Steve M asked:


Hi, I bought my house in 2006 for $450k with no down. Interest rate for the first loan (80%) is 6.5% and I got the 2nd loan with 9.5%. Now the estimated home value is ~$400k. I know the interest rates these days are less than 5.5%. Can I get a refinance?

CARLTON

Melissa Kellett asked:


If you have a mortgage loan and you have requested a home equity loan too, you can refinance both loans and get a single loan and a single monthly payment with the same or better terms than the average of both outstanding loans. This can be achieved by applying for a refinance mortgage loan.

Home equity loans, also known as second mortgages, are secured with the same asset as the primary mortgage loan, thus, when refinancing the home loan, you can include your home equity loan. This can provide you with many benefits like getting fewer monthly payments, saving thousands of dollars on interests, getting lower installments and reducing your overall debt exposure.

Refinancing: Concept

As you probably know already, refinancing consists on acquiring a mortgage loan in order to repay an outstanding mortgage. This can be done because the loan contract specifies that the money will be used to cancel the outstanding loan so the new loan will be the primary beneficiary of the security.

The home equity loan is, in this case, also replaced with the new loan and the new loan amount will be determined by adding up the previous mortgage loan amount and the home equity loan amount.

Saving Money? Getting Ease?

By refinancing you can save thousands of dollars on interests. Home equity loans generally come with higher interest rates than mortgage loans and thus, by obtaining a lower rate refinance home loan you will not only be saving money on your mortgage loan but you will also be saving even more money on your home equity loan.

Also, by refinancing you will unify both loans and get a longer repayment program and lower monthly payments. The resulting loan installments will be undoubtedly lower than the combination of mortgage loan payments and the home equity loan payments. Thus, even if you are indebted for a longer period of time you will get a lot of ease on your financial situation and income.

Refinancing Other Debt: Cash-Out Refinance Loans

A cash out refinance loan is a refinance loan with a higher amount than the outstanding mortgage loan and in this particular case than that of the mortgage loan and home equity loan combined. Once both loans are cancelled, the surplus can be used for any purpose you may think of, including reducing your overall debt.

If you have other debt like credit card balances, personal unsecured loans, pay day loans, student loans, car loans or any other loan, you can use this surplus to cancel your debt and thus, you will be saving money due to the lower interest rate that refinance mortgage loans feature.

This will improve your overall credit situation raising your credit rank and improving your credit history. Your debt to income ratio will also be improved just as your debt exposure. Using a cash-out refinance loan in this way is a smart thing and will do a lot to enhance your whole financial situation. Your ability to get finance will also increase since on your credit report, only a single outstanding and affordable loan will show.



STEVEN

Dark Magician asked:


I understand equity is value you have built up in your home by making loan payments but why is it required to refinance? Is it because lenders want to see you are in the process of paying off the loan instead of simply refinancing frequently?

Thanks

JOAN

metspsu1980 asked:


My brother and I are in our mid to late 20’s and own a 2 unit home valued at approximately $75,000 free and clear. We have a 30 year mortgage (out on another home valued at approximately $40,000) at a fixed rate of 7.4395%. We have been paying on this loan for almost 3 years. (PMI of $20 a month). Each of these are rental units.

I know mortgage rates are at an all-time low slightly under 5%. Would it be better for us to refinance our current mortgage or take out a home equity loan and use it to pay it off.

Please factor into the equation that I plan on purchasing another property in the next year or so which will be my primary residence.

ELOY

Johnnie asked:


Should I refinance my mortgage, which will save me $400 per month by combining a costly 9.99% home equity loan with my primary, or use the $10000 I need to close to pay off my credit card debt (which would pay off all my credit cards)?
I’ve already been approved for the loan…I have good credit so that $10,000 in debt doesn’t kill my credit score which is still over 700.
The home equity loan is $35000 at 9.99%, my credit cards are not much higher than this so I am most anxious to get rid of this bad loan…Am I thinking about this the correct way?

TRACY

aglaia asked:


My credit score is 680. I was told my debt to income ratio is high. Will my credit score increase and will it be better for me if I pay off these debts showing on my account by using my equity line?
1. credit card balance
2. a student loan I co-signed with my son (my son pays the monthly bill)

DARIN

Daryl Stewart asked:


If you want to refinance your current credit, you have many options. Refinancing a home loan occupy getting a new mortgage. However, if you like better privacy, there are ways to get a loan with least documents.

First way is that if you have good credit. You can get a no doc refinance loan. In this process each lender is differ. The process of achieving a no doc loan is easy. The lender will base loan agreement exclusively on credit scores. To obtain a no doc loan, you should have a very high credit score. In this condition, the candidate may supply recent paycheck remains or income tax returns for the past two years. These loan programs are beneficial for self-employed or convention workers.

Benefits of No Documentation

Getting a no document refinance loan is best for persons who want to uphold their privacy. While lenders are not always thrilled to approve loans with little or no documentation, they reason that an applicant with an excellent credit history is less likely to tarnish their perfect record.

Thus, they become an ideal candidate for a no doc loan.

There are two types of credit refinances. The first type is called a rate and term refinance. This is simply when someone wants to lower their rate or change the term of their original home loan. In this example there are two types of credit refinances.

In this instance they are not pulling cash out they are just changing the rate and/or the term of their original loan. Most people refinance when their home loans or other loans when the market rate is much poorer than their current credit rate.

The second type of refinance is called a Texas Cash out Refinance. This is when someone wants to draw cash out of their home in addition to lowering or changing the rate or term.

Most people refinance when their home loans when the market rate is much lower than their current mortgage rate. A good rule of thumb is when you can save about 1% it may make sense to refinance.

The second type of refinance is called a Texas Cash out Refinance. This is when someone wants to draw cash out of their home in addition to lowering or changing the rate or term. Texas once banned the ability to pull cash out of one’s home but now allow this as long as the loan convene these criteria.



MORTON

T asked:


I have a first mortgage and a home equity loan. Can I refinance just the first mortgage only?

I am also looking at rolling it all into a single refinance as well, but appraised value may not allow that. If I refinance the first mortgage, that would still greatly reduce my monthly payments and allow me to pay more on the home equity loan.
Helen- what are the terms of your loan?
Dave- I agree on the Helen thing, I threw the question up there just to see if I would get a response from her.

I have 260k on one, and 62k on the helo. Unfortunately, my home is most like valued at $300k. So, from what I understand, I need the holder of the 2nd to subordinate. Any insight as to if lenders are doing that?

HOLLIS

Andrew Bicknell asked:


A second mortgage can also be referred to as a home equity loan. It is in essence a secured loan that is second, or subordinate, to the first mortgage against the property. The key issue for anyone getting this type of loan is the amount of equity they have in their home. This will ultimately determine the amount of money that can be secured for the home owners use.

Equity is the amount of money that is paid down on the home, or it can be the value of the home minus any loans owed on the home. The main reason for taking out a second mortgage is to take equity from your home and turn it into cash in pocket. What this means is that if you have enough equity in your home you can borrow money using your home as collateral. There are three basic types of loans to choose from: the traditional second mortgage, a home equity loan, or a home equity line of credit.

A second mortgage should not be confused with a mortgage refinance or re-mortgage. When you refinance your first mortgage you are replacing your old loan with a new loan, usually at a better interest rate. A second mortgage, or home equity loan, is another loan in addition to the primary loan, which will result in two monthly payments. It is important to distinguish the two to make sure that two payments will not seriously affect your monthly budget.

The interest paid on a second mortgage, up to the first $100,000 borrowed, is tax deductible provided that the loan is on your primary residence. It should be noted that interest rates on home equity loans are generally higher than a first mortgage, usually in the 2-4% higher range. But the interest rate on a this type of secured loan will be lower then on an unsecured loan, such as a car loan, and much, much lower then you will find on a credit card.

The common reasons to get a home equity loan are to pay off high interest credit cards or other higher interest rate debts, refurbishing the home, urgent family matters such as education, medical, etc. This is called debt consolidation and refinancing and is a good way to tap the asset value of your home to meet your investment and budget needs, and helps you avoid incurring high interest unsecured debt like credit cards. If you have extensive credit card debt, and are not making progress in paying it off on a monthly schedule, a second mortgage may be a good move.

There are a couple of things that anyone getting a home equity second mortgage should be aware of. A second mortgage puts a second charge on your home, meaning that the second mortgage provider can take a share of any proceeds if your home has to be sold. What is worse, if you pay the first mortgage but fail to pay the second, that mortgage provider can seize your home, even if the sum involved is relatively small.

Getting a second mortgage home equity loan can be a good way to use the equity in your home to do any number of things. Like all financial decisions using a second home loan should be carefully considered in all aspects. If it makes sense and fits within the monthly budget then it is something to be strongly considered.



NEAL

Andrew Bicknell asked:


A second mortgage can also be referred to as a home equity loan. It is in essence a secured loan that is second, or subordinate, to the first mortgage against the property. The key issue for anyone getting this type of loan is the amount of equity they have in their home. This will ultimately determine the amount of money that can be secured for the home owners use.

Equity is the amount of money that is paid down on the home, or it can be the value of the home minus any loans owed on the home. The main reason for taking out a second mortgage is to take equity from your home and turn it into cash in pocket. What this means is that if you have enough equity in your home you can borrow money using your home as collateral. There are three basic types of loans to choose from: the traditional second mortgage, a home equity loan, or a home equity line of credit.

A second mortgage should not be confused with a mortgage refinance or re-mortgage. When you refinance your first mortgage you are replacing your old loan with a new loan, usually at a better interest rate. A second mortgage, or home equity loan, is another loan in addition to the primary loan, which will result in two monthly payments. It is important to distinguish the two to make sure that two payments will not seriously affect your monthly budget.

The interest paid on a second mortgage, up to the first $100,000 borrowed, is tax deductible provided that the loan is on your primary residence. It should be noted that interest rates on home equity loans are generally higher than a first mortgage, usually in the 2-4% higher range. But the interest rate on a this type of secured loan will be lower then on an unsecured loan, such as a car loan, and much, much lower then you will find on a credit card.

The common reasons to get a home equity loan are to pay off high interest credit cards or other higher interest rate debts, refurbishing the home, urgent family matters such as education, medical, etc. This is called debt consolidation and refinancing and is a good way to tap the asset value of your home to meet your investment and budget needs, and helps you avoid incurring high interest unsecured debt like credit cards. If you have extensive credit card debt, and are not making progress in paying it off on a monthly schedule, a second mortgage may be a good move.

There are a couple of things that anyone getting a home equity second mortgage should be aware of. A second mortgage puts a second charge on your home, meaning that the second mortgage provider can take a share of any proceeds if your home has to be sold.  What is worse, if you pay the first mortgage but fail to pay the second, that mortgage provider can seize your home, even if the sum involved is relatively small.

Getting a second mortgage home equity loan can be a good way to use the equity in your home to do any number of things. Like all financial decisions using a second home loan should be carefully considered in all aspects. If it makes sense and fits within the monthly budget then it is something to be strongly considered.



IRVING