A friend of mine at work is looking to get a second mortgage on her home or a line of credit but her credit scores are in the mid 500's close to six and is looking to do some debt consolidation to pay some bills down. My question to you guys is.....Do you know of any company that she can do this with. The only one I can think of is Household but that is about it. But then when I asked about re-financing with them I read all kinds of bad articles, so I guess I don't know either. Thanks
I did one with Household and had NO problems. Good CS, helpful, and fairly fast. You could also try New Century Mortgage, they are pretty flexible. Your friend won't be able to get a LOC with a subprime FICO, but a fixed loan shouldn't be too difficult.
I guess Household is easy to get a 2nd mortgage from, it must be-- 20 to 30% of the foreclosure notices seem to have their name on them.
Many of these less-then-perfect lenders keep just shy of what the law calls predatory practices. Remember, a lot of these subprime lenders DO NOT include taxes, etc. in the payment amounts they quote you and you end up in worse shape than before. Household is one of the big players in subprime. I've made the mistake of dealing with a subprime lender for a 2nd mortgage - they used my difficulties (a brain injury which made me think less than clearly) to swing me into a refinance which they knew I wouldn't really be able to afford. Probably because the market for condos where I live had been appreciating 1 -1.5% a month for the previous 2 years. So, avoid Champion, as well. Don't go on those mortgage websites with numerous lenders purporting to be one inquiry - even though all inquiries within 30 days are to be counted as one inquiry on car loans and mortgages, Champion counts them as separate inquires (this is a common practice in the subprime market to lower credit scores) - who owns TU? - subprime lenders seem to quote TU scores all the time, but prime market lenders do not mention TU scores. Predatory practices are barred on primary mortgage loans, so you have options! DEFINITELY explain your difficulties to the current mortgage lender first - its in their interest to keep you as a customer. They may just be able to help you get on track. They'd rather build a banking relationship with you than not -- its a VERY competitive business. Also, a large % of first-time buyers are covered by HUD/Freddie Mac first-time buyer rules, so find out from your lender (they're legally obligated to provide you with this information), where the nearest HUD approved mortgage counselling office is. HUD, Freddie Mac or your State of residence will also have this information. Housing counseling offices can also help with budgeting, etc. Remember that Consumer Credit Counseling was started by the credit industry, its in their benefit, not the consumer's they operate. If it were in the consumer's interest, CCC plans wouldn't be considered as negative on a credit report. Best of luck to your friend!
