Glossary of Mortgage Terms

Foreclosure is a legal process in which a mortgage lender takes ownership of a property after the borrower fails to make the required loan payments. This usually means that the home is sold at public auction.

Freddie Mac, officially the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), is a government-sponsored enterprise that buys mortgages from lenders and sells them as investments to keep home loan money flowing nationwide.