With mortgage rates near record lows, many borrowers are taking advantage of refinancing. If you are considering refinancing but wondering if it could actually help, here are real-world examples of how Mortgage 1 clients used refinancing to improve their financial status, make dreams come true, jump start their future, gain peace of mind, and more.

Check out these refinance success stories:

• A Quicker Path to Home Ownership
• Hello New Kitchen, Goodbye PMI
• Making the Dream of a Vacation Home Come True
• Helping a Veteran’s Widow Gain Peace of Mind

Write Your Own Re-fi Success Story Call us at 866-532-0550 or locate a Mortgage 1 loan officer near you and get the process started.

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A Quicker Path to Home Ownership

Donna* is middle-aged, single, and lives in Florida. She was nearly halfway into a 30-year mortgage. With current rates near record lows, family and friends encouraged her to refinance. Donna contacted the Mortgage 1 Cape Coral branch. That’s when loan officer Tami Carr worked her magic.

Here’s what Tami discovered:

• Donna’s mortgage carried an 8.5% interest rate. Because the rate was so high, for the first ten years Donna had only been able to pay the interest portion of her mortgage, which meant, after those first ten years, she basically still had a 30-year mortgage.
• Over the next four years, Donna had made full payments, but hadn’t reduced her loan balance very much. “She was essentially paying $1,900 a month to rent her home,” Tami says.
• Donna was not paying escrow, only principal and interest, which meant she had additional payments for those expenses each year that further stretched her budget.

Here’s what Tami did:

• Tami was able to refinance Donna into a fixed-rate 20-year loan at 3.25%.
• Donna is now paying escrow. Even with escrow, her new monthly payment is almost the same as before.
• Donna is now making full monthly payments and reducing her balance faster than under her previous loan, while also paying less in total interest.

Best of all, “Donna is ecstatic knowing that not only will she pay her home off in 20 years when she is ready to retire, but she now has a low fixed rate,” says Tami. “And she doesn’t have to come up with $4,000 out-of-pocket every year to pay her taxes and insurance since those will be paid by escrow.”

“Donna is ecstatic knowing that not only will she pay her home off in 20 years when she is ready to retire, but she now has a low fixed rate.”

– Tami Carr, Mortgage 1 Loan Officer and Certified Military Housing Specialist

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Hello New Kitchen, Goodbye PMI

Carlos and Sandra wanted to update the kitchen and bathrooms in their current home. They did not want to take out a home improvement loan, nor did they want to tap into their retirement savings. Here’s how Mortgage 1 loan officer Tami Carr helped them.

Here’s where they started:

• 30-year FHA fixed-rate loan at 5.25%.
• Balance of $68,442.
• Monthly payment was $743.
• Monthly payment included monthly Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) of $59.16.

Here’s where they ended up:

• Refinanced to a conventional 30-year fixed rate loan.
• New rate of 3.25%.
• Eliminated PMI.
• New monthly payment increased slightly to $865.
• Best of all, the couple was able to take out $58,000 in cash to use for their home remodeling needs.

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Making the Dream of a Vacation Home Come True

Mortgage 1 loan officer Jennifer Myers had clients who dreamed of buying a vacation home in northern Michigan. But they did not want to take on a second mortgage, nor did they want to deplete their savings or tap into their retirement accounts. The couple was seven years into a 30-year fixed-rate loan at 4.375%.

Jennifer helped them take advantage of low rates while leveraging the built-up equity in their house to make their dream come true.

“We refinanced them into a 20-year loan at 2.625%,” Myers explains. “They were able to pull out the $60,000k they needed for the cabin purchase. Their new monthly payment only went up by $270 and they will pay off the new mortgage in 20 years. They are thrilled!!”

“They were able to pull out the $60,000 they needed and they will pay off the new mortgage in 20 years. They are thrilled!!”

– Jennifer Myers, Mortgage 1 Loan Officer

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Helping a Veteran’s Widow Gain Peace of Mind

Mortgage 1 loan officer Tami Carr is a Certified Military Housing Specialist. It was in this capacity she helped a borrower who is more than just a client.

“Teresa is the widow of a Veteran and a good friend of mine,” Tami explains. “Every dollar matters since she lost her spouse’s income. We took advantage of the VA surviving spouse benefit program to refinance and save her money, while giving her peace of mind.”

Using VA Streamline, officially known as the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) program, Tami was able to help Teresa:

• Reduce her interest rate from 3.25% to 2.75%.
• Reduce her monthly payment from $1185 to $1059.
• Save $126 per month.

“The $126 in monthly savings mean a lot to Teresa since she is on a fixed income,” says Tami.

“The $126 in monthly savings mean a lot to Teresa since she is on a fixed income.”

– Tami Carr, Mortgage 1 Loan Officer and Certified Military Housing Specialist

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Refinance with Confidence with Mortgage 1

Do you have a refinance or mortgage question? Get started by calling 866-532-0550 or locating a Mortgage 1 loan officer near you. It’s fast and easy!

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* Borrower names and photos used in this article have been changed to protect their identities. Their stories are true and told with their permission.