Second Mortgage in San Antonio

Not when the rental is not your homestead. Article XVI, section 50 of the Texas Constitution limits liens on a homestead to a short list, and a lien outside that list is invalid. That list is where the Texas home equity rules come from: consent of each owner and spouse, an 80% cap on all homestead debt against value, a 2% fee cap with some exclusions, and foreclosure only by court order. They apply to the homestead, not to a rental that is not your homestead. Homestead status turns on how the property is used and what the owner intends, and title companies can treat a borrower's only Texas residential property as homestead by default, so expect occupancy to be confirmed, not assumed. This is not legal advice; your attorney or title company has the final say on your property. The Texas investment property second mortgage guide covers the state rules in more depth.

The second can be wiped out, so position matters. Texas courts have held that foreclosure of a senior lien extinguishes junior liens, and a deed of trust on a rental can be foreclosed outside court under Property Code section 51.002: sales run between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month at the courthouse of the county where the property sits, after at least 21 days of notice. Bexar County holds its sales on the west side of the Bexar County Courthouse at 100 Dolorosa, or where the Commissioners Court designates, moving to the first Wednesday when the first Tuesday is January 1 or July 4, and takes cash or certified funds only. A second only works if the first mortgage stays current, and if you refinance the first later, the second-lien holder generally has to sign a resubordination agreement so the new first keeps its position. Read lien position explained before you stack debt.

$25 for the first page and $4 for each additional page. The Bexar County Clerk's $25 first-page fee is $5 recording, $10 archive and $10 records management, effective January 1, 2024. A 6-page deed of trust records for $45 ($25 + 5 x $4), an illustration, not a quote for your documents. Bexar accepts electronic recording through CSC eRecording, Simplifile, Erxchange, eRecording Partners Network, Indecomm and Hopdox, for the filers Local Government Code section 195.003 allows, such as attorneys, lenders and title companies. Paper filings go to the Paul Elizondo Tower, 101 W. Nueva, Suite 103, with original signatures. Guadalupe County charges the same $25 and $4 under its 2025 schedule; for a Comal or Kendall County parcel, get the current fee from that clerk or your title company.

The program accepts short-term rentals, but the city caps the kind most investors own. San Antonio permits a Type 1 short-term rental, where the owner or operator lives on site, by right. A Type 2 rental, which is not occupied by the owner, is capped at 12.5% of the units on a block face for buildings of 1 to 4 units; above that, it needs a special exception from the Board of Adjustment. A rental property a lender sees is usually Type 2, so confirm the property's permit status and block-face count before you count short-term income. Short-term rentals are eligible for our program, subject to underwriting.

Texas draws the line at purpose. The state's secondary mortgage loan chapter (Finance Code chapter 342) covers a loan only if, among other conditions, it is extended primarily for personal, family or household use, and the residential mortgage licensing chapters define a covered loan the same way. No Texas regulator guidance we found speaks to business-purpose seconds directly, so this is not a licensing opinion. Talk to your attorney about your own structure.

The full tax rate, with no homestead exemption or 10% cap, and a hail-driven insurance bill. For tax year 2025, a City of San Antonio parcel carries about 2.22% (East Central ISD) to 2.54% (Harlandale ISD) of value once county, city, hospital, college, river authority and school district rates are combined. On a $300,000 rental that is $6,660 to $7,620 a year ($300,000 x 2.22% and x 2.54%). The 20% circuit breaker for non-homestead property needs a full calendar year of ownership, is lost on sale and expires December 31, 2026. The Texas Department of Insurance put Bexar County's average homeowners premium at $2,806 in 2025, and hail has been the leading homeowners loss in Texas in every year from 2016 to 2025 except 2021. Talk to your CPA about your own numbers.