is it better to refinance or take out a loan on a second property 
that depends on the equity you have in your primary residence generally rates are lower on refinances on primary residences than on non owner occupied properties get some rates from lenders so that you can do a side by side comparison can i get a better rate if i turn a property into my primary residence if after not occupying the property for a long time you decide to live in it as your primary residence you may be able to refinance to get a different rate keep in mind that every refinance has closing costs so make sure that you will have a tangible net benefit from refinancing an example of this would be someone who owns a cabin where they like to vacation who then moves into the cabin full time after retirement that individual could refinance to get a better rate on their cabin the bottom linethe term non owner occupied property is expository a non owner occupied property is one in which the owner does not occupy the property non owner occupied properties have higher loan rates than properties that are owner occupied this creates a situation where borrowers are tempted to commit occupancy fraud to get lower rates but committing mortgage fraud is always a bad idea if you do have a non owner occupied property make sure that your property is insured accordingly 