Who to go to to refi a 2nd mortgage?

[boober]

I'm looking for advice on refi'ing a 2nd on 2 different properties.

I have a rental that has about 75% equity and my primary which is at about 103%, so it's slightly underwater.

Both my 1st's on both properties are at excellent terms, they both have about a 3.5% APR, and they both have about 13 years left on em.

My 2nd's on both properties have about 22 years left on em, and they both have balances on em of around $35,000.

I'd like to get those both refi'd to as low an APR as possible, and get em switched over to either 10 or 15 years.

My credit scores are around 720 or so.

My rental is serviced through B of A for both loans.

My primary is serviced through Quicken Loans for the 1st, and the 2nd is with Greentree.

I've heard that a credit union is an option? I've never been a member of one, but they've always kind of creeped me out. And I've only dealt through big banks and entities over the years, as I've just done it all over the net.

I'm thinking of calling up B of A and seeing what they can do about the 2nd on my rental that they currently own. And I'm thinking of calling up Quicken Loans since they own the 1st on my primary.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

[boober]

bumped.

[frugalQ]

On the home that is underwater, what is the LTV of the first mortgage? Can you refi the first to pay off the second?

Or, can you cash out refi your rental to pay off the 2nd of the main home. And the refi the 2nd of the rental home?

It may be a higher int rate that you currently have, but it may be better when everything is factored in.

[boober]

Those are good suggestions frugalq thanks for your reply.

I had kinda considered those options before hand and my thinking is, I'd really like to not touch the 1st on my rental, since it's at a phenomenal 3.1% rate.

I guess what I'm really wanting to find out from others, is what are my options for doing refi's on my 2nd's for both homes. I'm thinking doing a refi on my 2nd for the rental should be easy since it's got so much equity in it.

If I can refi the 2nd on the rental to a lower rate and maybe a shorter term, say 10-15 years, that should save me a boatload of money over time. The 2nd on my primary, since that is underwater by about 5 grand or so, I think I might just take advantage of some balance transfers on my CC's. Do that for a couple of years, and then I might just borrow a little bit from my TSP (aka fed govt 401k plan.) to completely pay it off.

So does anyone have any recommendations on who I can go to do a refi on a 2nd mortgage? I've read threads on people taking out a brand new 2nd out on a property, but I have yet to come across anyone who's actually a refi'd a 2nd.

That's the info I'm really hoping to glean from this thread. How and who to go to to a do a refi on a 2nd.

[StartingOver10]

Should be no different to refi a second than to refi a first.

As you pointed out, the rental property is your best bet. i really don't think anyone will touch the second on your primary since it is underwater.

I would go to your local or regional banks and CU's to refi your second.  If you were here in S Fl area I could tell you specific lenders (they are small regional banks that only operate in Palm Beach County and Martin county as an example).  But this takes place all over the country - use the community banks for your refi. Talk to the LO first to get their guidelines. A short conversation can save you a lot of time

[frugalQ]

Agree with SO10...a credit union is probably your best bet. Their int rates are usually lower and they have various types of 2nd mortgage options. I know my credit union has a 10 year balloon option. Be prepared because credit unions are a little more strict with their qualifying requirements.

You will probably have a hard time refi'ing your primary home since most 2nd require 10% equity. This is why I suggested looking into the possibility of refi'ing your first and paying off the primary home's second. Even with a higher 1st mortgage rate, it's possible you will save money.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[boober]

Guys thanks alot for those last 2 replies. That's exactly the info I was looking for.

I'm glad to hear it's basically as easy to refi a 2nd as it is a first, assuming of course all the pertinent details are good, such as equity, credit worthiness and all that stuff.

I was just always under the impression that it was basically impossible to refi a 2nd. What's done in the past, is done and can't be changed.

I'm going to try and refi the 2nd on the rental to a better rate and a shorter term. Probably 15 years. I'm thinking that shouldn't be too hard. It's at around 7.85%, I wonder how much lower I could get it? Say under 5%?

For the 2nd on the primary, I've got a bunch of unused CC's with great 0% balance transfers I could do for the next year or 2. Who knows, I think I could have enough equity by then to do a refi so I'll just have to wait till then.

[frugalQ]

Basically, what will happen is you will have to get a HELOC or something like that and then use that to pay off the 2nd.

[frugalQ]

Since you have so much equity in the rental, you may be able to get a heloc large enough to pay off both of your 2nd.

[boober]

That was actually another thing I was curious about!

That's good to know. Thanks again for the help.