Significance

• Mortgage security agreements are an instrument utilized to legally provide a lender with a stake of ownership, using property as collateral. When a home has a mortgage attached to it, the lender retains a right of ownership to the property until the mortgage is paid in full. Mortgage agreements provide a security interest for the lender.
  
  

Function

• Mortgage and security agreements provide the terms under which a lender can call the full amount of the mortgage due, as well as providing recourse to foreclose and repossess the property if the owner violates the terms of the mortgage. The mortgage terms and lender's stake in a property is conveyed on the deed of trust. The deed of trust acts as a legal document, filed with the ownership rights and agreements at the county clerk's office.
  
  

Considerations

• Mortgage documents and security agreements contain considerable legal language that should be deciphered by a professional before signing. Most consumers benefit using the services of a licensed real estate professional, real estate attorney or escrow officer at a title company to assist in reading complicated legal forms.