Can You Refinance To The Lowest Mortgage Rate?

January 1, 2012 by 7 Comments

refinance to low mortgage ratesMortgage Interest Rates are at ALL TIME lows, and many of the people calling us want to know if it’s even possible to Refinance these days!

The answer is maybe.  If you are looking for a “rate term” meaning no cash out – and you haven’t missed any mortgage payments in the last 12 months and you think you have at least a 600 credit score - call me.  We can possibly figure this out.  There are some cool guideline changes coming out between now and the beginning of March 2012 that don’t have any “Loan To Value” requirements for refinances!

If you are getting a divorce – and you have never worked, and you need to use the alimony your spouse is SUPPOSE to start paying you in September to qualify for a home… well, call me… because we need to talk about how this is going to work and what documentation we are going to need.

Every situation is different… don’t GIVE UP before you ASK US what we can do.  Just be realistic, and know that in most cases, cash out – unless you have really good credit scores, documentation and equity in your home, is a difficult loan to close right now.  That doesn’t mean we are not doing them – it just means you might as well load up the suitcase with documentation, cause we’re gonna to need it! [Read more...]

Filed Under: credit, FHA Mortgage Loans Tagged With: , , , , ,

Is It Time To Refinance?

September 18, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Many of the people we are talking with WANT to refinance – but they figure it’s probably not worth it. Generally those sentiments run from two different camps, either the homeowner is concerned that they have no equity in the home to refinance (and don’t want to pay closing costs out of pocket), or they just figure they have a pretty good rate now, and don’t see a big difference from 5.75 to “whatever the mortgage rates are down to now.”

So let’s talk about what you SHOULD consider with a refinance…

The most fundamental consideration in whether a homeowner should refinance an existing mortgage is the break-even point, which means how soon the cost of the refinance will be recaptured through lower monthly payments. In general, most homeowners are looking for a three year recapture period.  If you are not going to recouperate in that time period… it might not make sense. [Read more...]

Filed Under: FHA Mortgage Loans Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

No Cost Refinance Cary Raleigh NC

July 29, 2010 by Leave a Comment

When mortgage interest rates fall at least one percent below your current mortgage interest rate, it might be time to check on a refinance. In today’s market, people who are refinancing are primarily in one of two groups.  There are ways to refinance with no cost out of pocket, and / or without adding to your balance.  There are trade-offs to everything, so it’s important to understand what your motivation is.

Everyone is trying to save every penny in this economy… and so for some homeowners,  getting the absolute lowest mortgage payment is the most important motivating factor. This is especially true when families are concerned about a potential layoff.  Some of the ways to minimize your mortgage payment might be:

  • Refinancing to a lower rate
  • Consolidating other balances into your mortgage (paying off $15,000 in credit card debt by increasing your balance could save you over $650 a MONTH!)
  • Removing PMI by doing a 80-10-10 mortgage
  • Checking your escrow account and in some cases not including the escrow in your monthly mortgage payment.

For other customers, the concern is reducing the principal balance as quickly as possible.  Look at this example:

Purchased home in August 2007 with 30 year mortgage at 5.75% fixed rate

Refinance in August of 2010 with 20 year mortgage at 4.875% fixed rate

Difference in payment is $22 a month… cost to you is @ $6500 (added to the mortgage balance) and the SAVINGS going to a 20 year from a 30 year is a total of $166,883 in interest!

There are costs associated with refinancing your home.  In order to get a “No Cost” refinance, you are either:

  • Adding to your mortgage balance
  • Getting a slightly higher rate so that the Lender is paying the closing costs

Those are the only options.  We will be glad to calculate the best option for you!  Please call Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Professional Mortgage Planners, 919-649-5058.  We offer the Best Mortgage Rates in Raleigh and Cary NC

If you want more information about a 4.25% (4.375% APR)  mortgage Interest Rate, click here.

For information on VA Streamline Refinances click here

For information on FHA Non-Owner Occupied Refinance click here

For information on FHA Owner Occupied Streamline Refinance click here

For information on USDA Home Loan Refinances click here

Filed Under: Housing News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

FHA Streamline Refinance When You Do Not Occupy Property

May 25, 2010 by Leave a Comment

FHA allows you to Streamline Refinance when you do not occupy property.  This was actually news to me, because we always tell folks that FHA is ONLY for use as a Primary Residence!

So we have a borrower who owned a home in Ohio (financed via FHA), moved to NC – but could not sell the home in Ohio. They purchased a home in NC while renting the other one out.

The rate on their home in Ohio is 6.25% – which is a good rate… except that FHA rates have DROPPED so much right now, they wanted to see if they could get a little better position!

Turns out we can save them $275 a month, AND keep it a FHA Loan! Yeah!

Here’s the deal – must be a Streamline Refinance, meaning:

  • no appraisal
  • no increase in the base loan amount
  • must pay the closing costs out of pocket
  • the lender CAN par price the loan to pay some of the costs
  • can NOT remove a co-signor

This is seriously good news if you have what is now Investment Property that has a FHA loan on it!  If you want to see if we can help you lower your payments with a refinance, call Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Mortgage Banker in Cary 919-649-5058

Filed Under: FHA Mortgage Loans Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Refinancing FHA Loans and Cash Back

April 6, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Head ScratchingWe’ve been in the mortgage business for a couple of decades, and with all of the changes that have happened, month after month… we sometimes get asked a question that you would think was a SIMPLE question… and we scratch our head and ask for time to research it.

When you are refinancing a FHA loan, you can get a CASH OUT loan, meaning you take cash out to pay for Education, or to Consolidate loans – or you might opt for a Streamline FHA loan.  With the Streamline FHA loan – you are limited to a small amount of cash back at closing, usually less than $500.

You still have to pay your closing costs, although some of those costs can sometimes be rolled into the loan, paid out of the escrow refund you get from the original mortgage holder, or covered in part by the Mortgage Loan Officer (that would be us!).  Having a “No Cost” refinance mortgage loan, however, is VERY DIFFICULT to coordinate with today’s lending requirements!

If you are considering a Refinance in Raleigh or Cary – please call us Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Mortgage Banker in Cary , 919-649-5058.  We have the experience and the best mortgage rates!

Filed Under: FHA Mortgage Loans Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

2% Mortgage Rate on Refinance?

March 4, 2009 by Leave a Comment

The Obama Administration outlined today their efforts to help borrowers who need to refinance – and for various reasons can not.

If you’ve made your payments on time, here’s the current plan being floated… REMEMBER! This must be approved by Congress!

A Home Affordable Refinance Program to Provide Access to Low-Cost Refinancing for Responsible Homeowners Suffering From Falling Home Prices:

“Provide the Opportunity for Up to 4 to 5 Million Responsible Homeowners to Refinance: Mortgage rates are currently at historically low levels, providing homeowners with the opportunity to reduce their monthly payments by refinancing. But under current rules, most families who owe more than 80% of the value of their homes have a difficult time securing refinancing. (For example, if a borrower’s home was worth $200,000, he or she would have limited refinancing options if he or she owed more than $160,000.) Yet millions of responsible homeowners who put money down and made their mortgage payments on time have – through no fault of their own – seen the value of their homes drop low enough to make them unable to take advantage of these lower rates. As a result, the Obama Administration’s program will provide the opportunity for up to 4 to 5 million responsible homeowners who took out loans owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae (the GSEs) to refinance through the two institutions over time. Reducing Monthly Payments: For many families, a low-cost refinancing could reduce mortgage payments by thousands of dollars per year. For example, consider a family that took a 30-year fixed rate mortgage of $207,000 with an interest rate of 6.50% on a house worth $260,000 at the time. Today, that family has $200,000 remaining on their mortgage, but the value of that home has fallen 15% to $221,000 – making them ineligible for today’s low interest rates that generally require the borrower to have 20% home equity. Under this refinancing plan, that family could refinance to a rate near 5.16% – reducing their annual payments by over $2,300. “Okay – here are some details!  The 5.16% rate mentioned above is the APR (they left that out).  There are also COSTS involved in refinancing which means that if your current rate is 6.5%, and the Obama Administration helps push mortgage rates to the mid to low 4% range – this might make sense.

The other BIG thing to notice is that they are talking about people who’s mortgage is currently owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. There’s a REALLY good chance your mortgage is owned by Wells Fargo, or BB&T or JP Chase Morgan and they don’t have to fall under these guidelines!
But it still doesn’t get us to that 2% mortgage rate on a refinance! THAT rate is only mentioned for folks who are about to lose their house… and that’s a TON more complicated!
For those details, click here.
If you want to find out more about qualifying to refinance in NC, please contact Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Corporate Investors Mortgage Group, 919-649-5058.


Filed Under: FHA Mortgage Loans, Housing News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Time To Refinance Your VA Loan??

March 31, 2008 by 14 Comments

va mortgage loansThe Veteran’s Administration Provides you with Four Different Refinance Solutions

    Actually this headline is incorrect.  The VA does not “make” mortgage loans.  They set guidelines and approve lenders to originate VA loans – but the VA does not actually MAKE the VA HOME LOANS.
  • VA Streamline Refinance: Mortgage Lenders also refer to these as Interest Rate Reduction Loan (IRRL).  For refinancing this is possibly the veterans greatest mortgage tool. Qualified veterans can quickly refinance to a lower rate, switch from and adjustable rate to a fixed rate loan, or from a fixed rate to an adjustable rate loan.

A veteran does not have to re-qualify for a VA streamline and in most cases an appraisal in not required. Most importantly, there are rarely any out of pocket costs for the veteran.  So… you’re just lowering your monthly payment!  How cool is that?

  • VA Cash Out Refinance: For the veteran with equity in their home, a VA cash out may allow you to put some of that money to work as needed. You may be able to use these equity funds to to make costly home improvements, pay college tuition, or enjoy a cruise around the world. It is your choice.  Fortunately, in North Carolina most properties are continuing to appreciate and build equity.
  • VA Debt Consolidation: Credit card debt, car loans, and home equity lines of credit can all carry high interest rates and make it difficult to manage your monthly payments. Veterans can consolidate these expensive obligations and combine them into one low fixed rate loan with a VA debt consolidation refinance.
  • Conventional Loan To A VA Loan: Veterans who do not currently have a VA Mortgage loan, but meet the VA eligibility requirements, can refinance with a VA Mortgage loan. If this is the case, then you should be able to refinance your current conventional home loan into a VA loan and take advantage of the many options that the VA home loan offers.  With many of the Conventional guidelines changing and requiring “cream of the crop” credit - many Veterans are finding this to be a Great Option!

We have years of experience helping Veterans Refinance their homes!  For more information about VA Mortgage LOANS, contact Steve and Eleanor Thorne Mortgage Banker in Cary , 919-649-5058

Filed Under: VA Mortgage Loans Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,