Definition: Mortgage today means to purchase or rent a house with an initial down payment made after a certain amount of time (usually 10 years). This mortgage loan helps you buy a home or rent it out when you are ready. For example, if someone needs $50,000 for the down payment and they want to get a mortgage that's about 20% of the total cost of the house (which is $150,000), this person would need $37,000 in cash or equity at the time of purchasing their home. This process can take several months, depending on how many houses are available and what conditions they meet. Mortgage today doesn't always mean that you will pay it back right away, but rather that you'll have a lower monthly payment than if you paid it off in full every month with no extra money to be saved or used for other purposes.