LTV Ratio

Definition

Loan-to-Value ratio—the percentage of the property's value you're borrowing, expressed as a percentage of the purchase price.

Example Usage

With a 20% down payment, our LTV ratio is 80%, which qualifies us for the best interest rate tier.

Origin

Financial term standardized in mortgage lending

Fun Fact

Loans with LTV ratios above 80% require mortgage insurance (PMI), making that down payment suddenly very expensive to avoid.

Source: Federal Reserve Mortgage Standards

Related Terms

Advanced

Holdback

Money withheld at closing to ensure the seller completes promised repairs or obligations—basically your insurance policy against seller disappearance.

🏠 Real Estate

Beginner

As-Is

The seller's polite way of saying "we know it's broken and we don't care." Buying a property as-is is basically adopting a feral house and hoping love alone can fix the plumbing.

🏠 Real Estate

Beginner

Price Point

A fancier way of saying "price" that makes real estate agents feel like they're doing economics instead of sales. It adds absolutely nothing to the conversation except an extra word and a sense of sophistication.

🏠 Real Estate

Advanced

leasehold estate

Ownership of the right to use and occupy property for a specific time period under a lease, but not ownership of the land itself. You own the building but rent the ground—common in Hawaii and making zero sense everywhere else.

🏠 Real Estate

Intermediate

cloud on title

Any claim, lien, or encumbrance that impairs the property's title and creates doubt about legal ownership. Like a stain on your property's permanent record that needs bleaching before you can sell.

🏠 Real Estate

Beginner

lowball

An offer significantly below asking price, typically submitted either by savvy investors testing motivated sellers or by delusional buyers who think every property is overpriced. It's a negotiating tactic that's either brilliant or insulting, depending on which side you're on.

🏠 Real Estate

Translate This Term

See “LTV Ratio” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.

Try the Translator

Share This Term

Post on X Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn

Discover a Term

Beginner

ish

The sanitized version of "shit" that emerged from radio-edited rap songs, now a standalone suffix or substitute curse wo...