Refinancing Your Los Angeles Home

By AJ Fanter
Local Lender Columnist
Apr 17, 2006
If you live in the Los Angeles area, now is great time to consider refinancing. Before you choose your lender, it's important to understand all of the costs involved in refinancing so you end up with the best deal available.

Refinancing

When you refinance, you are paying off your old mortgage and getting a new one - often with better terms. When you obtain a new loan, you will still pay all of the same costs as with your original mortgage. If you're planning on staying in your home for more than a few years, in most cases these initial costs are worthwhile.

Understanding the Costs

If you are considering refinancing your Los Angeles home, you'll want to thoroughly research all of the associated costs and calculate your "break-even point." By doing this, you'll discover how many months you'll need to continue living in your home in order to recoup the savings from your refinancing. Costs can include an application fee, appraisals, additional insurance costs, home inspections, title insurance, cost of points, and other settlement fess. You might also want to take into consideration any tax savings you may lose as a result of having a smaller mortgage.

Finding the Best Deal In Los Angeles

One of the fastest and most effective means of finding out how much you can save is by using a mortgage calculator. These calculators can help you calculate your monthly payments as well as your net savings and even your own "break-even point."

About the Author
AJ Fanter is a freelance writer based in Reno, NV.