D

Debt
An amount owed to another.

Deed
The legal document conveying title to a property.

Deed-in-lieu
Short for "deed in lieu of foreclosure," this conveys title to the lender when the borrower is in default and wants to avoid foreclosure. The lender may or may not cease foreclosure activities if a borrower asks to provide a deed-in-lieu. Regardless of whether the lender accepts the deed-in-lieu, the avoidance and non-repayment of debt will most likely show on a credit history. What a deed-in-lieu may prevent is having the documents preparatory to a foreclosure being recorded and become a matter of public record.

Deed of Trust
Like a mortgage, a security instrument whereby real property is given as security for a debt. However, in a deed of trust there are three parties to the instrument: the borrower, the trustee, and the lender, (or beneficiary). In such a transaction, the borrower transfers the legal title for the property to the trustee who holds the property in trust as security for the payment of the debt to the lender or beneficiary. If the borrower pays the debt as agreed, the deed of trust becomes void. If, however, he defaults in the payment of the debt, the trustee may sell the property at a public sale, under the terms of the deed of trust. In most jurisdictions where the deed of trust is in force, the borrower is subject to having his property sold without benefit of legal proceedings. A few States have begun in recent years to treat the deed of trust like a mortgage.

Default
Failure to make the mortgage payment within a specified period of time. For first mortgages or first trust deeds, if a payment has still not been made within 30 days of the due date, the loan is considered to be in default.

Delinquency
Failure to make mortgage payments when mortgage payments are due. For most mortgages, payments are due on the first day of the month. Even though they may not charge a "late fee" for a number of days, the payment is still considered to be late and the loan delinquent. When a loan payment is more than 30 days late, most lenders report the late payment to one or more credit bureaus.

Deposit
A sum of money given in advance of a larger amount being expected in the future. Often called in real estate as an "earnest money deposit."

Depreciation
A decline in the value of property; the opposite of appreciation. Depreciation is also an accounting term which shows the declining monetary value of an asset and is used as an expense to reduce taxable income. Since this is not a true expense where money is actually paid, lenders will add back depreciation expense for self-employed borrowers and count it as income.

Discount Listing
The typical commission charged to a seller by a real estate agent to list and sell their home is 6%. A Discount Listing would be one that offers a lower commission to a seller for that service. Nationwide Realty Services Discount Listing programs vary from area to area and from time to time. These programs can include a reduced commission percentage rate, a Flat Fee Commission, or even a small fee for simply listing your home in the local MLS or on our web site.

Discount points
In the mortgage industry, this term is usually used in only in reference to government loans, meaning FHA and VA loans. Discount points refer to any "points" paid in addition to the one percent loan origination fee. A "point" is one percent of the loan amount.

Downpayment
The amount of money to be paid by the purchaser to the seller upon the signing of the agreement of sale. The agreement of sale will refer to the downpayment amount and will acknowledge receipt of the downpayment. Downpayment is the difference between the sales price and maximum mortgage amount. The downpayment may not be refundable if the purchaser fails to buy the property without good cause. If the purchaser wants the downpayment to be refundable, he should insert a clause in the agreement of sale specifying the conditions under which the deposit will be refunded, if the agreement does not already contain such clause. If the seller cannot deliver good title, the agreement of sale usually requires the seller to return the downpayment and to pay interest and expenses incurred by the purchaser.

Down Payment Assistance
One of the largest expenses that a home buyer. has to overcome is the down payment. Typical loans may require a down payment of more than 5% of the selling price. So a home of $250,000 would require a down payment of $12,500 or more. Many buyers, especially 1st Time Buyers, Low Income Borrowers or Moderate Income Borrowers will have a difficult time raising this much cash. Two common programs are used to reduce or remove the down payment. These programs are 100% Financing and Silent Seconds.

Dual Agency
As opposed to a real estate agent who represents a buyer only or a seller only, a Dual Agency exists when an agent represents both a buyer and seller on the same transaction. This can sometimes reduce the commissions paid to the agent, however, the relationship can place the agent in a difficult negotiating position. The agent may have a difficult time making negotiating suggestions to one party without violating the trust of the other party.

Due-on-sale provision
A provision in a mortgage that allows the lender to demand repayment in full if the borrower sells the property that serves as security for the mortgage.