If you've ever looked at a mortgagee clause, you've seen it: ISAOA/ATIMA printed right after the lender's name. Most insurance professionals know it needs to be there. Fewer know exactly what it does.
ISAOA: Its Successors and/or Assigns
Mortgages get sold. Constantly. Your borrower's loan might originate with one lender and get transferred to a servicer, sold to a secondary market investor, or bundled into a mortgage-backed security — all within the first year.
ISAOA ensures that whoever currently holds the mortgage is automatically protected by the insurance policy, without requiring a policy endorsement every time the loan changes hands.
Without ISAOA, every mortgage transfer would require the borrower to update their insurance policy with the new lender's name and address. Given that the average mortgage is transferred 2-3 times during its life, this would create constant coverage gaps.
ATIMA: As Their Interests May Appear
ATIMA covers a different problem: multiple parties with a financial interest in the same property.
A single property might have:
- The primary mortgage lender
- A second mortgage or HELOC lender
- A contractor with a mechanic's lien
- A government agency with a tax lien
When to include ISAOA/ATIMA
Include it when the lender's clause specifies it. Which is almost always.
If a lender's mortgagee clause reads "JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ISAOA/ATIMA," you type it exactly that way on the dec page. Don't abbreviate it. Don't skip it. Don't paraphrase it.
Some carriers auto-populate ISAOA/ATIMA when you add a mortgagee. Others require you to type it manually. Verify the output matches the clause.
When ISAOA/ATIMA is absent
A few scenarios where you might not see it:
- Loss payee clauses for personal property (vehicles, equipment) typically don't use ISAOA/ATIMA.
- Very old loans originated before the language became standard may have simpler clauses.
- Government-backed loans (FHA, VA) may use different language specifying the government agency's interest.
Common mistakes
Putting ISAOA/ATIMA on a separate line. It goes on the same line as the lender name: "JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ISAOA/ATIMA" — not on the address line.
Using only ISAOA or only ATIMA. They serve different purposes. If the clause includes both, include both.
Confusing ISAOA/ATIMA with loss payee language. They're related but different. ISAOA/ATIMA is specific to mortgagee clauses on real property. Loss payee applies to personal property.
Look it up
Every clause in the MortgageeClauses.com database includes the correct ISAOA/ATIMA designation. Search any lender, copy the clause, and paste it directly — no guessing whether to include it.
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