ELI5: What is mortgage?

Imagine you want a really cool Lego castle, but it has lots of Lego bricks and costs a lot of your allowance! You don't have enough Lego money right now.

A mortgage is like borrowing Lego money from a grown-up (let's call them the Lego Bank) to buy that castle now.

Here's how it works:

• The Lego Bank gives you the Lego money for the castle.
• You give the Lego Bank a special promise. This promise says that if you don't pay them back, they can take the Lego castle back. This promise is called a mortgage.
• You pay the Lego Bank back a little bit each week or month, using your allowance. This includes the Lego money you borrowed plus a little extra for letting you borrow it (like a thank you gift – called interest).
• The Lego castle is yours to play with while you're paying back the Lego Bank.
• Once you've paid back all the Lego money, the Lego Bank gives you back your promise, and the castle is completely yours!