Mortgage rates and advice

Could someone please provide a clear explanation of what exactly a mortgage is? Thanks in advance.

Basically, we're talking about a home equity loan where you use property as collateral. Usually, the house is worth way more than what you're borrowing—like double or triple. Interest rates on these sit right in the middle: higher than a standard mortgage, but lower than those nasty unsecured personal loans.

If you're buying a place, you’re getting a mortgage, which is technically a type of secured loan because the bank holds a lien on the house. In that case, the loan-to-value ratio is much tighter compared to when you just take out a line of credit against property you already own.

So, when people say "mortgage-backed loan," they usually mean a loan where you don't necessarily have to prove what you're spending the cash on, as long as you put up some real estate as backup.

I appreciate that... So, looking at the situation, it turns out I actually need to look into a mortgage. And frankly, I am completely in the dark about how any of this works... 😢 Do you happen to have any insight into the typical process for all of this?

Here are all the terms and conditions.
The whole country is buzzing about this Swiss franc mortgage being the best deal out there right now.
If anything still seems fuzzy, just shout.

If you're looking to grab an apartment, we're talking about a residential mortgage here, not some random home loan (even if they still put a lien on the place)!
Right now, the big thing is this residential mortgage deal from JPMorgan Chase with a 4.99% rate.
Thomas Cruz4 sent you the link to the JPMorgan Chase site, so just go check out the fine print yourself. I think this "special offer" runs through the end of August, so quit stalling and hurry up.

Can someone give me a hand here?

When applying for a residential mortgage, is it strictly required that the property be used solely as a primary residence?

For instance, would a bank approve a home loan for an apartment on the coast if I have no intention of renting it out?

Andrew Martin69 said:Can someone help me out here too?

When you get a residential mortgage, do you strictly have to buy or build a place just for living in?

Like, would a bank actually approve a home loan for a beach house in Florida if I don't plan on renting it out?

The term "residential mortgage" doesn't mean you're solving a housing crisis, it just means the money is for buying real estate.

By that logic, yeah, a bank will totally clear a loan for a condo by the coast. You just need a standard purchase agreement since JPMorgan Chase is gonna wire the cash straight to the seller anyway.

Whether you rent it out or leave it empty is none of their damn business.
If you actually want to run it as a rental property, you’d look into commercial loans or investment loans instead.

Before you dive headfirst into a mortgage, please do your homework on the terms and conditions. I’ve seen far too many people rush into these loans only to end up losing everything they own. If you need cash for a car, consolidating debt, or anything else, absolutely do not use a mortgage to fund it. It just isn't worth the risk. In the US, while regulations exist, banks can still find loopholes in their fine print to come after your property if you miss even a single payment.

I’m with you on that. It’s a stretch to claim having a roof over your head acts as a safety net when you're buying depreciating assets like cars or debt. That said, I think when > mentioned a mortgage, she was talking about a home loan. Buying real estate is an investment, not just an expense. It's not like a car, which is almost guaranteed to lose half its value in three years; property doesn't usually pull a disappearing act like that.

Taking on any kind of debt is a gamble in this country where nothing is ever truly certain, so every move needs to be weighed carefully.

The real issue here is the mindset we see popping up in these threads all the time. People would much rather finance a flashy new truck or kit out their apartment with high-end sound systems and massive TVs than put that money into a second property that actually builds equity.

Chloe was actually talking about a mortgage, and honestly, if you want to talk about how people here deal with irrational spending and being reckless with debt, we should probably start a whole different thread for that.

You know how American kids are taught in school: we have everything, we’re a wealthy nation, our coastlines are the best in the world, and the Midwest can feed half the planet, etc., etc.
Meanwhile, Swiss kids get told: look at our country, it's nothing but mountains and hills. We have nothing here, so we have to be hardworking and frugal just to get by.

So, let's say you own some land worth, say, $30,000 (just using that as an example). Can you actually take out a loan against that property to invest in something else? How much can I get? What kind of interest rates are we talking about here? And do I have to justify my spending to the bank or what?
Which bank is actually the fastest or easiest to deal with, and how long is the wait time?

Another thing—do I need to have a job here in the States to pull this off?
Say someone moves here from abroad and wants to start a business or buy another house using their land as collateral. Do they have to live in the US for a certain amount of time first to make it happen?

I’d really appreciate it if anyone who actually knows how this works could walk me through the process here in the US, because I'm totally lost on how banks operate these days.

Thanks in advance!
Robin Grant2

I can't believe nobody even knows how we handle this over here in the States?

Take a look at some of those bank websites.

Go check some bank websites online.

What kind of help is that? Thanks for nothing. 👎

I’d say you’re looking at a 1:3 ratio. Essentially, you walk away with $10,000 in credit for your state. If luck is on your side, they won’t bother you with any more insurance nonsense... though, naturally, you need to have the deed to the property in your name first.

And honestly, instead of wasting all that time drafting individual inquiries, you could have just scoured Zillow and a few other major banks, then sent one single email to five or six different addresses... they would have all gotten back to you by now.

Look, man, these guys can barely be bothered to scroll through a few old threads on a forum—and we’ve got at least a hundred of them sitting right there—let alone actually clicking over to a bank's website to do some real digging..
It's just way easier for them to sit around waiting for someone to hand them the answers on a silver platter..

Thanks Speedy, I reached out to every major bank in the US and absolutely nobody is getting back to me. So much for "fast" service, ugh.
I honestly lost track of how these things usually work at home, so I was just asking a legitimate question.

nn-st1, I wasn't even talking to you, so go bother someone else. What do you even know about customer service? I wasn't asking for help, I was just asking a fair question. You're just wasting your own time giving me stupid answers. Bad luck, huh?

If anyone actually knows something, just tell me straight and I'll appreciate it...
I'm curious to see which American bank actually manages to reply first...

I'm curious to hear what you all think about banks and MORTGAGE LOANS lately...
Which bank actually offers decent terms without making life miserable, how long does the processing really take, and what’s the deal with co-signers, appraisals, and all that other fine print they throw at you? 🙏