Here’s What Not to Do When Refinancing

Are you considering a refinance for your current mortgage? Then you need to be sure that you understand the mistakes that you need to avoid before you refinance your mortgage with any lender.

Here’s what NOT to do when refinancing your mortgage:

Not checking out all of your refinancing options - Before you decide to refinance, you have to shop around and learn what your options are. You don't want to make the mistake of not shopping around and simply staying with your current lender. This can lead to the wrong refinancing option for you in particular. Shopping around will help you ensure that you are definitely getting the best deal possible for your needs.

Signing any loan documents without first carefully reading over them – It’s wise to review every document for refinancing before you close the deal. Otherwise, you will easily find that there was some essential information that was missed.

Not understanding what your break-even point will be for refinancing - Are you aware of how much time you will need to recoup from the upfront transaction costs? You need to know when you will break even and even when you will start getting ahead so you can make sure that you are not going to be in trouble with your mortgage if the break-even point is too far into your future. 

Not providing the mortgage company with the refinance documents on time - If your lending institution is requesting that you provide them with additional documentation like verification of employment or income and expense statements, then you have to be sure that you get them to them right away. Delaying in providing these can lead to costly delays that you could have avoided if you had just gotten them in on time. 

Not having the estimate of your mortgage refinance put down on paper - Lenders and brokers are required by law to give you a written statement for the fees will be for refinancing. You want to get this so you can have it with you at the closing to ensure you get the deal that you agreed to.

Ignoring your credit history-The most common mistake that homeowners make is ignoring their credit history. You should be aware of your exact credit history before refinancing. Many people do not know whether some mistakes were made on their credit reports and ends up taking high interest rates. This high loan and credit fees ends up disqualifying them from mortgages or even missing their chance of buying new homes or refinancing. The best way to avoid this is to always know your credit score as well. Also, check your credit report regularly to make sure there are no mistakes.

When Should You Drop Your Selling Price?

You want to get the best price for your home, naturally. You’ve put it up for sale, focused on things like curb appeal to make a good first impression, and done research for other prices in your location. But despite all of your efforts, what if your home has been sitting on the market and/or you have no showings scheduled? It may be time to evaluate your selling price.

When you initially list your house, it will be a new listing that may get lots of attention at first. But that can change quickly, and as the weeks go on, you might consider the price.

There are many reasons to lower your selling price:

There are fewer buyers looking at your home. If the house has been on the market and there have not been any interested buyers inquiring about your property, it may be time to reduce the price a bit. Many potential buyers may think that your home is overpriced a bit, and taking it down can bring in new buyers.

You have to sell because of a looming deadline. Maybe you’re moving to another state and need to sell before you leave. Consider lowering your asking price to get potential buyers interested.

You don’t have any offers coming in. Maybe you’ve given many tours of your home to potential buyers but no one had made you an offer. It’s possible that the only thing stopping them is the too-high price, so you may want to take it down.

You can’t afford any upgrades. If you were planning to do some improvements like painting, new carpet, etc. but now you simply can’t put out the money for these things, you may want to consider lowering the price. You want the price to be fair considering what the home may be lacking.

Your price is too high for the competition. If your home has been on the market for a month or so and you don’t have any potential buyers, it’s time to give the price a second thought. Staying in touch with the competition will ensure you get the best price for your property.

It’s understandable that you want to get a certain price for your home, but you must be realistic about the market and the condition of the house. It’s a good idea to keep in close contact with your agent throughout the entire process so that you know where the sale of your home stands.