A loan pre-approval is an agreement in principle by a particular lender to lend a specified amount to a particular borrower on exact terms and conditions. In fact, a loan pre-approval is a preliminary stage prior to the lender's final approval and signing of the loan agreement.

There are several classifications of loans, so let's consider the most common one. According to it, there are three loan categories: bank, commercial and state. In its turn, bank loans are divided into personal, mortgage, loan on overdraft, factoring, forfeiting and intrabank loans. Commercial loans may be of the following types: signature, trade and advance. Finally, the state category is subdivided into state loan, subventions, grants, transfers and state tax loan.

A HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) is a loan with an agreed repayment period, in which the borrower's real estate or his share in the real estate is pledged as collateral. In this case, the borrower does not receive the entire amount, as in a conventional loan, but gets access to a credit line, which may be then used at his or her own discretion and in any amount.

A lender loan is an agreement between a lender and a borrower in which the lender agrees to cover all or part of the borrower's closing costs in exchange for an increase in the interest rate of the loan. However, a lender credit, for example, cannot be used in reference to a down payment.

Collateral is a guarantee for the lender to get all the funds due under the loan agreement. In case the borrower does not fulfill his/her obligations or does not fulfill them to the full extent, the corresponding debt is to be repaid at the expense of the collateral. Collateral can be represented by residential and non-residential real estate, motor vehicles, precious metals, securities, etc. However, in fact, banks determine the list of property taken as collateral when granting loans. The property pledged as collateral under the loan must be necessarily evaluated.

Loan security is a mechanism for guaranteeing the repayment of a loan, which protects the rights of the creditor. A borrower can leave some tangible assets (such as a car or real estate) as security for a loan, which then becomes a secured debt to the creditor who issues the loan. Thus, the loan is secured, and if the borrower defaults, the creditor takes possession of the asset used as its security.

A loan recast is the payment of a fixed amount during the term of the loan agreement aimed to cover the principal of the loan so as to reduce subsequent monthly payments for the remainder of the term of the agreement. Generally, a loan recast is used in mortgage lending by people who suddenly received a large sum of money (e.g., an inheritance).

The main difference is that with a conventional loan the borrower is required to pay mortgage insurance only if the down payment is less than 20%, and with FHA (Federal Housing Administration) mortgage insurance is paid regardless of the size of the down payment. There is also a difference in the maximum loan amount.

Although the term has a rather wide range of meanings, in general, discount points are additional fees charged by the lender when issuing a loan. Through this fee in favor of the lender, the borrower is entitled to expect an appropriate reduction in the interest rate on the loan. In each case, the borrower should carefully evaluate whether it is advantageous to pay more as an upfront fee but receive a lower interest rate for the entire term of the loan, or to choose a higher interest rate with a lower down payment.

The question is too general. The loan amount you can count on depends on a mass of various factors. To list just the most obvious ones, they include the purpose of the loan, the type of the loan, your credit history, maximum interest rate and repayment period you are ready to, and whether the loan is secured or unsecured.

PMI (private mortgage insurance) cost for FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loans depends on some factors such as credit history and LTV (loan to value) ratio and amounts to $30 to $70 a month.