Mortgage Refi Dilemma

[Vanquisher]

Definitely try SunTrust and other banks too!

http://whitecoatinvestor.com/persona...mortgage-loan/

[GrayMatterWife]

Definitely try SunTrust and other banks too!

http://whitecoatinvestor.com/persona...mortgage-loan/

Our mortgage is from SunTrust. They were able to do better than a physician loan for us because of our circumstances. They definitely worked the hardest to get us the best deal.

[SoonerTexan]

No suntrust in TX :/


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[spotty_dog]

US Bank physician loan would have matched any rate we got anywhere, and worked with us on other fees as well. But I was pretty annoyed with the person we were working with and how much I had to push him to get him to give me a full account of the fees that would be charged. I bet your experience would vary with the loan officer you worked with. I liked my person at our credit union so much I was willing to pay a little more in closing costs to get her service...but we were in a financial position to be able to afford to pay for service, you know?

The Bogleheads people rave about Pen Fed. https://www.penfed.org/30-Year-Fixed-Mortgage/ You have to have a government connection, but supposedly it can be as simple as paying a year of dues to a military charity. (https://netmember1.penfed.org/NetMem...spx?MEMBERSHIP choose "Other") Their rates are competitive, and their fees are minimal.

[SoonerTexan]

The compass guy got back to me and said don't bother with a Physician loan of you have 20% equity, so we are just going to go with the guy we worked with last time. He's already listed out the fees for us.

Very interesting thread though, thanks for the feedback. I learned some new stuff and I'm glad to get feedback to do the 30 year. I think we will be happier. I only wish we had done it a year ago when rates were lower.


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[peggyfromwastate]

We have had two lones from PenFed- their rates and fees are very low but you have to do a lot more of your paperwork. A car loan we had- we had to deliver the paperwork to the dealership, etc. It was just a different experience. Not bad-- just more work than other banks we've dealt with.

We will use them again someday I am sure...

[SoonerTexan]

Thoughts on an ARM? Rates have jumped a lot in the last week (why didn't we get on this earlier!!!) and while it isn't a huge difference and still saving us money, it's not as good of a proposition as it was in the beginning. I know they are kind of a dirty word post financial crisis, but given we have a pretty set end date for being in this house, I'm wondering if we should take advantage.

We could do a 7/1 ARM at the same rate we have now. 5/1 at a better rate, but a lot of stuff will be happening in 5 years and I'm not sure I want to deal with a rising mortgage payment as we finish fellowship.

Current rate: 3.75%
Refi 30 year: 4.125%
5/1 ARM: 3.5%
7/1 ARM: 3.75%

Residency is over in 4 years. We expect to do a Fellowship, but don't know where. If we stay in DFW, I cant see us in this house longer than 1-2 years post fellowship...we have filled it up and are bordering on outgrowing it now.

[Vanquisher]

Have you checked all the banks?

[JDAZ11]

Have you checked all the banks?

Yeah. I would keep checking with them. Our Drs loan was lower than the published rate by quite a lot actually.


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[ladymoreta]

We have an ARM. I think as long as you pay attention to when your rate will start going up and make sure you have enough equity to refinance before then, you'll be ok. It's a gamble, but it's one we were comfortable with.

[MrsK]

Honestly, and this is coming from someone who is very risk adverse, I wouldn't do an ARM or a Balloon after seeing the real estate market crash during the late 2000s. A lot of people took loans with short term ARM and/or a Balloon payment thinking that they'd just refi when the term was up. Then, when the term ended, the interest rates had sky-rocketed and they weren't able to qualify for permanent financing.

[spotty_dog]

Yeah, it's easy enough to say "We'll just sell," but looking at people who had to sit on their residency houses for a year or more waiting for the market to recover, just 5-10 years ago...I wouldn't go there. :\

[Pollyanna]

Another vote for No on the ARM. Those scare the heck out of me!

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

We have an ARM. I think as long as you pay attention to when your rate will start going up and make sure you have enough equity to refinance before then, you'll be ok. It's a gamble, but it's one we were comfortable with.

We did this as well. We have a 7 year ARM. We'd have to sell before then anyway because of fellowship/outgrowing the house. This area didn't really crash, it flattened but then started growing again during the housing bubble. We put down 20% so could refinance or even sell at a loss if we needed to get out of the house badly to move to our training locale. Our house would also rent for almost 1.5x our mortgage so not worried. It's like resident central around here, they always, always are looking to rent.

[ladymoreta]

We did this as well. We have a 7 year ARM. We'd have to sell before then anyway because of fellowship/outgrowing the house. This area didn't really crash, it flattened but then started growing again during the housing bubble. We put down 20% so could refinance or even sell at a loss if we needed to get out of the house badly to move to our training locale. Our house would also rent for almost 1.5x our mortgage so not worried. It's like resident central around here, they always, always are looking to rent.

Same here, with avoiding the bubble/crash and having a 7-year ARM. We also bought far below our possible housing budget, so even if our mortgage goes up by $1000 per month, it would cut into our debt repayment or savings, but it wouldn't kill our budget. When you bought your house, ST, it was based on your salary alone. Now you have your DH's, and he will have an attending salary within 7 years. Sure, nothing is guaranteed, but it's a pretty safe bet if you can get a 7-year ARM. Technically, I guess an ARM isn't a fantastic choice, but it'll most likely be fine in your case.