Guide to Acquiring the right refinance for you.

During the past year the mortgage industry has undergone many changes. Mostly due to the fact that the secondary market is no longer excepting loans that use to fund with a stroke of a pen creating a huge blacklash on the market. In order to understand the tightening of their strict guidelines please read through this carefully.

http://money.cnn.com/real_estate/foreclosures/
Great articles; get informed.

First off make sure you do not have a current interest rate that is impossible to beat in todays market. Meaning, if you do know  you have a interest rate below 4.75% do yourself a favor and do not touch your loan. Also make sure you LTV loan to value is 80% or less. Do not go above 80% always have 20% in equity just in case. Its hard to get a loan above 80% LTV these days. Secondly please do not refinance out of loan that has current  prepay penalty attached to it. Even if you get a lower interest rate you are costing yourself a significant amount of equity in your home. How about mortgage brokers fees? If you have a 680 fico and can go full documentation on your income you should not have to pay more than $500. Go direct to your current bank or the majors "Wells, Wamu, B of A and Citi." On the other hand if you dont please do not pay more than 1 pt or "1 percent" in origination plus $3000 in hard costs. The market is desperate play on that desperation. Stand strong if your broker wants more tell them you have another offer that is better. Most will fold and give you what you want. Remember those fees are your equity and there are over 200 lenders with the same deal.

Call Ryan Harris at  (310) 817-9435  for a free consultation.
Honest, fair and direct is Ryan's motto.

Buying down the rate to get a lower payment? Please do the math its simple to see the break even point, If you are not going to stay in your home for 6 yrs or more in most cases its not worth the buy down. If you are going to stay 10 yrs or more its worth it. Just make sure the loan term meets your expectations. Dont buy down on a 5 yr interest only thinking you are going to stay in a 5 yr loan for 10 yrs. Simple math folks! Make sure you do the math at least 3 times before making the decision.

Now that we got the basics out of the way. Lets talk about if you should be going from a fixed 30,15 yr "Principle and interest only" loan to a 10 or 5yr interest only or even a more agressive hybrid option arm. First off the 30 and 15 yr P/I "Principle and interest" loans are the best way to go. Safe and easy you can own your home in 15 or 30 yrs with no prepay attached. The 10 or 5 yr I/O "interest only" is for a person that believes he or she will not stay in their house past 5 or 10 yrs and is not interested in owning their home outright. These loans are the most popular becuase the monthly payments are lower and has no prepay. The most agressive and dangerous loan is the the 5 yr  fixed hybrid option arm. This loan does offer a start rate around 2% on the low end.  Remember this payment is negative and puts money on the back of your loan each and every month. The only benefit is that it is a low fixed payment for 5 yrs. The note rate would be around 7%-7.5% on most of these hybrids please make sure you look at the note rate this is your true rate not the the low start rate. The difference of the two is going negative folks. You can receive it over a 30 or 40 yr amortization "schedule". Make sure you go for the fixed hybrid and not the adjustable option arm. Do not take an adjustable option arm these days. This is an investors loan or a short  term loan this is not for someone who owns one property unless you are selling or refinancing the propery in 1-3 yrs. Make sure you get a 1 yr prepay instead of 3 yrs. You want to make sure you read your loan documents very closely. Do not get stuck in a loan where you wanted to sell or change your temporary loan before the prepay is up. Yikes, this could be a disaster if not used correctly. Can you say foreclosure?

Check out:  www.Mortgage-X.com
This is a great beginner website to understand loans in general.

Can you prove your income? If you can then think why are you talking with a Broker?  Brokers are in place to get people loans that cannot prove their income traditionally with  2 yrs W2s or 1099s forms "full documentation". Before you get off our high horse and start pointing fingers at the Brokers please understand half the homes in the US would be empty without the help of Brokers. Brokers will allow you to state your income or show bank statements to get approved. Brokers can also use YSP "rebates" to cover your closing costs. Closing costs "your fees" in order to close your loan. You might not have this money without a rebate to cover it and you might not be able to prove your income in the traditional way of W2s or 1099 forms.   Brokers are the American way. Its not America any more if we do  not have brokers.
   
Also Check out your homes value: www.Zillow.com
This is an estimate, but it will give you a ballpark figure.

Any questions on your home's refinance or a new purchase contact Ryan T. Harris "Revolutionary Investments Corporation, Inc.."  I can be reached via email                   at Rharrisbc1@yahoo.com or on my mobile at  (310) 817-9435.  I am here for advice and I will lead you in the right direction. Take care and God bless!




Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
The official source of Acquiring the right refinance for you. is
the National Mortgage Refinancing page at Business.com