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Article: For Every Loan, a Proper Use; There's More Than One Way to Tap Home Equity
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- January 26, 2008
- Author:
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Copyright informationThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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David Stevens has seen it countless times: Homeowners who want to
finance a major renovation, pay down their credit card debt or take
a once-in-a-lifetime vacation come into their mortgage lender's
office and announce that they would like to apply for a home-equity
loan.
The problem is, what these homeowners actually want may be an
entirely different product.
Stevens sees it as part of his job to find out whether homeowners
really want that home-equity loan, which acts as a fixed-term second
mortgage, or are actually seeking a home-equity line of credit, a
product that operates like a credit card.
"We have to be very careful to find out exactly what these
customers are asking for and how ...