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Refinancing Article
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Refinancing of loans has become quite common today with more and more people getting loans for purchases. Mortgage loans are still the largest loans because of the high cost of homeownership. There is almost an equal amount of consumer loans as well, however. With the cost of living increasing at a higher rate than most people's income, loans are about the only way many people can afford to buy the things they need. The unfortunate thing about loans is the interest rate the consumers are being charged. There's no way around this, however, because this is how the banks make their money. But, for the consumer, this is increasing the cost of what they're buying. For instance, an individual will purchase an automobile for $15,000 and be charged a certain interest rate. Many times after the loan is all paid for, the cost of the car is over $20,000 after the interest has been added into the loan.
from:The same scenario is true when we buy a home. With a home the initial cost is much higher and the term of the loan is much longer. Most new car loans only go for 36 to 72 months. Mortgage loans, however, run anywhere from 20 to 30 years. That's a lot more months where the consumer is paying interest. In many cases, by the time a home mortgage loan is fully paid, they've almost paid for their home twice. To avoid paying anymore than they need to, most people pay attention to refinance rates and look for opportunities to refinance their loan at a lower refinance rates in the hopes of saving some money in interest charges.
At the initial time of the loan, the interest rate the borrower is charged is determined by a couple of factors. The main factor is what the current market interest rate is at. Banks make the most of their money through the interest they collect on loans. When people put CDs in their bank, the bank has to pay the customers interest on the CDs. If they are paying their customers 5% interest on the CDs, they have to charge their customers a higher rate of interest on the loans or they wouldn't make any money. Both of these interest rates are determined by the current market rates. This is also used to determine what refinance rates can be as well.
Interest rates are also determined by how good a borrower's credit rating is. A poor credit rating will result in higher loan or refinance rates whereas a good credit rating will result in lower refinance rates. Lower refinance rates are the main reason why borrowers choose to refinance loans. Refinancing is a way to get the loan paid off quicker and cheaper by lowering monthly payments, lowering the term of the loan or just paying less interest. If you're a current borrower, you should always watch the refinance rates at your bank so you know when it's the best time to check into refinancing.
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Refinancing News
Refinancing applications at 15-month high
Applications for mortgage refinancing hit a 15-month high last week as interest rates remained near historic lows, a mortgage bankers' group said Wednesday.
Read more...Increase in loan refinancing nationally hasn't hit home
ZANESVILLE -- Applications for refinancing home loans, bolstered by some of the lowest borrowing costs in 20 years, are up for the fifth straight week nationally, according to a weekly survey conducted by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Read more...A Useful Refinancing Calculator
Paul Solman: With all the hullabaloo about low interest rates and refinancing of mortgages, I'd been looking around for reliable refinancing calculators on the Web and have found one with an excellent pedigree. It's the product of a well-known Harvard economist we once interviewed on the NewsHour, David Laibson, and whose course on behavioral economics we audited a few years ago. The calculator ...
Read more...Refinancing options could save big money over the loan's term
It seems as if we are in the midst of the second coming of decreased mortgage interest rates. Interest rates reached what we all thought were unprecedented lows throughout 2009 and the first four months of 2010. Rates on 30-year fixed rate mortgages dropped to the mid-4 percent range during this time period. As has been well documented, the Fed's purchasing of $1.25 trillion of mortgage-backed ...
Read more...Russia Probably Won't Increase Refinancing Rate This Year, Ulyukayev Says
Russia’s central bank is unlikely to raise the refinancing rate this year, Bank Rossii First Deputy Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev said.
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