If you are looking at buying your first home in Catford and have chosen a reputable estate agent to use, you may find that they are using terminology that you don’t understand and have never come across before.  Here are some of the words that a Catford estate agent may use:Annual percentage rate (APR): this is the interest rate that you are going to have to pay on the amount of money you have borrowed to buy the property.  This is applied to your mortgage by your mortgage provider and it is variable. Arrears: this is when you haven’t been able to pay your monthly mortgage and so have fallen behind with your payments. Building survey: this is the appointment of a chartered surveyor to complete a detailed report on your property.  Chartered surveyor: is someone who conducts a report on a property outlining its value and any problems areas.  Conveyance: this is basically all the legal stuff that your solicitor deals with. Endowment mortgage: an agreement where you pay only the interest on your mortgage each month, but also pay into a savings account which at the end of the term will be used to pay the balance of the mortgage.Fixed rate mortgage: a mortgage with a fixed interest rate, for a specific amount of time. Freehold: buying a freehold property gives you complete ownership of it. Interest only mortgage: you pay only the interest of the mortgage balance each month as well as paying into a saving account.ISA mortgage: you pay the interest only monthly, while also paying into an Individual Savings Account to pay the balance of the mortgage. Leasehold: this is ownership of the property for a fixed period of time. Loan to Value (LTV): a ratio, mortgage balance against the value of your home. Mortgage: a loan you have taken out to buy a property.  Negative equity: when the value of your property is less than the mortgage balance outstanding you are in negative equity on the property. Pension scheme mortgage: you pay interest only on the mortgage, and also pay into a pension scheme.Public liability insurance:  you can buy this insurance to cover you in the event of someone getting injured on your property (including the garden).Repayment mortgage: each month you pay both the interest and part of the mortgage balance, therefore reducing the overall balance month on month. Secured: if something is secured against your property it means that they have rights over your property in the result of you being unable to pay. Sitting tenant: someone who can legally live in a property regardless of the ownership and whether the property is sold on. Stamp duty: this is a charge from the government, based on the value, size and location of your home you will have to pay a percentage fee to the government. Standard variable rate mortgage: the interest rate changes on a monthly basis, therefore you are never know exactly how much you will be paying back.  This may result in you having to pay more than what you have available. Subject to contract: an agreement has been made, but is not legal and therefore isn’t complete, either party can still back out at this point. Tenancy agreement: a landlord will produce an agreement for the tenants to sign once the house has been rented out, it specifies the terms and conditions of the contract and the rights and responsibilities of both tenant and landlord. Title deeds: this details who owns the property as well as other information like the rights of way and boundaries. Vendor: the seller of the property.