Friday, March 9, 2007

Homeownership Improves Terms On Non-Home Loan Types

Though you may believe that homeownership only affects those loans that carry collateral, truth is that being a home owner will bring more benefits to you than you can imagine not only on secured loans but also on unsecured loans of any type. Whether you want to apply for a car loan, student loan, home loan, home equity loan, business loan, or any other kind of loan, being a homeowner will guarantee you better terms on your loan.

Homeownership has many consequences that affect variables that are considered by the lender when analyzing a loan request. These will affect not only approval of your loan but also loan terms like the interest rates, loan length, monthly payments, fees and charges. Knowing these facts we’ll let you be in a better position when it comes to negotiating with lenders.

”Home Loan” Loan Types

These loan types include home mortgage loans and home equity loans and lines of credit. The first ones are loans that use a real estate property (house or apartment) as collateral for the loan. These loans usually carry low interest rates, long repayment programs of up to 30 years, higher loan amounts (enough to purchase the property) and also lower monthly payments.

Home equity loans and lines of credit on the other hand, use the equity left on the home in order to guarantee the loan. Equity is the difference between the home value and the outstanding debt guaranteed by the property. These loans also carry low interest rates only slightly higher than regular home loans and long repayment programs of up to 15 years. The loan amount is generally determined by the available equity and the credit worthiness of the applicant. Other than that, these loans have similar advantageous terms to the loan conditions of mortgage loans.

Non “Home Loan” Loan Types

These loan types are all the other loans that are not guaranteed by a real estate property. The category includes car loans, student loans, unsecured loans of all kinds, and many other financial products both unsecured and secured with other assets. It may sound strange that a loan that is not specifically guaranteed by an asset would benefit from the existence of that asset, but truth is that assets represent a guarantee for the lender regardless of their use.

Thus, homeowners can also get lower monthly payments, longer repayment programs, lower interest rates, higher loan amounts and many other benefits like lower fees and costs on insurance for these loan types as well as with real estate secured loans. Moreover, the costs of these loans for homeowners are significantly reduced to the point of matching the loan terms of secured loans even if they are unsecured loans.

As you can see, being a homeowner has benefits even if you are not applying for a secured loan that will make use of a real estate asset as collateral. And that’s why more and more homeowners are turning to unsecured loans: They get all the finance they need at very reasonable rates without risking repossession on their properties.



http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=21833