A mortgage lender is the person or institution that advances money to the borrower. Mortgage lenders may be private (an individual, a private company, a friend or relative of the borrower) or public (a bank, savings and loan, mortgage banker, credit union, or similar financial institution). While public mortgage lenders must conform to government laws, there are few or no regulations on private mortgage lenders. Public or private, the mortgage lender holds the borrower's note of indebtedness and essentially owns the mortgage until the buyer buys it back.
