Should I Refinance My Home Mortgage Calculator

Refinance To Lower Your Mortgage Rate

To determine if you can save money with a lower mortgage rate, use our calculator to compare the monthly interest savings against the cost to refinance. As most mortgage brokers and lenders will cover your legal costs, the main cost you need to worry about is your break of mortgage penalty, known as the pre-payment penalty. This penalty is charged by your lender for breaking your mortgage contract early, and is based on your original contract date, current mortgage balance, mortgage rate and other factors.

What Is Home Equity

Home equity is the percentage of your homes value that you own. In other words, its what youve paid off already for example, if your house is worth $200,000, and youve paid off $40,000 of your loan, you have 20% in equity. Generally, youll need at least 20% equity in your home for a refinance.

If Both The Monthly Payment And Interest Will Be Higher

If you’re not going to save money either way, you probably don’t want to refinance. But you might be compelled to refinance anyway as part of a divorce settlement or to switch from an adjustable-rate mortgage to a fixed-rate loan, for example.

The slider and the bars under it are red in this scenario.

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When Should You Refinance

Trying to decide if you should refinance? Here are the most common reasons people choose to refinance their mortgage:

• Obtain a lower interest rate: If interest rates are on the decline, it may be a good time to refinance your mortgage and save money on interest across the life of the loan.
• Switch your loan type: Home owners with an adjustable rate-mortgage may want to convert to a fixed-rate mortgage to lock in their monthly principal and interest payment for the life of their loan.
• Consolidate debt*: Refinancing can allow home owners to tap into their home equity to pay off high-interest debt, like credit cards.
• Fund big-ticket purchases: Dreaming of a new kitchen or getting ready to send a child off to college? If you need to access a lump sum of cash, you can do a cash-out refinance to access your home equity in order to fund these larger expenses.

Estimating The Cost Of Insurance And Closing Costs

Refinancing can be expensive, and fees add up. Expect to pay fees in many different forms, from appraisal fees, to documentation and application fees. A June 2016 survey of 10 lenders in every state by Bankrate found that these expenses ranged from $1,837 to $2,655 on a $200,000 mortgage. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll call it 0.9% to 1.3% of the loan amount.

But this figure notably excludes a couple particularly expensive costs of refinancing, the largest of which are title insurance and title search. Expect a title search and title insurance to add another 1% to 1.5% of the mortgage amount to your closing costs.

All in all, you can expect to pay about 2% to 2.8% of the amount borrowed in closing costs. Simply multiply the amount you owe on your existing mortgage by 2% or 2.8% and enter it in the calculator above as “other fees” and you’ll be well on your way to finding out if refinancing is right for you.

Keep in mind that these are rough estimates of the actual costs, which will vary by lender, location, and insurance company. But if the math makes sense with these estimates, it’s probably time you seek out a mortgage quote to take the first step toward refinancing your home, anyway.

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How To Interpret Your Results

The calculator asks if your priority is reducing the monthly payment or the interest you’ll pay in the next few years.

You’ll get similar results, phrased differently, either way you answer. If you say your priority is a lower monthly payment, the answer mentions the payment first and interest second. If you say your priority is paying less interest over time, the answer mentions interest first and the monthly payment second.

Your Home Value Has Increased

If the value of your home has gone up, you might also get some benefit from refinancing, especially if you have other high-interest debt to pay off or another financial goal.

A cash-out refinance lets you take out a new mortgage thats larger than what you previously owed on your original mortgage, and you receive the difference in cash. A cash-out refi is an alternative to a home equity loan.

You also might consider a cash-out refi for home improvements or to pay for a childs education.

But youll want to make sure you dont end up paying more in mortgage interest than the interest you would pay on any debt youre using the cash to pay off.

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How To Make Sure To Get The Best Mortgage Renewal

You will receive a mortgage statement before renewal that contains information such as the principal remaining, new offered interest rate, and term length if your lender is federally regulated. Be aware that your mortgage renewal can be automatic, even if you do not take action on your end. The terms listed on your mortgage statement will apply, which may not be thebest current mortgage rate in Canada. You can always negotiate for a better interest rate than the one stated in your mortgage statement before your mortgage is renewed especially if you do shop around and show them a lower rate from a competitor

Your Refinancing Fees Are Too Expensive

A mortgage refinance can be expensive. Here are some typical fees you may have to pay.

• A mortgage application fee
• Origination fee
• Appraisal fee

Make sure you know what costs to expect and whether you can afford them. If youre unable to pay the fees at this time, you may need to wait before refinancing.

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How Much Are Pre

When you agree to a particular mortgage term, your are signing a contract for that amount of time, generally between 1 and 10 years. If you break your mortgage before that term is over, you’ll be charged a pre-payment penalty as a way to compensate the mortgage provider. How much this can cost varies wildly based on the type of mortgage you have, the time remaining on your term as well as your mortgage provider – each lender has a different way to calculate pre-payment penalties.

The exact pre-payment penalty calculation that applies to you will be laid out in your contract, but there are two methods used, outlined below.

Reasons You Might Not Want To Refinance

Refinancing usually requires you to have a certain amount of equity in your home. If you dont have that, refinancing can be tough. The general refinancing rule of thumb is that lenders like you to have at least 20% equity in your home but there are exceptions.

Gone through some difficult financial times since you got your first mortgage? Say your credit has gotten worse since you first got your mortgage. You may not qualify for a refinance mortgage even if interest rates are available that are lower than what you have now.

Just like when you get a mortgage to first buy a home, there are some fees to refinancing your mortgage. The closing costs for a refinance cover things like application, loan origination and appraisal fees. If you dont have the money to pay for closing costs up front, there is an option to roll them into the new mortgage. But this isnt always the best decision. Sometimes adding those extra costs to your new monthly mortgage payments can negate any savings the refinance would otherwise get you.

Planning to move soon or have a job that uproots you regularly? Refinancing may not make sense because it generally takes some time to recoup those up-front closing costs.

And one more reason you might want to hold off on refinancing your mortgage: if you have to pay a penalty on your original mortgage. Some lenders will charge you a fee for paying off your mortgage early, even if youre refinancing. Again, this could totally negate the savings of the refinance.

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What Is A No Closing Cost Refinance

No closing cost refinances are simply mortgage refinances withclosing costs rolled into the loan. While you won’t pay your closing costs out-of-pocket at the time of closing, doing so will typically increase your total amount borrowed and monthly payments.

How Much Does It Cost To Refinance A Mortgage

Before you decide to refinance your mortgage, evaluate the cost of refinancing and whether itâs worth the long-term savings. In general, refinancing fees total between 3% and 6% of the outstanding principal on the original mortgage loan. This includes lender and attorney fees, title search and insurance costs and closing costs, like document preparation. Borrowers should also prepare to cover any necessary appraisal and inspection costs as required by the lending institution.

Some lenders offer âno-costâ refinancing that helps borrowers reduce up-front refinancing fees. Under this option, the borrower generally absorbs the fees through a higher interest rate or pays them over time as part of the loan principal. Either way, mortgage refinancing is never truly free.

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Refinance Renew Or Switch

Every mortgage has a limited term in Canada. Only 4.8% of mortgages in 2018 had a term greater than 5 years. The CMHC found that the5-year fixed-rate mortgagewas the most popular in Canada in 2019. When the term is over then your mortgage term expires and you will either need to pay off your mortgage in full, or take one of the following actions:renew, refinance, orswitch mortgages.

What If I Cant Pay My Current Mortgage

If youre out of work right now or youre finding it hard to pay your mortgage due to events you couldnt control, dont lose hope! Depending on your situation, you may be able to get financial assistance through a federal or state program, have your mortgage payments lowered, or even put your payments on hold for a little while.

Doing that can help lift the burden you might be feeling right now if youre worried about when youll see your next paycheck. But its not a perfect solution. The best thing you can do right now is get back into the workforceeven if that means taking a job thats outside your fieldso you can start making ends meet.

Now if you cant pay your mortgage for some other reason , youre probably not going to get much help from your lender. Its up to you to solve the problem.

Youve got to take control of the things you can controlstarting with your money! With a Ramsey+ membership, you can get all the tools and content you need to take control of your money so you can save, build wealth, and get out of debt. And that includes your mortgage!

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Understanding Your Mortgages Break

Once you calculate the cost of refinancing, determine how many years it will take to break even with the new monthly paymentâor recover the costs of refinancing your mortgage. This break-even point is the date on which you can actually benefit from your new lower payment, rather than covering refinancing fees. To calculate your mortgageâs break-even point, follow these calculations:

For example, if youâre refinancing a $300,000, 20-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 6% with a new 4% interest rate, refinancing will reduce your original monthly mortgage payment from $2,149.29 to $1,817.94âyielding a monthly savings of $331.35. Assuming a tax rate of 22%, the after-tax rate would be 0.78, which results in an after-tax savings of $258.45 . Finally, if you encounter $9,000 in refinancing costs, it will take almost 35 months to recoup the costs of refinancing .

What If I Have Bad Credit

Improve Your Chances

Taking steps to repair or improve your credit before seeking a refinance is the best way to better your odds. Obtaining a copy of your credit report from one of the three major credit agencies is a great start.

For a fee you can even get a comprehensive report that shows results from all three. From there, you have a number of options. The following is a checklist of things you can do to polish up your credit and make your case more appealing to a potential lender:

Fix Errors

Review your credit report carefully for anything suspicious or questionable. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act both the credit reporting company and the information provider are responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information. Notify them of any inconsistencies in your report.

Pay Down Credit Cards with High Balances

Your credit score is partially based on how close you are to your maximum credit limit on any given credit card. Lowering the amount you owe on nearly-maxed-out cards can improve your standing. If you have multiple cards, especially one with little or no balance, consider a balance transfer. Think of this as stacks of blocks. A stack 20 blocks high will appear unstable, but splitting that into 2 stacks of 10 blocks will be much more stable.

Get a Co-Signer

Seek Credit Counseling

It may seem like a contradictory option, but paying a financial professional to help streamline your budget could save you quite a bit in the long run.

Do the Math

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Adjustable Rate To A Fixed

With an adjustable-rate mortgage, the amount of money you pay each month can change, depending on the adjustment period.

For some adjustable rate mortgages, homeowners get a new interest ratebased on the current marketeach year. If rates drop, you can save money, but when rates increase, you can find yourself paying more than you want to.

Switching to a fixed-rate mortgage allows homeowners to lock in a specific rate and pay only that rate for the lifetime of their loanno matter what the markets do.

Your Credit Has Improved

Your credit is a significant factor in determining your mortgage rate. Generally speaking, the better your credit is, the lower the interest rate youll receive.

Lets look at an example based on recent interest rates. If you have a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage of $150,000 and your FICO® credit score is within the 660 to 679 range, the myFICO Loan Savings Calculator estimates you could pay 3.375% APR .

With this interest rate, your monthly payment would be $663 and your total interest paid across 30 years would amount to $88,732.

In comparison, if your credit score was in the 700 to 759 range, the calculator estimates your monthly payment would drop to $631 . And over the life of the loan, you could save more than $11,500 in interest.

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Monthly Principal & Interest

The principal is the amount of money borrowed on a loan. The interest is the charge paid for borrowing money. Principal and interest account for the majority of your mortgage payment, which may also include escrow payments for property taxes, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance and any other costs that are paid monthly, or fees that may come due.

Refinance Calculator: How Does Refinancing Work

Refinancing simply replaces your current home loan with a new mortgage that has different terms. Refinancing usually requires that you have a certain amount of equity in your home. Generally, you need at least 20% equity but this varies depending on the loan program.

Should I Refinance My Mortgage?

A good question to ask before even getting started with refinancing is how long you plan to stay in your current home. It may not make good sense to spend thousands of dollars in closing costs only to obtain a lower rate.

On the other hand, if you’re looking to stay in your home for the lifetime of the loan, extending the term of your loan could mean paying less each month, although you will be paying more in total interest in the long run.

The benefits of refinancing your home will take time to accrue so you need to make sure you are staying there long enough to break-even on the cost of refinancing. Determining how long it will take to break even will come in handy, especially if you don’t plan on staying in your house for that long. For example, if the break-even point on your refinance is 5 years, and you only plan to live there for another 4 years, then it’s not beneficial to refinance because you will not be recouping your costs prior to selling the home.

When you’re deciding whether you should refinance, you have to consider your financial goals. There are several potential benefits to refinancing, which include:

When Should I Refinance My Home?

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