Mortgage & Refinancing Information

Adjustable Rate Basics


An adjustable rate loan, most simply stated, means that your interest rate can be adjusted up or down over the months and years. By adjusting the interest rate your monthly payments might also change.

In order to make an intelligent choice between a fixed rate and an adjustable rate loan, you have to understand the jargon of the adjustable loan and how it works.

For example: Your initial rate will be 8 percent. The base rate will be 9 percent, with semiannual adjustments. The index will be the floating Treasury Bill rate, and there will be a margin of 3 points over that. You will have an annual cap of 1 percentage point, a lifetime cap of 5 percentage points.

Initial Rate. The initial rate might be an attractive rate. The initial rate will last until the first adjustment occurs, which is usually after six months.

Base Rate. The Base rate is the interest rate on which the lifetime cap is calculated. If you have a lifetime cap of 5 percent, that means that your interest rate over the life of the loan cannot be greater than 5 points above the base rate. In the above example, the base rate is 9 percent, and the lifetime cap is 5 percent. That means that your interest rate over the life of the loan cannot exceed 14 percent.

Index: The index is an arbitrary number, beyond the control of the lender, which is used to determine interest adjustments. The common indices are the so-called cost of funds for certain savings institutions or an interest rate that the U.S. government pays when it borrows money. In the example above, the index is based on the interest rate the U.S. government pays on its very short-term borrowings (Treasury Bills). All indices will move up and down as interest rate trends change.

Margin: The index plus the margin equals the interest you'll be required to begin paying at the start of each adjustment period. For example, if, after the first six months of your loan, the index has increased from 6.8 percent to 7.2 percent, the interest rate you will have to pay on your loan from that time on will be 10.2 percent: the index of 7.2 percent plus the margin of 3 percentage points. Similarly, if the index goes down, so will the rate you pay.

Lifetime cap: This fixes the maximum interest rate you will pay during the life of the loan. The lifetime cap is added to the base rate to get the ultimate maximum.

Annual Cap: The annual cap puts a limit on how much your payments can increase during the course of a year. (In some loans , this cap may be based on a shorter period of time, such as six months.)

Genesis Font is an SEO and Developer for LoansInteractive.com > Mortgage and Loan Officer Websites. We also offer Quality Web Hosting Services.

  


MORE RESOURCES:

Washington Times

The Truth About Mortgage Refinancing Revealed By Connecticut ...
SBWire (press release), WI - 18 hours ago
Westport, Connecticut based Mortgage Broker Don Caiati reveals mortgage refinancing secrets at a new web site that is full of free reports, a home buying ...
Refinancing suddenly booms Honolulu Advertiser
Lenders Backlogged By Refinancing Rush Washington Post
Low Mortgage Rates Bring Refinancing Boom MSNBC
Forbes - Modesto Bee
all 23 news articles


Xinhua

Average Mortgage Rate Hits 5%, Lowest in Decades
New York Times, United States - 10 hours ago
Of course, buying a home is a more lengthy process than simply calling up a mortgage broker to refinance, and activity typically slows during the holiday ...
US Banks Offer Mortgages Below 5% After Fed Action Bloomberg
Long-Term Mortgage Rate Falls Again Wall Street Journal
Mortgage rates fall to record low again Forbes
Boston Globe - Baltimore Sun
all 862 news articles


Cardoza proposal could aid housing crisis
Stockton Record, CA - 3 hours ago
Under the Cardoza plan, the payment on that mortgage refinanced to 4 percent fixed rate would drop to $1194 a month. Contact reporter Bruce Spence at (209) ...


REFILE-UPDATE 1-US mortgage demand dipped before Fed move-MBA
Reuters - Jan 7, 2009
The jump in applications during December may have been driven by homeowners already "on the fence" and prepared to refinance on a drop in mortgage rates, ...
Mortgage applications down in latest survey Forbes
Week-to-week mortgage applications down 8.2% MarketWatch
Fewer apply for home loans; credit line delinquencies increase Los Angeles Times
KVOA.com - Kansas City Star
all 63 news articles


Boston Globe

Fed’s Rosengren Calls for ‘Concerted’ Fiscal, Monetary Policies
Bloomberg - 5 hours ago
... to purchase or refinance homes,” Rosengren said. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped for a 10th week to 5.01 percent yesterday, ...
Rosengren sees path to recovery Boston Globe
Fed's Rosengren says recession more severe than thought Reuters
all 51 news articles


AFP

Congressional Press Release on Mortgage Deal
Wall Street Journal - 10 hours ago
"Despite efforts by Congress to address this issue, not enough lenders have come to the table to help borrowers with bad mortgages refinance into new, ...
Citigroup reaches agreement with key senators on mortgage ... Minneapolis Star Tribune
Citigroup agrees to allow judges to help modify some mortgages IdahoStatesman.com
all 558 news articles


TopNews

Question & Answer on mortgage refinancing
Boston Herald, United States - Jan 1, 2009
If I refinance the mortgage on my current house, will I hurt my chances for getting a loan for a new place later on? A: No. Refinancing a loan shouldn’t ...
MORTGAGES: 30-year Mortgage Rate Falls For Ninth Straight Week To ... CNNMoney.com
Mortgage Rates Hit 37-Year Low Poynter.org
Home-Mortgage Rates' Next Stop: Below 5% Wall Street Journal
Ventura County Star - Wall Street Journal
all 457 news articles


Refinancing shoots through the roof
Plano Star Courier, TX - 16 hours ago
“Quite a few people have remortgaged,” said Craig Jarrell, loan officer with Pulaski Mortgage. “Most people who refinance are new homeowners as recent as ...


Mortgage refinancing skyrockets
Cincinnati.com, OH - Jan 3, 2009
... 2009 With US mortgage rates the lowest in 30 years, local lenders say they've seen a strong surge in loan applications as homeowners seek to refinance ...
Waco banks seeing a boom in mortgage refinance applications Waco Tribune Herald
Borrowers seeking to refinance may face challenges WTOP
As mortgage rates slide, refinancing applications take off Dallas Morning News
all 15 news articles


Congressman sees support for home refinancing bill
Central Valley Business Times, CA - Jan 8, 2009
“So many folks have found themselves underwater in their mortgage … they can’t refinance,” says Mr. Cardoza. Often those who have lost their investments in ...
Cardoza submits plan to refinance mortgages Merced Sun-Star
Congressman Cardoza Introduces Housing Legislation ABC30.com
Cardoza sponsors bill to reduce mortgage payments, stabilize ... Central Valley Business Times
all 5 news articles

mortgage refinance - Google News

Article List | Index | Site Map
All logos, trademarks and articles on this site are property and copyright of their respective owner(s).
The comments are property of their posters, all the rest is Copyright © 2006 CanadaSEEK.com - All Rights Reserved.