• Negatively amortizing Loans
  Some types of ARMs (for example, option ARM loans) offer payment caps rather than interest rate caps, which limit the amount the monthly payment can increase. If a loan has payment cap but has no periodic interest rate cap, then the loan may become negatively amortized: if the interest rates rise to the point that the monthly mortgage payment does not cover the interest due, any unpaid interest will get added to the loan balance, so the loan balance increases. However, you always have the option to pay the minimum monthly payment, or the fully amortized amount due.
  
  Example:
  
  Your loan has a payment cap of 7.5%. If your payment is $1,000 per month and interest rates rise, your new payment would normally be $1,200/mo (for example). But your capped payment is only $1,075. The other $125 get added to your loan balance, to be paid off over time, unless of course you decide to pay that additional amount now.
  
  The advantage of negatively amortizing loans is that you can control cash flow (relatively stable payment), take advantage of low interest rates relative to the market at any given time, and pay back the money borrowed today at a depreciated value years from now (because of natural inflation). This makes such loans a great tool for homeowners as long as you understand the mechanics of what's going on.
  
  With most ARMs, the interest rate can adjust every month, every three or six months, once a year, every three years, or every five years. The interest rate on negatively amortized loans can adjust monthly. A loan with an adjustment period of 6 months is called a 6-month ARM, with an adjustment period of 1 year is called a 1-year ARM, and so on.
  
  Most ARMs offer an initial lower interest rate than the fully indexed rate (index plus margin) during the initial period of the loan, which could be one month or a year or more. It is also known as teaser rate.
  
  All ARMs are available with 30-year terms and some with 15- or 40-year terms.
  
  Adjustable rate mortgages generally have a lower initial interest rate than fixed rate loans.
  
  
• Option ARM Loans
  One of the most creative products that doesn't require a set payment each month is the option ARM. After the first payment, you get four payment options to choose from each month: your lender sends you a monthly statement offering a minimum payment (1), interest-only payment (2), 30-year amortized payment (3) or 15-year amortized payment (4).
  
  { See also: Hybrid Option ARM }
  
  
• Combined (Hybrid) Loans
  Hybrid loans, a combination of fixed and ARM loans, come in different varieties:
  
  
• Fixed-period ARMs
  With fixed-period ARMs homeowners can enjoy from three to ten years of fixed payments before the initial interest rate change. At the end of the fixed period, the interest rate will adjust annually. Fixed-period ARMs -- 30/3/1, 30/5/1, 30/7/1 and 30/10/1 -- are generally tied to the one-year Treasury securities index. ARMs with an initial fixed period beside of lifetime and adjustment caps usually have also first adjustment cap. It limits the interest rate you will pay the first time your rate is adjusted. First adjustment caps vary with type of loan program.
  
  The advantage of these loans is that the interest rate is lower than for a 30-year fixed (the lender is not locked in for as long so their risk is lower and they can charge less) but you still get the advantage of a fixed rate for a period of time.
  
  
• Two-Step Mortgage
  Two-Step mortgages have a fixed rate for a certain time, most often 5 or 7 years, and then interest rate changes to a current market rate. After that adjustment the mortgage maintains new fixed rate for the remaining 23 or 25 years.
  
  
• Convertible ARMs
  Some ARMs come with option to convert them to a fixed-rate mortgage at designated times (usually during the first five years on the adjustment date), if you see interest rates starting to rise. The new rate is established at the current market rate for fixed-rate mortgages.
  
  The conversion is typically done for a nominal fee and requires almost no paperwork. The disadvantage is that the conversion interest rate is typically a little higher than the market rate at that time.
  
  The other kind of convertible mortgage is a fixed rate loan with rate reduction option. If rates had dropped since the time of closing it allows you, under some prescribed conditions, for a small conversion fee to adjust your mortgage to going market rate. Generally the interest rate or discount points may be a little higher for a convertible loan.
  
  
• Graduated Payment Mortgages (GPMs)
  Graduated payment mortgages have payments that start low and gradually increase at predetermined times. A lower initial payments allow you to qualify for a larger loan amount. The monthly payments will eventually be higher in order to catch up from the lower payments. In fact, your loan will be negatively amortizing during the early years of the loan, then pay off the principal at an accelerated pace through the later years.
  
  Lenders offer different GPM payment plans, which vary in the rate of payment increases and the number of years over which the payments will increase. The greater the rate of increase or the longer the period of increase, the lower the mortgage payments in the early years.

Example:

The following table compares the monthly payment schedule of a 30 year fixed rate loan with the most frequently used GPM plan. In this plan payments increase 7.5 percent each year for 5 years before leveling off.

The example uses a mortgage with a loan amount of $60,000 and an interest rate of 10 percent.

	Year 30 year fixed GPM loan 1 526.80 400.22 2 526.80 430.24 3 526.80 462.50 4 526.80 497.20 5 526.80 534.49 6 526.80 574.57 7 - 30 526.80 574.57

A Little More In-Depth Information on Adjustable Rate Mortgages...

With an adjustable rate mortgage, your interest rate will periodically fluctuate adjustments based on changes in a defined index are made to the interest rate. The index for your particular loan is established at the time of application.