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 particular computerized system for doing automated underwriting. Mortgage insurers and some large lenders have developed such systems, but the most widely used are Fannie Mae's 'Desktop ...
Same as term Bridge Loan: A short-term loan, usually from a bank, that 'bridges' the period between the closing of a home purchase and the closing of a home sale. To qualify for a bridge ...
A mortgage on which interest is calculated daily based on the balance on the day of payment, rather than monthly, as on the standard mortgage. ...
A second mortgage on a property that is not paid off when the first mortgage is refinanced. The second mortgage lender must allow subordination of the second to the new first mortgage. ...
In general, a Down payment is a one-time payment a buyer makes to diminish the risks of the seller of expensive goods like a car, or a house. In Real Estate, the home buyer makes a down ...
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 definition of affordability in real estate is simply a buyer’s capacity to afford a house. Affordability is usually expressed in terms of the maximum amount a buyer will be able ...
A mortgage on which the interest rate is adjustable based on an interest rate index, and the monthly payment adjusts based on a wage and salary index. Dual index mortgages are not written ...
An option exercised by the borrower, at the time of the loan application or later, to 'lock in' the rates and points prevailing in the market at that time. When lenders 'lock/' they ...

Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.