|
|
|
Should You Refinance?
To
refinance or not depends on your own personal financial situation. There
are many mortgage options available so make sure to carefully examine each
option. Also, remember that the best option may be to do nothing at all.
Points to consider:
- Do I have the funds that refinancing may require
to cover up-front costs and fees?
Refinancing your mortgage may require you to pay a large amount of money
to cover up-front costs and fees. If you do not have enough money to pay
the up-front costs completely it may be possible to finance some of the
costs by including them into the new mortgage.
- How long until I recover the costs of refinancing?
The rule of thumb is the refinancing costs are recovered within 2-3
years. So, if you plan to sell the house or pay it off shortly, you may
not want to refinance because you will not recover the costs. Obviously,
this depends on the up-front costs and the savings with the new
mortgage.
- Has my income increased substantially?
If your income has increased substantially, you may be able to afford
higher monthly payments. This may allow you to shorten the term of your
mortgage. If the available interest rate is lower for the shorter term
mortgage, refinancing is a good option. Otherwise, simply make larger
principal payments against your current mortgage.
- Is the current loan an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM)
If the current rates for a fixed rate mortgage are the same or slightly
higher than your ARM, refinancing may make sense. If the fixed rate is
lower than they are expected to be when your ARM converts to a fixed
rate, it may make sense to refinance.
Obviously, much thought needs to go into the refinancing decision.
Also, you should evaluate this decision regularly to account for changes
both in your financial situation and the economy. Perhaps, the decision is
not to refinance now, but a few years from now it may save you thousands
of dollars.
To top of Page |
|
|
| |
|
Credit
Card Deals |
|
Low
intro rate on |
|
balance transfers! |
 |
|
Rates as low
as 0%
GO |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|