What are "garbage fees?" "Document fees?"
As if the grab bag of mortgage loans isn't confusing enough, the escrow world has its own jargon. Here is a glossary of common lending and escrow terms.
* Appraisal: An estimate of property value used by lenders to decide how much they will lend. A borrower pays about $250 for an appraisal.
* Delivery fee: Charge for sending documents by messenger or express mail, typically $10 to $50.
* Document fee: The cost of preparing a deed, deed of trust or other documents, typically $10 to $50.
* Escrow: This is a final step in the sale of a home or refinancing. An escrow agent acts as a neutral third party to see that certain conditions are met before payment is exchanged for a deed. The conditions include getting a loan, appraisal, title search, insurance, termite report and the preparation of various documents.
* Garbage fees: The fees assessed in the escrow and loan process.
* Loan origination fee: Lender's charge for making a loan -- typically 1 percent to 2 percent of the loan amount.
* Loan tie-in fee: Charge for getting documents signed, typically $50 to $200.
* Primary mortgage insurance: Insurance that protects a lender against loss on a defaulted mortgage loan.
* Lock-in period: A period after a loan application is submitted, often 30 or 45 days, during which the lender won't change his quoted interest rate.
* Points: Fee charged by a lender. One point is equal to 1 percentage point.
* Refinance: Getting a new loan to pay off an existing loan. Generally this is done when the new loan is at a lower interest rate than the existing loan's interest rate.
