Title 12 › Chapter CHAPTER 38A— - SINGLE FAMILY MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE › § 3752
Defines key words used in the chapter. It tells what each term means for the rest of the rules. bona fide purchaser is a buyer who paid value, acted in good faith, did not know about any other claim, and gets the property free of such claims. county has the same meaning as in section 2 of title 1. mortgage is any instrument (like a deed of trust, mortgage, or security agreement) that makes real, personal, or mixed property—or an interest in property such as leaseholds, life estates, or reversionary interests—security for a debt or obligation. mortgage agreement is the loan note or debt paper together with the mortgage or trust deed and any documents they refer to or later change. mortgagor is the person named as obligor, grantor, or trustee in the mortgage agreement and generally includes the current recorded owner even if that owner is not personally liable on the debt. owner is anyone with an ownership interest, including heirs, executors, administrators, personal representatives, and trustees of testamentary trusts when the recorded owner is dead. person includes an individual, group of individuals, association, partnership, corporation, or organization. record and recorded include register and registered for registered land. security property means the property or interest in property (including leaseholds, life estates, reversionary interests, and similar estates) plus fixtures and other interests that are subject to the mortgage lien under state law. single family mortgage covers property with a 1- to 4-family residence and either (A) is held by the Secretary under title I or title II of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1702 et seq., 1707 et seq.), or (B) secures a loan obligated by the Secretary under section 1452b of title 42 as it existed before the repeal of that section by section 12839 of title 42 (except that such a mortgage for property containing nonresidential space plus a 1- to 4-family dwelling is not covered by this chapter). State includes the several States; the District of Columbia; the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; the United States Virgin Islands; Guam; American Samoa; the Northern Mariana Islands; the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; and Indian tribes as defined by the Secretary.
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Banks and Banking — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
12 U.S.C. § 3752
Title 12 — Banks and Banking
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73