Mortgage Archives - Deeds.com

December 22, 2023April 25, 2024

Who Owns Your Home—You, or the Bank? Check for a “Defeasance Clause”

Defeasance? What’s that?

Some home loans contain a defeasance clause. It means you’re giving up collateral. Do your home loan documents have defeasance language? If so, your lending institution holds your home’s title for as long as you owe the lender money.

Although the legal owner is your lender, you are still called the homeowner. Yet your title isn’t at home with your loan documents. Your lender will hold onto your title until after that final payoff.

Once you meet all of your loan obligations, including a full and final pay-off, you trigger the defeasance clause. That, in turn, unlocks the final phase of your agreement. That’s the conveyance of title from the lender to the successful owner of a paid-off home. The title will then be yours — free and clear.

September 11, 2023April 25, 2024

First-Time Buyers, Get Ready for These Extra Costs

Seriously? Ordinary home expenses now cost the average homeowner more than $14K every year? That’s above and beyond the owner’s mortgage loan payment, according to Zillow and the home improvement estimate company Thumbtack, in their 2023 study.

Mortgage interest and high property values aren’t the only price a buyer pays. And the totality of homeownership costs can take first-time buyers by surprise.

Ordinary costs of owning a residence include repairs and maintenance, as well as the inevitable utility charges, property taxes, and insurance premiums.

September 6, 2023April 25, 2024

The Big Tease: Look Out for Rising Interest on a Home Equity Line of Credit

Once you get a deed to your own home, you have special wealth-building powers. Pay off the mortgage faithfully month by month, and you own increasing home equity. This is how your home turns into value you can tap when you need or want it.

A home equity line of credit (HELOC) gives you an account to tap for ongoing or surprise expenses —costs like tuition, medical or accessibility needs, starting a new business, or anything else you’d like to pay for without putting debt on a credit card. You use your home equity as collateral. This means banks offer interest rates as low as 9%. That’s a lot lower than credit card rates.

While HELOC rates might start off seemingly low, they can turn into trouble.

July 4, 2022April 25, 2024

I’m Changing My Name. What About the House Title?

Your house title should state your current legal name. Of course, there are other documents that prove your identity. But having the correct name on the title will save steps when you want to sell or take a loan out on your home.

So here’s a brief guide to changing the title to your home after changing your name.

May 13, 2022April 25, 2024

Divorce, Property Division, and the Quitclaim Deed

Parting of the Ways

Co-ownership of a house can unwind in several ways. One way is through divorce proceedings. You might be wondering how this works, and what kind of decisions have to be made.

You might have questions about passing the home to your ex using a quitclaim deed. Here are some of the key issues that arise, and what steps need to be taken in each case.

April 21, 2021April 26, 2024

Marriage and the Quitclaim Deed

When is a quitclaim a good way to transfer a whole or partial interest in a home? In a simple transaction among familiar parties. Especially where no money changes hands. No wonder quitclaim deeds are often used between spouses.

Here, we take a look at a variety of ways quitclaims can convey property between partners in marriage.