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When mortgage rates are low, homeowners can take advantage of these lower rates by refinancing. This presents a great opportunity for homeowners to refinance their mortgages, especially if the rate they are currently locked in at is much higher than what they can get today.
But rates have been very high over the past couple of years. That said, rates have actually reached a peak recently and are expected to decline over the next few months. Given this, is 2024 a good time for you to refinance in Portland, OR?
Here’s a roundup of recent market trends to help you make an informed decision about refinancing.
It’s an understatement to say that Portland home prices have risen over the past few years. The truth is they’ve climbed steadily in recent years, reaching levels never before seen.
This is good news for those who are thinking about refinancing a mortgage loan in Portland, especially for those who got in the market before prices really started to take off. As a result of this trend, you might have more equity now than when you first purchased the home — maybe a lot more.
And having positive equity is usually one of the key requirements to refinance a home in Portland, or anywhere else for that matter. This means a larger pool of Portland homeowners could now benefit from a refinance.
According to the real estate information company Zillow, the median home value for Portland is $519,746. In December 2023, prices were down 2.6% year-over-year, based on the company’s data. However, over the past 5 years, home prices are up 20.4%. This has given homeowners a healthy boost in equity.
Portland homeowners refinance their homes for different reasons. But most people use refinancing as a way to secure a lower mortgage rate and reduce their monthly payments going forward.
A home refinance makes sense if you can reduce your interest rate by half a percent or more. But that’s just a general guideline. The best way to determine if refinancing will work to your advantage is to compare the costs of the refi to the amount you will save going forward.
We can help you figure out if it’s a good time to refinance your home in Portland by determining the break-even point. This is the point at which the money you save (by securing a lower interest rate) begins to exceed the amount paid in closing costs.
This timeframe will vary from one homeowner to the next, depending on the current mortgage rate, the rate assigned to the new loan, and the amount of closing costs.
A low mortgage rate is ideal to help you keep your mortgage payments low. But rates are currently high, despite the potential for them to dip in 2024. Mortgage interest rates for a 30-year fixed mortgage is currently at 6.61%, according to Freddie Mac.
Some Portland homeowners who refinance their mortgage loans choose to pay points in exchange for a lower interest rate. Depending on the financing scenario, this could enable the homeowner to save money over time by paying less in total interest.
In this context, a “point” is equal to 1% of the loan amount. Home buyers and refinancing homeowners in Portland sometimes pay points to secure a lower rate. You can think of it as a form of prepaid interest. You are paying more upfront in order to reduce the rate and the monthly payments over the long-term. The longer you stay in the home, the more paying points makes sense.
Are you thinking of refinancing your Portland home in an effort to take advantage of today’s very low mortgage interest rates? Sammamish Mortgage can help! We are a local, family-owned company based in Bellevue, Washington and currently lend in all of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Colorado. We’ve been offering many different mortgage programs since 1992, including our Diamond Homebuyer Program, Cash Buyer Program, and Bridge Loans. Please contact us if you have mortgage-related questions.
Whether you’re buying a home or ready to refinance, our professionals can help.
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No Obligation and transparency 24/7. Instantly compare live rates and costs from our network of lenders across the country. Real-time accurate rates and closing costs for a variety of loan programs custom to your specific situation.