- a mortgage with an interest rate that changes periodically, according to an index that is selected when the mortgage is issued. The initial interest rate is lower than that for fixed-rate mortgages, but monthly payments can go up or down when the rate is adjusted.

- the period of time between changes in the interest rate for an adjustable-rate mortgage. Typical adjustment intervals are one year, three and five years.

- a stated interest rate that reflects all the financing costs of a mortgage. The APR includes points, origination fees and other finance charges in addition to the interest on the mortgage, and includes them all in a yearly interest rate. As a result, the APR is usually higher than the interest rate alone. It also provides a benchmark for comparing different types of mortgages based on the annual cost for each loan.

- an estimate of the value of a property, made by a qualified professional called an appraiser.

- usually a short-term fixed-rate loan which involves small payments for a certain period of time and one large payment for the remaining amount of the principal at a time specified in the contract.

- a type of fixed-rate mortgage with payments for half the usual monthly amount scheduled every two weeks. Because you make the equivalent of 13 months of payments every year, the loan term is shortened from 30 years to 18 or 19 years, and total interest cost are substantially lower.