Beware of Collateral Mortgage

What Type of Mortgage Is Yours?

First Published Date: March 16, 2015

When you shop for a new mortgage, pay attention to what type of mortgage your financial institution is registering you. You may be lured into collateral mortgage without knowing, as financial institutions may not disclose enough to let you know that’s it’s collateral mortgage you are registered for.

Traditional mortgage represents the exact amount you need to borrow – plain and simple. With a collateral mortgage, the amount you are borrowing is up to 125 percent to 150 percent value of your property. And for that reason the lender will have a promissory note and lien registered against your property. For example, if your mortgage amount is $100,000, the bank will register you for $150,000, although you are receiving only $100,000.

Banks or financial institutions will tell you that it’s a good thing to register you for more than what need because you will have easy access to credit in the future without reapplying or avoiding extra fees and credit.

However, what banks will not tell you is the following:

– Unlike traditional mortgages, collateral mortgages are complicated and expensive to transfer to another lender at the end of the term.

– You could be paying higher interest at renewal because your lender knows it’s difficult to switch mortgage and you will have to stay with them, so they can make pay you more.

– Because you can borrow only up to 80 percent of your property value, collateral mortgage will not be able to let you access you the extra money banks are registering you for if your down payment or equity is less then 20 percent.

– If you want to transfer out of collateral mortgage, you must hire a lawyer and pay $1,000 or more to discharge the collateral mortgage.

So when you are shopping for mortgages, always read the fine print and consult an independent mortgage professional before making your decisions.