Security

From a legal point of view, this expression means the property being placed in mortgage and against which the loan is issued. Occasionally, a lending institution may agree to make a somewhat larger advance than would otherwise be the case if an additional form of security were made available. This usually takes the form of an additional charge against a second property which is not itself in mortgage.

When we talk about a secured loan it means any form of borrowing where the lender has a mortgage charge registered against the title of a property. The interest rate will normally be less than for similar borrowing which is unsecured. In that case the risk is regarded as higher since there is no property involved which could, as a last resort, be sold under a court order. If a borrower of an unsecured loan defaults the lender could lose all the money.