Sounds completely sketchy to me. Aside from the sheer hassle factor, the transaction costs on a refinance, while not huge, would add up fast. At a minimum, this suggests a collusive arrangement with the appraisers and lenders.
I don’t know the local market, but it looks like a very nice house in a very good neighborhood. The property value increase over a couple of decades does not set off any alarms in my mind. (We bought our humble abode, a standard rowhouse on Capitol Hill in DC, back in Marion Barry days. We’ve lived through the DC gentrification miracle, and our house has appreciated more than Biden’s.) But I can’t imagine that there weren’t easier and cheaper ways to get fast cash.
The thought that comes to mind is that Biden was using the cash to cover activities that he wanted to conceal. Given that he has to report loans on his financial disclosure statements, perhaps hiding quick transactions in a mortgage refinance offers a bit of camouflage.
...to buy someone's silence ?
They've surely got lots of "stuff" to cover-up. Delaware has long been the state into which to incorporate. I smell something rotten and the long-time senator has his nose in it, one would assume.
.....the transaction costs on a refinance, while not huge, would add up fast.
At a minimum, the Biden finagling suggests a collusive arrangement with appraisers and lenders.
And appears to be a handy Biden flim-flam......to hide the flow of illegal money in his possession.