Posts Tagged Home Equity Lines

Home Equity Loan Sources

A key to finding the right loan is to consider all available sources. The emergence of home equity programs has enlarged the field of lenders. Likely lenders are among the following:

Banks.

Commercial banks are attracted to home equity lines as a way to sell other bank services, such as savings accounts and credit cards. Banks have been some of the most aggressive marketers of home equity loans, offering low closing costs, special initial interest rates, and no annual fees.

Consumer Finance Companies.

In their book “Barron’s Finance & Investment Handbook,” John Downes and Jordan Goodman stated that these finance companies also known as small loan or direct loan companies lend money to individuals under the small loan laws of the individual U.S. states”. These firms have long experience in making second mortgages on homes. They have also been aggressive home equity loan makers in an effort to keep borrowers who want to retain tax-deductible interest.

Savings and Loan Associations.

The S&Ls have moved into home equity more cautiously. However, these loans are natural extension of their first mortgage business.

Mortgage Bankers.

W. Frazier Bell in his book “How to Get Best Home loan,” explained that mortgage bankers work closely with the secondary market, using its guidelines and selling the resulting loans or securities backed by the loans. As equity loans become more acceptable to investors and other purchasers of mortgage loans, mortgage bankers can be expected to offer more programs.

Credit Unions.

These organizations should provide equity loans for the same reasons as consumer finance companies.
Securities Brokerage Firms. Stockbrokers are more than just securities salespeople. Many of the major companies offer their own line or sell programs offered by the large investment houses.

Nontraditional Lenders.

A major university provides student loans backed by home equity. Some home improvements dealers also offer equity financing for these products and services.

Online Lenders.

“These are usually mortgage brokers who operate over the internet,” says Robert Erwin, author of the book “Tips and Traps When Mortgage Hunting”. Many mortgage banking companies have an Internet presence, as well as their bricks-and -mortar offices, while others operate through Web sites only. Though the latter are not chartered banks, they do have to comply with all federal lending laws.

With home loans, you often do not have to search out sources. If you own a home and have a good credit rating, the lenders will seek you out.


By: Olimpio Zapanta

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Home Equity Lines Of Credit Are Sometimes Not The Answer

It is true that homeowners often have the upper hand when it comes to obtaining finance. Sometimes, not even a good credit score and a good credit history is needed to get a loan with fairly good terms, specially if you are using your home as a security for this loan. Nearly any type of finance is available for homeowners, the terms will depend on the applicant’s credit rating, but it will still finance available for those seeking it. The tricky part will usually be choosing the appropriate loan according to your particular situation.

If you are needing funding I am sure you must be having a hard time deciding on what type of loan is best for you. Doing research on all of the available loan options can be very tiring and can take up a lot of time, specially if you do not have a clear idea of what you want yet, but it will be extremely worth it. Choosing the correct loan type will be the first step towards a successful loan process which will hopefully not only improve your credit but also provide you with the money you are in need of.

Here is some crucial information on a particular loan type you should look into: the home equity line of credit. Read on!

Home Equity Lines Of Credit: The Basics

Being a homeowner, you might be very familiar with the term “equity” and with what it entails. If not, I will highly recommend you do a thorough research on this topic before reading this article, or any other article for that matter. But specially before you apply for finance.

Going what to what concerns us, I will briefly explain the basics on home equity lines of credit. This type of loan offers borrowers the great terms of a home equity loan plus the flexibility of a revolving credit account. The borrower will be able to withdraw as much money as he needs without going over the established limit and once he repays it, he will be able to withdraw money again. Someone taking out this type of loan will be able to put the borrowed money to any use as there are no known restrictions related to this topic.

Usual terms on equity lines of credit vary depending on each particular lender and on the credit situation of each borrower, but they are usually very favorable. The interest rate the consumer pays on this loan depends exclusively on the withdrawn amount and it is generally tax deductible, this feature poses a major advantage over other loan types.

When Not To Resort To Equity Lines Of Credit

As fantastic as this financial product might be, sometimes it is just not the answer to your prayers. There are some particular situations which could best be resolved by other means.

* Consolidate credit card debt: if you are thinking of using the money you withdraw from your HELOC for this purpose, you had better think twice. It might be possible for you to transfer the balance on your existing credit card to a 0% interest rate card and thus obtain more benefits.

* Second mortgage: as the interest rate on a HELOC might fluctuate, you will benefit more from a regular loan which will protect you against such situations.

* Shopping: this is definitely a bad idea. Even though this financial product works more or less like a credit card, it will be wiser to use your credit card to purchase objects as your home is not on the line.


By: Sarah Dinkins

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Home Equity Loans Explained

Home equity loans are fixed rate home loans that allow you to tap into the money (equity) you’ve already invested in your home to finance debts or other purposes at a lower interest rate than most revolving credit options.

With house valuations increasing considerably over the last 10 years many UK homeowners are unaware of equity loans as a way of raising finance.

For example if you are a homeowner with a house valued at £300,000 and you have an outstanding mortgage of say £100,000 you can use the difference of £200,000 as equity to take out a loan. A Home Equity Loan can be really useful if your existing mortgage lender will apply a redemption penalty if you wish to change your current mortgage. If you don’t want to pay this penalty a remortgage will not be possible so a home equity loan, which is independent of your original mortgage company, is a viable option.

Taking out a home equity loan online from is a much better option than selling your home to get the money. If you sell your home, you will be left with a lump sum of cash after paying off your mortgage. A home equity loan allows you to get that cash without selling your home.

One of the main benefits of the home equity loan which sets it apart from other loans is with this kind of loan the interest rate is likely to be lower (if not the best rate loan) as the lender has the guarantee that you can pay the loan back because of the equity in your property.

Although a home equity loan has many benefits you should also be cautious before taking out such a loan. Because it is still a secured loan with the property as collateral, a Home Equity Loan generally has lower interest rates. For the same reason, Home Equity Loans can be risky, because if you default on payments then you put the property at risk of foreclosure. The homeowner must also be prepared to pay off the loan balance when the house is sold.

Some lenders have stopped offering home-equity lines of credit and home-equity loans altogether, even to borrowers with good credit. And lenders that still offer these types of loans are being a lot more selective. The lenders that have cut back on home-equity loans and credit lines are mainly those that raise money by selling the loans to investors. And since the recent issues with sub-prime loans the lenders are being extra cautious about offering these types of loans.

Conclusion

An equity loan may not always be the best solution to all of your financial problems. However a home equity loan can become an important part of short-term financial planning. And, once the loan is paid, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve once again proven your credit worthiness.


By: Paul Hockney

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