Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Massachusetts
mortgage
can a mortgage be transferred to a family member to lower a mortgage if the member is not on the deed?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: mortgage
The note can be made in the name of a family member and secured by a Mortgage on a property, but almost all lenders would require the famlly members name to be on the deed. You can put the family member on the deed, or you can have the family member guarantee the Mortgage to try to lower the interest rate.
Re: mortgage
If a person is on the promissory note (which represents the promise to repay money lent), but not on the deed to the property (i.e., they don't have an ownership interest in the property), in theory, they could be added to both the deed and mortgage. A real estate attorney can advise concerning the particulars (e.g. how the deed needs to be worded and whether the lender's permission needs to be sought.)
However, if the question is, can adding another person to the mortgage transaction lower the interest rate, the answer is, possibly. They may be on the promissory note, whether or not they are on the deed and mortgage. Of course, there will be a certain amount of risk for them.