Refinancing your mortgage can be advantageous—but only if you’re able to secure rates that are lower than the ones you have currently. In fact, mortgage professionals recommend that you seek rates that are at least one percent lower than your current ones—or else, refinancing might not be so financially beneficial....
Blog
Family Homes: Not an Investment or a Commodity
To state the obvious, homeowners like it when property values begin to rise. When a home’s value increases, so does the owner’s wealth. However, when this happens, more and more people begin to view real estate, including family homes, as a form of investment—but this isn’t necessarily a good thing....
Have Outstanding Credit? You Deserve an Outstanding Rate
Here’s a question you’ll want to answer for yourself if you ever apply for a mortgage loan: what’s my credit like? There are different ways of measuring your own creditworthiness, and the best way is to obtain your FICO credit score. These reports are a numerical representation of your credit...
How to Get the Lowest Mortgage Refinancing Rate
People refinance their mortgages for a few different reasons, such as a more flexible loan term, or to condense a 30-year into a 15-year loan. The most common reason to refinance is simply to get better rates. This means that as you shop around for a refinancing option, it’s vital...
How to Refinance Your Mortgage and Consolidate Debt
There are many reasons why a homeowner might choose to refinance his or her mortgage. One of them is to consolidate high-interest debt. Consolidating your debt by refinancing with a low mortgage rate can help you get a better handle on your finances, and it can save you a lot...
Move in With Just 3% Down
Buying a home is a significant financial commitment. In fact, for most people, it will be the single biggest financial purchase of their lives. And that’s not just because of the mortgage payment. There is also the matter of the money you put down, at closing. It is generally accepted...
Refinance to the Low Rates You Deserve
There are many reasons to consider refinancing your mortgage loan. For example, you may have a 30-year mortgage term, and wish to condense it into a 15-year loan so that you can get your home paid for more quickly. Or, conversely, you may want to switch from a 15-year to...
Refinancing an FHA Loan to a Conventional Loan
There are many potential benefits to refinancing your mortgage loan. Refinancing allows you to take advantage of superior loan rates, for example, or to change the term of your loan. You can also change the type of loan you have—for instance, refinancing an FHA loan into a conventional one. Is...
Should Your First Home Be an Investment Property?
Generally, people wait until after they’ve bought their first home—or in some cases even their second—before they start seriously investing in real estate. However, there’s no rule to say that you can’t start earlier. In fact, more and more people are making their very first home purchase an investment property....
The Pros and Cons When Considering a 15-Year Mortgage
Many borrowers and aspiring homeowners assume that they’ll be making mortgage payments for a full 30 years. While the 30-year mortgage has long been the standard, it’s important to know that other options exist—including one that cuts the standard loan term in half. Of course, we’re talking about the 15-year...