Remortgages - Worth The Switch?

It’s becoming more popular to remortgage your house these days – all this means is switching to a different mortgage and sometimes a different lender to take advantage of a better deal.

If your circumstances have changed since you first took out your mortgage, you may find you want to switch to a new mortgage that better suits you. Likewise, if you chose a mortgage with a special rate for the first few years, once it reverts you’re paying more than other mortgages. So it can save money to remortgage, but there are a few things to consider first:

Charges

Are there early repayment penalty charges attached to your current mortgage? In some cases it can still be worth changing – the difference in interest paid in the long run could more than cover the cost of any penalties incurred.

Fees

You will have to anticipate all the associated costs of taking out a new mortgage, including a valuation fee for a surveyor, solicitors fees and any charges for arranging your new mortgage. Some deals offer cash to help cover costs, or ‘fee-free’ deals; you should balance the total cost against what you would save in interest to see if it really is worth switching.

Features

Many people are choosing to switch to one of the new generation of mortgages – either a flexible one that allows them more control over their payments; a current account mortgage that effectively allows you to merge all debts, savings and your current account to gain the best interest rates and save money. Offset mortgages are similar, but accounts are still held separately. This means you can move money between different accounts, but you won’t have a terrifyingly large overdraft showing on your current account!

Equity Release

If the value of your home has risen since you took out your mortgage, you can remortgage to the higher amount, and thus release the equity as a cash sum. There will be limits on how much you can borrow, depending on your income and the value of the property. Another area of ‘equity release’ are the schemes for retired people to access cash or a regular income through the value of their home. This means, effectively, that they buy your home from you while granting you the right to live in it for the rest of your life, rent free. ‘Home reversion’, ‘roll-up’ schemes and ‘home income plans’ all fall into this category. Be aware that any scheme you sign up to should be a member of Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP

Read More

Build Equity By Choosing The Right Mortgage

Homeownership is the key to building wealth for most people because it is an involuntary savings account. As you pay down your mortgage each month, the value of your interest in the home rises.

Build Equity By Choosing The Right Mortgage

Equity is a beautiful word as every homeowner knows. Once you get used to making your mortgage payments, you can rest assured that you are creating a nest egg every month. Throw in the appreciation on the property and your nest egg can grow large before you realize it. This savings account, better known as equity, can provide the means for putting your kids through college, dealing with emergencies and retiring.

Building equity is fairly simple. Just make your monthly mortgage payment. There are additional steps you can take to move the process along at a faster pace. These steps are all about the type of mortgage you obtain when you purchase your home.

When you purchase a property, particular for the first time, it can be a stressful event. Right or wrong, most people tend to take anything they can get in a mortgage loan so they can meet the closing of escrow. This is understandable, but can come back to haunt you financially. If you can step back from the chaos for a moment, you might consider the following options that will help build equity.

A 30 year mortgage is the default for most homebuyers. It is the first thing that comes to mind and most assume it is the safest option. A 15 year mortgage, however, is going to cut down on the total interest you pay on the loan as well as supercharge your equity growth. The 15 year loan is far better than a longer option, but only if you are absolutely sure you can meet the monthly payment requirements. If you have any doubts whatsoever, there is another option that you can consider.

Making prepayments on principal is a simple, proven way to build equity. The idea is to make an extra monthly payment when you have sufficient cash to do so. Effectively, you use your home as a savings account by doing this. The advantage over other investments is the equity growth should be tax free. Before taking this step, find out from your lender if there are any prepayment penalties. Regardless, making two of these payments each year will quickly build equity in your home.

If any of these ideas sound interesting, you can still take advantage of them even if you currently have a mortgage. Refinancing your mortgage gives you an opportunity to correct mistakes you made when you more focused on getting through escrow. Talk with a mortgage broker to find out your options.

Read More

The Facts About Second Mortgages

<b>Your home:</b> It's probably your biggest asset. Having a home to back you up when you need a loan is one of the greatest advantages of home ownership. In recent years, there has been a major increase in the amount of people looking to use their homes as a way to get access to extra money when they need it most. One of the best ways to do this is through a second mortgage.

A second mortgage is exactly what it says it is - <i>a loan made in addition to your first mortgage</i>, and it's based on the amount of equity you have built into your home. Many people use them to fund home renovations, to pay off credit cards, or to put a child through college. Since you've already been through the process once, the underwriting required to get a second mortgage is much simpler than it was the first time around, and the cost of the transactions involved will be significantly lower. This usually makes up for the fact that interest rates on the second mortgage are a bit higher than they were on the first one.

On a second mortgage, you will borrow a fixed sum of money against your home equity, and pay it back over a specified amount of time. The amount you borrow will be combined with the amount you still owe on your first mortgage.

It all sounds pretty simple. There are just a few things to keep in mind. First of all, don't take out a second mortgage on your home unless you've built up a fair amount of equity in the property already- that is, made payments on the original mortgage balance for a good amount of time. You may still be able to get a second mortgage if you don't have much equity, but your rates will be so much higher, and the amount you can borrow so much lower, that it will essentially be a waste of your time and money. This is one of those things that is worth waiting for.

Also, look into the other options of borrowing against the equity of your home, including a home equity loan and a home equity line of credit. All of these options allow you to borrow against your equity, but there are slight variations among them that mean one of the three may be the best option for you. It will depend, for the most part, on your particular financial standing, the amount of money you need to borrow, and the amount of home equity you currently have.

Read More