Article: Balance the profits, consider risks before offering 2nd mortgage

"Taking back" a second mortgage when you sell your home-- "loaning" the buyers some of the money they need in order to buy your place from you--can be both an effective selling tool and a good "investment," or it could be an expensive and major financial blunder. A lot depends on the research you do and the contract you sign.

Before we get to the contract, let's look at what leads up to it. The idea behind taking back a mortgage is fairly simple. Let's say you're selling your home for $100,000 and the people buying it have $5,000 to put down and can get an $85,000 mortgage. That means they are still $10,000 short.

If you really want, or need, to sell your home "right now," you could "loan" ...

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