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A mortgage is a loan used to buy a home or other real estate, where the property itself serves as collateral.
In Depth
When you take out a mortgage, a lender gives you money to purchase a property. You then repay this loan, plus interest, over a set period, often 15 or 30 years. If you fail to make your payments, the lender has the right to take possession of the property through a process called foreclosure.
Example
Many first-time homebuyers take out a mortgage to finance the purchase of their new house.