what is the typical term for a mortgage loan
Mortgage loan A mortgage loan, or simply mortgage, is used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or alternatively by existing property owners to raise funds for any purpose, while putting a lien on the property being mortgaged. The loan is "secured" on the borrower's property through a process known as mortgage origination. This means that a legal mechanism is put into place which allows the lender to take possession and sell the secured property ("foreclosure" or "repossession") to pay off the loan in the event the borrower defaults on the loan or otherwise fails to abide by its terms. The word mortgage is derived from a "Law French" term used by English lawyers in the Middle Ages meaning "death pledge" and refers to the pledge ending (dying) when either the obligation is fulfilled or the property is taken through foreclosure.[1] A mortgage can also be described as "a borrower giving consideration in the form of a collateral for a benefit (loan)".
Off-balance-sheet Traditionally, banks lend to borrowers under tight lending standards, keep loans on their balance sheets and retain credit riskâ€”the risk that borrowers will default (be unable to repay interest and principal as specified in the loan contract). In contrast, securitization enables banks to remove loans from balance sheets and transfer the credit risk associated with those loans. Therefore, two types of items are of interest: on-balance sheet and off-balance sheet. The former is represented by traditional loans, since banks indicate loans on the asset side of their balance sheets. However, securitized loans are represented off the balance sheet, because securitization involves selling the loans to a third party (the loan originator and the borrower being the first two parties). Banks disclose details of securitized assets only in notes to their financial statements. [1]