Credit in real estate finance pertains to the availability of borrowed money and the trust extended by lenders to borrowers. It also includes accounting implications, reflecting liabilities or equity on the right side of the ledger.
A creditor is an entity or person to whom money is owed by a debtor. In a strict legal sense, a creditor is one who extends credit to another for money or other property. More generally, a creditor is someone who has a legal right to demand and recover from another entity a sum of money on any account.
Debt is an obligation that requires one party, the borrower or debtor, to pay money or other agreed-upon value to another party, the lender or creditor.
The Equal Credit Opportunity Act, enacted in 1974 and amended in 1976, is a federal law aiming to eliminate discrimination by lenders based on sex, marital status, age, race, color, religion, national origin, or receipt of public assistance.
A finance charge is an interest or a certain other fees charged to a credit customer. It is a cost imposed for borrowing or the service of advancing credit.
Outstanding balance is the amount currently owed on a debt after accounting for payments already made toward the principal and interest. It is a key figure in managing financing and understanding one’s debt obligations.
A promissory note is a financial instrument that contains a written promise by one party to pay another party a definite sum of money, either on demand or at a specified future date.
