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Mortgage Refinancing Help: Financial Services
“If you are planning to stay in your home for several years, then you can save money by paying points for lower interest rates. You pay up front fees to ensure you have lower interest payments over the course of your loan. Remember, this only works if you keep your mortgage for several months.
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Mortgage Refinancing Help
: Society: People: Women: Business: Organizations: By Industry
: Financial Services (4)
 Be Realistic. Lenders have tightened up loan requirements, so you'll need a good credit score and at least some equity in your home to refinance. To figure out how much equity you have, subtract the total amount that you owe on all of your existing mortgages from how much you think your home is worth. If your credit is severely impaired or you owe more than the value of your home, you probably won't be able to refinance right now.
 See also:
 Financial Women's Association »
Nonprofit professional organization established by a group of Wall Street women to support the role and development of women in the financial services industry. Provides description of programs, membership, and leaders.
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 WIFS - Women in Financial Services »
Women in Financial Services
- (Formerly WLUC - Women Life Underwriters Confederation) US group provides membership information, conference and teleconference schedule, and list of sponsors.
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 Women in Banking and Finance in Ireland »
Committed to empowering its members in the banking and finance industry. Information on networking, senior executive programmes, and other events.
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 Women in Banking and Finance »
UK. Professional organisation committed to empowering its members in the banking and finance industry. Information on networking, senior executive programmes, and other events.
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 There are literally thousands of mortgage companies all over the country. It is important that you choose a reputable one. Most reputable companies will be part of the Better Business Bureau or other community watchdog group. Good companies will also have websites that rank well on search engines such as Yahoo and Google.
If you know that you will be moving in 3 to 5 years, you might want to consider refinancing to a 3 or 5 year ARM (adjustable rate mortgage). These loans typically have a much lower rate that a traditional fixed rate loan such as a 30 year fixed, but they do have a fixed rate for the first 3 or 5 years of the loan. This will enable you to benefit from the lower rate, but you won't ever have to worry about the risk of a rate adjustment because you will be selling the home before the fixed-rate period ends.
When it comes to lowering your rates you will need to weight the benefits of having a lower rate vs. paying points up front. You may end up paying a lot more depending on your choice and how long you plan on keeping your mortgage.
If there is a big difference between the initial interest rate and the APR listed in the ad, it may mean that there are high fees associated with the loan.
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