A to Z · 1055 Terms

Real estate & finance, demystified.

The jargon can be exhausting. Here’s a plain-English glossary covering real estate, lending, investment, and the business-finance ecosystem that surrounds them.

Download the full glossary

Multifamily Operations

Ancillary Income

Income beyond rent — pet fees, parking, laundry, application fees.

Multifamily Operations

Bad Debt

Rent that cannot be collected, written off as a loss.

Multifamily Operations

Class A/B/C Multifamily

Quality classifications based on age, amenities, and rents — A is newest, C is older.

Mortgage Loans

Portfolio Loan

A mortgage a lender keeps on its own books rather than selling to investors.

Mortgage Securitization

Pooling and Servicing Agreement (PSA)

The contract governing a securitized mortgage pool and its participants.

Mortgage Securitization

Re-REMIC

A re-securitization of mortgage-backed securities into new tranches.

Mortgage Securitization

RMBS

Residential Mortgage-Backed Security — a bond backed by residential mortgages.

Mortgage Securitization

Servicer

The company that collects payments and manages a mortgage on behalf of the loan owner.

Mortgage Securitization

Servicing Strip

The fee paid to the servicer carved out of the loan’s interest rate.

Mortgage Securitization

Special Servicer

A CMBS servicer handling defaulted or troubled loans.

Mortgage Securitization

Subordination Level

The percentage of pool losses a senior tranche can absorb before being affected.

Mortgage Securitization

Tranche

A slice of a securitized pool with its own risk and return profile.