Negotiating a Second

[Kevin Boyd]

I'm not sure if this is the best place to post this, but can't find a better place.

Got a lease option on a house about 18 months ago.  I  brought the loans current which cost about $100k. Also paid the owner another $100k. There is a balance on the first of about $500k and about $200k on a second.   The owner has been in and out of default on the home for about 10 years. At one point he started the process of declaring BK. Somewhere along the line, the 2nd with PNC Bank froze the loan ( my understanding is, this was part of the BK process). Anyways, for several years now the 2nd has remained the same. No payments have been made and no interest or penalties have been added. The 2nd is just sitting there. I have called several times to verify the 2nd is not accruing any interest or penalties.

To make a long story short, I would like to see if we can make an offer to pay off the 2nd for a lesser amount. I would be fine just paying on the first and letting the 2nd just sit there indefinitely, but the rate on the first is pretty high. Is there any hope of them taking a lesser amount, and how would one go about dealing with this?