Best Home Equity Loan,

LEVEL PAYMENT MORTGAGE
A mortgage which is scheduled to be repaid in equal periodic payments which include both principal and interest.

NET INCOME
The sum arrived at after deducting from gross income the expenses of a business or investment, including taxes and insurance, and allowances for vacancy and bad debts; what the property will earn in a given year's operation.

LOAN-TO-VALUE RATIO (LTV)
The percentage of the loan amount to the appraised value (or the sales price, whichever is less) of the property.

PRESCRIPTION
The acquiring of a right in property, usually in the form of an intangible property right such as an easement or right-of-way, by means of adverse use of property that is continuous and uninterrupted for the prescriptive period.

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION (FTC)
A federal agency created to investigate and eliminate unfair and deceptive trade practices in business.

NON-COMPETITION CLAUSE
A provision in a contract or lease prohibiting a person from operating or controlling a nearby business which would compete with one of the parties to the contract.

GOOD FAITH ESTIMATE
Written estimate of the settlement costs the borrower will likely have to pay at closing. Under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), the lender is required to provide this disclosure to the borrower within three days of receiving a loan application.

EXTENDER CLAUSE
A "carry over" clause (referred to as a safety clause) contained in a listing which provides that a broker is still entitled to a commission for a set of period of time after the listing has expired if the property is sold to a former prospect of the broker.

CHAIN OF TITLE
The chronological order of conveyance of a property from the original owner to the present owner.

LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
A partnership formed by two or more persons having as members one or more general partners and one or more limited partners.

LOCK OR LOCK-IN
A lender's guarantee of an interest rate for a set period of time. The time period is usually that between loan application approval and loan closing. The lock-in protects you against rate increases during that time.

PORTE COCHERE
A roofed structure extending from the entrance of a building over an adjacent driveway to shelter those getting into or out of vehicles.

PRINCIPAL
The capital sum; interest is paid on the principal. NOT spelled principle.

OFFSITE COSTS
Costs such as for sewers, streets, utilities, etc., which are incurred in the development of raw land, but are not connected with the actual construction of the buildings(onsite costs).

ANCHOR TENANT
Major department or chain stores which are strategically located at shopping centers so as to give maximum exposure to smaller satellite stores.

PRIVATE MORTGAGE INSURANCE (PMI)
Insurance to protect the lender in case you default on your loan. With conventional loans, mortgage insurance is generally not required if you make a down payment of at least 20% of the home's purchase price. (Note, however, that FHA and VA loans have different insurance guidelines.)

TENANCY BY THE ENTIRETY
A special joint tenancy between a lawfully married husband and wife, which places all title to the property into the marital unit, with both spouses having an equal, undivided interest in the whole property.

UPSET PRICE
A minimum price set by a court in a judicial foreclosure, below which the property may not be sold by a court appointed commissioner at public auction; the minimum price which can be accepted for the property after the court has had the property appraised.

LOSS PAYEE
The person designated on an insurance policy to be paid in case the insured property is damaged or destroyed.

FEE SIMPLE
Absolute ownership of real property.

RECONVEYANCE
The transfer of property back to the owner when a mortgage loan is fully repaid.

REMAINDER ESTATE
A future interest in real estate created at the same time and by the same instrument as another estate, and limited to arise immediately upon the termination of the prior estate.

MORTGAGEE
The one who receives and holds a mortgage as security for a debt; the lender; a lender or creditor who holds a mortgage as security for payment of an obligation.