Anyone with experience of Chase settling second mortgage?

[csonly]

I'm wondering if Chase may settle on a second mortgage, they do not carry our first mortgage and we are underwater. Do you have to get an appraisal to attempt this or can you get a ballpark figure elsewhere? Just considering this in the future, we are not in a position right now to stop paying the 2nd and do not want to lose our house. Both mortgages are current. Also, I'm not worried about our credit report right now, I'm sure it's shot, but in the future, what does a settlement do for your credit report....would a settlement be worse than a BK?