Real Estate Vocabulary

When you’re buying a house, there’s a lot of details that need to be considered. Before you even sign any papers, you need to find a house that meets all your needs. You’ll need to find a property in your price range, with the correct amount of rooms and space, in the area you want, and even with the style that you prefer. Once you find the perfect house, you’ll need to go through the buying process. The great thing is that you’ll have a New York real estate lawyer to help you with all the details. The New York real estate lawyer will handle the technical side of it, but it’s important that you understand what’s happening as well. During this transaction, you may hear a lot of lawyer lingo that you’re not familiar with. To be better prepared, here are some of the vocabulary words that you should know. (Related topics: New York real estate attorney)

Real Estate Vocabulary

• Adjustable-Rate Mortgage – In this type of mortgage, the interest rate can change throughout the loan; it can happen at 5, 7, or 10-year intervals.
• Appraisal – Before a bank offers a loan, they need to inspect the house and determine the real cost of the property so that they can loan you the correct amount of money.
• Cash Reserves – Cash reserves is the amount of money left over for the buyer to pay after the down payment and closing costs.
• Closing Cost – Aside from the price of the house, there are also closing costs, which are usually 2 to 5 percent of the purchase price. This includes loan processing costs, title insurance, title searches, and credit report charges, to name a few.
• Contingencies – These are the conditions that have been met in order for a home to be officially purchased. This may include a loan needing to be approved.
• Refinancing – This is when you restructure your loan and replace your old loan with a new loan with different conditions. The new conditions could be different rates and payment structures.
• Dual Agency –Dual agency is when one agent represents both the buyer and a seller, rather than having two separate agents.

This vocabulary list is just so that you feel more comfortable during the process. If you have any questions over the words or process, ask your New York real estate lawyer for more information.