Refinancing Help

[Dave]

Hi,

I am seriously thinking about refinancing my house over the recent cut in interest rates and to get away from my current Mortgage company that I am with. I bought my first house in April of last year and it's been quite a learning experince.

The mortgage company I was with handled my escrow also. It all seemed like a good idea at the time and they handled it pretty well. Then they merged with another Mortgage company and thats when my problems started to come into play. They basicly refunded 600 dollars back claiming I overpaid then called me saying they made an error and to send it back. I paid it back with instructions on the check to pay it to my escrow which is where they made the error. They made more mistakes which caused my monthly mortgage payments to rise and I would have to call them each time. Each time they would claim I never paid that money back which I did pay it back.

I finally got tired of it and told them I would handle my escorw on my own. Something I should have done since the beginning but I let them do it. They told me no and that I have to wait til June til I could take that back over.

I wanted to ask here for some advice on refinancing so I could get some ideas of what to do or not to do. I am on a fixed rate right now and like to stay on that. Also I like to take care of my escrow on my own. I've been flipping through the phone book and seeing stuff like we do not have this fee or that. What should I be looking for or trying to avoid. Thank you all for taking time in reading this.

Dave

[Brick]

What is it about mortgage companies these days.

My loan was sold to Ocwen not long after I bought it and I have had nothing but trouble up to and including the complete loss of one of my payments. I spoke with an attorney and was told that sure I had a case, but it would be cheaper to just payup rather than to take it to court. :(

[chel0524]

What is it about mortgage companies these days.

My loan was sold to Ocwen not long after I bought it and I have had nothing but trouble up to and including the complete loss of one of my payments. I spoke with an attorney and was told that sure I had a case, but it would be cheaper to just payup rather than to take it to court. :(

We have Ocwen as well. They are a complete nightmare. Heaven help you if you really do miss a payment. There will be legal fees, property valuation fees, please call us fees, mail it in fees, fax it to us fees and just because we said so fees. They are going to be our downfall yet.

[Dave]

I have Citi Mortgage. Ever since they took over, I have had nothing but problems like I said. I googled searched them one time and found other people that were having trouble with them also.

I'll try and avoid Ocwen if I can help it. It's kinda scary to see all of this happening. Right now I am paying 200 dollars more then what I should be paying. I am hoping with the new cut in interst rates, that I can be able to find a good deal. That and I did pay more through my extra savings I had after I bought the house. When they started making errors etc., I stopped making extra payments from that.

[I'm all 67X]

Sorry to hear of the issues. I had a horrible experience with a company last year too, prior to our refi. I can recommend Wells Fargo though. They have been fantastic in every aspect and when you call, you get an American on the line (unlike last co.- they never understood a word I was saying). I know they can be a bit more stringent but boy is it worth it. If you have good credit, I'd put them on my short list.

Best wishes...

[Brick]

The sad part of it all is it seems you really can't choose your mortgage company any more, at least not for the long term. Once you sighn all the paperwork and get things going they package up your mortgage and then sell it off and you get who knows what.

[harvest]

Here's some tips that hopefully helps...
You need to first figure out how much your home is worth. If you're in California, Nevada, Arizona, or Florida your home has lost 20%-30% of it's value from last year.
Since you said you bought it last year, you unfortunately have lost equity since the market is down. Unless you put money down(10-20%) there's no bank that will refinance your current loan because your LTV(loan to value) is too high, or in other words you're upside down or have very little equity.

If you have good credit then go to a retail bank like B of A, Wachovia, WAMU, Wells Fargo. They service most of their loans and you will pay very minimal fees. Do not pick a broker from the yellow pages because they advertised "free" or "no cost". That doesn't exist, and the way they get away with it is by padding the rate so you are paying a higher rate for less fees. Remember the old saying, "If it's too good to be true then it probably aint true".

Also, be prepared to show documented income the last 2 yrs that show a DTI(debt to income) of no more than 45%, if you have little equity in your home. Banking has gotten so tight that good credit is not enough these days, banks want to see you have equity in your home.

Lastly, despite what you read in the paper regarding the Fed lowering rates, that doesn't mean 30 yr mortgage rates are lower. The Fed rate is what banks pay, and 30 yr mortgage rates are based off the 10 yr bond. Unfortuntely rates have gone up despite recent Fed cuts, due to market conditions.

[Dave]

Thanks for the info, Harvest. I did some looking and could not find anything so I think I am just going to take the escrow back in June and keep up with it myself. I hope that fixes my problem.

[harvest]

Thanks for the info, Harvest. I did some looking and could not find anything so I think I am just going to take the escrow back in June and keep up with it myself. I hope that fixes my problem.

Hopefully things work out for you. Handling escrow yourself usually eliminates any potential errors. Although rare, it does happen unfortuantely.
:hat