Home Equity Loans – second mortgage

costumes.us.com asked:


I am searching for the best mortgage calculators. Interest Only calculators and simple home mortgage calculators and loan calculators. I used the ones at http://www.1mortgagecalculator.net/index2.php and they seem pretty good. Just looking for comparisons.

Victoria

Joseph Kenny asked:


When it comes time to get the money you need to renovate your home, you have some choices to make concerning the financing of it. Both ways, either refinancing your first mortgage, or a home equity loan, will give you access to your equity. After that, though, a number of differences will clearly stand out. Here is what you need to know about these differences so you can intelligently choose the best one for your needs.

Features Of Refinancing Your First Mortgage

By getting a cash out mortgage, you can replace your first mortgage and obtain your equity. This means that you will have to pay the fees again that you paid when you bought the house in the first place. However, if you wait until the interest rates are down, you can get a better deal than you had before. The amount that you can gain could easily offset the costs of refinancing and save you thousands of dollars over the life of the new mortgage.

The interest rate for a first mortgage is always lower than what you would get for a second mortgage – which makes this the ideal choice. You also will have only one payment each month, which you could even make lower than what you have now by extending the time length on the mortgage. If you already have more than one mortgage, then this is also a good way to consolidate them and get your equity at the same time, as well as reduce your monthly payment.

If you currently have an adjustable rate mortgage that is about to run out of the fixed rate portion, then this should be the way you would want to go. Not only will it give you level payments with a fixed interest rate, assuming you get a fixed rate mortgage, but also your equity for the upcoming renovation project you have in mind. This means you could take care of more than one problem at once.

Features Of A Home Equity Loan

A home equity loan is considered a second mortgage. This means it will give you an additional payment each month. If you can afford the extra payment, this may be the way you want to go. It will also have a higher rate of interest than a first mortgage, and usually has a time frame of up to 15 years for repayment.

You can take out your equity but need to leave enough in there that is equal to 20% of the value of the house. This is true with any kind of mortgage, since you may need to pay private mortgage insurance if you go over this amount.

A home equity loan is mostly fixed rate, but some may also be adjustable. Your loan payments are fully amortizing, and money used for fixing up your home is often tax deductible. This type of loan is seeing some new variations come out recently, so you will want to see what is out there before you choose.

The Choice Is Yours

Obviously, only one of these choices will best meet your needs. After you choose a course to take, you will then want to get a few quotes – whether you choose to refinance, or get a home equity loan. You will need to look them over carefully and consider all aspects in order to find the one that is best for you.



PARKER

J. Nicholson asked:


Before considering a home equity loan or line of credit, it’s important to understand the definition of home equity and what it means for your loan.  In its simplest terms, equity is defined as the difference between the current value of your home and how much is left on your mortgage. 

Let’s say your house has increased in value by $75,000 since you first bought it.  If you haven’t paid any of your mortgage principal down (which you probably have unless you have an interest-only loan), this increase in value represents $75,000 which you can borrow against.

Similarly, if you have paid off $15,000 in principal from your mortgage, this is also home equity.  Remember, however, that mortgage payments consist of both interest and principal and in the early years of your mortgage the monthly payments is mostly interest.  So if you have not had your mortgage very long you may not have paid down as much principal as you might expect.  Check your monthly mortgage statement to see how much principal has been paid.

So in this example, if the price of your home has increased by $75,000 and you have paid off $15,000 in mortgage principal, you have built up $90,000 in home equity.  This is the definition of home equity in action.

However, that doesn’t mean you can go to a bank for a $90,000 loan.  The amount you can borrow is determined by what is known as the “loan-to-value” ratio.  The loan-to-value ratio tells you how much of your home equity you can tap into.  Most lenders won’t go higher than 80-85% of the appraised value of your house minus what’s left on your first mortgage.



ALI