Skip to main content

Worth Refinancing to get rid of PMI and lower interest rate?

I bought my first condo in March 2019 and am wondering if it is worth refinancing to get rid of PMI and get a better interest rate with the rates hovering so low. It was a brand new build and no one had lived here before me. It seems a bit odd to refinance after just a year of owning but getting a smaller monthly payment is definitely enticing. I see myself staying in this house for another 2-3 years and then would like to keep it as a rental property.

Facts:

Purchased in March 2019 for $389,000

Current amount left on the loan: $341,000

Current Monthly Payment: $2,032 (includes $52 PMI)

Interest Rate 4%

I know that a Zillow estimate absolutely is not the end all be all but the Zestimate has been hovering around $409,000. I am unsure what an appraiser would actually appraise it at as I have have zero experience with that. I have added things like brand new glass shower doors in both bathrooms, blinds throughout the condo, and a new washer and dryer. Not sure if those actually add to the value of the condo which did not come with any of those things when I bought it.

My mortgage broker said “If I am in your position I would not refinance until I have 20% equity to remove the mortgage insurance payment. It might take another year. To refinance & keep paying mortgage insurance does not make sense to me as you are likely going to have to refinance to get rid of the mortgage insurance later down the road. Do all at the same time & remove PMI & get a lower mortgage interest rate.

It is more important to reach 20% equity to remove PMI than lower your inter rate by 0.75%.

We never know what will happen with the mortgage interest rates. Let’s check back in Fall 2020 around Thanksgiving & the lead up to the Presidential election. Could be an interesting time for mortgage rates with election & Covid 19.”

Seems like sound advice, but I know y’all have great advice so I would love to hear your opinions as well!

submitted by /u/unyunpicka
[link] [comments]

source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/gtq95h/worth_refinancing_to_get_rid_of_pmi_and_lower/

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Aren't comps/CMAs useless with buyer credits at close happening now?

I'm looking into buying a new construction townhouse in my HCOL US city. I'm seeing builders offering interest rate buydowns worth $20k-$60k on $800k homes (rather than just lowering prices) in order to keep their comps high for their other units, now that buyer demand has been declining. I asked my agent about these, and he said these buydowns aren't even the full story: buyers can write all kinds of other credits into an offer, like their closing costs, prepaid sewer fees, etc. Apparently cash buyers can just write in a "buyer credit at close" for any amount in their offer. So a new townhouse that appeared to sell for $800k in the MLS might have actually been a cash offer with a $100k+ buyer credit at close, meaning the buyer only spent $700k or less in total, but to the rest of the world they can only see the $800k! So that made me realize I can't trust comps/CMAs for other new construction townhouses. The sales prices could be way lower than they appear...

Pool fill without engineer oversight

We are in the process of purchasing our first ever home in CA and we just discovered in the disclosures that the new build property we are purchasing previously had a swimming pool which was filled without an engineer onsite to approve the work (details from disclosure below). Is this something we should be concerned with or not? Is it something we should have additional inspections conducted on? We are originally from the UK and not really sure what to do with this information and if it is concerning or not. A POOL DID EXIST PREVIOUSLY. COPING, TILE, GUNNITE AND REBAR WERE ALL REMOVED AND DIRT AND CLEAN DRAIN ROCK WERE USED TO FILL IT IN. COMPACTED FILL WAS NOT USED AND NO ENGINEER APPROVED THE DIRT AND DRAIN ROCK FILL IN submitted by /u/tommot82 [link] [comments] source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/dpyzw8/pool_fill_without_engineer_oversight/

Making offers on houses not listed for sale.

I want to buy a home for retirement. I am looking at lots of options, mostly focusing on the locations that appeal to me. I see lots of Zillow estimates of homes that look like great deals to me. Are these estimates accurate, even though similar houses in the same area that are for sale are usually priced much higher? If so, is it realistic for me to try to make offers to owners that do not have their homes listed? Would a realtor even consider helping me do this? Or, do these values indicate that the houses listed for sale are overpriced, and I should just lowball until someone accepts? Are houses today tending to sell far below list prices, or ??? submitted by /u/chewybrian [link] [comments] source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/1o4mcon/making_offers_on_houses_not_listed_for_sale/