Thoughts?... http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2008/12/03/treasury-department-considers-plan-lower-mortgage-rates/
If rates are cut that low I'd be dumb as a sack of rocks to NOT refinance my mortgage. My goal is to get a rate lower than what I have now and go to a 20 year in lieu of the 30 year I presently am in. That's the ticket for me - and I see it coming! woohoo!
From what I saw on the news this morning (didn't read the article) the mortgage rates they are talking about will apply to new home purchases only, anot towards a refi. Craig
If enacted, such a plan would be an unprecedented opportunity for anyone with good credit and a solid income who could qualify for a mortgage at the lowest rates on records dating to the early 1960s, said Keith Gumbinger, senior vice president at financial publisher HSH Associates. "You would have the mother of all re-fi booms," said mortgage industry consultant Howard Glaser. I'm all about this!! From the article, refi's would count and I'll be in line with my mortgage company for it. As far as helping the housing industry, it would help those folks actually get lower mortgage payments for those that do qualify for a loan if they are sitting on the fence.
At first I was thinking this was a ploy by Mr. Bush who is in the market for a new house. He'll be wanting a low intrest rate on his mortgage. But then I though, no, when he buys a new house, he'll probably be paying cash from all the oil money he got from the war in Iraq.
I can only imagine that a surge of refi's would greatly help our mortgage industry which should inturn help the housing industry. I think it would be a great way to "move" money around in the economy. Sometimes you just need a little activity.
Agreed, an on that same token, lower folks' mortgage payment they have more money to spend on other things
My GF, who is a real estate paralegal and a realtor, said re-fi's are coming in left and right now and already she has more for December than she had in the past few months together.
That is good news!! I actually called my mortgage broker yesterday and was going to refi but then I saw this article this morning and am going to play the game and see what happens..:?
If I were you I would go ahead and put all your info in with your lender so that when they drop you are ready. Yesterday the rates went down .125% in and hour.
If 30 yr is to be 4.5 what will that make a 15 yr, I've been on 15 now for 6 yrs and would re-fi if it gets down that far.
Typically I have noticed a 15 year to be .25% to .50% lower than 30 year. My intention is to re-fi to 15% too if it drops.
I still don't understand why we are rewarding people who have acted foolishly. This whole mess will repeat itself soon if lessons are not learned.
How do you mean? You have to have good credit right now to be able to refinance or get a loan period. I have a 7 year ARM that I will probably re-do early next year, it doesn't expire til 2010, but it was hardly an irresponsible decision when I got it, it was a SEVEN year ARM and we weren't planning on being here by 2010 then. I've had the benefit of a 4.375 rate for the past 5 years. So my equity has been growing very nicely. 8)
That's what I heard as well. So is this just their way of getting foreclosed homes sold? If so this is helping the mortgage industry not the distressed homeowners.
Response from one of my favorite lenders... In short the plan would affect both Purchase and Refinance mortgages. So let’s break this out a bit as to how this would benefit the economy, in theory anyway: Purchases: those out there sitting on the fence waiting for whatever reason would be crazy to not step down and get in the game at that point. You would have a buyer’s market coupled with the lowest rates in just about the history of the housing market. Those that are (or think) they are waiting for the bottom to hit will never see it. The bottom will come and go quickly and the opportunity they perceive should exist with some form of “announcement” will be missed. Buyer’s need to understand (as well as those looking to refinance) that “good enough” is just that, good enough. My point here is don’t get greedy. If the rate today works for your goals I would suggest not gambling. That is a dangerous game and my suggestion would be to go ahead just get an equity line on your house and take the proceeds to Vegas for an all or nothing bet at the wheel. In short: from a purchase perspective more buyers would hit the streets and therefore inventory levels would begin to lower bringing the both the re-sale and new construction market back while spilling much needed money (spending) into the economy. Refinance: think of my statements above and add the fact that as you lower your monthly expenditures you are increasing your spending ability (hence, refinance = lower rate = lower payment = less monthly liability = more cash flow = more to spend in the economy). This will bring a much needed boost to the economy. Sometimes as consumers we forget about the simplicity of our world from A to Z. Things get better and are best when the masses can AFFORD for them to be that way. Jobs are created because the population spends money on material goods. As mentioned above it is imperative that buyers and those looking to refinance understand that perfect is not realistic and they need to look at what works for them and what they can afford. If they sit to long the opportunity will be lost. Now is the time to buy! Regards, Daniel M. Nunes Sr. Mortgage Loan Consultant SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. 600 NC Hwy 42 West Clayton, NC 27520 919.553.7456 office 919.523.2816 cell 866.381.6096 fax daniel.nunes@suntrust.com Apply Online @ www.suntrustmortgage.com/dnunes Live Solid. Bank Solid.
