| Minorities in US hit hardest by housing crisis
In May, Alvin Clavon received a foreclosure notice on the simple, Spanish-style house in South Los Angeles that he shares with his wife and three boys. Clavon bought the place in 2003 with a fixed-rate loan. They painted the walls, fixed the yard and made friends with the neighbors, who let the Clavon boys pick their basil. In 2005, worked with a mortgage broker to refinance his home with another fixed-rate loan. But on the night before signing, the family was offered an interest-only, adjustable-rate mortgage. Clavon, a 35-year-old executive assistant at a bank, said he felt stuck. The ball was rolling, he trusted his broker and so the next day, he signed the loan. "Turned out to be the worst thing I could have done," said Clavon, who like so many others in danger of losing their home to the U.S.
Bad-news economy is good news for some homeowners
Can there be a silver lining in the economic downturn? Perhaps. Sharp interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve make this a good time for home-owners to consider refinancing their mortgages. Last week's cut of three quarters of a percentage point — with another cut of as much as a half point expected this week — has put interest rates at a two-year low and close to the lowest point they've been in this decade. Thirty-year mortgage rates are dropping below 5 percent. But does that mean this a good time to refinance? "If you have a 6.75, 7 or 7.5 percent rate, this could be a good time to refinance," according to John G. Gerlach, president and CEO of Pocono Community Bank. "Anytime you have a 100 basis point spread, it's a good time to take a look at refinancing," he said.
Refinance A Second Mortgage - The Right Choice To Save Money Every ...
There are many homeowners in America that have a second mortgage. If you're one of these homeowners, you may have wondered about refinancing your it. Can you refinance it, and if you can, should you? As with many financial questions, the answer to your refinancing question may be simple to answer, or it may be a bit more complex. It all depends on your particular financial situation. First of all, if you have a second mortgage, many lenders will try to get you to combine your mortgages when you refinance. That's great for them. They get a larger loan on their books that way. It may or not be the right course of action for you, however. It depends upon the terms and balances of both your mortgages weather you should combine your first and second mortgages when refinancing. If your first mortgage has a low rate it may be better to just keep it as it is.
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