Refinancing Woes
I'm not generally someone who wants to air their economic situation for the whole world to see. But, I'm feeling a bit inspired to write something about a recent situation, without going into specifics, mainly because I'm a little bit irritated over the whole thing.
A lot of people know that I have recently been trying to refinance my condo, mainly because I was hoping to take advantage of the really low interest rates to get a lower monthly payment. I am in no way in any trouble financially, I just thought that if the economy is turning sour, I should be smart about capitalizing on it how I can. In fact, I'm one of those people who did all the "smart" things when it came to buying a home. I didn't buy more than I could afford. At the time, I turned down loan offers that were well over twice what I could actually afford because I thought those banks trying to loan me that kind of money were freakin' nuts. I got a fixed rate and couldn't imagine why anyone would want an ARM considering they could find themselves in a world of financial messiness years down the road. I mean, I did what was right.
Imagine my surprise when I was recently turned down to refinance because my property value had decreased so much that the loan would now, five years later, be considered too risky. This makes no sense to me. I'm applying for a loan where I would be paying less than I do now. I've been faithfully paying my mortgage on time without any problems for the last five years, and I have an excellent credit history. But, suddenly, I'm a risk to pay $200 less than I am already currently paying.
Now, imagine how if someone in my situation gets turned down, what happens to all the other people that are actually in trouble right now because they didn't do everything right? Is it any wonder that foreclosures are going through the roof? Is this government bailout doing anyone any good except for the ultra wealthy? The whole thing is kind of disgusting to me. We are in serious trouble if things continue this way. I have never believed that helping the people at the top ever helped, in any meaningful way, the people at the bottom. This economy is not going to get out from under itself until the people at the bottom are helped first.
Like I said, though, I'm currently doing just fine. I have a good, stable job, and I'll just continue paying my mortgage and everything else ahead of time like I always do. But, I'm thinking I'll help out the economy a little bit. I had this money I was going to use for my closing costs. I think now, I'm going to buy a big ass 60" inch LCD TV instead. And, I won't even have to use a credit card for it. It'll all be in cash. I deserve it.
A lot of people know that I have recently been trying to refinance my condo, mainly because I was hoping to take advantage of the really low interest rates to get a lower monthly payment. I am in no way in any trouble financially, I just thought that if the economy is turning sour, I should be smart about capitalizing on it how I can. In fact, I'm one of those people who did all the "smart" things when it came to buying a home. I didn't buy more than I could afford. At the time, I turned down loan offers that were well over twice what I could actually afford because I thought those banks trying to loan me that kind of money were freakin' nuts. I got a fixed rate and couldn't imagine why anyone would want an ARM considering they could find themselves in a world of financial messiness years down the road. I mean, I did what was right.
Imagine my surprise when I was recently turned down to refinance because my property value had decreased so much that the loan would now, five years later, be considered too risky. This makes no sense to me. I'm applying for a loan where I would be paying less than I do now. I've been faithfully paying my mortgage on time without any problems for the last five years, and I have an excellent credit history. But, suddenly, I'm a risk to pay $200 less than I am already currently paying.
Now, imagine how if someone in my situation gets turned down, what happens to all the other people that are actually in trouble right now because they didn't do everything right? Is it any wonder that foreclosures are going through the roof? Is this government bailout doing anyone any good except for the ultra wealthy? The whole thing is kind of disgusting to me. We are in serious trouble if things continue this way. I have never believed that helping the people at the top ever helped, in any meaningful way, the people at the bottom. This economy is not going to get out from under itself until the people at the bottom are helped first.
Like I said, though, I'm currently doing just fine. I have a good, stable job, and I'll just continue paying my mortgage and everything else ahead of time like I always do. But, I'm thinking I'll help out the economy a little bit. I had this money I was going to use for my closing costs. I think now, I'm going to buy a big ass 60" inch LCD TV instead. And, I won't even have to use a credit card for it. It'll all be in cash. I deserve it.