If you’re looking to refinance your mortgage, Accurate Mortgage is here to help. In this guide, you’ll find out the benefits of refinancing and how Accurate Mortgage can help you get it done.

What Is Refinancing?

Refinancing refers to a financial strategy that allows you to replace your existing mortgage with a new one. When you decide to refinance your mortgage, you’ll be seeking to improve the loan’s terms, such as getting a better interest rate or payment schedule, otherwise known as the term.

Some reasons why borrowers may want to refinance can include:

• Lower your interest rate
• Consolidating high-interest consumer debt
• Improving monthly cash flow
• Shortening of a loan’s repayment period
• Get cash out for home
• Improvement projects
• Add or remove someone from the loan

The reasons listed above are often interlinked. For example, falling interest rates provide a great opportunity to lock in a better rate than you currently have. A lower interest rate can reduce your monthly payment.

As it turns out, one of the best reasons to refinance is to offer yourself more options. Refinancing is a versatile tool. Let’s look at how it works. 

How Does Refinancing Work?

If you are looking to refinance your home, it is important to understand the ins and outs of refinancing to make sure that this is the right option for you and your family.

Let’s start by understanding how refinancing works to obtain more favorable borrowing terms. First, consider your goals—lowering your fixed interest rate, reducing a payment, or switching from an adjustable-rate to a fixed-rate mortgage.

Once you have set your goals, it is important to pinpoint the right moment to apply for refinancing. Macroeconomic factors can influence interest rates, which rise and drop cyclically, therefore most borrowers wait before seeking better borrowing terms. With interest rates now back on the rise from record lows, now is the time to take advantage—before it’s too late. Our experts at Accurate Mortgage can help you understand your options.

Accurate Mortgage Refinancing Options

When consulting one of our expert Mortgage Loan Advisors, you will discover many refinancing options that might be suitable for your needs, including:

• Rate and term refinancing: One of the most popular reasons for refinancing, adjusting your rate and term allows you to adapt to the current market environment. 
• Cash-in or Cash-out refinancing: Cash-in refinancing allows you to put a lump sum down down on your home so that your new mortgage is for much less. Cash-out refinancing allows you to take equity out of the home for much-needed liquidity. 
• Consolidation: People with debt on several credit cards often consolidate into a simpler loan with better terms. What many folks don’t know is that you can also consolidate loans of varying kinds, bundling debt from your car, home, credit cards, and/or consumer debt. 

Once again, you can see that the options are seemingly endless. Whether you’d like to exchange that adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) for a lower fixed rate or put more equity into your home with a cash-in refinancing, our experts here at Accurate Mortgage will help you find the best option. 

Benefits of Refinancing

As we have seen, the most important benefit of refinancing is that it can give you access to better borrowing rates and can offer you the possibility of lower interest rates. In addition, you may be able to reduce your loan term, resulting in cash savings on interest rates and improve your household cash flow. 

While refinancing comes with many benefits, it might also reset the original loan length and reduce your home equity. Because of this, refinancing is not the best alternative for all borrowers, and you should always consult an expert lender at the Accurate Mortgage Group before getting started.

Refinancing for your future with Accurate Mortgage

Life offers opportunities and tragedies alike, both of which could benefit from mortgage refinancing. Whatever your reasons, whatever your goals, Accurate Mortgage is here to help you make the most of your most important investment. Visit us online to get your mortgage rate quote or give us a call today at (615)833-0456!

The post Mortgage Refinancing 101: What, How, and Why It Works appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

When refinancing your home loan, you pay off the existing mortgage and replace it with a new one. Generally, there are two types of refinances:

Rate and term refinance: With this type of refinance, the new loan has a different rate and/or term than your current loan. This is the type of loan to do if you just want to lower your rate and payment or shorten the term, say from 30 years to 15 years.

Cash-out refinance: With a cash-out refinance, you refinance for more than you owe and keep the difference in cash. This refinance option enables you to put the equity in your home to work for you. While it is possible that you may be able to lower your rate with a cash-out refinance, that is not always the case. Instead, the main goal here is the check you’ll receive after the loan closes.

Here are the top 4 reasons you might consider refinancing your home:

Lower Your Interest Rate

A rate and term refinance can help you enjoy long-term savings, not only with a lower monthly payment, but also by reducing the amount of interest you’ll pay over the life of the loan. This can be a great idea if you are planning to stay in your home for at least a few years. If you think that you may want to sell your home in the near future, it may not be worth the cost to refinance since you may not be in the home long enough to enjoy the savings.

Pay Off High Interest Consumer Debt

If you’ve accumulated a large amount of high-interest debt, like credit cards, a cash-out refinance can consolidate those bills into a mortgage payment with a much lower rate, potentially saving you thousands of dollars and dramatically reducing your monthly outgoing cash flow.. However, it’s wise to examine your spending habits and make changes so that you don’t end up with a lot of high-interest consumer debt all over again.

Paying for Home Improvements

A cash-out refinance is a cost effective way to afford home improvements when you don’t have the cash on hand. This enables you to borrow a lot of money at once, which means expensive renovations are within reach without taking too much from your monthly budget.

Get Rid of PMI

Private Mortgage Insurance, or PMI, is a type of insurance that protects the lender in the event that the borrower defaults on the loan. Typically, you’ll have PMI if you bring less than a 20% down payment or if you have an FHA loan, which requires mortgage insurance no matter the size of your down payment. A rate and term refinance is a great way to take advantage of your home’s increase in value due to the hot housing market by refinancing into a new loan without mortgage insurance. This alone may save you hundreds a month on your payment.

Here to Help

Refinancing may or may not make financial sense for you and your family. That’s why Accurate Mortgage will look at your specific situation and advise you the same way we would a member of our own family.

To learn more about your refinancing options, contact Accurate Mortgage today.

Refinancing the easy way with Accurate Mortgage

There are many reasons why a mortgage refinance may be right for you and Accurate Mortgage is here to help you make the process as easy and as painless as possible. Visit us online to get your mortgage rate quote or give us a call today at (615) 833-0456!

The post Top Four Reasons to Refinance Your Home appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

But how do the Joneses keep doing it year after year? And what will it take to throw your name into the tall red hat for the most festive homeowner? 

At Accurate Mortgage, we know how much pride you take in your home and in the holidays. That’s why we’re dedicated to giving you an edge with these top trends in holiday decor.

Go Big

For the last decade or so, going big during the holiday season meant having the largest, loudest, most hard-to-ignore inflatable on your lawn. But playing by the old rules limits your margin for victory. This year, there’s a new king in outsized holiday decor: massive ornaments.

As bright and inviting as their tree-bound counterparts, these gigantic lawn ornaments make the kind of wonderland statement that turns heads and inspires awe among the ranks of the homeowners association. One giant ornament is enough to set your lawn apart from the pretenders, but two or three arranged together can put your house on the map for the traditional cruise around the subdivision.

Diversify Your Light

Trying to win the holiday season with more string lights turns the contest into a game of numbers. Your neighbor puts up 600, so you put up 800. Meanwhile, a guy down the street puts up 1,200 string lights and you’re suddenly out of the running. It’s time to diversify your lighting methods by introducing a little chaos into the certainty of your rivals.

Why limit your light sources when you could incorporate projectors instead? Full of preprogrammed light shows, animation, numerous festive patterns, and smart app capabilities, holiday projectors liberate festive lights from eaves and gutters for a more alluring holiday spectacle! 

Light up the front of your house like the arctic sky itself with only a carefully concealed tripod this holiday season.

LED Sculptures

While bright sculptures may feel like a step behind inflatables, recent advancements in LED technology and a new range of options make this trend worth returning to. A few years ago, you’d be lucky to find anything more than a wicker deer lifting and lowering its head. These days, LED sculptures come in all shapes and sizes.

From twinkling, LED willow trees to playful penguins, Santa’s sleigh to candy-striped signs, there are hundreds of ways to make your LED sculptures feel personal, powerful, and provocative. Find LED sculptures to fit your region, hobbies, sports fandom, and more this holiday season! The more personal your decorations are, the more they’ll get noticed!

Keeping the Holidays Bright

After spending more time than usual in our homes these last two years, it’s time to turn those homes into beacons of hope. After all, during the holiday season, “winning” means simply “giving back”. Together, we can be a part of the magic that holds communities together and inspires wonder in all.

Up your holiday decorating game this season and watch your neighborhood transform into a winter wonderland!

Upping your holiday decorating game with Accurate Mortgage

At Accurate Mortgage, we know firsthand the pride homeowners have. Homeownership is absolutely something to be proud of and decorating for the holidays makes the magic of homeownership accessible to everyone. To get into a home of your own by the next holiday season, contact Accurate Mortgage for lending and refinancing options! Visit us online to get your mortgage rate quote or give us a call today at (615)833-0456!

The post Decorating to Dazzle the Neighborhood: What Homeowners Have Done for the Holidays appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Regular listeners of Heino’s Home Show know that listener questions range from small decisions about renovations to huge concerns about refinancing, forbearance, and monthly mortgage commitments. This week’s listener questions are certainly no different! 

Second Home with VRBO Income

Janet from Spring HIll asks:

“I plan to buy a 2nd home that currently has VRBO income, which I plan to continue. Can I buy that as a 2nd home or can I purchase it as an investment property?”

Yes, you should be able to buy that as a second home instead of an investment property as long as a couple of guidelines are met. First, you cannot use the VRBO income in order to qualify for the loan. Secondly, the rental must not be under the exclusive control of another entity, like a management company, for example.

Forbearance

Allen in Mt. Juliet asks:

“My loan was in forbearance, and then I got a loan modification at the end. Can I refinance?”

This one is a bit tricky, so let’s step back and discuss forbearance for a minute. During the COVID pandemic, homeowners who were having difficulty making their mortgage payments were given the option of pausing their payments, otherwise known as forbearance.

What happens when you come out of forbearance depends on a few things. For example, if you continued to make your payments even during the forbearance period, you are clear to refinance immediately.

Alternatively, if you didn’t make payments during the forbearance period, then you won’t be able to refinance until three on-time payments have been made post forbearance.

Most lenders offered a few options to catch up on the payments that were missed during the forbearance period. You could pay it back in a lump sum, or you could increase your monthly payment by an agreed upon amount until the missed payments were caught up.

However, many lenders offered a third option: the missed payments could be added to the balance of the loan, thus modifying the original loan terms. In most cases, the other terms of the loan stay the same with the exception that the loan balance is now higher.

If this last option is what you did, then yes you may be able to refinance as soon as you have made three on-time payments at the end of the forbearance period.

So, since there are multiple answers to your question, it would be a good idea for you to contact a mortgage professional at Accurate Mortgage to discuss the specifics of your situation.

Truck Driving Income

Adam in Nashville asks:

“I’m a truck driver and I get paid by the hour. I’ve been offered a new position, but I will be paid by the mile. Can I still buy a house?”

Yes, you can still buy a home, but you might have to wait a while. When you’re paid by the hour, that’s considered predictable income. But when you’re paid by the mile, that’s considered variable income. 

Mortgage guidelines want to see a track record, a history of how much you end up actually earning when you’re paid by the mile. They’re going to require you to be paid by a mile for a year before you can use that income in order to qualify. It might be wiser to buy the house first and then switch jobs for the by-mile rate. 

Answering Your Questions

Have you got a simple or complex question about home ownership that you’d like answered? Call into Heino’s Home Show and your question may be featured in the upcoming podcast! Email your questions to heino@heinoshomeshow.com and your question could be featured on Heino’s Home Show, heard Sundays 5pm to 6pm on 99.7 WTN. You can also catch up on past episodes on the Heino’s Home Show podcast page (link) or wherever you listen to podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, iHeart, Spotify and Google Podcasts.

Accurate Mortgage is here to help you with purchasing a 1st or 2nd home, in addition to refinancing and more. For questions, applications, or anything else, visit our website or give us a call today.

Listening, Answering, Helping—Accurate Mortgage

Mortgage lending, refinancing, forbearance, and renovations/additions can be hard to understand in the context of home ownership. If you have questions, or are looking to borrow or refinance, we can help. Visit us online to get your mortgage rate quote or give us a call today at (615)833-0456!

The post Answering Listener Questions – Responding to You appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

What Is a VA Mortgage Loan?

In 1944, as a way to assist those returning from military service, a program was created by the U.S government to help veterans buy a home without having to come up with a 20% down payment or having great credit. The program has helped millions of active and veteran members of the military to buy and refinance a home.

A VA mortgage lets you make a 0% down payment and is issued by private lenders, like banks and mortgage brokers. The loans are guaranteed by the United States Department of Veteran Affairs. These loans differ from a traditional mortgage loan in a few ways:

• VA loans require 0% down and traditional loans require 20%
• VA loans don’t require private mortgage insurance; traditional mortgages do if making less than the 20% down payment
• VA loans tend to offer more competitive rates than traditional loans because they are considered less of a risk
• It’s usually much easier to qualify for a VA loan due to the less stringent qualification requirements

Fees and Regulations 

Those who qualify for full VA loan entitlement are able to borrow what a lender offers without having to pay the down payment. There are some limits, however, for those who don’t have full entitlement. This usually occurs when they already have an active VA loan or have lost a loan due to foreclosure.

There is also a funding fee, which gets put back into the VA’s funds to help this program to keep running for generations to come. This fee will vary depending on your circumstances. If you are applying for a VA loan for the first time, you will usually pay a 2.3% funding fee of the home’s purchase price. Those who have applied before will usually pay 3.6%. Those with a disability that is connected to their military service won’t have to pay this fee. The funding fee can be calculated into the mortgage amount.

There is also a limitation to closing costs, with sellers paying all or most of the expenses. This means that, when it comes time to close, you won’t have any money still due to be paid.

Eligibility Requirements for a VA Loan

For you or your spouse to qualify for a VA loan, you need:

• To meet the service requirements set out by the VA
• To have a valid COE (Certificate of Eligibility)
• To satisfy the requirements of the lender

Service Requirements

You need to meet one of the following requirements set out by the VA:

• You have been in active service for 90 consecutive days during wartime
• You have been in active service for 181 days during peacetime
• You have served 6 years in either the Reserves or National Guard
• You are the spouse whose partner has died while serving or has become disabled as a result of their service

COE

The Certificate of Eligibility lets the lender know that you are eligible for a VA loan. Lenders can usually find this out through the VA automated system, which means you don’t need to have it on hand before you submit your application. A CEO can be requested electronically and is an important part of the VA mortgage process. You can obtain a COE by:

• Applying for a mortgage using a VA approved lender
• Applying through the VA eBenefits site online
• Filling out a VA Form 26-1880 and applying by mail

You will also need proof of service to acquire your COE. This can be done using a DD form if you are regular military, NDB Form 22 for National Guard Service, and NGB Form 23 for the Reserves. There are documents that you will need with your application:

Lender Requirements

Lastly, you need to meet the lender’s requirements, such as your credit score, debt level, and income. You also need to have the property checked by an appointed VA appraiser.

If you have questions about applying for a VA loan, give our Tennessee mortgage lender team a call today at (615) 833-0456!

The post Your Guide to Qualify for a VA Loan appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Know What Documents You Need

The mortgage process requires quite a bit of paperwork. You will need to prove your income, employment, and overall financial health. Knowing what documentation you need and making sure you have gathered it together before you apply for a mortgage will help the process run smoother.

Most mortgage lenders have a standard list of documents they will need, such as three month’s worth of pay stubs, income tax reports, and bank statements. If you are self-employed, you will need to present extra documentation. You will also need documentation that explains large transactions in your bank account, such as funds for a down payment that has been gifted to you. If you aren’t sure about what you will need, the best thing to do is call your lender and ask.

Know What You Can Afford 

Knowing how much you have to work with is also important when buying a home and applying for a mortgage. Lenders will advise you to make sure your monthly mortgage payments are not more than 28% of your monthly gross income. You also need to consider any other debts you are paying, such as personal loans, credit cards, and car loans. Your debt payments should be no more than 36% of your gross monthly income. Some lenders can be flexible with this, whereas others can be stricter, depending on your credit score.

Know the Market

The housing market can affect the type of loan you are able to get. Certain types of properties may be less desirable than others and end up costing you more. For example, in an area where there have been a lot of condo projects that have gone into bankruptcy, lenders will look at the property’s finances, as well as yours. This could lead to them requiring a larger down payment than normal. Always check with a real estate agent to get a better understanding of what is happening in the market. They can help you stay away from any risky properties and save you a lot of money.

Knowing these three things are very helpful, but there are still other things to consider when buying a home. Your credit score is one of these items and it’s important that you get familiar with it several months in advance of applying for a mortgage. This will give you time to clean up your credit report and raise your credit score.

You’ll want to look for any errors to start with and dispute these. Also, look at where your weak points are in your report. For example, you may have a few high-interest rate credit cards that are having an impact on your credit score. Paying these down can help you raise your credit score.

The more you know before you start the mortgage process, the better off you will be. If you have questions about applying for a mortgage, give our Tennessee mortgage lender team a call today at (615) 833-0456!

The post 3 Things You Need to Know Before Applying appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Are You Ready?

The most important thing that you need to determine is if you are really ready to take the plunge into homeownership. You need to be financially prepared to buy a home. There are costs to consider, such as repairs, utilities, taxes, and insurance. Buying and owning a home is a big financial responsibility, so you need to make sure your financial situation is stable.

What Can You Realistically Afford?

One of the biggest mistakes we’ve seen home buyers make is in not creating a budget to see what they can realistically and comfortably afford. They end up maxing out their budget to buy the home and then have little left for repairs or emergencies. This can cause a struggle when it comes to meeting their monthly mortgage payments.

Our best advice is to keep your monthly mortgage payments below 30% of your gross monthly income. Leave some breathing room in your budget for the unexpected and extra things that can come up, like repairs and fees.

Are Your Finances in Order?

Have you looked over your credit report recently? It’s definitely something that you should do several months to a year before buying a home. It gives you time to not only find and fix any errors on your report that are bringing your credit score down, but it also gives you a chance to see where your weak points may be. Paying down those high-interest rate credit cards can help raise your score quite a bit. The better your credit, the better your chance at qualifying for the loan amount you need. You may want to utilize some of the online mortgage calculators that are available on our website for free. It will give you a starting point to figure out just home much home you can afford.

Tip: To improve your credit score, pay your credit cards down to just about $50, and then, for a couple of months before you apply for your mortgage, just use them for something small, like a tank of gas or dinner one night – for something you can pay off easily while still keeping a low balance each month. In addition, don’t apply for any new lines of credit or make large purchases (car, boat, jewelry, etc.) before or during the mortgage approval process.

Have You Saved for the Down Payment?

Unless you qualify for down-payment assistance or a no-down-payment loan, you will need anywhere between 3.5% to 20% of a home’s purchase price as a down payment. It’s best to start saving for your down payment well in advance. The larger your down payment, the better the mortgage package you available to you. It’s also a good idea to keep your down-payment savings separate from the other expenses you will need to cover, such as closing costs and fees. This way, you won’t have to cut into your down-payment savings.

Tip: Put money aside for a home inspection. This is different from an appraisal and will give you a more detailed look at any potential issues with the house you are looking to buy, saving you money in the long term.

Get Your Paperwork in Order

Having all of your financial paperwork in order and on hand will save you a lot of hassle and time when it comes down to starting the mortgage process. Generally, you will need at least two months’ worth of bank statements, pay stubs, W-2 forms, and proof of income. If you are being gifted money for the down payment, you will need a letter drawn up from the person giving you the money that states it is a gift and not a loan to be paid back. Having everything ready beforehand cuts down on the time of having to gather paperwork, finding you are missing something, then having to wait while that is submitted.

If you are looking to buy a home soon and need some advice on how to get your finances in order, give our Tennessee mortgage lender team a call today at (615) 833-0456.

The post How to Get Your Finances Ready for Your First Home appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Freedom to Do What You Want 

From painting your room purple to changing the flooring, when you own your home, you don’t have to ask permission from the landlord to make changes. This means you have the freedom to style your home the way you want it and truly make it your space. You can even increase your homes’ value with some home improvements. Need some extra room? You can add an extension to the home, rather than having to move elsewhere to rent a bigger space.

Budget Stability

In most cases, if you have a mortgage with a fixed rate, your monthly payments stay the same. When you rent, there is always the worry of having a rise in the rent payments, which isn’t great if you are on a budget as it is. Of course, homeowners do have things like property taxes each year, which can fluctuate slightly. However, this is usually a tax-deductible fee, as is the interest that you pay on your mortgage.

Appreciation Benefits

When you buy a home, you are investing in your future. Your home appreciates over time, which can increase its value. The money you are paying each month is going toward something substantial, whereas, when you rent, your money isn’t really going anywhere except to your landlord. You also have the benefit of owning a rent-free home once the mortgage has been paid.

You Gain Stability

Renting can feel pretty unstable for many. Any change can mean no longer having a roof over your head. Your landlord may suddenly decide to sell the property for example, which means you now have to look for somewhere else to live. Or the rent could be hiked up, causing you to have to find somewhere cheaper to live. When you own your own home, you get that stability of knowing this won’t happen to you. It makes more sense to pay a mortgage for 10 to 15 years and have something to show for it.

Savings 

Each month, when you make your mortgage repayment, you are putting more equity into your home. The equity is like a savings account that you can tap into should you need to make home repairs or put your child through college. You’re basically investing in your own home, rather than in someone else’s.

For many, buying a home makes more sense financially than renting. If you are ready to move from renting to owning a home, give our Tennessee mortgage lender team a call today at (615) 833-0456!

The post The Benefits of Buying Over Renting appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Focus on the Principal

The amount that you have borrowed is called the principal, which doesn’t include the interest amount you pay each month. When you make a payment, part of it goes to the interest of the mortgage and part goes toward the principal. One way to pay your mortgage down quicker is to make some extra payments toward the principal alone. This will then help lower your interest and save you money over time.

Bi-Weekly Payments

Normally, homeowners will pay their mortgage in monthly payments. You can make an extra monthly payment a year by taking the cost of one payment and splitting it into 2, then making 2 bi-weekly payments over the next 2 months. The extra payment you make in those 2 months will go toward the principal and lower your interest amount. Another way of doing this is to just budget for an extra monthly payment to put toward the principal.

Use Your Savings

If you aren’t able to come up with an extra month’s funds, you could open a savings account and put any extra money you get into it. Round up your bill amounts and use the extra to put into savings to make a lump sum payment toward the principal.

Refinancing

Another method for paying your mortgage down faster is to refinance. With this option, you will be taking out a new loan with different terms. You can use the money to pay down your higher interest rate debts, which works to lower your monthly payments. You also get a lower interest rate and you could go with a shorter-term mortgage if you can afford higher monthly payments, cutting the term time in half. If your monthly mortgage repayments are lower and you can still afford to pay the old higher amount, put that extra toward the principal to further speed things up.

Recasting

You may have a situation where you obtain a lump sum of money, such as from a bonus at work, and are able to apply that to your mortgage using recasting. The money is put toward the principal of the mortgage and then the mortgage is recalculated with a new lower monthly payment and a shorter-term time. You could speed things up even quicker if you are able to continue to pay the original monthly payment amounts, using the extra for the principal.

Whether you are just looking for more information before you make your home purchase or you are looking for ways to pay off your current mortgage faster, give the Smyrna mortgage lender team at Accurate Mortgage Group a call today!

There are so many reasons homeowners choose to pay their mortgages off quicker, and a lot of options depending on your situation. Even paying off an extra $25 to $50 a month can go a long way in getting it paid off quicker. If you have questions about paying your mortgage off faster, give our Smyrna mortgage lender team a call today!

The post How to Pay Off Your Mortgage Faster appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.

Variable-Rate Mortgages

These are also referred to as adjustable-rate mortgages. With this option, you tend to get lower interest rates. However, the rates are only fixed for a set time. Once that time is up, the interest rates will change with the market. This means you could see your low rate suddenly shoot up, which also raises your monthly payments. It’s not the best choice if you are on a strict budget.

If changing monthly payments are something you are able to cover, then a variable-rate mortgage is a good choice because you can get a lower rate if interest rates drop. It’s also a good option if you know you will be moving before the set time period is up.

Variable-rate mortgages come in two options: open variable-rate mortgages and closed variable-rate mortgages.

Open Variable-Rate Mortgages

With this option, you can pay off your entire mortgage or make extra payments without being charged a penalty. You can also adjust the term time without being penalized. The payments with this option are generally fixed for the life of the mortgage. It’s a good choice for homebuyers who can make a 20% down payment, have cash flow that changes, or if they are going to be selling the home in a short period of time.

Closed Variable-Rate Mortgages

With this option, the payments are also fixed for the life of the mortgage. There are also limits on your prepayment options, so make sure you ask your lender or broker about making lump-sum payments, the amounts you can make them for and how often.

Fixed-Rate Mortgages

With a fixed-rate mortgage, you have more control over your budget. Rates can be a bit higher with this option, however, you have that reassurance that there won’t be any surprise rises in your monthly payments and interest rates. So, if interest rates were to rise sharply, you would still keep the lower rate you started the mortgage with. The downside is that, if rates drop, you are stuck with a higher interest rate.

Fixed-rate mortgages come in three options: open fixed-rate mortgages closed fixed-rate mortgages and convertible fixed-rate mortgages.

Open Fixed-Rate Mortgage

With the open mortgage option, you can pay off your mortgage in full or with prepayments and not incur a penalty for doing so. You are also able to change your mortgage term time to give you added flexibility, while not being penalized.

Closed Fixed-Rate Mortgage

With the closed mortgage option, you can get interest rates that are a bit lower than you would get with the open mortgage. However, there can be limits regarding prepayments.

Convertible Fixed-Rate Mortgage

With the convertible mortgage option, you can switch from an open-term mortgage to a closed-term mortgage during a specified time frame and not incur penalties. This is good for those wanting to keep their options open, however, there are limits to prepayment options.

If you aren’t sure which type of mortgage is best for you, give our Smyrna mortgage lender team a call today! We’ll find the best options for you.

The post Fixed-Rate Vs. Variable-Rate Mortgages appeared first on Accurate Mortgage Group.