Closings glossary
Satisfaction of mortgage
The instrument that releases a paid mortgage from the record. Until it is recorded, the old mortgage still appears as a lien against the property.
What is a satisfaction of mortgage?
Quick Answer
The full definition
The instrument that releases a paid mortgage from the record. Until it is recorded, the old mortgage still appears as a lien against the property.
Which related terms should you know?
These are the terms that come up alongside satisfaction of mortgage in the same file.
- Payoff letter
- A lender's statement of the amount required to satisfy and release a mortgage on a specific date, with a daily interest figure for any later date.
- Lien
- A claim against property securing payment of a debt. Liens rank by priority, and closing normally means paying or releasing every one ahead of the buyer's interest.
- Recording
- Filing an instrument with the register or county clerk so it becomes part of the public record. Recording establishes priority against later purchasers and lenders.
- Curative work
- The clearance steps taken between commitment and closing to remove title requirements: releases, satisfactions, corrective deeds, estate paperwork and payoffs of stale liens.
- CEMA (Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement)
- An agreement in which an existing mortgage is assigned and consolidated with new financing rather than being satisfied and re-recorded. It requires the current lender's cooperation and extra lead time.
Where does satisfaction of mortgage come up in a New York City closing?
A Brooklyn owner paid off a 2004 home equity line, but the bank never recorded the satisfaction, so the refinance stalls until a replacement is obtained.
What else should you read before closing?
Questions this raises
- What is curative title work?Curative work clears Schedule B-I before closing: payoffs, missing satisfactions, heirship affidavits, ACRIS indexing fixes and escrow holdbacks in...
- What gets recorded after a NYC closing?Deed, mortgage, assignments and satisfactions record through ACRIS with the City Register, along with transfer tax returns. What is filed instead o...
The statute itself
Have a closing coming up?
Tell us about the transaction. An attorney reads every intake form and responds the same business day.
Legal Disclaimer: This page is general information about New York practice. It is not legal advice, it does not account for the terms of any particular contract, building or transaction, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. This is attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.