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What's going to happen to mortgage rates?

No one can predict the movement of interest rates accurately. It's relatively safe to predict that rates will rise in 2007, but no one knows how far they will rise and whether the increase will be slow and steady through the year or whether most of the increase will take place in just a few months, with rates being relatively flat the rest of the year.

And the pundits could be wrong -- rates could fall in 2007.

So, should I refinance in 2007? The answer to that depends on many factors. If you want to refinance strictly to get a lower interest rate, you're probably better off doing it sooner rather than later.

There are other reasons to refinance. Some people refinance to get rid of mortgage insurance. Others do it to pay off high-rate home-equity lines of credit and consolidate all that debt into one mortgage loan. Still others look at refinancing as a way to escape rising interest rates on adjustable-rate mortgages, particularly on interest-only and pay-option ARMs.

If you decide to refinance for one of the above reasons, contact me today to discuss all your options and get all the facts. You might find, for example, that it costs more in the long run (but less in the short run) to consolidate all your debt into one mortgage.

Then when should I refinance? Refinance your mortgage when you're ready to do it. In other words, if it makes financial sense to refinance at a certain time, go ahead and do it. Don't wait for rates to fall further. You can't know if you grabbed the rock-bottom rate until after the fact, so don't even try.

When it comes to mortgages, getting a good rate is good enough. The world won't end if you don't get the absolute best rate.

Should I wait before I buy a house? Waiting for home prices to hit bottom is just like waiting for interest rates to reach their nadir. You can't count on timing the market correctly. When you find the right house at an acceptable price, go ahead and get it. If house values in the neighborhood fall after that, well, you didn't buy the house just to sell it a few months later, right? The house is almost assured of appreciating over the next few years, even if its value falls for a while at first.

Our goal is to educate the consumer on one of the largest purchases they will ever make. Please feel free to submit all your mortgage related questions and we promise to respond within 48 hours!