Home Terms Main Page

This site contains comprehensive definitions for a wide range of terms that cover topics such as home, mortgage, insurance, homebuyer, real estate, property, buy home, home insurance, financing, home financing, home buyer, first time homebuyer, homes, homebuying, credit, condo...

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Buy/Sell Agreement

This is an agreement entered into by the owners of a business to define the conditions under which the interests of each shareholder will be bought and sold. The agreement sets the value of each shareholders interest and stipulates what happens when one of the owners wishes to dispose of his/her interest during his/her lifetime as well as disposal of interest upon death or disability. Life insurance, critical illness coverage and disability insurance are major considerations to help fund this type of agreement.

Money Laundering

This is the process by which "dirty money" generated by criminal activities is converted through legitimate businesses into assets that cannot be easily traced back to their illegal origins.

Book Returns

Book yield is the investment income earned in a year on a portfolio of assets purchased over a number of years and at different interest rates, divided by the book value of those assets.

Cash Surrender Value

Benefit that entitles a policy owner to an amount of money upon cancellation of a policy.

Lender (Credit Insurance)

Individual or firm that extends money to a borrower with the expectation of being repaid, usually with interest. Lenders create debt in the form of loans. Lenders include financial institutions, leasing companies government lending agencies and automobile dealers.

Underwriter

Person that uses various types of evidence to evaluate the insurability of a client.

Maturity Date

Last day of the term of the mortgage agreement.

Assessed value

The dollar value of an asset assigned by a public tax assessor for the purposes of taxation.

PITI

Principal, interest, taxes, insurance -- the things that generally make up a monthly mortgage payment.

Townhouse

One of a row of houses connected with common side walls.

Veranda

Long covered porch.

Aggregate

A mixture of sand and stone and a major component of concrete.

Basement Foundation

A basement is a usable foundation that typically has ceiling heights of 8' and is often finished off as living or storage space.

Rabbet

A groove cut in a board to receive another board.

Resilient Channels

Metal channels used to further inhibit sound transmission through wall and ceiling framing. Create a break in the vibration path from drywall to the framing.