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
Refinancing that omits some of the standard risk control measures and is therefore quicker and less costly. The rationale for streamlined refinancing is that, while it is an entirely new ...
A documentation requirement where the applicant's income is not disclosed. ...
The period used to calculate the monthly mortgage payment. The term is usually but not always the same as the maturity, which is the period over which the loan balance must be paid in ...
The monthly index is a ratio of monthly interest costs to total funds, expressed as a percentage. Annualized interest, the numerator, is calculated by multiplying the deposit balances at ...
The highest rate possible under an ARM contract; same as 'lifetime cap.' It is often expressed as a specified number of percentage points above the initial interest rate. ...
A federal agency that guarantees mortgage securities that are issued against pools of FHA and VA mortgages. ...
A rate lock, plus an option to reduce the rate if market interest rates decline during the lock period. ...
Adjustable rate mortgages on which the interest rate is mechanically determined based on the value of an interest rate index. Indexed ARMs are distinguished from Discretionary ARMs, in that ...
A reduction in the mortgage payment made by a homebuyer in the early years of the loan in exchange for an upfront cash deposit provided by the buyer, the seller, or both. How Temporary ...

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