VA Loan Refinance

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There are many reasons to refinance your home loan and most likely you saw a commercial, received a mailer or just came from an appointment with your financial advisor. In any event you have been in your home now for at least six months or longer and the initial interest rate on your first loan was not optimal. It might be time to think about the long term savings you can achieve by completing a refinance transaction. In many instances you might even make a call to your current lender to see what they have to offer only to be told you need to wait or you owe too much based on an AVM which is a computer appraisal program. Do not give up as many banks and lenders have moved their business models out of correspondent lending and are dealing only in the wholesale market now.

When you call your current lender to see what they have to offer, you might be shocked at their response. Please see our Lender Referral section for some professionals we believe go above and beyond the job description.

There are many options for you but you really need to be careful when shopping for rates. Just because you see a commercial on television that one bank is offering a really low interest rate does not necessarily mean you actually qualify for that. There are many factors that include income to debt ratio, appraisal value, credit score, and current market conditions. Lenders also want to see employment history and bank balances as well. Since the 2008 financial crisis it really seems like banks and lenders are asking for more and more background information where it is almost ridiculous on the things they want and how many times you actually have to send the information. This leads to frustration and anger as you do this over and over again and there is no forward momentum with your transaction. Working with the right lender can almost cost you nothing to complete the transaction. We deal with these lenders and loan officers and in many instances there are credits issued to help cover the cost of the transaction.

You call your chosen lender and discuss rates, terms and payments. Their job is to make sure that your loan application is as accurate as possible, order the appraisal, and order title. What that means is that you have passed through the initial underwriting guidelines and ready to start the process. All of your financial information and loan application is sent to underwriting for a closer review which will also include your credit report, appraisal, loan application, and other financials that apply. Often the underwriters will ask for additional statements from you to explain things on your credit or large deposits or withdrawals from your own bank account. Some clients have stated to us that they do what is right and follow all of the rules but still are treated like deadbeats when it comes time to get a new loan. We feel your frustration but working with the right professionals makes the world of difference. We work with them and we are also victims of the wrong ones as well. We hear all of the stories good and bad and created this to help you make the right choices in the beginning before it is too late.

The refinance transaction is a pretty simple process where a settlement agent will come to your home, office or you may even opt to come to a title insurance company to sign your documents. Just remember that if you are refinancing your primary home there is a right to cancel so you have 3 business days to review your documents and actually cancel the transaction if you change your mind. If you are refinancing an investment property, there is no right of cancellation. This process can take from 15 minutes up to about 1 hour and the speed and time it takes is up to you. Our longest refinance transaction took a little over 3 hours but the customer dictates that, not the settlement agent. We have heard so many stories that people were rushed or even the Notary closer, which is someone that is not legally able to complete the transaction was hired very cheaply just to witness you signing the documents so they will never explain anything to you. These practices are going away but they still do happen as it is illegal and the companies that do this eventually get caught and fined.

In this area, only a licensed title insurance producer, settlement agent, or attorney can legally close your refinance settlement so insist to your loan officer and lender that you want a clear concise explanation of all of the documents that are included in your loan package. That is why we insist to clients and new consumers to utilize the services of The Gentleman Closer so you know what you are signing. We say this with confidence because we have met thousands of homeowners that do not have a clue about what they signed or at least a good understanding. APR is the biggest and Forbearance is next on the list. If you can explain those to me, then I know that your first or last settlement was done the right way.

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