W h e n i s T h e R i g ht T i m e t o C o n s i d e r a R e f i n a n c e? by Bill Rodriguez You may have heard that rates are at all-time lows. But when is the right time to take advantage of these low rates? Many clients ask me, “If I refinance now, am I missing out on lower rates in the future?� The truth is it is hard to say, but there are some rules of thumb that you can use to help evaluate your personal fiscal situation and see if a refinance is right for you. There are four areas where you look to see if you could benefit from a refinance. Do you have mortgage insurance? You may have bought your home using an FHA loan or put less than 20% down when you purchased your home a couple of years ago. Because demand for housing in Colorado is so
strong, you may have enough equity to restructure your mortgage to drop the mortgage insurance. It could save you a few hundred dollars a month, even if you have an interest rate in the threes. Do you have high-interest debt? With the world being as crazy as it has, many people have used their credit cards to weather their financial storm. Using some of the equity you have built in your home, you can reset the clock and free up your cash flow once again. Do you have a rate in the 4s or high 3s? There is some general guidance on refinances that if you can shave a point off the rate or more, it makes sense to refinance. That is not always the case. It can still make sense to lower the 36
