Archive for Mortgage Refinance Tips
4 Tips for Refinancing a Mortgage
Posted by: | CommentsNext time you are refinancing a mortgage consider the following tips. When following the refinance advice outlined below you may be excited to uncover lower monthly payments while maximizing the lowest possible refinance rate.
1. Work with a Trusted Mortgage Lender – It is imperative that you work with a loan professional that you trust. If you need a VA mortgage, make sure that you work with an experieinced VA lender. If you need a FHA refinance, it’s in your best interest to allign yourself with a loan company that understands the FHA loan programs inside and out.
2. Shop for the Best Refinance Rate Online - Spend some time doing your due dilligence and compare quotes from competitive lenders. Strive for a no cost mortgage refinance loan, because it can save you thousands of dollars.
3. Beware of Mortgage Insurance – When refinancing a mortgage, almost a third of homeowner could pay a portion of their home equity to eliminate mortgage insurance. Borrowers don’t realize that FHA loans charge monthly mortgage insurance. If you have the ability to make some cost-effective home improvements, you may be able to get the value increased enough to wave good-bye to mortgage insurance. Another method homeowners do is to use your credit cards to pay down the balance of your mortgage with credit cards, but we don’t recommend increasing your revolving debt to get rid of mortgage insurance. But, if you are borrowing more than 80% of your home’s value, you will be hit with private mortgage insurance, costing you hundreds a year.
4. Ask About Lending Fees – Fees are a hidden cost of many mortgage loans. By law, lenders must disclose fees within three days of a loan application. Fees can go by many names like – document prep fees, courier fees, administrative fees, and more. When comparing home refinance loans online, request a list of fees from several lenders. Add these loan fees with the mortgage interest incurred. With these calculations, you may be surprised that the most cost-effective refinance did not have the lowest mortgage rate. Read more Mortgage Refinancing Tips
Getting Approved for Mortgage Refinancing Is Challenging
Posted by: | Comments2010 may be remembered as the year for the lowest mortgage rates that hardly anyone qualified for. If you meet the lending guidelines, then this may be the best mortgage refinancing time. Unfortunately, with high unemployment and tighter lending requirements, a vast majority of homeowners are unable to qualify for a refinance loan. The Federal Reserve has made significant efforts to stimulate the economy by keeping the interest rates at record lows. At some point the Fed will have to correct the market and begin hiking key interest rates. In years past, when mortgage rates fell, millions of homeowners would rush to refinance their home loan.
Get a Free Refinance Quote with No Obligation!
The Lead Planet, a mortgage lead generation company reported that refinance leads had steadily risen over the last few months. Even the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that home refinance applications spiked in recent weeks as interest rates dipped to record lows consecutively. MBA said that the refinance boom in 2003 experienced a much higher volume of refinance applications.
Freddie Mac indicated last week that the average rate on a 30-year fixed rate loans below $417,000 fell to 4.42% with an average 0.7 point. That was down from 4.44% the previous week and from 5.12% at this time last year. Rates are about one-eighth of a point higher on loans between $417,000 and $729,500. In most cases to get approved for these low conventional mortgage rates, a borrower today must have a FICO score of 720 or higher, a loan-to-value ratio of 80 percent or less and at least two years of fully documented income. However the government mortgage rates are just as low and the guidelines are more forgiving on credit with VA and FHA home loan options.
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 loan 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.
3 Tips for the Best Mortgage Refinancing Experience
Posted by: | Comments2010 may be the year best remembered for the best mortgage refinance rates, but to qualify you have might have to jump through some hoops. In an effort to reduce foreclosures and loan defaults, mortgage refinance lenders have tightened refinancing guidelines for conforming and jumbo loan products. Everytime you consider refinancing, there is an opportunity to save money. Sometimes you save money by realizing that mortgage refinancing is not the best financial move for you at this time.
1. Before you celebrate, make sure you qualify. Getting a pre-approval solicitation in the mail does not count. You need a loan approval from the lender signed by the underwriter who has the authoority for the type of loan you using to refinance. The current refinancing guidelines for FHA, VA anc conventional all require income documentation that proves your debt to income ratio is low enough to qualify.
2. Do the Math! When considering the best mortgage refinance options you must calculate the savings monthly and then factor in the years you are adding on the loan. Take your existing mortgage payment and multiply it by the number of months you have left. Do the same thing with the proposed refinance loan. If the calculator indicates that the new loan will cost you more over the term of the loan, you better think twice and make sure that the monthly saving justify the long term costs. If you absolutely can’t afford your current payment or if you are planning to move in the next 12-18 months than the long-term saving may not matter.
3. Compare Mortgage Refinance Lenders! You may have a favorite loan officer, but make him or her earn your business each time you do a loan. In most cases if you let the loan officer know that they are in a competitive situation, they will usually go the “extra mile” to reduce the lending fees and get you approved for the lowest possible mortgage refinance rate. Don’t forget to find out if you qualify for a no cost mortgage refinance.
Mortgage refinance rates may be at an all-time low, but if you think before you sign and consult with financial advisors you trust, then you just may uncover new opportunities to save yourself thousands of dollars over the life of the loan. It’s your time and your money, so choose your mortgage refinance lender wisely!
FHA Mortgage Refinance Solutions
Posted by: | CommentsMortgage interest rates have dropped to record lows for three weeks in a row. Unfortunately the benefits of low home loan rates are not able to be realized by a high percentage of homeowners because they do not meet the current mortgage refinance requirements. For the most part, today borrowers need higher credit scores and more home equity. For borrowers who have the credit but not enough equity, Mortgage Refinancing Buzz recommends considering a FHA refinance loan. Many borrowers are migrating from a conventional mortgage to an FHA mortgage, because the conventional guidelines restrict rate and term refinancing between 80 and 90%. FHA loans do have a small mortgage insurance payment in addition to the mortgage payment, but FHA mortgage rates are just as low as the conventional rates.
FHA Mortgage Rates Are Prime for Mortgage Refinancing
FHA loan programs remain more flexible than conforming home loans because the conventional guidelines have been tightened significantly more for borrowers seeking low rate mortgage refinancing solutions. FHA approves mortgage refinancing of up to 97.5% loan-to-value for qualified borrowers. With FHA refinancing, borrowers must always document their income, but these days’ conventional loan programs have eliminated stated income and no income refinancing programs any way.
Top 5 Mortgage Refinance Loans in 2010
Posted by: | Comments2010 has been an interesting year for mortgage refinancing for both homeowners and lending professionals. Qualifying for a refinance loan has certainly been an easier process in years past. Since the subprime mortgage crash of 2006, the mortgage industry has transformed mortgage refinance programs to reduce risk and decrease foreclosure rates.
Mortgage refinance rates are at record lows and homeowners that do qualify can benefit from a fixed rate mortgage that will reduce their monthly payment and eliminate years of compounding interest. There is also an opportunity for millions of homeowners to escape the fear of their adjustable rate home loans. Al Pereida, the branch manager for iServe Lending in Irvine, California said, “Homeowners should not pass up these opportunities to lock in fixed rate mortgages below 5%.”
Listed below are the Top 5 Mortgage Refinance Loans in 2010:
1. FHA Refinance Loan – This is the most common refinance loan for homeowners this year, because FHA doesn’t require much equity and the credit score requirements are not as stringent as conventional lending guidelines. Low credit scores and lack of equity are the biggest obstacles for homeowners in this market.
2. VA Streamline Refinance – This is the most cost effective refinance loan available this year, but you must have VA loan eligibility. The VA refinance overlooks the lack of equity because there is no appraisal needed for the VA streamline program.
3. No Cost Mortgage Refinance – Refinancing into a low rate mortgage with no points and no fees is a great option for borrowers with good credit scores and worthy income documentation.
4. Loan Modification – This is technically not a refinance loan, but it accomplishes the same goal of achieving a lower monthly payment. Millions of distressed homeowners find themselves being rejected by lenders because they do not meet the tighter mortgage refinance guidelines.
5. Cash Out Refinance – Home equity loans have nearly vanished so the cash out refinance has remained a popular choice for home improvement financing and debt consolidation. FHA refinance loans allow 85% cash out. VA refinancing guidelines allow 90% cash out and most conventional lenders limit cash out to 80%.
Best Mortgage Refinance Programs
Posted by: | Comments2010 has been a great year for mortgage refinance rates! Sure lenders and banks have tightened their guidelines but home refinancing rates have fallen to record lows. If you qualify you will be rewarded with a lower mortgage rate, a reduced monthly payment and better fixed rate terms. If you need a stated income refinance, chances are you will need to wait for lenders to release new refinance programs.
Below, we listed the best mortgage refinance loans so you can have a better idea on what is out there before you begin shopping lenders online:
FHA Mortgage Refinance – The most popular refinance loan this year because it is flexible with credit and not much equity is required. The FHA streamline does not allow you to finance closing costs anymore, so we suggest sticking with the traditional FHA refinance loan because rates are available below 5% with no pre-payment penalties. FHA allows cash out to 85% loan-to-value.
Conventional Refinance – This is a great refinance loan for borrowers with credit scores above 700 and at least 20% home equity. There is no private mortgage insurance like FHA loans, so you will get the best of both worlds. Most conventional lenders will allow cash refinancing to 80% LTV.
VA Mortgage Refinance – If you are active in the Military or a retired veteran you will love the VA refinance opportunities. VA offers the VA streamline refinance that allows borrowers who already have a VA mortgage to refinance with reduced lending fees. No appraisal is required, so you save money and do not need to have any equity. No other lending program allows you to go above 100% loan to value and required no appraisal. VA enables cash out refinancing to 90%. The VA mortgage refinance program will even allow you to skip a payment.
Whichever mortgage refinance loan you choose, know that you are locking into the lowest fixed rates seen in a generation. Contact Nationwide for a free rate quote and refinance analysis with no obligation.