Should I refinance or should I wait?

[shonre]

So I was one of those homeowners who purchased in 2007, with a high interest rate (6.5%) but never refinanced. It is now 5 years later, and I wanted to put my house on the market 2 years ago, but obviously that couldn't happen, without me bringing a large sum of money to the table (via realtor fees, upside down costs owed to Chase, etc). I've recently inquired about putting it on the market now, and it's still not a good time to do that. However, I'm now faced with the decision to either refinance and stick around for 2 more years, or keep my current loan as is and try to look into selling it again next year (and that's assuming that the house appreciates to where I would at least break even).

 

I'm not sure what's the best decision to make so I thought I create this thread for suggestions. I do have a FHA loan, and had I accumulated 20% equity, I would have been eligible for the PMI to drop but I don't think that will happen, given the retail value of my home, which is about 12K less than what I owe.

 

Please advise. My first preference is obviously to sell and move. I've been so unhappy with homeownership. I do not have any financial difficulties at the moment. If it's better for me to refinance, how do I even go about finding the right lender to work with, for a FHA streamline, especially one where I do not pay in closing costs upfront?

[p11]

You have to do the math. Will you save enough on lower payments for 2 years to cover the closing costs? I would think that you would also have to make up the 12k shortfall in house value.

[Mortgagase]

There appears to be some pressure to increase interest rates. So you may be at the bottom of interest rates now. Chances of property values going up doesn't look good so if it were me i would look into a refinance. Find a good Mortgage Broker and explore your options.

 

 

[bdp02]

There appears to be some pressure to increase interest rates. So you may be at the bottom of interest rates now. Chances of property values going up doesn't look good so if it were me i would look into a refinance. Find a good Mortgage Broker and explore your options.

 

 

 

+1

 

I just read an article where Zillow was quoted forecasting home prices to continue falling 'till 2013 and stay down 'till 2016...

several realtors I know have been talking of a 5 year horizon for home prices to start pulling back up, now Zillow's forecast lends more credence to what they've been telling me...

on top of that, the fed spoke this week of not continuing to stimulate the economy as they have been which I think will lead to increased mortgage rates...

 

I just closed on a refi yesterday, so maybe i'm a little biased, but i think now is the time to do it if you're going to.

[luckydriver]

isnt there a program for this that just came out..ability to refi without worrying about the value of the house?

[jop3]

In June, the fees go way down on FHA streamline refinances. You should wait until June to refi and it will save you money on the monthly and up front mortgage insurance fees.