01Replacing one loan with another
Refinancing means replacing your current mortgage with a new one. The key question isn’t “can I?” — almost always you can — but “is it worth it?”. That second question has a numeric answer, and it depends on three things: your current financial situation, the new loan’s terms, and how long you plan to stay in the home.
02Three main types
There are three main types: rate-and-term (replace your loan with one that has better terms — lower rate, different length, or both — without taking out additional money); cash-out (replace your loan with a larger one and receive the difference in cash at closing, accessing your home’s equity); streamline / FHA-to-conventional (specialized refinances, commonly to drop FHA’s MIP or to speed up the process if you qualify). Geneva Financial handles all three.
03The break-even is the question
Refinancing has closing costs — appraisal, title, insurance, origination, taxes. The number that decides whether refi makes sense isn’t the new payment; it’s the break-even point — how many months it takes for the savings to recover the closing costs. If you plan to stay in your home longer than that, refi usually makes sense. If you’re going to sell or move soon, it usually doesn’t. Jesse calculates your specific break-even in pre-qualification — no generic numbers.