Is Now a Good Time to Refinance Your Home Loan?

Is Now a Good Time to Refinance Your Home Loan?
Refinancing an existing mortgage is not a decision to be made lightly. While it may seem like a convenient way to ease some of your financial burdens at the present time, you need to carefully consider what it will do to you financially in the future. Before jumping into a new home loan with new terms go over all of your options with a qualified mortgage broker like Better Rate Mortgage to make sure this is the solution that will meet your current needs and your future plans.
Why Refinance?
There are a number of reasons why people consider refinancing their current mortgage. The most obvious of course being to get a lower interest rate. A basic refinance to a lower rate where you are not cashing out any of the equity you have built into the home will lower your monthly payments. This makes available to you more cash to pay other bills and make your monthly purchases.
What is holding back many St. Louis homeowners who would benefit from refinancing their homes is its value. As home values fell the cost of their existing mortgage became more then what the home was worth. These homeowners are left with two choices, either stick it out and continue with their high monthly payments until the home regains value or sell the home at a loss. There is of course the third unfavorable option of walking away and letting the bank foreclose on it.
What many of these homeowners are not realizing is that home values are slowly climbing, and what the assessed value of their home was two years ago may be drastically different than what it is today. If you fit into this scenario then you should be talking with a broker like Better Rate Mortgage now to find out if the tide has finally turned in your favor.
The Fixed Rate
The biggest advantage to refinancing a home loan is getting out of the unpredictable adjustable rate loans that the majority of these home owners have. Rates are low now in comparison to what they are predicted to be this time next year, so locking in right now will ensure that you are not facing even higher monthly payments the next time your mortgage is adjusted. Refinancing to a fixed rate loan gives you the stability you need to manage your finances on a month to month basis.
Refinancing to Consolidate
Homeowners who realize that they have built equity into their home may sometimes look at refinancing as a way to consolidate other high interest debts they may have, such as credit cards, into their home mortgage. Talk this over with a mortgage expert like Better Rate Mortgage first. While seemingly a good idea at first glance, you have to consider that even though the rate is considerably lower, you are now adding that debt into a 30 year commitment. You may be better off to refinance just the home and use the extra monthly cash to pay those other debts off faster.
With interest rates on home loans still low, set up an appointment with Better Rate Mortgage to discuss your options. You might have more equity in your home than you thought, allowing you to finally break free from high interest mortgage terms into rates that you can live with.