Webster Breaks New Ground With Second Mortgage Program

Business Wire, May 1, 2000

Business Editors

WATERBURY, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 1, 2000

Webster Bank has broken new ground by taking a good idea and turning it into a mortgage program that provides homeowners with an alternative to more expensive refinancing solutions.

Homeowners that have purchased a home that they wish to remodel or significantly expand, or families that are outgrowing their current home and would like to add more space, can now get a Construction Second Mortgage from Webster based not on the current value of the property but on its future value.

The Construction Second Mortgage program is designed for homeowners planning major renovations requiring additional financing of $100,000 to $750,000 that will increase the value of their homes once renovations are completed.

"We have been custom tailoring this solution for many of our customers and it has worked so well that we decided to make it a formal offering," said Ross M. Strickland, executive vice president, Mortgage Banking at Webster. "Because of the increase in interest rates, we have been working hard to come up with alternative solutions for our mortgage customers."

Strickland also points out that the second mortgage program is a desirable alternative to a home improvement or home equity loan. "The IRS only allows borrowers to deduct interest on a portion of these loans while the interest on a second mortgage is usually fully deductible."

Interested customers can call Webster Bank at 1-888-681-7788 for more information.

Connecticut-based Webster Bank provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, insurance, trust and investment services through more than 125 banking offices, 200 ATMs and the Internet (www.websterbank.com). Webster's online mortgage subsidiary at www.nowlending.com on the Worldwide Web originates low-cost mortgages across the United States.