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
A Web site of an individual lender offering loans to consumers. Most Internet shoppers want a list of lenders in whom they can have confidence, who will provide them with the information ...
A mortgage on which half the monthly payment is paid twice a month. It should be called a 'semi-monthly mortgage' but market practice often trumps logic. In contrast to a biweekly, a ...
A lenders requirements regarding how information about income and assets must be provided by the applicant and how it will be used by the lender. The following categories have evolved in ...
The definition of credit risk is at the core of lending. Banks lend money to businesses and individuals and expect to recover the principal and win interest. Banks offer a variety of loans, ...
The policy of a second mortgage lender toward allowing a borrower to refinance the first mortgage while leaving the second in place. ...
One of many interest rate indexes used to determine interest rate adjustments on an adjustable rate mortgage. ...
A charge imposed by the lender if the borrower pays off the loan early. The charge is usually expressed as a percent of the loan balance at the time of prepayment or a specified number of ...
Assuming responsibility for someone else's payment obligation in the event that that party defaults. ...
Making a payment larger than the fully amortizing payment as a way of retiring the loan before term. Making Extra Payments as an Investment: Suppose you add $100 to the scheduled ...

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