mortgage

mortgage An interest in property created as a security for a loan or payment of a debt and terminated on payment of the loan or debt. The borrower, who offers the security, is the mortgagor; the lender, who provides the money, is the mortgagee. Building societies and banks are the usual mortgagees for house purchasers. In either case the mortgage is repaid by instalments over a fixed period (often 25 years), either of capital and interest (repayment mortgage) or of interest only, with other arrangements being made to repay the capital, for example by means of an endowment assurance policy (this is known as an endowment mortgage). Business uses of the mortgage include using property to secure a loan to start a business. Virtually any property may be mortgaged (though land is the most common). See feature Mortgage Law on p. XYZ.