My wife and I are attempting to get a HELOC for a 2nd home. The broker we went with brought down the LTV to 75% as they said it is considered a rental property and not a 2nd home since we don't own the home we live in. Now we cannot access as much funds as we need. We were originally told 90% CLTV. It doesn't make sense how the status of my 2nd home would change because I don't own my primary residence. Are there any other lenders out there that can help us with this?
That is what you call an "Overlay" some banks/lenders have overlays or their underwriters make their own "Assumption" usually called underwriters discretion. Basically kill your deal if they do not like it or feel there is a red flag.
If you did not supply a tax return or lease they should not consider it a rental even if you do not own a primary home. If it is listed on VRBO or AirBNB they can look it up and that may cause the decision. A lot of times you need to "Snooze" your STR ad to avoid those issues.
A vacation home can be rented out while not in use some banks may look at number of days on the Schedule E and consider the days as a marker.