Time to Refinance Mortgage?

[nnuut]

Great job Nnuut!
The Dave Ramsey status symbol of choice! LOL

I really saved a bunch of cash, had an 8% VA loan, refinanced for 5 years @ 4%. How much is interest @ 8% for 18 years?

 

[bmneveu]

How much is interest @ 8% for 18 years?

Depends on how much the principle is

 

[DreamboatAnnie]

Randolph Brooks Federal Credit Union has mortgage refinance...via Equity loans at very low rates and barely any closing costs if you borrow less than $120K. It runs $300 to close. 10 year is at 3.1% and 15 year is at 3.2%. I refinanced in March.

 

[Rod]

As of now, we are going with PFCU, with our rate locked in @ 2.75%. Details below from 7 July post...

We currently have two refinance applications (VA IRRRL) in the pipeline... trying to decide which one to go with. Our current 30-Yr VA fixed is @ 3.75%. We have 25 more years to go on it. But, we do plan to move (back to the Carolinas) in about 5 years. Our "break-even" (recouping closing costs) on both of these mortgages would be within 3 years. If we do indeed move at the 5 year mark, we would pocket close to an additional $4,000.00 due to the refinance after we broke even.

Pentagon Federal Credit Union (who we "bank" with): Locked in @ 2.75% (Closing costs: $4,820.80) Close within 60-90 days. If interest rates drop within this time, we can "float" down to it for a $750.00 fee.

Freedom Mortgage (our current lender): Locked in @ 2.625% (Closing costs: $5,358.92) They want to close by 13 July.

Although PFCU does not have a 1% Origination Fee (like Freedom Mortgage does), their "service fees" add up. Freedom Mortgage does not have as many service fees because our current mortgage is already with them.

We wanted to decline escrow, but the VA requires it because of COVID. At least that's what PFCU said.

As of now, we are leaning towards PFCU because communication with Freedom Mortgage has been lacking. I sent the agent an email on 1 Jul with some questions that needed answered before we moved forward. I have not received a reply, but have received many automated texts/voicemails urging us to call and move forward with the refinance. That's crappy customer service.

In the end, we may decide not to go with either of these lenders. But, at least we have the ball rolling.

 

[bmneveu]

As of now, we are going with PFCU, with our rate locked in @ 2.75%. Details below from 7 July post...

Check out LowVARates.com. I got 2.65% with them and they even offered as low as 2.25% but with points. It made more sense for my situation to go with the 2.65, but if you are staying in your spot for 5+ years, the numbers might work out better for you. Just a thought, if you haven't started closing yet.

 

[nasa1974]

Back in 2012 we refinanced and I have a 3.29% and the mortgage will be paid off by 2027 or sooner.

 

[Bullitt]

No sense in letting a good crisis go to waste.

We were offered a no fee refinance in 2011 thanks to TARP. (Not what the program was for, but the banks were more than happy to offer a refinance to accounts in good standing). Wells Fargo sent us a packet that we had to fill out with a notary, no reassessment necessary. I don't think we ever talked to a human being during the process. 4.5%, 15-year with only 2-3 years left after our extra payments, so it was worth it.

We were offered many opportunities to refinance over the years, but they never seemed like a good deal. Besides, we want to be done with it.

RE: Escrow; it's really not bad as long as you don't have to keep too much of a buffer and the account pays interest. Wells Fargo always paid a decent interest rate that was competitive with a money market account so where else would we have put aside money for taxes, insurance, etc.?

 

[Tsunami]

"We wanted to decline escrow, but the VA requires it because of COVID. At least that's what PFCU said."

Whaaaat? We recently refinanced our VA loan through Navy Federal Credit Union at 2.75% (30 years) with zero points/fees.
We asked to not have an escrow account and they approved that with no questions asked, and we don't even have 20% equity.
Navy Federal is a major disaster to work with, but the end result was very nice.

 

[Frixxxx]

Refi - 2.25% - serious savings on mortgage payment.

One week paperwork - one week funding department and one week for signing docs and 3-day cool off period.

I'm happy!

Looking to buy land now for retirement home with the savings.

 

[Frixxxx]

Headsup though:
[h=1]Refinancing your mortgage will cost more thanks to a new fee from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac[/h]https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/rea...e-from-fannie-mae-and-freddie-mac/ar-BB17VxPC

[FONT=&quot]"Fannie Mae [/FONT][FONT=Segoe UI, Segoe WP, Arial, sans-serif](FNMA)[/FONT][FONT=&quot] and Freddie Mac [/FONT][FONT=Segoe UI, Segoe WP, Arial, sans-serif](FMCC)[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][FONT=Segoe UI, Segoe WP, Arial, sans-serif]said Wednesday[/FONT][FONT=&quot] that they will start charging a 0.5% “adverse market fee” on all refinances, including both cash-out and non-cash-out refis. The new fee goes into effect Sept. 1."[/FONT]

 

[Bullitt]

New low today of 2.42% in the 15 year mortgage. Our mortgage is 15 year at 4.5%, but we're so close to paying it off a refinance isn't worth it.



https://www.forbes.com/advisor/mortgages/todays-mortgage-interest-rates-09-03-2020/

 

[Bullitt]

30 year new all time low today 2.66.

15 year new all time low today 2.19.

Refinance now, it makes a great Christmas gift!

 

[Bullitt]

30 year mortgage at 4.42% according to St Louis Fed. Right back to February 2019.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MORTGAGE30US

 

[OBGibby]

When I locked in 2.25% in 2021 for a purchase I said I'll never see a rate this low again in my lifetime. Of course, I said the same thing circa 2003 when it was 7 or 8% (?). And in 2005 a little lower. Then 4% in 2011. I think my statement will hold this time, though.

 

[nasa1974]

Back in 1979 when I got married, we took over my brother-in-laws house (long story) with a land contract for 8.5%. I think it was late 80 or early 81 when the banks and savings in loans started buying each other out. Anyway, we get a letter saying the land contract was going away and we had to pay off the loan or get a new loan. Well by then interest rates were around 10%. Each time we went to a savings and loan to refinance it would be bought out by someone else and the interest rates keep going up. The high point was 14% and we started to panic. By the time we could get all of our paperwork together and settle with National City Bank we were able to get a new 30-year loan for 11%. Jump forward a few years and the current home I am living in we refinanced for a 15-year loan at 3.29% in 2012.