Financial Terms Glossary - M

marital deduction
Under federal estate and gift tax law, there is an unlimited marital deduction. This means that a person can transfer any amount of assets to his or her spouse either while alive or via an estate without concern for gift or estate taxes. (In the case of a noncitizen spouse there is a "limited" marital deduction.)

markup (markon)
The amount added to the purchase price to arrive at the selling price, usually expressed as a percentage. There is some confusion about the use of these two terms. A markon is usually expressed as a percentage of cost and a markup is compared to the selling price. Hence, a markon of 100% is a 50% markup. An item costing $1 is priced at $2; the markon of $1 is 100% of the cost. If you consistently use the same term, and if need be, follow it with an example, you should cause little confusion.

materiality
This is usually a value judgment to determine if the dollar value of an item when included or excluded would affect the fairness of financial statements. A $10,000 item might be material in the financial statements of a locally owned business, but immaterial on the statements of a national corporation.

mechanic's lien
A lien against property, created under state law, to protect the financial interests of those who provided material or labor to construct a building or facility.

median (middle)
This is the central number in a list of items. For example, 2, 4, 7, 8, and 9 have a median of 7.

medical savings account
A medical savings account (MSA) is a tax-favored method of paying for unreimbursed medical expenses. Your contributions to a MSA are tax-deductible. To be eligible for an MSA, you must be covered under a high-deductible health plan, and you must work for a small company or be self-employed.

Medicaid
Medicaid became law in 1965 as a jointly funded cooperative venture between the federal and state governments to assist states in providing adequate medical care to eligible, needy persons.

Medicare
The Medicare program funds the federal health program for people age 65 and over. It helps people at a time in their lives when they may have health problems but not a lot of money. Employers, employees, and self-employed individuals fund the system through payroll tax.
See also FICA.

mortality table
A table used to estimate the life expectancy of men and women in a certain age groups.

mortgage
Its most common use is as a lien on real estate. When more than one mortgage is recorded against a piece of property, they are listed by order of recording and referred to as first mortgage, second mortgage, etc.

mortgagee
The person or institution that is lending the money on the property.

mortgagor
The one who is borrowing the money that creates the mortgage.

multiple support agreement
An agreement signed by those providing support for a dependent to allow one of the group to claim the dependent exemption on his or her income tax return. For example, if you and your siblings collectively pay more than half the support for your parent or parents, any one of you who pays more than 10% can claim your parent (s) if the others sign a multiple support agreement.