Fed Slashes Their Rate

The Fed has cut their rate twice in the last 2 weeks dropping the Prime Rate to 6%. That's very good news for long suffering Home Equity Line of Credit borrowers. They've paid as their rate went from 4% (yeah that's right) to 8.25%, now back down to 6%. Some jumbo mortgage borrowers now have a Home Equity Line of Credit at a rate lower than their 30 year fixed 1st mortgage.

The Fed Rate is not directly tied to 1st mortgage rates, as many think. The Fed Rate is the the interest rate at which banks borrow money for day to day business needs, or to shore up their overnight reserves. 1st mortgage rates are more closely tied to the 10 year Treasury bond yield. That's what consumers should be watching to find out if it's time to refinance.

The Fed Rate is directly related to the Prime Rate though, so Home Equity Line of Credit borrowers should keep track of that rate closely. There should be some payment reductions coming the next billing cycle. One suggestion as the Home Equity Line of Credit rates drop: Keep making the same payment as when the rate was much higher, that way you will pay down some of the principal. Generally, the payment due on your statement is an interest only payment. If that amount is paid the principal balance remains the same, the debt is being serviced, but not paid down. A discretionary principal payment must be made each month in order to payoff this type of mortgage loan. And the way this loan's rates fluctuate up and down, it's a good idea to pay it down as much as possible.

Condo Conversion Update

Well one thing I could do is get the current mortgage holder to allow the conversion and move the lien to the condo still owned by the original owner of the 2 family.

They are keeping one of the units as their home. Currently they have 2 mortgages totaling more than the value of the remaining condo that they own. However if they payoff the Home Equity Line of Credit the proceeds from the sale of the other side of the house they are making a condo, then the existing first mortgage is less than 75% of the value of the condo they are continuing to live in. Confused yet?

So if I can get the existing lien holder to allow the change in property type and transfer the lien to just one of the units instead of the whole building, that might be a solution. There are, however, complications. First off, the mortgage is being serviced by a different company that the original lender, so that means dealing with 2 entities on the issue.

Also a change a property type effectively puts the mortgage in default and the lender could call in the whole note forcing the payment of the entire mortgage, which is a significant amount of money. More than the sale.

Low down payment financing on a 2 family house

Without getting a subprime mortgage, a borrower can obtain 95% financing on a 2 family home. These loans can be structured in many ways, but the most common is probably an 80% first mortgage and a 15% second mortgage or Home Equity Line of Credit. This can also be done when the purchase price is more than $1,000,000 which is common here in New York City. With these properties, sometimes the first mortgage will be at a better rate if the first mortgage is less than $1,000,000 and the rest is a second mortgage.