Do you have credit cards, personal loans and unsecured credit lines and finding it difficult to manage payments? Interest rates on credit cards can be as high as 28% and personal loan rates will generally run higher than what you would pay if they were secured by a mortgage on your home. Any unsecured credit is typically 2% above prime a rate of 5.20%. You are most likly paying more interest than is necessary.
Refinancing your home will depend on the amount of equity you have. You can refinance up to 80% of the value of your home. If your home has a value of $400,000.00 and your existing mortgage balance is $200,000.00 you can refinance up to $320,000.00. If you have 4 credit cards with balances totaling $50,000.00, a personal loan of $25,000.00 and a credit line with a balance of $30,000.00 on an unsecured basis the total amount is $105,000.00. You could add that amount into your existing mortgage of $200,000.00 for a new mortgage of $305,000.00. That would simplify the number of payments you would have into one easy payment at a much lower rate of interest. You will eliminate 3 payments leaving you with one you feel comfortable with. If this is an option to consider keep in mind you can increase you mortgage payment and make lump sum annual payments to ensure you pay down the added debt quickly. You can also increase your monthly payments by 15% – 20% (some lenders allow you up to double your payment) as well as lump sum payments of 15% – 20% of your original mortgage. Add weekly or bi-weekly payments and your mortgage balance will drop even quicker.
Keep in mind the new mortgage rule for stress tests on conventional mortgages will commence on January 1, 2018 so call us to ensure you are able to still qualify to refinance under the existing rules. These new rules to be in place on January 1/2018 will require that you qualify to refinance your mortgage at a rate 2% higher than the actual rate you are being charged. For some this could put a refinance out of reach.