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Guides

Second Home and Vacation Home Financing Guides

Plain, sourced guides to financing a second home or vacation home: occupancy rules, down payment, debt to income, equity and the application process.

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These guides cover how financing a second home actually works: how occupancy is classified, what sets the down payment, how debt to income is calculated, how buyers use the equity in the home they already own, and what the application process involves. Where a guide states a figure, it names the public source it came from. Where a figure depends on your own file, the guide says so instead of inventing one.

The library

All thirteen guides

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How a Second Home Mortgage WorksHow the whole process works, from occupancy classification to closing.

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Down Payment on a Second HomeWhat sets the down payment, and how to model your own scenarios.

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Debt to Income for a Second HomeHow the ratio is built, and why the 43 percent figure is out of date.

Using Your Equity to Buy a Second HomeFunding a purchase from the home you already own, and what it costs. Second Home vs. Investment PropertyHow occupancy is classified, and why the answer has to be accurate. Pre-Approval and Documents for a Second HomeWhat the process involves and which documents to gather first. Financing a Vacation HomeCabins, beach houses and resort condominiums, and what slows them down. Refinancing a Second HomeWhat changes when the property you are refinancing is not your primary residence. What Loan Options Exist for a Second HomeWhich programs are actually available on a second home, and which are not. Buying a Second Home When You Are Self-EmployedWhy the income calculation, not the property, is the hard part of these files. What It Actually Costs to Close on a Second HomeEverything that has to be funded at closing beyond the down payment. Condos and Resort Properties: Project EligibilityWhy the lender reviews the development as well as you on a resort condo. What “Occupying It Part of the Year” Actually MeansWhat occupying it part of the year commits you to, during and after closing.

Start with your own numbers

Three calculators on the main page work from figures you enter: down payment and amount financed, debt to income, and the equity available in your current home. They recommend nothing and store nothing. Open the calculators.

If the property is a cabin, beach house or resort condominium, the calculators page is the closer fit, and the vacation home financing guide covers what tends to slow those purchases down.

These guides are written for people financing a second or vacation home with Bryan Piccolomini, NMLS #228509, of Residential Mortgage, LLC. More about Bryan and the licensing.

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Questions the guides do not answer?

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