A consumer protection on some adjustable loans. It limits the total upward adjustment that may occur during the life of the loan. Also known as the overall cap. A rate commitment made by lenders when making a mortgage loan to commit. Lock-in periods vary depending on your lender.
Origination fees vary.
Index A reference used to measure fluctuations in particular factors of economic activity. For an ARM loan, an index of interest rates is used to calculate periodic adjustments in the rate and payment on the loan. Home Buyers today are faced with an alphabet soup of mortgage programs and financing terms such as ARM's, FRM's and GPM's. Since you need to keep updated on rates, programs and terms, look below and come back often to find out what's happening in the mortage marketplace. Here are a number of useful tools and links.