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So this is interesting and stupid, many years ago you would go for loans at banks and they helped even with no mortgage. Now even though you have a newer home but never had a mortgage banks don’t want to loan you anything or borrow against it unless you have a mortgage?! And they would like a assessment and make your loan a mortgage! Is that FAIR? Especially for over age 55 people ?  
So why have a house?  
Is it written anywhere for people that finance has changed so much that we had no idea?  
So basically I feel the need to sell and not update or renovate and just rent.  
 
Edited by Vel, 2023-06-17 22:31:28

Assuming you have a credit score, you would likely qualify for a secured line of credit against your equity? That's how most secure borrowing is done these days apart from a mortgage. Usually you can borrow up to a certain percentage of the home value (maybe 80%) in a secured line of credit, but you need an appraisal first.  
 
If you're not getting anywhere with the bank, maybe try a mortgage broker. I don't know if they can help, but it's worth a shot.  
 
Also, do you have a credit score? If you don't have other kinds of borrowing or credit cards etc, you might now have a score. It would be hard to get lending then too.

If you're trying to get a Home Line of Credit, yes, it's basically another mortgage. They will want to know what the appraised value of the house and how much is owing.  
 
If you're trying to get a personal loan and use your house as an asset or collateral, again they will look at it's value and what expenses you have.  
 
If I'm reading your post correctly and it's a new house, paid for (no mortgage) and it's in your name, I would be surprised if a bank wouldn't lend against it. I'm taking some liberties in assuming you're not asking for some ridiculous amount of money and your new house is not a cardboard box.  
 
Home ownership is full of pluses and negatives. I believe it's better to build your own equity instead of someone else's but everyone's circumstances are different.

Yes , I have tried to do equity loan with the house. I do have a good credit score number. I live in a newer area. I find it very frustrating nowadays . It seems companies want to charge high amounts for fees, assessments , for a not excessive amount, not even 15% of home value . They only want to borrow to people who are going to be highly indebted to them for life. At one time you could use your house tax assessment for verification. It’s ridiculous I could probably use high interest places like Fairstone and pay 20% interest or higher no questions asked. I find this very unfair and questionable!

If you want to use your home as collateral then of course the bank wants to protect their interest by registering a mortgage. Just because it is called a mortgage though it isn’t really a mortgage. Banks register mortgages on properties all the time that are actually secured lines of credit.  
 
They want to have an assessment done so they know the value of the home. While there is an assessed value most times the house is worth more. A bank will only mortgage a certain percentage of the value of the home so getting an assessment will determine the amount you are eligible for. Also if you only need a small amount that doesn’t mean the bank won’t approve you for more. It is for future borrowing. You need $10,000 for example and the bank gives you a line of credit for $50,000. You use the $10,000 but the bank registers $50,000 against your property. Then down the road if you ever need more you don’t have to go all through the process again as you already have a security against your property. Banks do this ALL the time. The fees for lending $10,000 and $50,000 would be the same so this just saves you from having to pay it all over again.  
 
Also just an FYI you need a lawyer to complete the registrations and there too the fees would be the same regardless of amount.  
 
Try a local credit union and see what they can help with or a different bank. While mortgage brokers can be beneficial as well their process can be more complicated.

I am pretty sure that what you are wanting to do, can in fact be done. However, it sounds like you don't want to pay for all the steps that the bank requires (assessments, fees) in order for you to borrow the funds.  
Companies that charge higher interest rates without the assessments, etc, do so at higher risk - therefore higher rates.