A mortgage which is payable in full after a period that is shorter than the term. The final payment is called a balloon payment because of its large size. Balloon payment mortgages are more common in commercial real estate than in residential real estate. A balloon payment mortgage may have a fixed or a floating interest rate.

Balloon mortgages are similar to ARMs in that the borrower trades off a lower rate in the early years against the risk of a higher rate later. They are riskier than ARMs because there is no limit on the extent of a rate increase at the end of the balloon period.

Example

An example of a balloon payment mortgage is the 7-year Fannie Mae Balloon, which features monthly payments based on a 30-year amortization. In the United States, the amount of the balloon payment must be stated in the contract if Truth-in-Lending provisions apply to the loan.