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Smith & Chen asked:


There are three main reasons that consumers consider a Houston refinance mortgage. They are lower rate, cash out (or debt consolidation), and converting from adjustable to a fixed rate.

For a rate refinance an important consideration is the closing costs to be paid. If there are typical closing costs it is usually advisable to refi if you can save ฝ percent on your rate or more. With a “no closing cost” loan it can make sense to refi with 1/8 percent savings or more. The no closing cost option is not always the best choice. If a mortgage with some closing costs is available at a better rate you should consider the payback time. This is a calculation of how long it would take a rate savings to recover the closing costs. If the payback is 4 years and you plan on having the loan longer than that it may be the better deal.

For cash out refinancing there are rules that are commonly called “Texas cash-out” rules. The key part of this is that the loan may not exceed 80% of your homes appraised value. For example if your home is worth $100,000 and you currently have a $50,000 mortgage, the maximum cash out would be $30,000 (less closing costs). It is usually not advisable to do a cash out refi if it would result in a higher rate than you currently have. If you can’t get a equal or better finance rate it may be better to do a second mortgage or home equity line of credit instead (HELOC). Ask a good loan officer or mortgage broker to show you options and explain the differences.

It is usually advisable to convert from an adjustable to a fixed rate mortgage only if the fixed rate is equal or better. Some adjustable rate loans have a prepayment penalty the first two or three years. In some cases it can be best to wait until after the penalty clause expires to refinance.

For all refinance mortgages it is important to get the best possible rate and terms. Your credit, income, and loan to value ratio will be factors for your rate and terms. Your goal should be to get the best program that you qualify for. There are a lot of mortgage programs available in the marketplace. In general the best include some Fannie Mae/ Freddie Mac programs, and VA conforming loans. Next might be other conventional “A” mortgages or FHA loans which are very good. Alternate A loans are next, these are loans that don’t quite fit the top tier because they are very large (jumbo), or for another reason like not documenting your income. Next could be Fannie/Freddie programs that are for those with less than perfect credit (sometimes called A- mortgages”). Next to last would be “sub-prime” loans. These are for consumers with more difficult to finance mortgages because of credit or other reasons. The lowest category could be called “hard-money” loans. Some lenders will do this type of mortgage at a high rate regardless of severe problems if there is a large amount of equity.

I suggest dealing with a lender that has a large variety of programs to select from. If you shop a lender that only does one type of mortgages you will probably be turned down if you don’t fit their program. When you shop a lender that doesn’t do FHA loans, they may suggest a lower category mortgage with a higher rate. And it is better when a lender offers a choice of programs, rather than just one.

Texas residents can visit our Houston refinance mortgage site for more information. You can also call my office at 281-537-7800.

Mortgage Rate Calculators - Valuable Tools For Getting The Best Loan

Are you looking for some inside information on refinance mortgage rate calculators? Here’s an article that can help provide information for you to find the best rates for your mortgage.

Refinancing is a smart move if you want to lower your monthly payment and overall interest on your bills. With refinance mortgages, you are also able to change the term of the loan to a shorter one so you can pay off the loan earlier and save more on interest.

There are actually several reasons why people want to take a refinance mortgage. This is also why refinance mortgage rate calculators are important. Refinance mortgage rate calculators help consumers determine the amount of savings they can make on their chosen loan type. Refinance mortgage rate calculators also aid you in finding out how much is your monthly payment for your refinancing loan.

The Internet refinance mortgage rate calculators show you the monthly payments you need to make for your mortgage. Aside from that, these refinance mortgage rate calculators also show you the total interest rate. If you’re more concerned on how much saving you will be able to make with a refinancing loan, refinance mortgage rate calculators will also help you on that.

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of refinance mortgage rate calculators is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news to help you make a wise financial decision.

The refinance mortgage rate calculator will ask you for your current loan information. For instance, on the refinance mortgage rate calculator, a field labeled Principal Balance will be provided along with the Monthly Payment and Annual Interest Rate fields. You need fill these up in order to start using the refinance mortgage rate calculator.

To complete the process, the website’s refinance mortgage rate calculator will also ask for your new loan information. Another three fields will be provided in the refinance mortgage rate calculator. The refinance mortgage rate calculator fields are: Annual Interest Rate, Term, and closing Costs. By checking on the Finance Closing Costs at the bottom part of the refinance mortgage rate calculator and then hitting the Calculate button, you can determine how many months it will take for your loan to break even on the closing costs.

For example, for the Principal Balance field on the refinance mortgage rate calculator, you put in $150,000 (Take note that the amount you place in this refinance mortgage rate calculator field represents the remaining pay-off balance). The Interest Rate of your current loan is 6% and the data you put in the refinance mortgage rate calculator Monthly Payment field is $899.30.

For the New Loan Information portion of the refinance mortgage rate calculator, you place the following data: 5% Annual Interest Rate, 30-year Term, and $0 for Closing Costs. Make sure that you check the box for Finance Closing Costs at the bottom of the refinance mortgage calculator before hitting the Calculate button.

The results of the refinance mortgage rate calculator would show you that your new monthly payment would be $805.23, $93.77 short of your current loan monthly payment. The refinance mortgage rate calculator would also display the difference in the interest rates of both loans. With the refinance mortgage rate calculator, you will be able to find that the total interest of your current loan would be $173,757.28 while your new interest after refinancing would be $139,883.68. This allows you to save $33,873.61 on interest.

As your knowledge about mortgage calculators continues to grow, you will begin to see how easy it is to get the best loan available. Knowing how these type of tools work is important when making large financial decisions.

AccessNational asked:


Looking to refinance? If you are a qualified veteran who is eligible for a VA home loan, you could look into a VA home loan refinance for your existing home loan. The loan offered by VA refinance programs can help you save money and tap into the advantages of a first VA home mortgage.

Eligibility for VA Refinance

You need to be a qualified veteran to get a VA home loan refinance. The criteria a veteran needs to be in order to qualify are:

•Obtaining a Certificate of Eligibility through the VA or through an approve lender using the VA’s ACE system

• Good credit worthiness with a good credit score

• Income that will allow you to pay the loan

If you are looking to turn your standard mortgage into a VA loan program, a VA refinance is the best way to do it. You will be able to get all of the good terms and protections of the VA loan program, which you earned through your service in the armed forces.

Explaining a VA Home Loan Refinance

Having a VA refinance works very similar to any other type of refinance program. But through the VA home loan refinance, you are able to take your existing loan and transform it a loan with more benefits.

The way a VA refinance works is you get a new loan to pay off your existing mortgage. The VA refinance program requires that you take the new mortgage for the new VA mortgage for the same home and that the home serve as your primary residence. VA loans are only given for home residences.

A VA home loan refinance is a cash out refinance, even if you are only seeking a better term or refinance rate, because there is access to more cash if you need it. That’s why you should look at your other debts and bills to decide whether or not you should use your equity to get more money through the VA home loan refinance process.

With a VA refinance you can finance up to 90 percent of your home’s value, as well as financing the closing costs. You can also convert the loan with little or no money down, and take cash out for other obligations, as long as your home holds onto its equity.

However, not all states allow VA home loan refinances due to local lending laws. But the advantages are so good that you should look into the programs to see if they are available to you.

VA Refinance advantages

There are many benefits through VA loan programs and VA home loan refinance. Here are some the advantages offered to qualified veterans through this program:

• No-money down refinance

• Reduced monthly payments, rates and/or terms

• Access to cash while getting into a secured and insured VA refinance loan

• Save money on closing costs and fees, because the VA refinance limits fees and charges, when you use the VA home loan refinance program

• Improved loan to value ratios, since the VA refinance guarantees up to a quarter of your loan

The benefits given through these programs, including those offered by Access National Mortgage, are given to veterans who have earned them through their diligent service to our country. Veterans should get every advantage from these programs. For those not already using one, the VA home loan refinance

offers an opportunity to get into these programs.

Martin Lukac asked:


Refinancing your existing mortgages has many advantages like lowering the monthly payments or interest rates paid. The latter is in fact one of the most important reasons for opting for refinance. Thus a vital point to be considered while taking a mortgage refinance is mortgage refinance rates.

Mortgage refinance rates depend upon various market factors as well as your personal factors as a borrower. But mortgage refinance rates mainly depend upon the interest accrued on the refinance loan. The mortgage refinance rate is expressed as the Annual Percentage Rate (APR). APR is the total amount of money repayable by the borrower to the lender on a loan, per annum.

It will also depend on the kind of mortgage refinance loan you would choose. The different kind of mortgage refinance options available can be broadly classified on the basis of:

-Fixed mortgage refinance rate: Various fixed rate refinance include 30 year fixed mortgage refinance, 20 year fixed mortgage refinance, 15 year fixed mortgage and 10 year mortgage refinance, etc.

-Adjustable mortgage refinance rate: This category includes 1 year ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage), 3/1 ARM refinance, 3/1 interest only ARM refinance, 5/1 ARM refinance, 5/1 ARM interest only refinance, etc.

Few ways by which you can reduce your mortgage refinance rates are: -Keep a check on your credit score: Your credit history will have a great impact on the mortgage refinance rate you will be offered. Making payments late or missing payments will decrease your credit score. Also, take care to see that you don’t use your credit cards and line of credit loans to the maximum credit limit available to you. Doing so will again decrease your credit score. Having a bad credit score will not stop you from availing a mortgage refinance. But the mortgage refinance rate offered to you will be 2% to 6% higher than usual. So try to improve your credit score to get lower mortgage refinance rates.

-Think about paying points: This is one more alternative to lower mortgage refinance rates. One point is equal to one percent of the mortgage amount. For instance, a mortgage loan of $10,000 with 3 points will incur additional $3000 as charges. Higher the points charged to the mortgage, lower will be your mortgage refinance rate. Points can either be paid upfront or financed by the amount from the loan.

-Do your research: As in all other sectors, there is intense competition in the lending sector too. It might make sense to obtain mortgage refinance from your current lender, but they might not necessarily offer you the best mortgage refinance rates. Thus it is wise to compare rates offered by various lenders. And with World Wide Web at your finger tips this should not be a tedious task. Applying online will help you get multiple offers from various lenders. Compare the mortgage refinance rates as well as the services of the lender and then choose the best offer suiting your needs.

To get the best mortgage refinance deal don’t compare only mortgage refinance rates but also consider closing costs and redemption penalties.

AccessNational asked:


For qualified borrowers, the FHA Streamline Refinance program’s benefits are very good. There are some restrictions involved in the loan product and who is qualified. If you have an FHA loan and want to improve your terms, it is worth talking to a FHA lender about the FHA

Streamline refinance program.

FHA Streamline Refinance program benefits

The FHA Streamline Refinance Program will developed in the 1980s to get borrowers access to a home mortgage refinance without dropping the security of an FHA loan. The FHA Streamline Refinance program gives you a faster way to refinance with less paperwork and better terms. Those aren’t the only benefits, however, the FHA Streamline Refinance helps borrowers is other ways, too:

* Lower interest rates, monthly payments and upfront costs

* No underwriting fees and out-of-pocket costs

* The option of lower terms from 30 to 15 years

* Closing costs that can be included in the loan

* Increased equity for the owner

The simplified FHA Streamline Refinance Program also helps on the administrative end, by cutting out paperwork, like:

* Less required information for the FHA Streamline Information

* Little paperwork

* Often no appraisal needed

* No information checks required for the FHA Streamline Refinance, like income or employment verification

This means the FHA Streamline benefits give you speed and efficiency the loan will be closed quicker and the saving will get to you sooner.

Restrictions and Requirements of the FHA Streamline Refinance Program

There are some minor requirements of the FHA Streamline Refinance you must meet in order to get the benefits of the FHA Streamline Refinance programs. These requirements for an FHA Streamline Refinance are similar to other refinance restrictions of typical programs. FHA Streamline Refinance provisions are actually far less than others. The

restrictions include:

* The loan must be in good standing, not in default and paid up to date

* The loan must be FHA insured and the refinance must result in lower payments and better terms for the borrower

One of the few drawbacks of the FHA Streamline Refinance is that borrower can not take cash out as a result of their refinance. Since many borrowers look at the FHA Streamline refinance as a place to get cash, many can be disappointed by their notice. However, with the FHA Streamline Refinance, borrowers may not be able to get cashout, but they improve their monthly payments and decrease their loan-to-value ratios. With such benefits, owners may get access to other credit in which to reach their cashout goals, while keeping a more manageable home loan.

Advice for getting an FHA Streamline Refinance

The best place for more information and advice for a FHA Streamline Refinance is a qualified and reputable FHA lender. An FHA lender can look at your current loan and how the FHA Streamline Refinance will benefit you. The way the FHA has made their Streamline Refinance program, you should benefit greatly. Get your FHA Streamline Refinance information, like what your current terms and payments are, and call an FHA lender to see what the FHA Streamline program will do for you.