What is a Mortgagee

A mortgagee is an entity that lends money to a borrower for the purpose of purchasing real estate. In a mortgage lending deal the lender serves as the mortgagee and the borrower is known as the mortgagor.

BREAKING DOWN Mortgagee

A mortgagee represents the interests of the lending institution in a mortgage deal. Lending institutions can offer a variety of products to borrowers with mortgage lending representing a significant portion of lending assets for both individual lenders and the credit market overall.

Most people take out a mortgage to finance the purchase of a residence or commercial building. In order to limit its risk in the investment, the lender in the transaction creates a priority legal interest in the value of the property, substantially lowering the probability the lender will not be repaid in full if the borrower defaults on the loan. This is done through a perfected lien and title ownership.

Mortgage Lending Products

Mortgage lenders can structure mortgage loans with either fixed rate interest or variable rate interest. Most mortgage loans follow an amortization schedule that provides for steady monthly cash flow to the lending institution in the form of installment payments. Standard fixed rate installment mortgage loans are generally the most common type of mortgage loan issued by lenders. Adjustable rate mortgage loans can also be offered as a variable rate mortgage product.

Lenders can also issue non-amortizing loans however these products are not typically qualified mortgages and carry much higher risk. Non-amortizing loans may have either fixed or variable rates. They are loans that defer principal cash flows for the borrower to one lump sum payment. During the duration of the loan interest payments may or may not be required. Popular types of non-amortizing mortgage loans are balloon payments loans and interest only loans.

Secured Mortgage Protections

Mortgage loans are one of the credit markets most popular types of secured loans. In a mortgage loan the mortgagee has rights to the real estate collateral associated with the loan. This provides the lender with protections against default however it also requires certain provisions to be made for the seizing of collateral assets if default occurs. For this reason, mortgagees include a perfected lien and integrate title rights into a mortgage lending contract.

A perfected lien is drafted by a lender’s legal counsel to allow for a mortgagee to easily obtain the real estate associated with a mortgage loan if the mortgagor defaults. A perfected lien is a lien that has been filed and recorded with the appropriate agency giving the mortgagee rights to more easily obtain the real estate collateral. In a secured mortgage loan, the mortgagee is also the named real estate property owner on the property’s title. With the lien and property title a mortgagee can easily obtain legal rights and institute specific procedures for vacating a property to be taken over in foreclosure.