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Home Loan Refinancing: Facts And Tips

Home loan refinancing are now common terms among Americans. Often, since home loans imply long repayment programs, the borrowers’ financial situations vary and adjustments need to be made. That’s when home loan refinancing comes in handy. Also, there are many who want to benefit from lower interest rates that are sometimes made available to them and thus, they need to refinance their home loan. For those who are not yet familiar with home loan refinancing specifics, here are some facts and tips:

Home Loan Refinancing Nature

A refinance home loan is just another loan secured with the same asset that replaces the previous one in such a way that the money obtained from the new loan is fully (or the biggest part of it) used to repay the outstanding mortgage loan. A Refinance home loan is therefore a mortgage loan with a particular condition, the money needs to be used to cancel the previous mortgage so the asset secures fully the new loan.

Cash Out Refinance Home Loans

Cash out refinance home loans are refinance home loans that offer more money than what is needed to repay the previous mortgage’s balance. The remaining amount can be used for any purpose but is usually employed for eliminating consumer debt and thus consolidating all debt into a single loan with a very affordable interest rate. Cash out refinance loans use the available equity on the property to finance and secure this surplus.

Home Loan Refinancing For Saving Money On A Monthly Basis

One of the purposes of home loan refinancing is to save money on a monthly basis. For such use, the repayment schedule of the new loan needs to be longer than the remaining of the current loan. By extending a repayment program for 20 more years you can cut your payments by half or even more depending on the years left on your current mortgage. These obviously can guarantee you more affordable monthly payments and bring a lot of ease to your finances and income. Moreover, if you can obtain a lower rate too, you can save even more.

Home Loan Refinancing For Saving Money In The Long Run

The above situation can imply higher costs in the long run. If you want savings, then you need to pay fewer interests. There are two ways to achieve this: you can refinance and obtain a new home loan with a lower interest rate and a similar repayment program or you can refinance and obtain a ne home loan with a similar rate, a lower one or even a higher one but shrinking the repayment program so the interests rate will be calculated on a shorter schedule. This of course, implies higher monthly payments that you need to make sure you can afford.

Balloon Mortgage Refinancing

Balloon mortgage loans have little monthly payments because you mainly pay for interests and only at the end of the repayment program you have to make a balloon or lump payment to cancel the loans’ principal. Sometimes, people can not afford this lump payment and therefore choose to refinance this amount. It is a great alternative to defaulting on the loan and thus risking repossession. Moreover, it is possible to refinance into a balloon loan from a regular mortgage loan to reduce your payments for some time as well as out of a mortgage loan as explained above.

0 APR Credit Card – Truths and Traps (Page 1 of 2)

If you are struggling with ever-increasing credit card debt, a 0 APR credit card could be the magic wand for you. There are a number of 0 APR credit cards in the marketplace. These 0 Interest credit cards offer cardholders zero percent on new purchases and certain 0 APR credit card offers also allow balance transfers, lowering the interest burden even further.

The Truth About 0 APR Credit Cards

These types of 0 APR credit cards are offered by popular credit card lenders including American Express, Citibank, Chase, HSBC, and Discover. These cards have many benefits to offer if you have a good to excellent credit rating.

Keep in mind, that the zero percent offered with these cards is not permanent. It is an introductory rate and is typically offered for ninety days to as long as 12 months. At the end of the interest-free or zero percent periods, cardholders will have to pay a higher ongoing interest rate. Generally, these rates could vary between 10 % – 14% and sometimes can be as high as 24%.

A 0 APR credit card is ideal when you want to purchase something expensive but cannot find another way to finance it. There will be no interest charges for the in and you will have the introductory buffer period to pay off the expense. But buyer beware … make sure you can pay the purchase off before the introductory APR expires.

Most 0 Interest credit cards allow balance transfers from your existing higher interest cards and many will waive the transfer fees. This is one of the best methods to pay off debts at a faster rate, leading to substantial savings on the interest charges incurred.

It is possible that a single credit card can have multiple APRs including the following: 1) One APR for balance transfers, one for purchases, and one for cash advances – the APR normally would be higher for cash advances compared to balance transfers and purchases. 2) Tiered APRs – Different APR levels can be assigned for different account balance levels or tiers, e.g., 15% for balances between $1 – $500 and 17% for balances higher than $500, etc.. 3) Introductory APR – 0 APR as the introductory offer and a higher rate upon expiration of the introductory period. 4) Penalty APR – A penalty APR rate may apply if you are late with your payments.

The Traps to Watch Out For: A 0 APR credit card is an attractive proposition, and often is too tempting an offer to resist. However, it is essential to be informed about the often-untold catches in these lucrative offers.

1. The 0 APR is a Limited Time Offer – In general, the 0 APR offered is only for a limited period. The period could vary from 3 months to 12 months. This implies that purchases made during this period will not attract any interest. You need to be cautious about the expiry period and remember to pay off before the period ends inorder to avoid hefty interest charges.

2. Once the introductory period is over, the 0 APR credit card may have a ridiculously high interest rate like 20% or higher.