Margin
The margin is simply the number of basis points a lender adds to an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) loan index in order to determine the interest rate. In other words, the interest rate of the ARM equals the index rate plus the margin. The margin is the lender's markup. It represents the lender's cost of doing business (in addition to the profit that the lender expects to make on the loan). The actual value of the margin may vary from one lender to another, but usually remains constant throughout the life of the loan. |
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Market Value
The market value of a property is recognized as the highest price that the property can reasonably be expected to sell for. The market value is determined through a market analysis, which reviews the recent sales of all comparable properties within the same geographic location. |
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Marketable Title
A title is said to be marketable when its history has been researched and it has been fount to be free and clear of any objectionable liens, clouds, or other legal defects. A marketable title enables an owner to sell the property freely, and enables potential buyers to accept the title with confidence and without objection. |
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Metes and Bounds
Within a property deed, the description of the location that defines the boundaries by directions and distances (with precise terminal points and angles) is often labeled as "metes and bounds". "Metes" refers to the length or measurement (often but not necessarily in meters), while "bounds" simply means the boundaries. |
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Minimum Property Requirements (MPR)
FHA and VA financed properties must meet a certain threshold of acceptable standards in terms of safety, sanitation, and structural soundness. Survey and review of MPR is not a substitute for private inspections, but simply a prerequisite for loan approval. |
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Modular Housing (Manufactured Homes)
The component parts of prefabricated dwellings are created at a factory location, and then transported in segments to the final destination for assembly. Consequently, production time is streamlined and labor costs are greatly reduced. However, homes constructed in this manner are still required to comply with local building codes. |
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Moratorium
For various foreseen and sometimes unforeseen reasons, local governments may exercise the power to suspend real estate development. This is often done at times when the local infrastructure (including things like utilities, schools, emergency and medical services, roads, etc.) has been judged to be inadequate to accommodate any further expansion of the community at the present time. |
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Mortgage
A mortgage is in actuality a legally recognized lien or claim against real property given by the borrower to the lender, in which the property itself is pledged as collateral for the repayment of the loan. Mortgages are usually structured to accommodate a 10 to 30 year time frame, during which regularly scheduled payments are expected (conditions and procedures for foreclosure are usually stipulated within the mortgage agreement in event of default). Mortgage payments themselves, under government-insured or loan-guarantee provisions, may include things like escrow amounts covering taxes, hazard insurance, water charges, and special assessments. |
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Mortgage Commitment
Lending institutions can provide home buyers with a written promissory note that guarantees a mortgage of a stated amount will be furnished within a certain time frame (and under other terms and conditions specified within the document). |
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Mortgage Insurance
An insurance policy protecting the lender in the event of default on the loan (caused by things like the death or disability of the borrower) is usually required in some form on loans that have a loan-to-value ration higher than eighty percent, as well as most FHA and first-time homebuyer loans. Often, borrowers do not pay mortgage insurance premiums directly. Instead, they pay a higher interest rate to the lender, which in turn pays for the mortgage insurance. |
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Mortgagee
The "mortgagee" is the lender or lending institution in a mortgage agreement. |
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Mortgagor
The "mortgagor" is the borrower in a mortgage agreement. |
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Multi-Dwelling Unit
Some housing units may accommodate more than one family, but are financed through a single mortgage. |
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Multiple Listing
Many licensed realtors are members of a Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which is simply an association of real estate professionals operating for the purpose of pooling listings and sharing commissions under industry-standard regulations and procedures. Inclusion in such a resource gives the exclusive-right-to-sell listings of member realtors the greatest possible market exposure. |
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