Purchase · 5 min read
Can I take over the seller’s mortgage rate?
July 28, 2026 · Written by Bill Egan, NMLS 7342
Short answer
Sometimes, if the loan is FHA, VA, or USDA and the documents allow it. You still have to qualify, and you have to cover the seller’s equity in cash or with a second loan. Most conventional loans are not assumable. An old 3 percent loan in a 6 percent market is valuable. It is not automatic, and it is not free.
01
Why this comes up
The seller has a 3 percent loan and you want it. The pain is finding out the low rate does not pay the seller’s equity for you, and that most conventional loans will not allow it at all.
02
Where this goes wrong
The offer is written around the seller’s 3 percent loan. The loan is conventional and not assumable, or the equity gap is $150,000 with no second-loan plan. Assumption review at the servicer takes longer than the contract. The deal dies or becomes a new loan at today’s rate anyway.
03
What we do about it
We ask which loan is on the property and whether the servicer will consider an assumption. FHA, VA, and USDA are generally assumable. Most conventional loans are not. You still have to qualify, and you still have to cover the gap between the remaining balance and the price. If a new loan is cleaner, we say so.
04
How to get ready
Ask the listing agent what loan is on the house. If the seller owes $250,000 on a $400,000 price, you need $150,000 in cash or a second loan. Budget extra time — assumptions are slower than a new purchase. Do not write the offer around a maybe.