mortgage

4 Reasons Why You Should Look At Refinancing Today

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

4 Reasons to refi pic

Spring has not sprung in Michigan just yet!

With the weather in a holding pattern and most Michiganders working from home, now is the perfect time to prepare your funds for when the weather breaks. Rather you are planning a trip in the upcoming season, and need to take cash-out or wanting to do a “spring cleaning” on those high-interest credit cards, refinancing your mortgage can put you in a much better financial position.

Here are 4 reasons you should refinance before spring: 

Get rid of unwanted high-interest credit card debt

While having credit cards make purchasing high priced items a breeze, having to pay the monthly minimum on a card with high interest can be daunting. Paying on the interest and not the principle is just band-aiding over the problem and will send you further into debt. That doesn’t have to be you! The good news is that if you refinance right now, you can pay off your credit card completely and go into spring debt-free.

Take Cash-out

Cash is king! With the weather warming up comes the opportunity to take advantage of spring home improvement projects. Don’t use your tax return to fund building a new porch or a patio. Instead, you can simply refinance and take cash out of your home’s equity. Taking cash-out can also be spent on planning a nice spring or summer vacation without the stress of going into debt to do so. 

Lower your monthly mortgage payment 

What is better than not having to use credit cards? Cash! Even with a few weeks left of winter, you can still close on the refinance of your home loan before spring! Lowering your monthly mortgage payment means more cash in your pocket.

Rates are low

You’ve heard us say it for the last several months and its true, RATES ARE STILL HISTORICALLY LOW. Rates are the lowest they have been in a decade. The reason you need to act now is because we don’t know when rates will rise again. The housing market can be very unpredictable… take advantage today and contact one of our mortgage experts to receive a free 5-minute mortgage review.

Advertisement

Why You Should Be Paying Attention to The FED Rates

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

The Fed Building

Image source: Google

As you know the Federal Reserve just announced that interest rates are holding steady! The goal of the committee is to maintain the target range for the Federal funds rate. This is to support the expansion of economic activity, strong labor market conditions, and favorable inflation.

Why should YOU pay attention to this?

A couple of reasons:

  1. You’ll be informed on the state of the economy
  2. You’ll gain knowledge on the state of the job industry
  3. Paying attention will keep you up to date on the rate of inflation
  4. If you own a home, it lets you know if you can be saving money by refinancing to get a better interest rate
  5. If you are looking to purchase a new home, you want to purchase while rates are low

The next meeting is on March 17th & 18th.

The Benefits of Purchasing a Home in The Winter

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

Illustrated Fireworks New Year Social Media

Michigan winters can be brutal! The cold weather and snowy conditions make everyone want to stay inside and cozy up next to a fire. Needless to say, looking for a house isn’t typically on the winter activity list.

Traditionally, spring and summer are the prime times to purchase, but new studies show that winter can be a great time to buy as well.

Here are a few reasons why:

Less Competition

You can bet that there are a lot of people not willing to go house looking in the dead of winter. Use that to your advantage by getting in contact with an agent and taking a few house tours. Fewer people mean less competition for your dream home. The low demand will work in your favor because you don’t have to worry about outbidding anyone.

Motivated Sellers

If there is a home that goes for sale in the winter, more than likely, that seller REALLY wants to sell. This opens the door for negotiations! The seller may be willing to lower the price, discount closing cost, or even offer other incentives like appliances to be included with the home sale.

Motivated Realtors

Everything in the winter months slows down. That means realtors may have less clientele and can give you extra attention around this time of year. They are more willing to go to bat for you and work a little harder to get you the best deal possible!

 

Are you interested in purchasing a new home this winter? Contact our mortgage experts HERE!

New Year’s Resolution: Become A Homeowner!

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

sparklers

Image source: Marisol Casben

Its that time of year again when everyone is setting their sights on new goals. From being healthier to save money to try new things, January 1st is when we all want to set ourselves up for a successful year.

One major goal many people have is to become a homeowner. This is a huge goal but very attainable. With Hall Financial, we can make it very simple and easy for you to obtain a mortgage.

Here is a step by step list of everything you need to make your homeownership dreams come true:

  1. Obtain preapproval from Hall Financial, you will need:
    1. Two years of W2s
    2. Your most recent pay stub
    3. Two months of bank statements
    4. Copy of driver’s license
    5. Credit Report
  1. Start house shopping
    1. Need a realtor? No problem, Hall Financial has preferred partners.
    2. Find a house. Put an offer in, and get it accepted!
  1. Loan documents
    1. Sign all documents
    2. Obtain homeowner’s insurance and provide to your processor.
  1. Closing
    1. Review closing documents.
    2. Schedule closing with your processor.
    3. Confirm closing date, time, and place with your realtor and processor.
    4. Sign all final documentation.

Enjoy your new home!

3 Tips for First-Time Homebuyers

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

Fall home

Image Source: Unsplashed

Buying home is one of the biggest commitments you will ever make. Not to mention it is pricey, time-consuming and can be very intimidating. If you are a first-time homebuyer and don’t know where to start, these 3 tips could help you prepare yourself for the process.

Tip #1: Be picky about your Mortgage Lender

This is a major purchase and commitment! You need to be completely comfortable with your lender. Find a lender that is in tuned to your request, concerns and anxieties. You should never feel like you are being pitched some sales tactic and what you feel doesn’t matter. You will spend many long hours communicating with this company and they should be all about catering to you and showing you MORE PERSONAL ATTENTION.

Tip #2: Take your time!

The mortgage process can be extremely daunting. From picking a real estate agent, to your dream home, to the mortgage lender…there is a lot of decisions to make and you shouldn’t rush making any of them! Take your time throughout this entire process. If you aren’t loving the way your real estate agent is communicating with you, get a new one. Or you aren’t loving any of the houses in the current market for sale, wait till you find what you want!

Tip #3: Have money saved

Not only is it nice to have a good amount of cash saved for your down payment but, there are tons of other expenses to consider. Once you get approved for that new home, you are going to want to furnish it and fill it with things you like! Also, since buying a home is so expensive, you need buffer money, just in case some random expense occurs.

 

Low Rates & Increasing Home Prices

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

low interest rates

Source: Google

Mortgage Bankers Association is forecasting that we will see a three-year-high in mortgage originations since 2016. In 2016 the industry saw $2 trillion and in 2019 MBA is predicting that we will land around $1.9 trillion.

Since the FED cut rates not once, but twice this year we have seen an increase in refinances. MBA is predicting that 35% of that $1.9 trillion will be attributed to those refinancing; which reflects Fannie Mae’s projection of refinances also being at a three-year-high.

If you are someone who follows along and have been on the fence about refinancing keep in mind that your credit score will affect the rate you get locked in to. The industry has been seeing a wide range of interest rates for credit scores of 620 through 639; anywhere around 1.33% in difference. However, if you can, you can buy down your interest rate.

Not sure what buying an interest rate means? Click here to talk to someone today!

In other news, we have been seeing an increase in home prices. Before, you cringe right now this news is good. With rates remaining low you still have the ability to get more house than you may have planned for and we are seeing an increase in inventory. Right now Detroit is sitting in the top six areas at 4.1% in year-over-year strength.

Ways to Save on Your Monthly Payments

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

mortgage savings

Source: Google

The mortgage industry has been experiencing an amazing year so far. The Federal Reserve (FED) has continued to cut rates. Need proof? Last week the FED dropped rates another quarter percent, we are currently hovering at a 2-2.25% rate.

What does that mean for you?

Well if you are looking to purchase you have the ability to buy more home for your money; however, if you are looking to refinance you are looking at saving money over the life of your loan, on top of potentially being able to lower your term.

Refinancing is one of the various ways you can utilize to help save money overall; however, if you find yourself needing alternative options and are looking to be proactive in your home financing needs, here are a few out-of-box ideas.

  1. Buy a Cheaper House – this is self-explanatory, learning to live below your means is a valuable lesson to learn and helps you budget more efficiently.
  2. Choose a Bi-Weekly Payment Option – Most loan servicers provide this option. When you choose to go this route, you end up making 26 payments a year; which adds up to you paying 1 extra payment towards your principle each year.
  3. Choose an ARM – this option is great if you don’t plan on living in your home very long. What’s the point of fixing yourself in a 30-year term if this isn’t your forever home?
  4. Extend Your Repayment Term – Example if you are in a 15-year term you can switch to a 30-year; this doesn’t change the amount of your loan but will overall lower your payments because you are extending the term.
  5. Make a Larger Down Payment – This option would make your parents feel like you are listening to them. You grew up with them harping you to save for a 20% down payment and there is a good reason why: it helps keep your monthly mortgage payment LOW.
  6. Get Rid of Your PMI – this option takes some time if your purchasing and your sellers don’t want to pay this off while negotiating. To be able to get rid of your PMI you must gain at least 20% equity in your home; once you achieve that you can request that your lender drop PMI.
  7. Pay for Points – when you pay for points you are paying for a lower interest rate. There may be more you pay for upfront in closing costs; however, over the term of your loan you aren’t acquiring unnecessary interest.

HOMEOWNERSHIP = HAPPINESS

/ hallfinancial / Leave a comment

Happy Couple Keys

Source: Google

Recent studies have shown that 93% of homeowners say that having a house makes them happier than renting did.

Why is that?

Experts are coining it “The Homeownership Effect” explaining that owning a home can make you a better person because you naturally find yourself enjoying new hobbies like gardening, landscaping, cooking, and if you are a big spender maybe even remodeling.

Besides allowing you to find and create more hobbies for yourself, it has been said by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, that owning a home helps with financial responsibility and overall better well-being. These can be attributed to homeowners living in an affordable, comfortable home located in a connected neighborhood with a reasonable commute.

However, don’t think that owning a home is the magic key to happiness. There does take a level of preparation and making sure you can comfortably afford things like property taxes, insurance, and unexpected (but relatively normal) home repairs. If you are curious whether or not your family is ready for this next step – click here – to talk with someone today about your current situation.