Texas Property Code 51.0001 – Definitions
Terms Used In Texas Property Code 51.0001
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
- Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
- Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
- Mortgagor: The person who pledges property to a creditor as collateral for a loan and who receives the money.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Written: includes any representation of words, letters, symbols, or figures. See Texas Government Code 311.005
In this chapter:
(1) “Book entry system” means a national book entry system for registering a beneficial interest in a security instrument that acts as a nominee for the grantee, beneficiary, owner, or holder of the security instrument and its successors and assigns.
(2) “Debtor’s last known address” means:
(A) for a debt secured by the debtor’s residence, the debtor’s residence address unless the debtor provided the mortgage servicer a written change of address before the date the mortgage servicer mailed a notice required by § 51.002; or
(B) for a debt other than a debt described by Paragraph (A), the debtor’s last known address as shown by the records of the mortgage servicer of the security instrument unless the debtor provided the current mortgage servicer a written change of address before the date the mortgage servicer mailed a notice required by § 51.002.
(3) “Mortgage servicer” means the last person to whom a mortgagor has been instructed by the current mortgagee to send payments for the debt secured by a security instrument. A mortgagee may be the mortgage servicer.
(4) “Mortgagee” means:
(A) the grantee, beneficiary, owner, or holder of a security instrument;
(B) a book entry system; or
(C) if the security interest has been assigned of record, the last person to whom the security interest has been assigned of record.
(5) “Mortgagor” means the grantor of a security instrument.
(6) “Security instrument” means a deed of trust, mortgage, or other contract lien on an interest in real property.
(7) “Substitute trustee” means a person appointed by the current mortgagee or mortgage servicer under the terms of the security instrument to exercise the power of sale.
(8) “Trustee” means a person or persons authorized to exercise the power of sale under the terms of a security instrument in accordance with § 51.0074.