Bank of America Corp (BAC), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Wells Fargo & Co (WFC) – Mortgage Rates Soar: Is It Too Late to Refinance?

In assessing whether waiting makes sense, put yourself into one of three categories:

If refinancing doesn’t make sense at current rates, then it obviously makes sense to wait and hope for better ones. Contact your lender and get projections on what your savings would be under various rate assumptions. Look at them and then figure out how far rates would have to fall to make refinancing attractive. Then, find out if you can go through some of the formalities with your lender early so that you can jump on rates if they fall to your desired level.

If refinancing just barely makes sense right now, then you should strongly consider going forward. If you wait and rates rise further, you could jeopardize your entire refi.

If refinancing would still make sense even if rates rose even further, though, then you have some latitude to gamble without entirely losing the potential benefit of refinancing. If you want to wait in the hopes of getting an even better rate, then doing so has much less risk than if you’re right on the margin.

Last but not least, consider putting pressure on your lender to give you a better deal. With refinancing activity drying up, mortgage specialists are already under stress from their employers to get deals done to keep income flowing in. Don’t expect huge concessions, but small reductions in closing costs or interest rates can make the difference between a viable refi and a failed one.

Don’t stop watching
No one knows where interest rates will go next, but if you have an outstanding mortgage, it still might not be too late to refinance. Now’s the time to run the numbers and get yourself in position to act quickly if mortgage rates turn around and give borrowers some relief in the weeks and months to come.

The article Mortgage Rates Soar: Is It Too Late to Refinance? originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Dan Caplinger.

Fool contributor Dan Caplinger owns warrants on Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase. You can follow him on Twitter @DanCaplinger. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo.

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