Would you like to refinance and take advantage of today’s low mortgage rates, but don’t think you have enough equity? Think again. Recently, the U.S. government made some changes to its Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to make it available to more homeowners.
This program, which is offered by the U.S. Departments of Treasury & Housing and Urban Development, was made available to help those homeowners who have been unable to obtain a traditional refinance because the value of their home has declined. Refinancing at today’s record low interest rates may help homeowners reduce their monthly payments, and save money over the length of their mortgage.
There are some eligibility requirements that homeowners will need to meet, including:
- a mortgage owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae
- a mortgage that was sold to Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae on or before May 31, 2009
- a mortgage that has not been refinanced under HARP previously (until it is a Fannie Mae loan that was refinanced under HARP from March-May 2009)
- a good payment history over the last 12 months, and be currently up-to-date on mortgage payments
- a current loan-to-value ratio greater than 80 percent
Banks are currently working to implement this new program in their systems. You can contact your mortgage servicer directly to see if you’ll qualify to refinance through this new program.
Learn more about HARP from makinghomeaffordable.gov.
