There are different reasons to seek a mortgage refinance. You can use a mortgage refinance to cash out equity in your home. This can keep you staying in your home while making needed home improvements. Or, you can use the money for other things like to pay off college expenses for your kids. Most people looking to mortgage refinance these days are doing it because they are stuck in an adjustable rate mortgage where the interest rate has reset or is set to reset. Some of these borrowers will find that they can refinance their mortgage and others will that either their situation, the local real estate market, or prepayment penalties will block this avenue. However, mortgage brokers are still trying to get people qualified, so it doesn’t hurt to try.
Lower Interest Rates
Another key reason people attempt to mortgage refinance is to lower their interest rates. Even with fixed interest rate loans, if the new rates available are at least one point less than the old one, it can be a good reason to look into refinancing. You do have to pay closing costs, which can add up to thousands, however if you intend to stay in your home a shift in your interest rate can easily make up for the closing costs, especially if the spread is wider between the old and new rate.
The uncertainty of Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs) is also important when seeking a lower rate. If you refinance from a fixed to an ARM, the interest rate will eventually climb back up. However, if you have an ARM and find a lower rate on a fixed rate mortgage, this can be one way of locking into a much more attractive interest rate for the long term.
Modifying Terms
Lastly, the mortgage refinance can be a way to modify the terms of the agreement to opt for longer or shorter mortgage terms. Longer terms usually increase the amount you pay in your mortgage refinance but lower your monthly payments. Shorter terms typically increase your monthly payments but build up equity much faster and settle the loan quicker.
You can refinance a loan so that you are financing the home to take some of the equity out as cash. So, if you have 50% equity and want to take money out while modifying the terms of your loan, you can opt for a 40-year loan with only 20% down. That will give you 30% in equity to pay off closing costs and use the rest of the money for whatever else you want.
With all the hoopla about the overload of inventory in most states (due to foreclosures), and the dropping of interest rates by the Federal Reserve, you may be wondering why mortgage rates haven risen in the past year over all. The mortgage industry is not the same as the banking and the housing industry. They are connected to these two sectors of the market, but lending products are usually priced on their own merits and not just those of the economy.
The Lender’s Point of View
So, while the amount of inventory can affect home prices and spur competition amongst lenders, it can lower the rates if one lender is trying to grab a bit more business. On the other hand, the mortgage crisis has been so severe in some states that many lenders are wary of lending to unreliable borrowers. They have tightened their credit requirements and when you don’t meet those newer requirements, they may raise the rate to hedge their risk. So, even with a market rate of 6.00% on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, you could still end up paying more if you don’t meet the new credit requirements of a FICO score of 720 or more, solid employment, and a sizable down payment.
The Market’s Point of View
Mortgage rates can also increase, even if the Federal Reserve decides to lower interest rates. This may spur banks to lend out more money and attract more customers. As the new customers start to flood the market, the demand increases. When the demand of any product goes up, so does the price. That’s why the mortgage rates can even increase when the Federal Reserve cuts rates.
Your Point of View
It is very difficult to time to buy a house at the bottom of mortgage rate drop cycles. Typically, you can do this better if you are refinancing than if you are buying because you are then comparing your new loan to whatever you had before. If it saves you money or drops by at least 1 to 2 points of your mortgage interest, then you are pretty confident that buying at that time is a good move. Otherwise, if you are new buyer and have nothing to compare it to, you still can be relatively comforted by the fact that despite rises and falls over the short-term, mortgage rates are at a historically low-point for now in comparison to years past. They may not drop more than 1 point more and should they do so, you can always refinance your mortgage rates later.
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