A Mortgage Information Guide

07 January 2009 11:52am

A Mortgage Information Guide

Very few people are in the financial position to buy a house or any other property cash. Therefore home mortgages are probably the most common type of mortgages.

What does the word "mortgage" mean anyway?

The word mortgage is from French origin and actually means "dead". But nowadays the term mortgages is used to refer to a loan for purchasing a property.

Very few people are in the financial position to buy a house or any other property cash. Therefore home mortgages are probably the most common type of mortgages.

A home mortgage has a "life" and a "term". The life will be the period of time in which your home will be paid off; it is usually 20, 25, or 30 years. The term refers to the interest rate and the time period over which you've agreed to.

mortgages types have more variety than ways to cook chicken. Shopping for a mortgage could probably be the most difficult part of buying a house.

Here are a few different types of mortgages to consider:

  • Low interest rate mortgage
  • Interest only mortgage
  • Adjustable rate mortgage
  • Fixed rate mortgage
  • Reverse mortgage
  • Assumable mortgage
Unlike other common loans, your home mortgage will probably be renegotiated repeatedly, before you pay it off.

In a nutshell a mortgage is a formal document which proves the legal claim or lien on your property that your lender holds as security for the money you borrowed. There are two people involved in a mortgage, you and the lender. You pledge the property as security for the repayment of the money you borrowed, but you do not transfer title to the lender. However, if you do not pay the debt as agreed the lender, through a court proceeding, can compel the sale of your property to pay off your debt.

Some states use the term First Trust Deeds to refer to mortgage loans.