housing

30-day notice

A 30-Day notice is usually used by a landlord to terminate or change a month-to-month lease or a periodic lease. A 30-day notice does not apply to fixed-term leases, as these types of leases impose an obligation upon...

adjustable rate mortgage (ARM)

Adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) is a type of mortgage where the interest rate changes over time. In contrast, fixed rate mortgages made for 15, 20, or 30 years have a set amount of interest on the loan that does not change. ARMs come in many...

adjusted basis

Adjusted basis is the cost basis of an asset adjusted for various events during its ownership. It is usually used to calculate an owner’s capital gain or loss for income tax purposes when the property is sold, or to calculate an inheritor’s...

adjustment date

Adjustment date is the date on which a financial term of a contract or transaction is set to change. In real estate, it usually refers to the date on which the interest rate of an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) changes. An ARM’s interest rate...

adjustment period

Adjustment period is the time within which the interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) can reset. It is the scheduled amount of time between each adjustment date.

Adjustment periods are set at month-to-month, semi...

ARM

ARM stands for ‘adjustable-rate mortgage’, which is a type of home loan that has a fixed interest rate for an initial period of time, then after a certain point the rate changes, which means it is no longer a fixed interest rate, but rather...

assumable mortgage

Assumable mortgage is a term for mortgages that can be transferred to another person. If a mortgage is assumable, the selling owner transfers the title and mortgage to the buyer instead of the buyer getting a different mortgage. This process...

biweekly mortgage

Biweekly mortgage is defined as an option of paying a mortgage, in which payments are made every 2 weeks as opposed to the traditional payment schedule in which 12 monthly payments are made every year.

[Last updated in...

bona fide purchaser

A bona fide purchaser is someone who exchanges value for property without any reason to suspect irregularities in the transaction. By definition, a bona fide purchaser cannot have actual or constructive notice as to defects in the seller’s...

building and loan association

Building and loan associations were organizations that provided loans to members for buying homes. The organizations were formed by a community of low income members that made regular payments into the fund. Members owned shares in the...

Pages