"I'm from the government and I'm here to help" - it's the punchline to an old joke.
But this time, the government may have a program that can help you with re-financing your home.
On March 1, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced the extension of the Home Affordable Refinance Program - or HARP. It will be administered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through June 30th of next year.
"The HARP program expands access to re-financing for qualified individuals and families whose homes have lost value," said Erein Trawick with Central Pacific Homeloans.
And frankly, that includes a lot of homeowners over the past year and a half. The re-financing will not reduce the total amount of your mortgage.
"Correct. It's not going to reduce the amount that you owe on it, but what it's going to do is put it into a more stable loan program," said Trawick.
That's the key, according to Trawick. Many homeowners now find themselves with adjustable rate mortgages or introductory low interest rate mortgages and are looking for a financing method that will that allow them to budget with confidence.
"Yes, re-financing into a more stable, fixed-rate product and avoiding future mortgage payment increases, would likely improve your ability to sustain your mortgage payments over the long term," said Trawick.
There are several conditions homeowners must meet - they have to be owner-occupants, the loan on the property is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, and the re-finance improves the long term affordability of your loan.
"At the time you apply, you must be current on your mortgage payments. The amount you owe on your first lien mortgage does not exceed 125% of the current market value of the property," said Trawick.
And how do I find out if my loan is backed by Fannie or Freddie?
"You can call your local mortgage lender or servicer or you can call Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac yourself," said Trawick.
You can call 1-800-7FANNIE or 1-800-FREDDIE.
