Archive for Home Refinancing News
5 Best Home Refinance Loans for the Summer of 2011
Posted by: | CommentsEconomists, accountants and mortgage professionals agree that if you have the ability to save money and ensure security that home refinancing is a smart financial move. Right now, it is time to refinance. The market is lower than it has ever been and inflation is slowly rising again. After the mortgage crisis and the recession, it took some time for the economy to get back on its feet. It has, however, and that makes the Federal Reserve likely to raise interest rates very soon. You don’t want to have to risk losing the opportunity to get such low rates for refinancing because you don’t want to deal with the ‘hassles’ of getting your home appraised only to be turned down by your bank or a fast talking lender. Get in now, before inflation makes the record low rates disappear. The chances of rates improving any more are very slim, while the rates the chances for refinance rates to rise in the next twelve months are very high.
The 5 Best Loans for Home Refinancing
- Conventional Loan with No Mortgage Insurance
- 15-Year FHA Refinance Loan
- Refinance with a 100% VA Mortgage
- Cash Out Refinancing to 85%
- No Cost Mortgage
Figuring out how to refinance is your first step. You need to contact a lender and discuss your situation. Then, they will be able to give you the options that you have for refinancing your home, no matter what your situation might be. You can get lower mortgage refinance rates in most cases, which will allow you to save money on your mortgage payments. Of course, being able to lock into a fixed rate for 15 or 30 years is another reason to consider refinancing. It just makes sense because there is not going to be another time like this when rates are so low. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage is the safest bet if you are not sure whether or not you will be moving anytime soon.
Refinance and Get Approved with Mortgage Rates as Low as 3.625%!
Save money with a lower rate, get the money that you need out of your home, or just refinance to get better terms in your mortgage. No matter your reasons for refinancing, you will be able to find low home refinance rates that are sure to suit your needs. Even people who have been turned down recently by a lender or bank should try again, because there is several new bad credit refinancing options. Talk to a lender about the loan approval process and figure out exactly what you need to know so that you can make the best decision.
Refinance Your Home Now Before Rates Go Up
You’ll obviously get lower rates if you have good credit to begin with. However, if your credit score is lower, you shouldn’t be discouraged because you do still have options. Whatever it takes, you can easily get the financing that you need so that you can lock in low rates with a refinance today. Never settle or assume that you are getting the best rate without doing a little comparison shopping, either. 5.25% might be good, but 4.5% would be better because it would lower your monthly payment and save you money. If you look, you can find great deals on refinance loans to lower your payments, get money for improvements, or just get on top of your mortgage for once and all.
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5 Tips for a Home Loan Refinance
Posted by: | CommentsDo you need home refinancing for cash or simply a reduced interest rate for a lower monthly payment? Have you recently been rejected by a lender because they said your credit scores were too low? Would it help your financial state if you were approved to get a home refinance for bad credit? Nationwide is a lender that offers a wide variety of home loan refinance solutions including, conventional, jumbo, VA and FHA mortgage opportunities.
1. Make Sure There Are Tangible Benefits to Refinancing: Many people look into home refinance loans because they want to reduce their monthly payments. However, you must make sure that you will be trimming off a significant amount to make the time, effort, and cash investment worthwhile. There are costs associated with refinancing to lower interest rate on your loan. If you find you are spending thousands to save pennies, you may want to wait to refinance when interests rates are better.
2. Shop Home Refinance Loans from Reputable Lenders: You want to make sure you are getting your loan from someone you trust. Dishonest lenders will lure you in with too good to be true interest rates but may tack on fees and add language in the contract that can cost you thousands in penalties. Always check the reputation of any financial institution you choose to do business with.
3. Compare the Loan Disclosures and the Good Faith Estimate: It is always a good idea to shop around for the best rate. However, don’t stop there. Make sure you read the fine print of the loan disclosures. A bank that seems to have a great rate may have language in their disclosure that allows them to charge you an exorbitant late fee if you don’t make your payments on time. Not only do you want the best mortgage refinance rate and lower monthly payments, you want to make sure you won’t end up paying more than you need to.
4. Avoid a Pre-Payment Penalty: Reducing years on your home loan can save you thousands of dollars in interest. Therefore, it is important that the bank you get your loan from does not charge a pre-payment penalty fee. Banks add this fee to discourage you from home refinancing or paying your loan off early so they can get the full amount of the interest payments due to them. If your loan does include a pre-payment penalty see if you can negotiate it out altogether or at least a reduced amount.
5. Avoid Mortgage Insurance: Private mortgage insurance is type of insurance that banks will try to force you to get which basically guarantees the mortgage will get paid if you default on the loan. It may sound like a great idea on the surface. But it can add up to $1,000 per year per $100,000 borrowed to your loan. Do everything you can to avoid having this insurance tacked onto your loan.
How to Refinance a Home Equity Line of Credit
Posted by: | CommentsIt wasn’t too long ago that homeowners were taking out home equity credit lines, using their house like an ATM machine to access cash. Americans utilized home equity loans and credit lines to consolidate debt, finance home remodeling and some people even financed extended vacations. Homeowners did not need any equity in their home and second mortgage lenders often approved credit lines without even requesting a formal appraisal. In many cases, borrowers would convert their variable rate equity line into a fixed rate home equity loan once they used all of the funds.
Eliminate Compounding Interest & Refinance Credit Lines into a Fixed Rate Mortgage
Everything continued to go great for homeowners as property values continued to rise nationally and lenders continued to extend 2nd mortgage options. In 2007 the mortgage debacle evolved into a full-fledged housing crisis that we still have not recovered from yet. All of a sudden millions of homeowners found themselves stuck with a variable rate home equity line of credit or an equity loan that had a rate the borrowers were uncomfortable with as the economy started sinking. Second mortgage refinance options started dwindling as lenders began cutting and eliminating their home equity programs. The few lenders that were left offering home equity lines tightened the guidelines significantly and now required more equity, higher credit scores. If that wasn’t enough, the home equity lenders started requiring full income documentation and full URAR appraisals.
Many borrowers turned to the FHA refinance loans because they continued to approve cash out loans up to 95%. These FHA mortgages enabled borrowers to consolidate debt and refinance credit lines and 2nd mortgages into their new 1st mortgage. Still even with the more flexible FHA guidelines, many homeowners were unable to refinance home equity lines because their property values were declining rapidly. With the adjustable rates contributing to higher monthly payments for the credit lines, many people could no longer afford their second mortgage and thus many homeowners defaulted. Today, we recommend refinancing your credit line into your first mortgage. However, if you do not have the equity or credit scores needed to qualify, consider a second mortgage modification.
5 Home Refinancing Tips for 2011
Posted by: | CommentsThe home refinancing market has been on a roller coaster the last few years, but 2011 could shape up and more borrowers could qualify to refinance than did in the last few years. I get a lot of emails from homeowners asking me for home refinancing tips so I wanted to make some suggestions.
1. Take advantage of VA refinancing if you qualify for the VA loan programs. Veterans continue to have a significant advantage when it comes to home buying and mortgage refinancing. The VA refinance loans are more aggressive than conventional and FHA lending so take advantage of this great resource.
2. Streamline Refinance if you have a government loan. If you are having difficulty getting approved for a refinance loan because of income documentation because you your debt to income ratio is too high and you presently have a government mortgage like a VA or FHA , then consider the streamline refinance. Both the VA and FHA loan programs offer the streamline refinance loan that does not require pay stubs or W2′s for salaried and hourly employees. You still have a job, because the lender will verify with your employer that you still have a job. Government insured home refinancing continues to dominate the finance market in 2011.
3. 5/1 ARM offers low rates that maximize affordability. If you are having trouble fitting your mortgage payment into your budget and you want to keep your house, consider the 5/1 because you get a 3% rate fixed for 5 years. This gives you another five years to increase your income before you lock into a 15 or 30-year fixed rate mortgage. For example a $300,000 mortgage payment would be in the $1,000 a month range with the 5/1 ARM at 3%.
4. Don’t rule out a mortgage loan modification. If you have been late on your home loan payments or you have been unable to get approved for a bad credit mortgage because of poor fico scores, consider a loan modification or forbearance from your lender. Many loan companies are extending modifications to borrowers if they can demonstrate that they have the ability to make the reduced mortgage payment.
5. Re-Apply for a refinance loan. Many borrowers were turned down for a refinance loan in 2010, but that doesn’t mean they won’t qualify to refinance in 2011. Many loan professionals anticipate that some of the home refinancing programs will be more flexible with credit guidelines.
Streamline Refinance the Best Kept Secret in the Mortgage Industry
Posted by: | CommentsOnly a small percentage of loan professionals understand the streamline refinance guidelines and therefore there is a lot of misinformation about the VA and FHA streamline. Streamline rates range from 3.75% to 4.375%, so if you like cheap money with low mortgage rates, the streamline refinance is worth considering.
Loan originators are always looking for lending loopholes that will give them an edge over their competition’s loan programs. With only a few loan programs in today’s tight lending environment it can get frustrating for loan companies to carve out a niche. As with many industries, knowledge is power and loan officers that learn their guidelines backwards and forwards for VA and FHA loan programs truly are a few steps ahead of their competition. Not only does loan product knowledge earn you credibility with your borrower, but it actually enables you to get your clients qualified for a loan they would normally not be eligible for. Both VA and FHA mortgages have a loophole with the streamline refinance. If your clients already have a FHA or VA mortgage and they are having trouble qualifying for conventional refinancing because of credit, equity or income, then the streamline loan program may be the solution your client needs to qualify for a house refinance that saves them money while protecting them from foreclosure.
Streamline Refinance Great Solution for Qualifying VA and FHA Borrowers
FHA and VA home loans do not have minimum credit scores requirements from the agencies however; most government lenders have instituted their own credit score minimum in an effort to ensure the mortgage originated can be insured. The streamline refinance programs are available with both government loan products VA and FHA. To qualify for a streamline refinance, borrowers must already have a government mortgage (FHA or VA mortgage) and are seeking a rate and term refinance. Many of the VA mortgage lenders today have extended a unique refinancing opportunity with the VA streamline that require no minimum credit score.
Streamline Refinance Loan Highlights
- No Minimum Credit Score with FHA Streamlines
- VA Streamline Refinance with No Credit Score Requirements
- 12 Month Mortgage History is required.
- No Income Verification with Streamlines
- Skip Mortgage Payments when Streamline Refinancing
Refinancing Your Mortgage in this Economy
Posted by: | CommentsWhen rates are at record lows, refinancing your mortgage is likely a wise decision. The process for mortgage loan refinancing has been automated in recent years, however meeting the refinance guidelines has proved to be challenging for most homeowners in 2010. Do you qualify for the best mortgage refinance programs? Does your current mortgage have a pre-payment penalty for early pay off or refinancing? Does your credit score meet the lender requirements for home refinancing? These are all important questions to consider prior to shopping for a refinance loan.
Another reality is that mortgage refinancing with bad credit is very difficult. However both VA and FHA refinance loans are possible for borrowers that can demonstrate strong compensating factors. Many borrowers have strayed away from conventional loans in favor of FHA mortgage refinance solutions.
Mortgage Loan Refinancing Activity Rises 17%
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported yesterday that while interest rates remained the same this past week, home refinancing activity spiked up 17%. With the housing market stalled, nearly all the action in the mortgage market is in refinancing. Less than 20% of mortgage applications were for home purchases, for the week ending August 13the, the MBA reported. The survey covers more than half of U.S. retail residential mortgage applications.
Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that low home mortgage rates appeared to be stimulating a significant increase in home refinancing. Many insiders believe that reduced lending fees and no cost refinancing options may have played a role in the increased refinance applications online.
Relief for Refinancing with Short Refinance and Emergency Homeowner Loan Programs
Posted by: | CommentsHome loan relief is becoming more controversial as the Obama administration continues to make moves to forgive mortgage debt with short refinancing initiatives that will write-down home loans for homeowners that find themselves stuck with underwater mortgages. Republicans and Democrats alike are complaining that Obama is trying to buy votes with debt forgiveness.
With home mortgage rates at the lowest point since Freddie Mac began tracking interest rates, what more can the Federal Reserve do? The Fed has little power left to lift the economy out of its rut. Congress, with an election looming, has no appetite for more stimulus. Typically, the Fed can lower home loan rates in an effort to stimulate consumer spending in hopes that it will invigorate the economy. But the benchmark interest rate controlled by the Fed has been almost zero percent for more than a year now.
The Obama administration already funded the Home Affordable Refinance Program that enabled mortgage refinancing to 125% on select Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage portfolios in an effort to combat the highly deflated home values that have prevented many Americans from being approved to refinance into a more affordable fixed mortgage payment.
| Eligibility for the HARP home loan relief was difficult and not enough homeowners met the requirements set forth to refinance their underwater mortgages.In a recent article, Deutsche Bank indicated that there may be 20 million underwater mortgage loans that are outstanding by the end of 2011. This puts a significant amount of pressure on homeowners that are already struggling with high unemployment and tighter loan guidelines. |  |
Now the government has given HUD the authority to approve an FHA short refinance option that actually reduces the principal mortgage balances. FHA insures home mortgages, but the agency has nearly used their emergency loan reserves. Who do you think is paying for this? – - Yes the U.S. tax payers will be picking up the tab on this mortgage bail-out initiative as well. And if that’s not enough risk for the government, they also agreed to another mortgage relief initiative with the Emergency Homeowner Loan Program that is designed to help self-employed and un-employed homeowners for six months.
The Fed announced this week they it would use the proceeds from its huge portfolio of mortgage securities to buy government debt. The idea is to make cheap credit even more affordable, particularly for things like mortgage loans. The problem is that Americans who are worried about job stability, not to mention volatility in the stock market, don’t want to borrow. They saved 6.2% of their disposable income this spring.
Sure, the Federal Reserve still has options. It could launch another trillion-plus-dollar program to buy government debt or mortgage securities like it did when it was battling the recession and financial crisis. But the Fed is unlikely to commit that much money unless things get a lot worse. Plus there are risks. Regulators are resistant to push interest rates on low rate home loans because they don’t want to artificially jump-start the housing sector like what happened that inflated the housing bubble. The Fed could slash the rate it pays banks to zero in an effort to keep money parked there, a move aimed at getting banks to lend more, but banks are not exactly feeling cash-rich, either.
As reported previously, home mortgage rates have fallen to record lows. 15-year mortgage rates fell to 3.92 % this week and rates on 30-year mortgage loans were published at 4.44 %. Still, consumers aren’t in a mad rush to purchase homes and most homeowners are unable to meet the tighter guidelines for FHA refinancing. HUD is considering implementing a minimum credit score and FHA guidelines may start requiring these higher risk borrower to put as much as 10% up for down-payments in an effort to stem foreclosures and loan defaults. Many mortgage lenders believe that if the loan requirements were loosened for a period to get the distressed homeowners approved for refinance loans or loan modifications that our housing sectors will rebound locally and nationally.
