I am using Plaid's /liabilities/get endpoint to retrieve data about a user Mortgage. In particular, I am trying to determine whether a mortgage is "principle & interest" or "interest only". Is there a reliable way to determine this information other than inferring it from the history of the remaining balances? Can I use loan_type_description field?
From Plaid's API documentation, it says this about loan_type_description
Description of the type of loan, for example conventional, fixed, or variable. This field is provided directly from the loan servicer and does not have an enumerated set of possible values.
My question is, if the data returned is conventional, does it mean it is a mortgage of type "principle & interest"? Does Plaid have any information on what the typical results are?
As the API docs indicate, this term is set and defined by the mortgage lender, not by Plaid. However, in general, the definition of a conventional loan is one that complies with the CFPB's definition of a conventional loan[1]: "A conventional loan is any mortgage loan that is not insured or guaranteed by the government (such as under Federal Housing Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, or Department of Agriculture loan programs)." This is unrelated to the repayment schedule: a conventional loan can be either interest only or it can require payments of interest and principal.
[1]: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-a-conventional-loan-en-117/).