Refinancing: The Right Move?

refinancing

Refinancing: The Right Move?

 

The federal reserve recently raised interest rates, and if you have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM), it may be a good time to consider refinancing your home. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to whether your should refinance, so here are a few of the main considerations.

How long does your introductory rate last? Most ARMs have a fixed rate for the beginning of the mortgage. This is an introductory period (usually 3-10 years) when your rate will remain constant before it can be adjusted. If you have several years left in your introductory period, you can monitor interest rates for a while before making a decision. But if the intro rate is ending soon, it’s a great time to explore refinancing at a fixed rate.

How long are you staying? If you plan to sell your home soon—especially if you’re still on a fixed introductory rate—there’s not much motivation to refinance. But if you’ll be at your home indefinitely, you should consider your refinancing options. You could eliminate the stress of not knowing what your future mortgage rate and payments will be.

What’s your loan balance? The change in your mortgage payment will of course be determined in part by your remaining balance. If you owe $100,000-$200,000, a new interest rate may not greatly affect your monthly payment. On the other hand, if you owe $500,000, a change in interest rate could lead to a much higher payment.

Other factors The previous items are just a few of the factors that should go into a decision about refinancing. Changes in income and your current credit score should also be considered, so be sure to weigh your options and make an educated decision.

About the Author

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Gary Drew

An extensive and successful career in 1’s and zeros has served Gary Drew very well in the alternative universe of Real Estate. His previous senior level engineering and management experience has been an invaluable asset to his clients when negotiating pricing, leveraging comparable analytics, and playing to win on behalf of buyers and sellers fortunate enough to be represented by this dynamic and confi dent professional. Gary was born in the San Francisco. He grew up in Woodside, California and was a good student who also played football, basketball and baseball. “I played against Barry Bonds and like to think that helped his career” laughs Gary. He carried that competitive enthusiasm to play hard and win to both his past engineering sales role and to his current Real Estate career. He loves to visit St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands and fi sh on the Kenai River in Alaska while growing up. These are places he returns to often as an adult, “to recharge my batteries”. But the competitive spirit is never completely abandoned, and he holds the certifi cates for catching a trophy Silver Salmon (21.5 LBS) and a King Salmon (73 LBS). Gary attended DeVry University and graduated with an engineering degree in 1984. He moved back to California and started his fi rst career in Silicon Valley. He became a very successful executive, working for several engineering fi rms including Bytex, Cayman Systems, DQ Technology and others. Gary served as a Field Engineer and Sales Manager building businesses for companies in the US, Asia, Europe and South America. “It was an exciting time in my life” says Gary. “It was a great time to be in the tech fi eld.” A job transfer to Phoenix in 2001 included a marriage, a home, kids, and a desire for a career with less travel and more home-time. Family infl uence is powerful, and in 2004, Gary was introduced to the Real Estate profession by his Mother, a successful Realtor in the valley. He became licensed and subsequently became the Designated Broker of one of the top Real Estate companies in Anthem AZ. Connecting the dots between high tech and real estate, it’s easy to see how Gary’s analytical background, his experience and passion for negotiation and contracts plus love of numbers converge to create a powerful ally when representing a buyer or a seller. Add to that, years of people management experience and an overriding desire to win now you’ve got the reason why Gary Drew lands in the top 3% of his profession year after year. Today, Gary is an Associate Broker and Sales Manager for a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices in Anthem AZ. He is a single Father raising a teenage daughter and to those who have experienced that he says "hanging on to my ego for dear life.” He still enjoys traveling, sports and plays golf whenever work and home allow.” I’m so lucky to be doing what I love. Life is good.”

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