Determine the best time to refinance a mortgage

NORTH COUNTY - Refinancing a mortgage is advantageous to homeowners for a variety of reasons. The primary reasons people refinance their mortgages are to reduce their monthly payments or free up equity to use toward home improvements or other necessities. Lenders will frequently advertise that “now” is the time to refinance, but people may want to get all of the facts before making their decisions.

A low interest rate is not reason alone to refinance. Conventional wisdom has long suggested that borrowers wait to refinance until interest rates drop 2 percent below their current rate. While a lo...