Bad credit refinancing » Home Improvements

Benefits of Refinancing Your Home Today

admin — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 15:18:24 +0000

By refinancing your existing mortgage or home loan, you can qualify for a better rate or more flexible terms. During refinancing, you can also cash out the equity that you have built up in your home. This money can be used for things like home improvements and repair.

There has never been a better time than today to refinance your existing home loan or mortgage. The best deals on mortgage refinancing can be found online via the Internet

The Internet has become the premier source for mortgage refinancing for a multitude of reasons. Number one among those is that increased online competition between lenders has the end result of getting you the lowest rate to be found on your new mortgage.

Online lenders also have a speedier application and approval process because everything concerning the new mortgage is filled out electronically on a secure server. There is also a significant convenience in the online mortgage that the traditional mortgage can not offer – you can fill out your application online 24 hours a day, when you have time, not during regular banking hours.

Online Mortgage Lending Specialists

What is more, these specialists in mortgage lending online have the expertise that is backed up by years of successful business. They know how to get you the best rate with payments that are easily agreeable with your budget or income. They want you to succeed, and have great customer support to help you do just that.

Many homeowners find that the interest rate they are paying on their current mortgage is not reflective of their elevated credit status. If your credit has approved within the years that you have been paying on your home, you may now qualify for a better rate that reflects your responsible credit pattern. By refinancing, you can qualify for a rate that will allow you to pay your home off sooner for less.

If you signed on during the adjustable rate mortgage boom, chances are that your house payment may be getting out of hand. Multitudes of homeowners are now paying up to double the amount each month that they were paying just seven or eight years ago. Because their income failed to keep up with this payment increase, some of these homeowners have, unfortunately, fallen victim to foreclosure or bankruptcy. Refinancing your adjustable rate mortgage with a new, fixed rate loan will not only save you untold money on interest charges, but also give you a payment that is dependable and works well with your income.

Cash Out Equity

When you refinance your home, you can cash out equity that you have built up over years of payment. Borrowers can use this equity for whatever they need. Home improvements, remodeling, adding a fourth bedroom, additional bath, new floors, roofing, building a new garage or carport, installing a pool or sauna, or numerous other things that make your home more valuable. For every dollar that you invest by improving your home, you can expect to double that investment should you ever put your house on the market.

By: Kate Ross

Mortgage Interest Rates – A Look at the Last 10 Years of Refinancing

admin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 02:44:25 +0000

Ten years ago, prospective home-buyers and existing homeowners looking to refinance were positively giddy about the interest rates. Hovering around 8%, the rates were a refreshing change from the double-digits of the 1980s. Who could have guessed that now, in 2006, even with interest rates on the rise, we are a far cry from the “high” interest rates of the late ‘90s.

With the exception of a spike in 2000, the last several years have seen historically low interest rates. Under the direction of Alan Greenspan, the Federal Reserve Board lowered rates from 2001 through 2005. According to Interest Dot Com, the rate of 5.2% in June 2003 was the lowest rate recorded since their print predecessors began weekly rate surveys in 1985. These low rates enabled many Americans, who previously could not afford to do so, to buy homes. They also led many existing homeowners to refinance their mortgages and cash-out a portion of their home equity for home improvements or other goods and services. As stated by the Homeownership Alliance, the housing sector has been “a pillar of strength for the U.S. economy in recent years, limiting the depth of the 2001 recession.”

This is true even with rates slowly on the rise. Since October 2005, rates have not dipped below 6% and the current rate is 6.66% for a 30 year fixed mortgage. The rates on adjustable rate mortgages are rising more slowly, thus providing an attractive option for those beginning to think about refinancing or taking out a home equity loan or line of credit.

What is the outlook for the future? Some experts say that the increases will slow, while others disagree, saying that rates will continue to rise. It seems we’ll just have to wait and see.

By: Jennifer Frakes

Mortgage Refinance – Tips to Help You Cut Fees and Costs

admin — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 03:44:23 +0000

Saving money through a mortgage refi is more than just finding the lowest interest rates. You can further cut fees and costs through the structure of your loan, avoiding PMI, and buying lower interest rates.

Close Credit Card Accounts

Close inactive credit card accounts to improve your credit score, making you eligible for lower interest rate loans. You will need to notify the credit card companies in writing that you wish the accounts closed on your request.

Next, check your credit report after 30 days to be sure closed accounts include the comment “Closed at Customer’s Request.” You want future lenders to know it was your request and not bad credit that closed your accounts. Also, take the time to check for any mistakes in your credit report that could negatively impact your credit score.

Avoid The Hidden Cost Of PMI

When refinancing a mortgage, as many as 30% of homeowner’s cash out part or all of their home’s equity. By investing in home improvements or paying off credit cards, this can be a smart. But, if you are borrowing more than 80% of your home’s value, you will be hit with private mortgage insurance, costing you hundreds a year.

Pay Points Now

If you are planning to stay in your home for several years, then you can save money by paying points for lower interest rates. You pay up front fees to ensure you have lower interest payments over the course of your loan. Remember, this only works if you keep your mortgage for several months.

Choose A Short-Term Loan

Short-term mortgages offer lower interest rates than long-term mortgages. You save money by the lower interest rates and shorter payment period. The trade off is a larger monthly payment, but this option can save you thousands.

Ask About Fees

Fees are a hidden cost of many mortgage loans. By law, lenders must disclose fees within three days of a loan application. Fees can go by many names like – document prep fees, courier fees, administrative fees, and more.

When comparing refi options for your mortgage, request a list of fees from several lenders. Add these fees with the interest of a loan. With these figures, you may be surprised that the cheapest loan didn’t have the lowest interest rate.

To view our recommended sources for refinance mortgage loans online, visit
this page: Recommended
Refi Mortgage Lenders Online.

By: Carrie Reeder

What Are the Pros and Cons of Refinancing?

admin — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 18:11:59 +0000

Homeowners are wondering what the pros and cons of refinancing are now more than ever. The number of adjustable loans going into foreclosure is high, since many are now jumping up into the higher rates and the homeowners cannot afford the monthly payments, which in some cases, have nearly tripled from what they have been paying.

Pros

Refinancing allows you to change the terms of your loan so that your payments become more affordable. If you have taken a pay cut, lost the main income in your household, or are facing medical bills and other debts that hinder your ability to make the payments you are currently stuck with, this could work out in your favor.

A refinancing is often used to change an adjustable loan into a fixed-rate loan, which stops the rate from rising and puts you on a steadier payment plan. If you already have a fixed interest rate, then you could get an even lower rate through a refinanced loan. This will decrease the amount of money you are paying in interest, so that more of your payments go toward the principal balance.

Another term of the loan that can be changed is the length. Many lenders are doing this right now to help homeowners who are at risk of falling into foreclosure in the near future. By extending the length of the loan, the monthly payments can be reduced. This is not something banks normally want to do, but if it saves homes from the foreclosure process, it is a sacrifice many banks are starting to become more open to.

You can also use a refinancing to get cash for things you need right away. Whether you want to make home improvements or buy a used car, you could refinance to get that money back immediately.

Cons

There may be penalties written into your current fixed-rate loan, which kick-in if you pay off all or part of your loan early. If you are unsure if this may be an issue, you will need to pull out your original loan paperwork and read thoroughly. This fee may be worth paying if you are getting a really good deal in the refinance, but you must know how much it is in order to make that decision.

You must consider all of the closing costs that go into the refinance as well, because they will sometimes offset the advantages to be gained from the refinance altogether. If you do not have an immediate necessity that the refinance could take care of, then you should weight the benefits of the process against the total cost of making the refinance possible.

Learning the pros and cons of refinancing is not difficult, but deciding how much of a savings is worth going through the process may be hard if you are not familiar with the process.

By: Mark D. Miller

Steps to Refinancing Your Home

admin — Sun, 09 May 2010 21:40:50 +0000

When it comes to refinancing your home, it helps to know the steps you will have to accomplish in order to get your home refinanced. Understanding what you will have to do can prepare you to help streamline the process, and make it go more quickly and smoothly.

1. Know what you want to do. You should understand your objectives, and the reasons why you are applying for a refinance. Understand what you are refinancing your home for, whether it is debt consolidation, home improvements, or shortening your loan term.

2. Fill out your application. Next in the home refinancing steps is filling out your application. This will let you know whether or not you qualify for refinancing your home.

3. Determine what type of loan you want. You need to decide your preferred loan terms — whether you get an ARM or a fixed rate — and how long you want your terms.

4. Have your home appraised. Your home has to be appraised as part of the steps to refinancing so that the lender knows how much your home is worth.

5. Work on getting full approval for your home refinancing. You need to have your home fully approved. A copy of your appraisal will be sent to the lender, and at that time an interest rate will be finalized, and then you’ll end up with your formal loan documents.

6. Additional documentation. Before everything is completed in drawing up your documents, you may be required to submit further documents regarding your loan funding.

7. Notary signing. You will have to sign with a notary to fund your home mortgage refinance loan. This is an official who is authorized to witness your signing.

8. Actual loan funding. Once everything is notarized, the documents receive their final finish and the funding for your home refinance loan is sent.

Needed documentation

For most loans here are the documents you will likely need for refinancing loans:

· Copy of your home’s deed

· Information on your current mortgage

· Copy of your homeowner’s insurance policy

· Copies of your pay stubs from the past 30 days

· W-2 form copies from the last two years

· A complete asset list

· List of your credit and loan accounts that are open

By: L. Sampson

Refinance vs Home Equity Loan

admin — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:14:42 +0000

If you find yourself in need of a large sum of money for some reason, you may be considering using the equity in your home by either doing a cash-out refinance or getting a home equity loan in order to gain access to the money you need.

With the federal government beginning to slowly lower interest rates, you may be wondering if you should do a cash-out refinance in order to get that lower interest rate as well as gain access to the money you have in equity. This may be a tempting situation, but a lower interest rate is only one of the things that you should take into consideration.

When you refinance your home, you are taking out an entirely new mortgage. You use this new mortgage in order to pay off your original mortgage. In the case of a cash-out refinance, you borrow more on your home than the original mortgage balance, using your equity as collateral. You can then use the money left over after the refinance is completed to do anything you’d like. You can pay off credit cards, take a vacation, make home improvements, etc.

There are drawbacks to cash-out refinancing. First of all, your mortgage balance will be bigger and will most likely be extending your loan term. Mortgages are written with either 15 year or 30 year terms. If you only have 8 years before you pay off your mortgage, refinancing to even a 15 year mortgage is nearly doubling your loan term.

There are also considerable fees involved when you refinance. It would be worth your time, and sometimes a great deal of money, to find the best deal on fees that you can find.

With a home equity loan you are using the equity in your home as collateral on a loan. Home equity loans can be for a set amount or you can get a home equity line of credit, which is an open-ended loan that can be used just as you would use a credit card, keeping in mind that when you use that line of credit, you are using the equity in your home.

Home equity loans are easier to get than a refinance, especially if you have bad credit. The interest rate is also usually lower than a refinance, and the payments sometimes qualify as being tax deductible.

No matter whether you choose a cash-out refinance or a home equity loan, be sure to do some research on the companies you are considering working with. The best way to choose a good company to work with is to ask your friends, family and coworkers for recommendations. Ask not only about the process itself, but about how they were treated by the people they were working with. Were they rushed into decisions, or did they feel that they were given good information so that they could make the final decisions themselves? Remember that you are the customer, and when you are taking a large amount of money out against your home, you shouldn’t be rushed into anything.

By: J Suffie

Refinancing After Bankruptcy

admin — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 07:04:12 +0000

Refinancing after a bankruptcy can seem like an especially difficult challenge, but it doesn’t have to be. Six months after your bankruptcy has been finalized, you can find lenders willing to refinance your mortgage. In fact, refinancing your mortgage can help rebuild your credit to good standing in two year’s time. The following steps will help you find the best refinance lender while helping your rebuild your credit record.

Preparing For Refinancing

Right after bankruptcy, you have six months to prepare to refinance your mortgage. Begin by establishing good payment history by regularly paying your bills and current mortgage. This is also a good time to open a credit card account to start establishing good credit history.

If possible, also start building up a savings account. The more cash assets you have, the better your application will look. Consider having a garage sale or taking a second job to raise funds.

Researching Lenders

Once you are ready to refinance, research mortgage lenders and their rates. Online mortgage websites allow easy comparison shopping. Look at both interest rates and fees of refinancing quotes. Usually a slightly higher rate with low fees is the best deal.

With bankruptcy on your credit report, you will typically need to work with a sub prime lender. You can expect to pay a few percentage points above a traditional mortgage, which you can find through online mortgage companies.

Choosing Your Refinancing Package

You may be offered a chance to cash out part of your home’s equity when refinancing your mortgage. If you need to make home improvements or buy a car, this may be a good option. However, if you keep your home’s equity in place, you are improving your credit.

Once you have decided on your terms, you can finish your loan application online or through the mail. Quotes are not guaranteed, so rates may vary slightly once your application has been approved. Before the loan is finalized though you have the opportunity to review the loan again.

After Refinancing

With your refinancing completed, you can plan to lower your interest rates through refinancing in two years by building up your credit score. Continue to make regular payments and add to your cash reserves. Before you apply to refinance again, review your credit report to be sure your bankruptcy closed all past accounts on your record. With a solid credit history behind you, you can apply to traditional mortgage lenders.

To view our recommended sources for refinancing after a bankruptcy online, visit
this page: Recommended Bad Credit Mortgage Lenders Online.

By: Carrie Reeder

How to Easily Obtain Bad Credit Mortgage Refinancing

admin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 06:28:34 +0000

The current credit crisis and weak economy have led to tighter reins on banking loan officers concerning who can qualify for loans. For most people with a credit score anywhere below perfect, the are not able to obtain a loan. However, there are some large exceptions to this rule. One of the most significant exceptions is that of the bad credit mortgage refinancing.

What is happening is that banks have been foreclosing on a lot of homes and finding that the only way to get them off the books is to take a huge loss when reselling them. In order to prevent this loss, many banks will gladly work with a homeowner who truly wants to avoid not repaying their mortgage loan.

Even though late payments and bad credit card debt may have lowered their credit scores below the normal threshold of acceptance, homeowners seeking to refinance their mortgage to take advantage of better interest rates and/or to extend their payment term to get lower payments will be considered based on their merits as customers of the individual banks rather than their credit scores.

A person with poor credit could be a better loan candidate if they voluntarily enter a credit counseling program. Finding ways to reduce debt without being forced to file bankruptcy will reflect very favorably on the applicant.

A bank will want to know what the applicant has planned for the money that will become available with the refinancing. Most times, if the money is going to be used to increase the value of the home through home improvements, or to pay of high interest lines of credit and make it easier for the applicant to pay back the money, a bank is more than happy to accept the loan application. Their view is that you are working to get out of debt even if it means temporarily taking on more debt at better terms.

Believe it or not, this could be the best time to attempt to get a bad credit mortgage refinancing loan. This is because banks are extremely nervous over bad debts that can not be collected. In many cases, they will go to extremes to ensure that the money they have loaned out is repaid, even if it means they have to refinance and wait a longer period of time before it is all collected. In all actually, refinancing allows them to collect more interest on the money they lent out, making it a win/win situation.

The two key points to consider in applying for bad credit mortgage refinancing is how the money will be used and how the borrower’s ability to repay will be improved.

Refinancing is usually done to benefit from a lower interest rate, get a lower payment and longer loan term, or have money to improve the home or pay off other outstanding debts that are making it difficult for the homeowner to pay their mortgage. If one can provide satisfactory answers to these questions, the odds are good that refinancing can be arranged despite a bad credit score.

By: Paul Van Rode

3 Bad Credit Mortgage Refinancing Tips For Getting an Approval

admin — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 02:00:04 +0000

When you have a bad credit history, a mortgage refinance is most likely the cheapest way to access credit. Depending on the homes value and your equity in it, you can get a cash out refinancing for bill consolidation or home improvements. Or, it is possible to obtain a lower interest rate, and lower your monthly payments. Follow these 3 steps to get the best mortgage refinancing deal you can:

1) Compare Interest Rates
Before signing a mortgage refinancing deal, be sure to compare interest rates between lenders. This should give you a rough idea of what you can expect, and how much you can borrow. The lower the rate is means the more you can borrow for cheaper, which ultimately results in savings. This also allows you to find a better lender, who is offering you a better deal.

Also, make sure that potential mortgage lenders do not access your credit report. Too many people looking into your credit can result in a lowered credit rating. Typically, there is no guarantee on what other lenders will quote you, however, it will give a good idea of where you stand, especially if you know your credit score and tell it to them.

2) Know the details of your Credit Report, and clean it up a little
Before you apply for a mortgage refinancing, make sure you are familiar with your own credit history. Checking for mistakes or inaccuracies can save you a lot of time and hassle. You may even see that your credit is not as bad as you though it was.

If you have the opportunity to pay off small lingering debts, or reduce the cards which are nearly maxed out, this can help. Having your debt spread among a few accounts is better than having accounts maxed out.

3) Get Better Mortgage Terms, Conditions, and Interest Rates
Typically, homeowners who want to refinance, but have a low credit score, need to use a sub prime mortgage lender. These lenders specialize in these loan types, and can often obtain a better interest rate than a traditional bank or mortgage lender. ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage) loans typically offer the lowest interest rates. There is a risk though that the ARM will increase, and therefore your mortgage payment goes up.

Always listen and ask about all of your mortgage lenders loan options. Sometimes, you may find one you were not aware of that better meets your financial needs. Something like a chance to refinance your mortgage again in 24 months should your credit improve would be an example of a refinancing option.

Homeowners looking to get a mortgage refinancing today need not really whether or not they will get approved. They should be concerned with what lender or bank is offering them the lowest rate possible. Lower interest rates are truly how a refinancing is the most beneficial for a homeowner.

By: Michael Petrone

Bad Credit Financing and Refinancing Loans – Beating the Credit Crunch

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:25:38 +0000

The current financial situation makes it a particularly difficult time to have bad credit. Financing those large purchases could become more problematic, as banks and building societies become less happy to lend.

Fortunately, if you go to the right place, you will still be able to obtain a low-cost refinancing loan, even if you have bad credit.

In fact, there are some loans that are designed specifically for these circumstances. If you shop around, you will be able to find lenders will pay out even if you have:

• CCJs.
• Mortgage arrears.
• Defaults on previous loans.
• Bad credit.

However, shopping around for the right refinancing loan can be a complex task. To get the full range of options, you would have to contact hundreds of lenders, and then compare the loan terms, fees, charges, interest rates and conditions.

It can be much easier to employ a broker to search the market for you. They will be able to find the loan that meets your specific requirements, whatever purpose it is for.

Refinancing loans are often used for debt consolidation. By replacing many existing debts with one low-cost loan, a refinancing loan can simplify your outgoings and save you money.

When you have bad credit, financing a holiday or car purchase may seem impossible, but this doesn’t have to be the case. Bad credit loans can be used for:

• Home improvements.
• Holiday expenses.
• University fees.
• Buying a car.
• Almost any other purchase.

Working with a broker is probably the most efficient way to find a loan if you have bad credit, so financing those little luxuries doesn’t need to remain a dream.

A broker will be able to support you throughout the application process, answering any questions you might have. They will also be able to use their network of contacts in the loans industry to find exclusive low-cost deals that you might not otherwise have access to.

Whatever purpose your loan is for, low interest financing and refinancing loans are available even if you have a bad credit rating.

By: Gordon Parkes