Second mortgage and home equity loan- How to Use Your Home’s Equity to Consolidate Debt

If you’ve got a wallet full of credit cards, and monthly payments on them that total more than 25% of your monthly income, chances are that you’ve considered debt consolidation loans or some other means of taming your credit card debt. But did you know that a home equity loan is another way to get the money that you need to pay off your creditors, reduce your monthly payments, and get out from under the weight of all those monthly payments?

A second mortgage and home equity loan is essentially a mortgage taken out with your house as the collateral. Because the loan is secured, you’ll have a much more favorable interest rate. And those lower rates will translate to a lower monthly payment overall. You’ll wind up with one creditor, one monthly payment, and more money in your pocket each month.A borrower can use a second mortgage and home equity loan for several purposes. It could be for financing college education or going out for a luxurious holiday. Home equity loans can be used for consolidating debts. It solely depends on the borrower, how he plans to use the loan.

With a second mortgage and home equity loan, a borrower gets the option to take the loan in lump sum or through credit line. Under the lump sum scheme, the entire loan amount will be given to the borrower at once and interest becomes payable on it immediately. A credit line or a line of credit option is popularly known as HELOC (Home Equity Line Of Credit). HELOC provides borrowers with the choice to borrow funds in the manner that they choose, up to a maximum credit limit for which the borrower has qualified. The most preferable feature of HELOC is that the interest is charged only on the amount of loan used and not on the entire loan amount.

Before you commit to a second mortgage and home equity loan, you ideally want to have owned your home long enough to build up equity, not be planning to move soon, have a stable employment situation and actually need the money that a home equity loan can give you. If you’re using the funds to pay off credit card debt, don’t let your consumer debt run back up during the ten or so years it will take you to pay back your equity loan.

Finally, make sure you can afford the monthly payments. Any borrowing, especially on a home, needs to be part of a total household plan and worked within your family’s budget.

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