in foreclosure and heads to auction so the lender can return its investment, and Jerry – having paid from 1% to 99%; doesn’t matter – loses everything.

Real Estate tip:

Here’s a great sort of mortgage loan: we will give you the best local real estate agents and you’ll give us… well, nothing because The OFFICIAL Real Estate Agent Directory® is 100% FREE! So I guess it’s not a mortgage loan after all, right? It’s just amazing. Yeah, we think so too. Enjoy!

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

What does Act of God mean? Acts of God or “force majeure” is typically how an insurance policy classifies peril situations that could not be prevented or defended by men. ...

Rights granted to owners of property restricted to conservation use, historic preservation, or some other low density function to sell to other landowners allowing them to develop their ...

Doing business as, or DBA, means an official moniker for your enterprise or company. Regularly, a DBA is a state certificate serving as a registration name and issued under a ...

Escrow, often known as collateral, is a legal concept. A third party is designated to hold an asset, resource, or a sum of money used in a transaction on behalf of the other two parties, ...

A court order issued to a defendant in an action either prohibiting or commanding the performance of a defined act. A violation of an injunction could lead to a contempt of court citation. ...

Right of any government agency to enact and enforce certain regulations to provide for the health and safety and general welfare of the public. ...

Welcome to the world of magical yet perplexing real estate! Undeniably, there's a lot to learn, but we're here to explain miscellaneous terminology so that you can make educated decisions. ...

Contractual clause freeing a party from personal liability. Foe example, an exculpatory clause in a mortgage agreement provides a mortgagor the ability to surrender a mortgage property in ...

Investments you can hold on to all your life or sell for a profit when they have appreciated in value. Real assets are those investments you can put hands on. Real property includes real ...

Popular Real Estate Questions