25 years is the amortization period for a mortgage. Amortization period means how many years it will take to pay off your mortgage at the rate it was issued. For example; if you have a 5 years fixed mortgage @ 3.4% with a 25 years amortization this means that you are going to pay the mortgage with its interest within 25 years if the mortgage rate stays the same. However the 5 year fixed rate means that your interest doesn`t change within these 5 years. So if you take any fixed mortgage rate with a 25 or 30 years amortization period it only means that you are taking a fixed mortgage rate for the net 5 years payable within 25 or 30 years. The more years of amortization the less the monthly payments of the mortgage. The less amortization years the faster you can pay off your mortgage.

Hello Roger, the beauty of a variable rate product is that you should be able to lock it in at any time to a fixed rate product with the same or longer term that what is remaining on your variable. Check with your lender to see what rates they will be offering and then check with me to see if there are better rates at your banks competitors. I am afraid that once a bank has you they are not as eager to give you the larger discounts. The other banks are always hungry for new business and will often fight for it. Give me a call once you find out what your bank is offering and I will let you know if you can save money elsewhere. Abraham Niyazi - Mortgage Agent - Lic#M08010640 - Centum One FInancial Corp - Lic 10758. Cell: 416-993-4082 Toll Free: 1-866-728-3708 http://www.centum.ca/abraham_niyazi/ I deal with 25 Banks/Lenders and can do mortgages across Canada except Quebec. Abraham Niyazi - Mortgage Agent - Lic#M08010640 - Centum One FInancial Corp - Lic 10758. Cell: 416-993-4082 Toll Free: 1-866-728-3708 http://www.centum.ca/abraham_niyazi/ I deal with 25 Banks/Lenders and can do mortgages across Canada except Quebec.

35 year amortization is available from most lenders. If you would like to speak to someone about more info please call us. Abraham Niyazi - Mortgage Agent - Easyrate.ca - 416-993-4082

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I'm confused a little and need some help. i feel i need to refinance and lock in a fixed rate, but my question is wether the recent 5yrs of house payments all went to waste since they all mostly went to interest? i owe like 200k left in the home, i have already paid 81k in 5yrs of interest! where do i go from here? i need some guidance please!!!!

Don't be too concerned with the past interest paid - its painful but all homeowners throw money at interest in the beginning of their mortgages. As indicated even on a 30 year fixed you pay mostly interest for the first 10 years before you start making a serious dent in your principal. You first step should be to shop for refinance loan rates to make sure you get the lowest rate. Ensure that you refinance at the right time to avoid any prepayment penalties and fees. We offer free, no obligation refinance loan quotes, if you are interested

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Because we have two loan types (30 year fixed 4.25% 5/1 arm will start adjusting 3/09) and a heloc (locked at 7.65% 10 yr. pay off in 2015), i’m totally confused on whether to refinance or wait until closer to adjust date. we’ve been in our home for 15 years and may possibly want to move at some point after our only child graduates in 2009, but are not certain. our home is worth $580k. our credit is superior. first loan is currently fixed at 4.25 (a 5/1 arm with a change date to start adjusting march 2009). highest rate can reach is 9.25 in 2.25% increments, 1 yr. libor index. balance $220k. second loan is a 10-year heloc we fixed at 7.65%, so rate will not be changing for remainder of the term (8 years). balance $50k. the idea of paying this loan off within 8 years (versus consolidating into a 30-yr) is appealing, but i’m totally confused at this point due to the interest rate trends. best rates in our area at this time are hovering at 6% (with 0 points and low fees). note: one question i have remaining, and my main concern, is what happens if the rates are much higher (say, 8-9%) at the time our first loan changes from a fixed 4.25% to an adjustable? the incremental adjustments are 2.25% (1 yr. libor) and the cap is 9.25%. i now understand what you all are saying, but is it a case that we don’t have any choice but to wait and see what the situation is in march 2009? (that being said, we have the option of moving when our only child goes off to college because we won’t need such a large home; however, we don’t have to move until we retire.) back to my lingering question—what if the rates are up dramatically by 3/09? it’s hard for me to figure out any kind of “ratio” because the $50k heloc will be paid off in 8 more years, which is a big plus to us as we get older. am i correct in assuming we should pay down aggressively on the loans and not concern ourselves with any rate hike in 3/09? thanks again!! note to "arcangel" : we would never consider an interest-only loan. we took out our only 5/1 arm in 2004 because we had plans to move within five years and it was fixed at only 4.25% for five years, an almost 2% drop from a fixed rate at the time. the move never materialized as planned. the heloc was fixed from the get-go and the equity was used for wise and necessary improvements around our home. every loan we’ve ever taken out in our life has been 0 points (zero origination and 0 discount points) and we’ve carefully chosen our lenders and reviewed all fees beforehand not to be taken in by an unscrupulous lender who charges unnecessary fees. i can now see the wisdom of staying put since we’ll most likely move when our only child graduates, so the mortgage will need to be sold off at that point anyway.

Don't refinance just yet. 1. You say the "rates" in your area are around 6%, but your APR will not be less than 6.25%. Ask specifically for the APR when you're comparing rates; that's what you really pay. 2. Conventional wisdom says to refinance when you can lower your rate by one point. If you refinance and roll your HELOC and mortgage together, you'll have a higher overall rate right now. 3. Interest rates are expected to go down later this year (which is why the stock market has rallied lately). You don't want to refinance now right before rates are cut. 4. Your mortgage is fixed at a very low rate for another two years. Take advantage and leave it there! Your HELOC rate is relatively low as well. It's a little higher than what you can earn on cash savings, but the interest is tax deductible anyway, so you're really paying around 5.4% (assuming your in the 30% tax bracket). If you really want to optimize your situation, start paying extra on the mortgage, as though you were paying a 6.25% loan (which is what you'd have if you refinanced). Or focus on aggressively paying off your HELOC. It's not worth the fees to refinance either one.

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I bought my house about 2.5 years ago and am wondering if i should refinance now to lock in today’s low rates or just wait it out. the house is worth about 850k. my first mortgage is a 600k 7 year arm at 5.85% (4.5 years left). my second mortgage is about 70k at 7.8% which i plan on paying off before the arm resets. now that i have 20% equity in my house my lender can wrap both loans into a 6.25% 30 year loan with about 3-4k closing costs. i have no idea of how long we will be in the house but have no plans of moving any time soon. i am just worried that in 4.5 years when the arm adjusts refinancing rates are going to be much higher. do you think rates will get better towards the end of the year if the economy starts to get better? your thoughts would be great. thanks for all your help guys. just had the appraisal and it fell just at 850k (100k more than i bought it for 2.5 years ago after kitchen and bathroom remodels). i realize that the conforming loan limits have been modifed but loans above 417k are still considered higher risk and have about 0.5-0.75% higher rate than conforming loans. better but not quite equal.

I would refinance now and consolidate the 2 mortgages into one. My friend could actually match the rate you have on the 1st mortgage right now and put you into a 30 year fix. I doubt that you will be able to do that when your note turns into an adjustable. That is a problem many people are experiencing and why so many face foreclosure. Also, now you would only be paying interest on one loan instead of 2 and your payments should go down. If you wanted you could apply the savings to your home mortgage and pay it off sooner then expected. With the new stimulus package that came out your loan will not be looked at as a jumbo loan until Dec 31st. You should shoot my friend an email, he’s the best out there and licensed in our states. mike@afbankloans.com Good Luck!

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I locked a refinance on my mortgage about 2 weeks ago with wells fargo. we were suppose to close the end of february but we didn't. i am still locked at 5.5 but i'm afraid that the bank will back down on the deal because interests are now about 6.5 or so. we are now suppose to close after the 15th of march. has this ever happened, where the bank backs out of the deal? they said we could not close because there was a surge on refinances and did not get to mine on time. thanks

That does happen, especially with Wells Fargo these days. They are closing branches and consolidating like crazy. So the people that are left are swamped and slow to complete their work. You should have some options to extend the lock, even if it costs you a little extend. If all else fails, keep the faith, rates are coming down again. You may get a better deal than you thought.

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What options do i have when the value of my house is lower then my current mortgage balance, yet i would like to refinance? the difference is about 12-15k. my mortgage which is an arm has a locked rate for 5 years which would update in 2012. i would like to get a lower rate (current rate is 7%) and get out of my arm to a fixed, but need sound financial advice on if this is even something i should consider. thanks

The only thing you could do is come up with cash and get your balance down to where it is about 80% of the value of the house. No bank is going to refinance the loan while you are underwater/upside down. Your best bet is to continue to pay down the mortgage until at least 2011, hope real estate prices bounce back somewhat and that interest rates don't go way up.

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I'm confused as the interested rate being so low, while i'm locked at 5.4% for another two years (1year 11months). ok here is the story, i have a house which is about 300k worth and i have just over $100,000 mortgage remains on it. my mortgage policy matures in apr 2011, interest rate is 5.40%. i actually bought house three years ago and i put over 25% down and i paid off about under $100k in principle in three years (my bank allows me to pay max 15% principle each year, so i try to make extra payment each year). i was wondering if it is good idea to refinance it? even though i don't need any extra money or anything (no cash back). only thing that is making me think about is interest rate which is almost at 3.59% (if i refinance for three years, as i think i will pay it off in three years). my refinance plenty will be around $2,500 (meaing i have to pre-pay interest difference for the rest of the term). i hope/think i will be able to pay 15% each year for the remaining term as well. so do you think if it's good idea to refinance or i should stick with what i have at the moment?

As a Certified Financial Planner, If you are going to pay off the house in 3 years, forget about the 15% just go hog wild on the mortgage. Sure you will pay like a 1%ppp but that is better than refinancing a whole mortgage. You may have less interest. If you are < 3years, just pay it off! congratulations.

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My current 30-yr conventional loan is set at 5.925% and the arm loans (5-7 yr) are at around 4.25% and i stand to save about $100-$125/month if i switch. my question is this...i understand the concept of the interest rate changing (potentially way upward) at the end of the arm term but are you bound to accept the change or can you refinance to another arm loan at the end of the term and get a similar low interest rate instead of accepting the jump in interest? i don't plan on moving out of my house and from what i've been reading and what i've been told so far the arm loans are great for people who plan to "move" or "refinance" within 5 to 7 years. i just want to clarify if i were to go the route of an arm loan in order to lower my monthly payment and use the savings to invest elsewhere, that at the end of 7 years i would or would not be bound to accept the increase/decrease of the interest rate or can i refinance to yet another arm loan at that time in order to avoid a severe increase and lock in that rate for another introductory period of 5 to 7 years? this seems like a feasible option to free up some money but not get screwed on the back end if the interest rate goes from 4.25% to 9.75% in the 8th year and there's nothing i can do but take it.

Your current financial and future financial situations should dictate it you would benefit by an ARM or not. You should find out what the payment would be with the increase in interest rate at the end of the 5-7 year ARM. If, in our opinion, you would be able to make these future payments then you might consider an ARM. In all instances you may refinance your mortgage whenever there is sufficient equity that would allow you to refinance. In this real estate climate I can not see the equity surpassing the mortgage loan balance anytime soon, with the number of properties losing equity across the United States.If you would not have sufficient equity when time to refinance out of your ARM, you would be required to be able to pay what ever the monthly mortgage payments would be caused by the interest rate increase. You should keep in mind that there are points and fees involved in the refinance of your mortgage loan. Even if you receive a no point/no fee loan you are paying for the cost of the mortgage loan in an increase in the mortgage interest rate. I find that most that use this method as a way of savings for investments or savings that most do not succeed as they seldom if ever place the saving in a saving instrument of any kind thus wind up spending the money they would or is suppose to save by the reduced monthly mortgage payments. I hope this has been of some benefit to you,good luck. "FIGHT ON"

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I own a house i bought in 2005 (zip code area 55434). by then, the its value was a little more than 250, 0000. now, its value is only 220,000 and i have no equity on this property. i have been paying interest only! now when i try to refinance the house (previously locked for 5 years), the payment are higher than i expected and i felt that i am one of the victims of mortgage scam. what should i do at this point? walk out or another option? please your advice! thanks

Somehow, I don't think you are 12. You knew when you bought the house that you signed an interest only deal. You knew when you bought the house that the payments would go up in 5 years. You knew when you bought the house that if you didn't buy the house you would be paying rent money someplace else. No gun was held to your head to make you sign. Yes the bank was stupid to let you borrow the money with nothing down, but that doesn't make it a crime. A crime is when the inflated the value of the house by getting bad appraisals or changed your income on the loan application so you would qualify. Everything else was hype. You GAMBLED that either a) your income would go up enough that you could make the payments, b) you could refinance to a fixed, lower rate or c) that the value of the house would go up and you could either live on the equity or walk away with a tidy profit, You GAMBLED and lost, but that doesn't let you off the hook for this money. You still owe this money and you should make every effort to pay what you contracted to pay. If you don't, you will be trashing your credit for many years to come. You will not be able to buy another house (if there is any justice in the world). Except for the fact that the government gave you a gimmie, you'd have $30,000 of taxable income on your 1040. (And Minnesota apparently lets you walk too.) Otherwise, you have helped ruin the housing market for those of us who *did* buy within our means and pay off our houses.

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Well fargo hell i have a perfect credit score over 800 we have never been late on our payments on our house our problem is we had arm that was locked 5 years it comes up next year. well fargo says they cant refinance us because we do not make enough . we have no car payments no credit cards we are very responsible. but im in the wells fargo hell they keep giving us the run around for the last year !! i get a automated call about every 6 days saying i must contact them and then the say there is no update constantly stoking the fire.....my next thing is to go after them with a lawyer can anyone point me either to a lawyer or how to contact someone in this clueless obama admin that can help us. i must be one of many who are falling thru the cracks please help someone sleepless that my wife and daughter are going to loose our home....

Have you tried to refinance at a different bank?