Refinance Tips and Trick

ITS ALL ABOUT REFINANCE



Most people buy a home for very specific reasons. Those reasons typically have more to do with life situations and very little to do with market considerations. When you marry, begin planning a family, or look at retirement you might suddenly find yourself wanting to buy a home. Because of the importance of these life situations, you might pay relatively little attention to such things as the cost of borrowing. These things are often viewed as necessities at such times. That is why it is quite common for people to negotiate a mortgage as best they can then in a few years, find that loan rates have dropped considerably. Many home owners will accept the costs associated with mortgage refinancing in order to save themselves larger sums of money over the long term.

You can save money on your payment or pay off your entire mortgage faster when you have better terms.
Here are a few things to pay attention to when you refinance your mortgage loan, to make sure that you don’t overlook anything that you might regret, or that can cause you problems later:


1. Apply for a pre-approval to many different lenders to make sure you are getting the lowest rate possible. When you do this, make sure that with the initial pre-approval application, the lender is not pulling your credit history. You will want to reserve your credit pull for the lender that you are most likely to work with. You can decide that after you have gone through the preliminary pre-approval process with a few lenders.


Each time your credit is pulled, it docks your credit score just a little. If you have too many inquiries, it could keep you from refinancing your mortgage loan with the lowest rate possible. When you pre-apply for home mortgage loans online, most lenders or mortgage service companies will not initially pull your credit. Check for information about this on their website. They will usually tell you whether or not they are going to pull your credit. Also, if on the application you do not give them your social security number, they cannot pull your credit. If, on the application, they ask you to describe your credit, they are probably not pulling your credit.


2. Make sure that your original mortgage does not have a pre-payment penalty or early payoff penalty of any kind. Sometimes people will get into their mortgage with the mortgage having a pre-payment penalty and they will not even know about it. Pre-payment penalties usually range from 6 months to 3 years with a penalty for an early payoff. The penalty is usually about the amount of 6 months worth of your mortgage loan interest, but this varies. You would have to be able to have some significant payment and interest savings on your refinance loan to justify refinancing a mortgage loan with a pre-payment penalty.


3. When evaluating different lender offers, in the mortgage loan pre-approval process, pay closest attention to the interest rates they are offering & the closing costs. These are the two biggest factors that will help you figure out which lender is right for you. If one of these two factors is too high, it could offset the benefit of refinancing for you

While it typically takes about 45 days from the time of application to get to closing, delays of two months or more can occur. Look for a lock-in that lasts for 60 days or more. There should be some lenders in your area willing to offer a 60 day "lock-in" for free.
Be careful, however. The loan officer may say the lock-in is free even when a fee or a higher rate is charged for the lock-in protection.

KNOW YOUR RESCISSION RIGHTS
If your deal turns sour at closing, consider starting over. You have three business days from the date of closing to mull it over. If you decide to reject the deal, you must notify the lender in writing within the three-day period. The lender then has 20 days to return your fees.

DON'T ASSUME YOU WON'T QUALIFY BECAUSE YOU HAVE LITTLE EQUITY IN YOUR HOME -- BUT CHECK YOUR COSTS CAREFULLY
Many lenders require that you have at least 10 percent equity in your home (i.e., a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of 90 percent or less). But we found at least one lender in every market that was willing to underwrite loans in which the borrower had only 5 percent equity in the home. Beware, however, that low equity loans can involve relatively high mortgage insurance costs.
You may only qualify if your current loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. You can find out if your loan is owned by these organizations by calling the company to whom you send your monthly payments. That company may not own the loan, but it can find out whether the secondary market agencies do by searching a computerized database.

MAKE "APPLES TO APPLES" INTEREST RATE COMPARISONS
Make sure you compare interest rates using a constant number of points. An 8 percent rate tied to 2 points is a lot more expensive than an 8 percent rate tied to 0 points.
When faced with the need to compare different rate/point combinations among lenders, consumers should first convert each quoted rate to one based on a constant number of points and then find the lender with the lowest rate. In making this conversion, consumers should use a traditional rule of thumb that equates each point to a 1/4 of 1 percent change in the interest rate. This would make an 8 percent loan with 0 points equivalent to a 7.75 percent loan with 1 point.

DON'T JUDGE A LENDER BY ITS APPLICATION COSTS
Lenders who lure you with no costs at application can lay the fees on heavily at closing. Keep your eyes focused primarily on the interest rate and points.




Prevent Foreclosure:
Refinancing your existing mortgage is perhaps the easiest and most logical way to help save you from foreclosure. With the recent fallout of the subprime lending market, tens of thousands of Americans are in search of a solution to their mounting mortgage payments. We can help.
Adjust from an ARM to a Fixed Rate mortgage:



With continually increasing interest rates, many people with an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) are starting to see their monthly payments climb. Ensure a low and steady monthly payment by taking advantage of a Fixed Rate Refinance. Fill out this form to get assistance and to determine how much your monthly payments will be with a New Fixed Rate mortgage. Get a Free Quote on a Fixed Rate Refinance now!



Get Cash Out for home improvements:
You can use the equity in your home to get cash out for a variety of purposes. You may also refinance your home to take cash out and make home improvements. Determine how much Cash you can get with a Refinance using your home's equity.
Consolidate your Debt:



If you are in debt and have high credit card bills, many credit counselors will advise you to consolidate the debt. Consolidating your debt by Refinancing your home and using the money to pay off credit card (and other) bills is a great way to save money and lower your monthly payments on your debt. You get the advantage of reducing interest payments on your total debt by consolidating it into your home loan. Find out how much you can save by Consolidating your Debt with a Refinance.



Get Started with Your Home Refinance