Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Tips For Homeowners Looking To Refinance Their Real Estate Loans

By George Gray


You are already settled into a home and in the process of paying off the mortgage. However, it's becoming increasingly necessary to switch to something that better reflects your current situation. If you've found yourself here, perhaps it's time you considered refinancing your mortgage. Real estate loans Brooklyn New York can be refinanced in 2 ways, either of which could be your perfect solution going forward:

Rate-and-term Refinance: Here, the original loan is usually paid off and replaced with one carrying a lower interest rate and/or a new set of terms. However, the loan balance stays unchanged, save for when the lender agrees to add transaction costs to the same. Whatever the case, don't expect to walk away with more money than you started with.

Cash Out Refinance: This will involve borrowing more money on top of your outstanding loan balance. And from the lender's perspective, the fact that you'll be divesting yourself of your (share of) equity means you're more likely to default. It's for this reason that cash-out refinances tend to be more expensive than their alternatives.

A general guideline is that refinancing becomes worthwhile if the prevailing market rate is at least 2% lower than the one you currently have. However, keep in mind that it could take up to 3 years for the interest savings to cancel out the costs you'll incur. So be sure to assess your plans for the future before making your decision. That aside, it's worth familiarizing yourself with the steps involved in taking out a mortgage refinance:

Check Your Credit Report:All loan shopping processes start with a review of the borrower's credit status, and mortgage refinancing is no exception. You'll want to obtain your report as early as possible so you have enough time to check for errors. Be sure to keep your credit inquiries inside a 2-week period to avoid damaging your score.

Shop for Lenders: It's tempting to think that the best refinancing package will be presented by your current lender, but this isn't necessarily the case. Chances are that there's a better option available on the market, so it's in your best interest to shop around for offers. The latter can also be said of seeking as much clarification as possible when interviewing lenders.

Application: Take note that it's only after a successful comparison that you should start filling out applications. It's here that you'll be asked to provide more financial details, plus documents to support them. The more prepared you are in this regard, the faster your application will proceed.

Get Your Rate Locked: It can take up to 60 days for an application to go through processing and approval. Remember that the rate you were originally quoted can change subject to market fluctuations that occur over this period. This can however be avoided by getting a rate lock in advance.

The decision of whether or not to refinance all boils down to its potential to improve your situation. With that in mind, you'll want to identify your goals and see if there's a practical possibility of achieving them under the prevailing market conditions. And as with any other investment, it's very important that you know what you're getting into before proceeding.




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