Mortgage of land — the essentials

A mortgage is a transaction by which a legal interest or an equitable interest in real or personal property is given as security for the repayment of a debt or performance of another obligation.

Some attributes are fundamental to the existence of a mortgage. This guidance note outlines the characteristics of a mortgage of land, and explains the categories of real property mortgages as well as the importance of distinguishing, for example, a legal mortgage from an equitable mortgage.

Legal practitioners should be aware that each Australian jurisdiction has a prescribed form which must be used if a mortgage is to be registered, and the particular requirements in relation to how a mortgage lodged for registration must be signed are also prescribed in each state and territory, as outlined in this guidance note.

This guidance note also provides an overview of the memorandum of common provisions, also known as the mortgage memorandum.

See Mortgage of land — the essentials.