Topic 9 Flashcards
Real Estate Finance (193 cards)
Since few buyers have sufficient financial resources to allow them to pay cash for the entire purchase price of a property, most buyers pay for real property through one form or another of ____.
debt financing
The ______ was a carefully structured pyramid of lords, knights, vassals, and serfs which gradually evolved into the FREEHOLD SYSTEM of land ownership and which allowed ownership in FEE SIMPLE, that is, the private ownership of real property.
feudal system
We now have the _____ of land ownership which allows individuals to own land absolutely, without obligation to political superiors.
allodial system
In time, it became possible for the borrower to petition a court of equity or a church court (chancery) for an extension of his loan. The borrower, in a phrase still in use today, could hope to be allowed an ______, that is, additional time within which to pay his debt.
“equitable right of redemption”
This promise to repay and its specific conditions and stipulations are contained in the central instrument of the loan agreement is the _______. Proof of the debt.
the promissory note
the promise to repay has been traditionally backed up by some sort of security arrangement, a second loan instrument with which the borrower pledges an interest of one kind or another in the property he is financing to the lender. The pledged property is called ______.
collateral
Most states follow what is known as the _____ (the lender holds a lien)
lien theory
*In LA, the title is in the borrower’s name, but the lender has a lien.
Some states follow the ____ (the lender holds the title).
title theory
A few states use a mixture of both concepts.
The lender receives a limited form of legal title to the pledged property. The borrower is held to have conveyed, or alienated, limited legal title to the lender. This conveyance is valid as long as the mortgage debt is unpaid. Paying off the debt is said to DEFEAT the conveyance. The borrower, of course retains possession of the mortgaged property as long as he does not default on the debt. If the borrower defaults by falling behind in his payments or breaking some other covenant of the mortgage agreement, the lender, as under the lien theory, must go through foreclosure proceedings to recover his full interest in the collateral property. Has been adopted, at least partially, by 17 states.
the title theory
Characteristics of a title theory:
- Lender’s rights are manifested by contract for deed.
- Lender remains the legal owner of the property until the debt is paid.
- Borrower retains equitable rights in the property.
Used in most states, including LA. In states which apply this theory to real property pledged as collateral, the borrower is said to hypothecate title to the lender.
However, until default occurs, this theory grants the borrower full rights to the property. He holds legal and equitable title. Retaining equitable title is important because doing so permits the borrower who falls behind in his payments to redeem his property before the lender actually forecloses.
the lien theory
A _____ simply confers the legal right to attach a claim against a property, to go into court, if necessary, to enforce that claim, and to secure whatever compensation the court deems just and appropriate.
lien
the lender is given a lien against the borrower’s collateral property and, if default occurs, the lender can file foreclosure proceedings in order to recover his interest in the property.
Hypothecation
Characteristics of Lien Theory:
- Borrower’s and lender’s rights are described in a promissory note and mortgage agreement.
- Borrower holds legal title with the lender having a lien or security interest.
- The defaulted borrower is allowed to retain possession, title and rights in the property until the lien is perfected by foreclosure.
- Borrower, after default, may have equitable right of redemption. After foreclosure sale, borrower may have statutory period of redemption.
*In LA, we only have equitable right of redemption. This right is extended from the notice of foreclosure until the property actually is sold at sheriff’s sale.
The major difference between the title theory and the lien theory…
In the title theory, the borrower deeds his property to the lender. The mortgage conveys title to the borrower when the property is paid for.
In the lien theory, the borrower gives only a lien right to the lender. The borrower retains title to the property.
A few states have adopted a ____ of collateral property midway between the lien and the title theories. In these states, the mortgage is considered to be a lien, but if the borrower defaults, title is conveyed to the lender.
mixed or intermediate theory
Under either theory, or a mixture of these theories, the borrower actually retains possession of the mortgaged property until the debt is paid off, at which time the mortgage is said to be ____.
defeated
A ______ is a security instrument that creates a lien, or in other words, it is a document that makes property security for the repayment of a debt. This collateral interest is created on behalf of the lender.
mortgage (or trust deed)
The participants of a real estate loan are the _____ and the _____.
mortgagor
mortgagee
The ____ is a person or entity who makes a mortgage, the borrower. They convey a lien on his or her property to another person, bank or other institution.
mortgagor
The ____ is the party receiving the mortgage, the lender. They receive a lien on the borrower’s property as security for the debt.
mortgagee
Elements of a Mortgage:
- The provisions of the agreement.
- Legally competent parties.
- Mutual consent.
- Exchange of consideration.
- Legal purpose.
The ____ is the borrower’s personal, unconditional promise to repay the loan. The borrower’s promise to repay is construed to be an unconditional promise, that is, it makes the note a negotiable instrument, one which may be assigned freely by the lender to another party, in much the same way as a check can be endorsed to make it payable to another party.
promissory note
A promissory note can be a debt instrument without a mortgage. If so, it is an _____.
unsecured note