Glossary

A clause in your mortgage which allows the lender to demand payment of the outstanding loan balance for various reasons. The most common reasons for accelerating a loan are if the borrower defaults on the loan or transfers title to another individual without informing the lender.

A mortgage in which the interest changes periodically, according to corresponding fluctuations in an index. All ARMs are tied to indexes

The loan payment consists of a portion which will be applied to pay the accruing interest on a loan, with the remainder being applied to the principal. Over time, the interest portion decreases as the loan balance decreases, and the amount applied to principal increases so that the loan is paid off (amortized) in the specified time.

This is not the note rate on your loan. It is a value created according to a government formula intended to reflect the true annual cost of borrowing, expressed as a percentage.

An estimate or opinion of the value oa a piece of property as of a certain date. A written justification of the price paid for a property, primarily based on an analysis of comparable sales of similar properties nearby.

An opinion of a property's fair market value, based on an appraiser's knowledge, experience, and analysis of the property.

An individual qualified by education, training, and experience to estimate the value of real property and personal property. Although some appraisers work directly for mortgage lenders, most are independent.

The increase in the value of a property due to changes in market conditions, inflation, or other causes.

The valuation placed on property by a public tax assessor for purposes of taxation.

A governments valuation of property for tax purposes. The placing of a value on property for the purpose of taxation.

A public official who establishes the value of a property for taxation purposes.

Items of value owned by an individual. All the resources of a person or business, as accounts and note receivable, cash, property and etc.

When ownership of your mortgage is transferred from one company or individual to another, it is called an assignment.

To transfer a right or an interesting property to another

One to whom a right or interest has been assigned

One who assigns a right or interest to another.

A mortgage that can be assumed by the buyer when a home is sold. Usually, the borrower must "qualify" in order to assume the loan.

When a buyer takes on personal responsibility for paying off a mortgage or deed of trust that was originally taken out by the seller. The terms applied when a buyer assumes the seller's mortgage

Court ordered seizure of property belonging to a defendant in a lawsuit, so that it will be available to satisfy a judgment. In the case of real property, attachment creates a lien.

Any person authorized to act for another by a power of attorney: not necessarily a lawyer.

Authority actually given to an agent by the principal, either expressly or by implication.

When land is suddenly (not gradually) torn away by the action of water potentially causing a transfer of title 2. A sudden shift in a watercourse, which doesn’t cause a transfer of title

A type of construction of a building. The exterior framing of the building is shaped like the letter A.

An organization composed of title insurance companies, which has adopted certain insurance policy forms to standardize coverage on a national basis.

The voluntary relinquishment of rights of ownership or another interest (such as an easement, by failure to use the property, coupled with intent to abandon

recorded document, executed by those claiming a homestead exemption, giving up said homestead. Not applicable to all states and procedure must be according to local statutes.

An owner of property who does not occupy said property.

The filling of space, such as the rental of units or sale of a tract. The time or rate must be estimated and considered as part of the owner's costs.

A summary of the essential provisions of a court judgment, which when recorded in the county recorder's office, creates a lien upon the property of the defendant in that county, both presently owned or after acquired.

A compilation of the recorded documents relating to a parcel of land, from which an attorney may give an opinion as to the condition of title

A method for appraising a land by estimating the depreciated value of the improvements and deducting that amount from the total value (improved value) of the property.

The vertical members which bear the load or pressure of the cross member, such as an arch, pier, or similar structure

A general term including any method of depreciation greater than straight line depreciation

Agreeing to the terms of an offer to enter into a contract, thereby creating a binding contract.

An express or implied right to ingress and egress to and from one's property.

A surface divider joint designed to allow free movement between new and existing construction, or between differing materials.

A raised finish floor surface consisting entirely of small, individually removable panels beneath which wiring, ductwork, and other services may be installed.

A ceiling of fibrous tiles that are highly absorbing of sound energy.

A transparent plastic material widely used in sheet form for glazing windows and skylights.

See airtight drywall approach.

A substance other than cement, water, and aggregates included in a concrete mixture for the purpose of altering one or more properties of the concrete.

Inert particles such as sand, gravel, crushed stone, or expanded minerals, in a concrete or plaster mixture.

A portland cement with an admixture that causes a controlled quantity of stable, microscopic air bubbles to form in the concrete during mixing.

Restricting the passage of water vapor into the insulated cavities of a light frame building by eliminating passages around and through the gypsum bord interior finish.

A device that exhausts air from a building while recovering much of the heat from the exhausted air and transferring it to the incoming air.

The American Institute of Steel Construction.

A substance composed of two or more metals, or of a metal and a nonmetallic constituent.

The device that fastens the end of a posttensioning tendon to the end of a concrete slab.

A bolt embedded in concrete for the purpose of fastening a building frame to a concrete or masonry foundation.

A structural section of steel or aluminum whose profile resembles the letter L.

Cooled under controlled conditions to minimize internal stresses.

An electrolytic process that forms a permanent, protective oxide coating on aluminum, with or without added color.

American National Standards Institute, an organization that fosters the establishment of voluntary industrial standards.

Saddle-shaped, or having curvature in two opposing directions.

The finish piece that covers the joint between a window stool and the wall finish below.

A structural device that supports a vertical load by translating it into axial, inclined forces.

A roof covering made up of sheets of metal in a traditional shop-fabricated pattern such as standing seam, flat seam, or batten seam.

A process of joining two pieces of metal by melting them together at their interface with a continuous electric spark and adding a controlled additional amount of molten metal from a metallic electrode.

A curb used to partition a large roof membrane into smaller areas, to allow for expansion and contraction in the deck and membrance.

A door in the underfire of a fireplace that permits ashes from the fire to be swept into a chamber beneath, from which they may be removed at a later time.

Squared stonework.

A tarry brown or black mixture of hydrocarbons.

A continuous sheet of the same roofing material used in asphalt shingles. See asphalt shingle.

A moisture-resistant sheet material, available in several different thicknesses, usually consisting of a heavy paper that has been impregnated with asphalt.

A roofing unit composed of a heavy organic or in-organic felt saturated with asphalt and faced with mineral granules.

American Society for Testing and Materials, an organization that promulgates standard methods of testing the performance of building materials and components.

An amorphous form of polypropylene used as a modifier in modified bitumen roofing.

A helical tool for creating cylindrical holes.

A window that pivots on an axis at or near the top edge of the sash and projects toward the outdoors.

In a direction parallel to the long axis of a structural member.