There are two categories of mortgages: conventional and governmental.

Governmental loans are mortgage programs sponsored by a government agency. These include the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Veteran’s Administration (VA) for veterans, and the Rural Housing Service (RHS) or Farmers Home Administration (FmHA) for those living in rural areas. These loans work best for homebuyers with low or moderate incomes, because they require low down payments and have less stringent qualifying guidelines. None of these agencies actually loan you the money; they only guarantee loans granted by lenders who participate in the program.

Conventional loans are loans that are not guaranteed by the government.

Read more about the different types of mortgages here.