I'm not old enough, but I think it was during President Roosevelt's time with "they" ended front-end loaded interest loans.
Prior to, installment loans (mortgages are a type of installment loan) could require 100% of the interest
over the term of the loan had to be paid prior to any principal reduction. What a real screw. Government stepped in and stopped this practice by banks. Some credit houses continued the practice for a number of years, but I think the loopholes have been closed.
Maybe there is a historian on ToTV who knows if it was during the Roosevelt era.
