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GLOSSARY
Bequest
Bequest is the act of giving property to a beneficiary in a will. The term can also refer to the bequeathed property.
Best efforts mortgage lock
A best efforts mortgage lock allows a mortgage originator to obtain a preliminary commitment on selling a mortgage loan into the secondary market for the purposes of pricing the mortgage for the applicant. While the mortgage originator must make his best effort to close the loan and deliver it to the buyer, the originator is not contractually bound to deliver the loan to the buyer.
Betterment
Betterment, in reference to real estate, is an addition, improvement, or modernization that adds value to the property.
Bi-monthly mortgage
A bi-monthly mortgage allows the borrower to make half of the scheduled payment twice each month, for a total of 24 annual payments. If the monthly payment is $2,000, for example, the borrower would make two payments of $1,000 during the month, rather than one payment of $2,000. This reduces total interest costs associated with the mortgage because the principal balance will be reduced every two weeks instead of just once monthly.
Bi-weekly mortgage
A bi-weekly mortgage is structured so that the borrower makes half the scheduled monthly payment every two weeks, for 26 annual payments. The bi-weekly structure reduces total interest costs because each year, the borrower is making the equivalent of 13 monthly payments rather than 12.
Bidding War
Multiple and offers made in order to compete for a piece of property or item that escalates the price. A bidding war can happen over real estate, a business, a corporation, Hollywood movie scripts, or smaller items. This is usually great news for the seller as they will make out with a much higher price than originally anticipated.
Biennial ownership
Biennial ownership refers to a type of timeshare ownership in which the owner may use the timeshare unit every other year.
Bilateral contract
A bilateral contract is a legal document that binds both parties to perform a specific action. A property purchase contract, for example, binds the seller to transfer property to the buyer, and the buyer to provide funds to the seller.
Bill of Sale
the document that concludes the transfer of new property.
Bill presentment
Bill presentment is an Internet-based system that facilitates the creation, management, and payment of bills online. The service is primarily used by commercial entities in a wide variety of industries.
Billing cycle
Billing cycle refers to the length of time that passes between statement dates. For credit cards, the billing cycle is commonly one month.
Billing statement
Billing statement is periodic account summary sent by a company to customers who've had account transactions during the billing period. Credit card companies issue monthly billing statements, which itemize the transactions within the billing period as well as the finance charges, minimum payment due, and payment due date.
Biweekly mortgage
A mortgage that schedules payments every two weeks instead of the standard monthly payment. Typically your bank account ids debited every two weeks in the amount of half of your mortgage. In a normal mortgage you make 12 payments, on the biweekly repayment system you will be making 26 half payments a year. The 26 payments is equivalent to 13 monthly payments. This extra payment helps amortize your loan faster, which saves you money in interest.
Blanket insurance
Blanket insurance provides several types of coverages under one policy. For example, a blanket policy might cover more than one property type at one location, or two separate properties at two separate locations. There are homeowner's blanket policies that cover the dwelling as well as the insured's personal property.
Blanket lien
A blanket lien provides the creditor with rights to almost all of a debtor's assets. This is different from a conventional lien, which only provides the creditor with rights to a specific asset.