Refinancing
Refinancing is a tricky process. It seems simple on the surface, but many people are surprised that it takes almost as much time as getting your initial mortgage. The reason it takes so long is because what you are doing in a refinance is replacing your current mortgage with a new mortgage. So, you have to get qualified all over again, the home has to be appraised again, and the bank has to approve you all over again.
I’ve developed some tools to make it easier. If you are considering a refinance, I’d recommend you start with organizing your materials. It will save you so much time later on!
I’d also recommend watching my Refinancing Myths: Breakeven video which explains that the calculations banks use to show you that a refinancing makes sense is often flawed. It might make you ask questions, in which case, feel free to reach out to me at nicole@homeownering.com.
What else would you like to see here? Let me know.
How to get organized before refinancing
This guide contains instructions, a worksheet and folders you can use to make refinancing go as smoothly as possible.
Refinance Myth: “Break Even”
When a homeowner comes in to talk to a mortgage loan officer with the question, “will refinancing really pay off for me?”, the loan officer will produce the break even calculation. This is where they take the fees you’ll pay in a refinance and divide them by the monthly savings, to come up with your “break even”.
In this video, I tell you why the break even calculation is dead wrong and what you should do instead.