Letters Q-T

Mortgage Glossary

We have assembled these terms to help you to have a better understanding of mortgage financing terminology. Click on a first letter of the word you want to look up.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

- Q - Back to Top
Qualifying Ratios: Guidelines applied by lenders to determine how large a loan to grant a home buyer. See DTI and LTV.

- R - Back to Top
Rate Lock: A rate lock is a contractual agreement between the lender and borrower. There are four components to a rate lock: loan program, interest rate, points, and the time-length of the lock.
Real Estate Settlement Statement: Final settlement statement often referred to as the HUD-1, form used to itemize buyer, seller, broker, and lender charges and credits at closing. A line-by-line explanation.
Realtor ®: A real estate broker or sales associate affiliated with the National Association of Realtors. We at Lightning Mortgage are not Realtors, but are licensed Mortgage Brokers.
Recording Fee: The charges made by the register of deeds to record the legal documents.
Recourse Loan: A debt instrument wherein the lender can legally require repayment of a loan from personal funds if the collateral is not sufficient to repay the note. As opposed to a Non-recourse Loan where the lender can only obtain compensation from the collateral or funds of the business.
Refinancing: Repaying a debt with the proceeds of a new loan, using the same property as collateral or security.
Residential Mortgage Credit Report (RMCR): A credit report required by lenders and the secondary market to establish the credit worthiness of a borrower. The report is a merged credit information provided by Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, just like a tri-bureau Infile report. In addition, the RMCR report is audited to remove information like accounts belonging to a borrower with a different social security number.

- S - Back to Top
Second Mortgage: A loan on property which already has an existing mortgage (the first mortgage). The second mortgage is subordinate to the first.
Secondary Mortgage Market: The buying and selling of existing mortgages through agencies (i.e. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac).
Settlement: See 'Closing.'
Stated Income Loan: Loans that rely more on credit scores than on documented income for loan approval. These loans typically carry a higher interest rate than documented income. See Income Reporting Options for further information.
Survey: A map prepared by an engineer or surveyor charting a particular piece of real estate.

- T - Back to Top
T-Bill Index: The One Year Treasury Bill. An index published by the Federal Reserve Board based on the average yield of a range of Treasury securities, all adjusted to the equivalent of a one-year maturity. It is used to set the cost of adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs).
Title: Ownership of a property. A clear title is one without any outstanding liens or encumbrances. A 'cloud on title' refers to any outstanding liens or encumbrances which could impair the title. There are 6 different ways of holding title.
Title Insurance Policy: Protection against financial loss arising from defects in the title occurring before purchase.
Title Search: A check of public record to disclose the past and current facts regarding ownership of a particular piece of property.
Transfer Tax: In some areas city, county or state taxes imposed when property passes from one person to another.
Truth-In-Lending: A federal law that requires lenders to fully disclose, in writing, the terms and conditions of a mortgage, including the APR and other charges.

Next Steps

Click on feedback or call (866) 822-8500 for assistance - Last Updated:

This Website is NOT intended as a solicitation to customers in any jurisdiction in which we are not authorized to operate.

© Lightning Mortgage 2002-2008 All Rights Reserved. No part of this website may be reused commercially without the expressed
written consent of Lightning Mortgage. This site is directed at, and made available to, persons in the continental U.S., Alaska and Hawaii only.