Dave Ramsey has talked about this. I believe he stated that the average American moves every 7 years...and to use that as a guide for determining whether or not you will ‘break even’ by the time you move.
btt to monitor. I don’t know the answers but am interested.
Only if VA loans still assumable.
Only if you would need Mortgage Insurance Otherwise
I have one, but I plan on turning it into a standard once I reach 30%.
Generally, Ramsey will say pay cash. Now I wish I had listened, if I had, wouldn’t even give a rip what is going on with the housing market.
With rates at historic lows....suggest you look at 15 year mortgage instead of a 30 year, and if they offer 24 or 26 payments, instead of monthly....do one of those..you may find yourself with the same monthly ouflow, but a much fater pay-down..
With rates at historic lows....suggest you look at 15 year mortgage instead of a 30 year, and if they offer 24 or 26 payments, instead of monthly....do one of those..you may find yourself with the same monthly ouflow, but a much faster pay-down..
depends on how many years you got left on your current loan, and the amount of cash you are putting toward your principal vs. interest. If you are at least 15 years into a 30 year, then you are paying more to your principal than your interest. If you refinance, you will begin paying more interest than principal right off the bat. This is the dirty little secret nobody will tell you...hell, I could get a better interest rate, but right now 3/4 of my payment is going to principal. If I refinance, 3/4 of my payment will go to interest. Check this out first...
With rates at historic lows....suggest you look at 15 year mortgage instead of a 30 year, and if they offer 24 or 26 payments, instead of monthly....do one of those..you may find yourself with the same monthly ouflow, but a much faster pay-down..
2% used to be a benchmark long ago. The 2% less interest would cover the closing costs over 3 or more years. So the real question is the closing costs and how long you plan to stay in that house.
Good luck getting the approval. Maybe with the VA it may be easier, but the mortgage companies have become extremely tight with refinances. The rules have become extremely stringent and each company wants it's own assessment.
If you really want to do it, get a good company that has a good record on doing these things.
BTW, Dave Ramsey mentions Churchill mortgage on his show and website.
We refinanced through quicken loans many years ago. It was easy and fast. It was all done via fax and email. Eventually a travelling notary showed up for us to sign docs. They will sell your loan as soon as it is done though.
An interest rate of 4.25% is possible, but you will pay a 3% VA funding fee at a minimum plus other closing costs. So, if you are saving 1% on the rate but paying 3%, minimum, to get it, you will need to stay in that house for at least 5 years, and most likely 7 years due to those other closing costs, to get any payback on savings.
Most closing costs are around 3% right now, so even if you skip the VA and used a conventional loan, you’ll still need to stay in the house about 5 years for it to pay off.
My suggestion would be to pay early, such as pay a mortgage payment every 3 weeks instead of 4 and watch the effective interest rate drop below 3.5%.
If under 80% LTV; then VA probably is not the way to go.
I would not recommend Quicken. Find someone with one of the major lenders who will hold your loan and won't sell the servicing rights.
You have some options on the closing costs. I do this for a living. Depending on your loan size; the lender can give a higher rate than normal and offer you a lender credit to cover some or all of the closing costs.
The amount of lender credit and rate bump to do that all depends on the loan amount.
"First of all, DON'T use an internet lender. Seriously? Loans are complicated after the government has tied the hands of all involved in mortgage lending. You need a responsive lender, and internet does not equal customer service or responsiveness.
Although VA has their allowed parameters, Investors require different rules and vary from investor to investor. Some will allow only 90% LTV, some will go to the VA allowed 100% LTV. VA charges a "funding Fee" which is a one time charge for using the VA program. This will be 2.15% of the loan amount, and can be financed into the loan. Currently VA rates are around the 4% mark with the borrower paying the closing costs, 4.25% with some fees covered by the lender. Keep in mind the VA is very nit picky about properties, and you will need to have at a minimum a clear pest report. If you want more info, let me know"
Pentagon Federal Credit Union has a 30 year at 4.125%
https://www.penfed.org/productsandrates/mortgages/mortgagerateslisting.asp
good luck,
ampu
BTW, PennFed CU has a VA at 3.875%
Been a long time since I did mine. Bought my first house with mine. Here were the benes:
1. No money down.
2. Excellent interest rate
3. Realtors loved them, since there was never a question about qualification as long as you were employed.
4. At the time, those mortgages were easy to sell too. They were seen as high quality small to medium sized mortgages.
Don’t know how they’ve changed that benefit, but for us it meant being able to own a home.
Hey Bob, GBU for your service. Beyond that I’ve been told the VA is only a guarantor for the loan. So f-it rent as long as you can during the housing decline and buy only when you have to knowing you’ll be bitched-out to county and state taxes upon purchase.
Other than that “it’s no better time to purchase”.
Have fun.
(me? I’m a realist. I’ve gone straight to the ration of black bread and liter of vodka).