4 Common Misconceptions About Refinancing Mortgages

With mortgage rates being at or near all-time lows in recent months, you would think that everybody with a rate north of 4.00% would jump at the opportunity to refinance to a lower rate, right?

Wrong.

There is still an estimated 14 million eligible homeowners who could take advantage of refinancing to improve their financial situation, and this doesn’t even include the millions of homeowners who can take advantage of the new HARP 2.0 guidelines.

Why aren’t these eligible homeowners getting off of their butts and refinancing their loans? We have found four major misconceptions preventing homeowners from refinancing.

1. “Rates will go lower”

Sure mortgage rates have taken dips weekly for a while now, but the drops have been marginal at best. In the current market today, it is highly unlikely to see mortgage rates drop significantly lower than where they’re at right now. The difference between 3.53% and 3.49% isn’t the biggest deal. I bet 10 years from now, we’ll look back on the rates that we’re experiencing today and talk about the glory days of sub-4.00% rates.

2. “There’s no value for me”

Clients often think that recent rate drops won’t save them money in the long run compared to what they are currently paying, but there are strong benefits to shorter loan terms or payment acceleration. For those clients who think that they cannot benefit from refinancing, I strongly encourage you to call one of our Home Loan Experts today to talk about different plans that may save you money now and for the future.

3. “The process is a hassle”

I love this one because only posting negative experiences online is the way to go nowadays – nobody ever talks about how easy and smooth refinancing is unless you come to Quicken Loans, obviously. There are horror stories of refinancing taking anywhere from 60 to 90 days, but with our industry-leading technology and dedicated client service, we close most of our loans in 30 days or less.

4. “I probably won’t qualify”

This one makes sense because potential refinance clients from the past may have been denied before. Luckily for them, changes to the HARP and FHA programs have made a lot of potential refinancers eligible now that weren’t before. If you haven’t spoken with a Home Loan Expert recently, you never know – maybe you qualify now when you didn’t before. You’d be very surprised!

If you have any misconceptions about refinancing, leave us a comment in the comment section and we’ll make sure that the right people will help answer you.

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