With home values going up in the Denver area over the past few years, your equity has probably also gone up. If you have 20% or more equity, you might benefit by refinancing your current mortgage so that you can get rid of mortgage insurance.

But before you leap, be careful; make sure that you are making the right financial decision. If your current mortgage is an FHA loan, then it almost always makes financial sense to refinance out of your PMI, even if your rate goes up slightly, because getting rid of PMI will save you so much money compared to the higher rate payment. Better yet is if you can keep the same rate or lower your rate at the same time. With most FHA loans, your mortgage insurance will never go away, so it is smart to take advantage of low rates while we still have them.

If you have 20% or more equity and you have a conventional mortgage, then the decision can be more difficult. If you are at least 2 years into your current loan, then you may be able to apply with your current lender to eliminate the mortgage insurance directly through them, without incurring the cost of a refinance.

However, if rates are lower than your current rate, even if only slightly lower, It will make sense to refinance, especially if your mortgage lender can keep the closing costs low. It also makes sense to refinance even if rates are the same as your current rate, if you are less than two years into your current mortgage because you will save many months of mortgage insurance payments.

One other scenario where it makes a lot of sense to refinance is if you are shortening the loan term, from a 30 year fixed to a 20 or 15 year fixed loan for example.

If you have enough equity, may even be possible to pull cash out to pay off debts, lower your rate, AND eliminate mortgage insurance all at the same time!

We will give you honest answers to your questions and a fast no-obligation rate quote for your scenario. You can also find out more information at our website, http://www.rjbaxter.com/getridofpmi.htm. Give us a call, 303-670-0137 or email baxterteam@fairwaymc.com.