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
Posts Tagged ‘Mortgage Lenders’
Bad Credit Mortgage Refinancing – It’s Not Just a Dream
February 1st, 2010
You may think that just because you have bad credit you won’t be refinancing your mortgage any time soon. Well, cheer up. You couldn’t be more wrong. With a just a bit of patience, you could be on your way to refinancing your mortgage. One key to your refinancing effort is raising your credit score. If it’s below 680 or so, you may fall into the sub-prime category. In the past, you could drift down to the 650 range with some mortgage lenders before you triggered their sub-prime threshold. You’ll save substantial money on your refinance by giving your credit score a little boost. You can probably make all this happen in just a few weeks, maybe even sooner. In addition, your credit may not be as bad as you think. Even if it turns out you actually do have really bad credit, you’ll still benefit from raising it before you do your refinancing.
The first thing you should do is get your free credit report from any one of the three credit reporting bureaus; Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion. Relax, it won’t cost you a cent. You now have the right to receive one report for free each year from each of the three credit agencies. Most experts advise you do so as the first step to getting a handle on your credit score. In addition, you should arrange to receive your reports staggered at four month intervals. That way you’ll never be more than a few months from a fresh credit report.
Once you have your credit report, you can see if there is anything you can clear up in the short term. About 25% of Americans have credit reports with at least some inaccurate entries, so there is a decent chance you’ll have something on there you can clear up to start the process of raising your score. You need to write letters to the creditors that are incorrectly reporting anything on your report.
Some of the errors you may encounter are: accounts listed as owing that are actually paid off and accounts that aren’t really yours. They may belong to someone with a similar name or social security number. When disputing any credit report entries, make sure you carefully document your position. Never send any of the original documentation, only send copies. Once you get any credit inaccuracies resolved, it’s time to move on to some other things you can do to help your credit score in the short term.
Why should you be so concerned with raising your credit score in the short term? Because you’ll save substantial money in interest charges, that’s why. In addition, your mortgage will likely close faster, and you’ll have a greater pool of lenders to choose from. So, even though you may have bad credit, you should aim to raise your credit score as high as possible before you try refinancing your mortgage.
What else can you do to raise your credit score before you get that mortgage? The most important thing you can do to help raise your credit score is avoid late payments. If you have any payments that are late, send them in, post haste. Lenders look at recent late payments more closely than those that are aged at least 24 months.
The next thing you should examine is your credit utilization score. That measures the percentage of your available revolving credit that you are currently using. If you have credit card limits totaling $25,000, and your outstanding credit card balances total $15,000, your credit utilization score is 60%. One note here; make sure your creditors are correctly reporting your credit card limits. If they are incorrectly stating them as too low, it will likewise lower your credit utilization score.
The strategy is to rapidly nab a few extra credit score points by paying down as much of your debt as possible. Your revolving accounts, such as credit cards and store charge cards are the most important for this strategy. That will also help your debt to income ratio, another figure used by mortgage lenders to determine your loan eligibility.
If you can raise your credit score a few points, you’ll fend much better on the mortgage market. You may still need to pay a higher interest rate than if you had great credit, but you can get the benefits of refinancing nonetheless.
By: Steve Faber