(VANITY) Need Advice; Considering Refinancing My Home Mortgage

[FortWorthPatriot]

I am considering refinancing my home mortgage and at the moment looking to do so through Quicken Loans. I was curious if anyone has refinanced through Quicken and if so did you consider it to be a good and fair deal?

Thanks in advance.

[fooman]

I had good luck with www.bankrate.com

[whitedog57]

First, go to www.bankrate.com to get a look at a broad range of quotes.

Second, what is your credit score? Depending on that, your income, etc., be careful if you are getting into the subprime area. Sites like bankrate.com are quotes for prime only.

Stick with a reputable mortgage banker (lender) or mortgage broker. Ditech, Countrywide, etc., are fine.

[FairOpinion]

I don't know about Quicken -- but in general, I highly recommend you shop around. Call your bank, call regular banks, mortgage companies, Ditech, Quicken, etc. and ask them specifically that given the value of your home, mortgage, credit score, etc., what mortgages are available.

Sometimes places that you think might be the cheepest aren't. A lot of internet places give you the impression that they are the cheapest, when in fact they are not just slightly, but much more expensive than even conventional banks.

It is worth your time and some phone calls. Check out interest rates, up front points/fees and compare.

I don't know what type of loan you are looking for, but considering that interest rates are still very low, I would recommend you get a nice 30 year fixed loan, so you don't have to worry about it. Also make sure there are no prepayment penalties.

You might want to go to

http://www.bankrate.com/

to give you ideas of current rates, they also lists a lot of mortgage companies -- but you need to call them too, the rates quotes are frequently not quite what they have. But I did refinance my house through one of those mortgage companies listed, they did have the best deal.

They have them for all areas around the country.

But, as I said, bottom line is to shop around. One mortage company may have the best deals for one person's circumstances, but not for someone else's.

[FairOpinion]

I just wrote a longer post, where I also mentioned bankrate.com. :)

[Stayfree]

Most importantly, understand the fees and how they work, one of my bank's tellers told me she and her husband had refinanced twice in the last couple of years-total fees hidden in the two refi's amounted to over $19,000.

[Stayfree]

If you are refinancing because either you had a teaser loan whose payments are now jumping up or your payments are just a little too much right now, it might be worthwhile to talk to your lender (not just anyone, but someone with real authority to make changes to your loan) and see what they can do to relieve whatever strain you are encountering.
Because so many lenders are experiencing increasing default rates with their sub-prime loans (HSBC just wrote off over $2 billion), many of them would rather work out something than have you go into default.

[Petronski]

Pinging a good man who's in the industry.

I have experience with many lenders. Many many lenders (mostly B & C paper), but I can make two recommendations:

a) Try ditech (it's really GMAC)

b) Read the paperwork, both the initial disclosures and the papers at closing (don't allow yourself be rushed at closing). Focus on the note, Truth-in-Lending and the HUD-1 Settlement Statement. They'll tell the tale.

[SquirrelKing]

I am a mortgage lender - I see some great advice on this thread.

Definitely shop around, get promises in writing [ask for a "term sheet" if you can] and be forearmed with as much knowledge as you can. Sites like Bankrate.com are good - I use it at work!

Above all else, don't allow someone to pressure you into one type of loan or another - be open to suggestion or advice, but know what YOU want to do before you get to the table.

[RockinRight]

Ditech.com's not bad - but stay away from Quicken Loans.

Also, just about any local broker will do fine as long as you deal with someone experienced. Most of the problems people have with loan officers are due to the specific loan officer having too little experience.

[RockinRight]

How big were the loans?

[Petronski]

total fees hidden in the two refi's amounted to over $19,000.

Sounds like they paid a prepayment penalty.

For God's sake, people, read the note and TIL carefully.

[freespirited]

We refinanced a couple of years ago. I distinctly recall Quicken Loans bragging of having the best rates. They did not.

Try www.interest.com and see if you can find something better. Or google "best interest rates" and see what other sites come up.

IIRC Quicken Loans also bothered me with pushy phone calls and annoying sales techniques. OTOH, I have been a satisfied user of Quicken software for more than a decade.

[eraser2005]

Stayfree makes a very good point here. Watch those fees VERY carefully and make sure you know every cent that you’ll have to pay upfront. Then calculate things and see if you’re better off with your current loan or with the refinance.

If you refinance to a lower rate, you’re likely to be able to reduce your monthly payment.

BUT, you may not save a cent in the long run, as Stayfree points out.

I looked to refinance when rates got as low as 5.25%. I have a fixed rate of 6.0% on a 30-year, with plenty of years remaining. However, I was looking not to reduce my monthly payment, but to accelerate paying off the loan. I also had a 10% 2nd at 6.75%(not enough for a full 20% down). I ended up saving a fortune putting what the fees for a refinance would have been towards paying off the 2nd.

In other words, I was significantly better off just paying on my existing loans rather than refinancing. That added up to about $13k savings over the remaining life of the loan doing it the way I did...