My wife wants to mortgage our land title to lend money to her sister

By Huynh Thuan February 27, 2025 | 03:14 pm PT

My sister-in-law asked to borrow money from us to invest in real estate, and my wife suggested that we could mortgage our land title to provide the funds.

A country house. Illustration photo by Pexels

My wife and I are both nearing 40, with two children, and life has generally been worry-free—until recently, when my sister-in-law brought up this request. I find this situation quite sensitive, so I told my wife that we should carefully consider the decision before moving forward.

My sister-in-law has been incredibly helpful to us in the past, often taking care of and picking up our children. Now that she’s asking for assistance, it feels awkward to say no, but I’m uneasy with the idea.

If my wife and I had the extra money, it might be a different story, but mortgaging our property for a loan feels excessive. Furthermore, the money wouldn’t be used to buy a home to live in, it’s for an investment. What if the investment fails? Will we be able to recover our land title?

How should I handle this situation?