Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: refinancing

No; a lender will require a title insurance policy and title companies will not insure a loan for "A" if the property is owned by "B".

Re: refinancing

I think the answer depends upon whether you mean "Is it legally permissible to obtain a loan secured by property I don't yet own?" or "Is this going to be easy?"

At the moment you enter into a contract to purchase real property, equitable title passes to you, but the seller keeps legal title until he delivers you a deed, which usually doesn't happen until he's paid. Equitable title has very limited collateral value; you could assign your rights to the lender under the purchase contract, but that is still far less security than lenders usually want.

Your proposed deal, in effect, would make the lender a risk-taking partner in your deal. Banks and other mainstream lenders won't do deals with this much risk. However, you may be able to find a relative or speculator who would be interested.

Very likely, the lender would want either a high interest rate or a piece of the action. Be careful about the reputation of anyone who wants to do a deal of this kind, and if the lender is a friend or relative learn about the usury laws and keep them out of a deal with illegally high interest for their own good.