Longer repayment term: Because a cash-out refinance is essentially a new mortgage, you'll have 15 to 30 years to repay it. With a longer repayment term, you'll have more affordable monthly payments than you would with a credit card or personal loan, which usually have shorter terms.
A cash out refinance, like any other refinance, will come with a host of fees and closing costs to consider. Make sure the numbers add up in your favor before you pull the trigger. Closing costs will run you 2-5% of the new loan amount. A loan of $180,000 would cost you between $3,600-$9,000.
For example, if your home is worth $300,000 and you owe $200,000, you have $100,000 in equity. With cash out refinancing, you could receive a portion of this equity in cash. If you wanted to take out $40,000 in cash, this amount would be added to the principal of your new home loan.
Cash-out refinancing typically lets you withdraw up to 80% of your home equity. You can use the cash for anything — from home improvements to debt consolidation — though some uses make more sense than others.
Your home's equity remains intact when you refinance your mortgage with a new loan, but you should be wary of fluctuating home equity value. Several factors impact your home's equity, including unemployment levels, interest rates, crime rates and school rezoning in your area.
You'll pay closing costs: Like with your first mortgage, cash-out refinances come with closing costs, which cover lender fees, the appraisal and other expenses. It's important to consider what a cash-out refinance could cost you because the fees might not be worth it, especially if you're not borrowing a large amount.
You can, technically, sell your home immediately after refinancing, unless your new mortgage contract contains an owner-occupancy clause. This clause means you agree to live in your house as a primary residence for an established period of time.
Refinancing will hurt your credit score a bit initially, but might actually help in the long run. Refinancing can significantly lower your debt amount and/or your monthly payment, and lenders like to see both of those. Your score will typically dip a few points, but it can bounce back within a few months.
Cash-out refinance credit score: Many mortgage lenders look for a credit score of at least 620, although depending on the loan program, you might get away with a score as low as 580. Cash-out refinance debt-to-income (DTI) ratio: The DTI ratio compares your debt payments against your monthly gross income.
Borrowers generally must have at least 20 percent equity in their homes to be eligible for a cash-out refinance or loan, meaning a maximum of 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of the home's current value.
A cash-out refi will usually increase your monthly payment because you owe more overall on the mortgage.
Are refinance rates higher with cash-out? The short answer is, yes. You should expect to pay a slightly higher interest rate on a cash-out refinance than you would for a no-cash-out refinance. That's because lenders consider cash-out loans to be higher risk.
Expect a cash-out refinance to take 45 – 60 days, but with a little help, you may speed up the processing time. The faster you provide documentation and secure the appraisal, the faster we can underwrite and process your loan. It's a team effort to get the cash in hand that you want from your home equity.
You can refinance your home as often as it makes financial sense. If you're cashing out, you may have to wait six months between refis.
Home equity loans and HELOCs are two of the most common ways homeowners tap into their equity without refinancing. Both allow you to borrow against your home equity, just in slightly different ways. With a home equity loan, you get a lump-sum payment and then repay the loan monthly over time.
How long do you have to repay a home equity loan? You'll make fixed monthly payments until the loan is paid off. Most terms range from five to 20 years, but you can take as long as 30 years to pay back a home equity loan.
Loan payment example: on a $50,000 loan for 120 months at 6.10% interest rate, monthly payments would be $557.62.
For a $150,000, 30-year mortgage with a 4% rate, your basic monthly payment — meaning just principal and interest — should come to $716.12.
A home equity loan could be a good idea if you use the funds to make improvements on your home or consolidate debt with a lower interest rate. However, a home equity loan is a bad idea if it will overburden your finances or if it only serves to shift debt around.
The Bottom Line
Paying off your home equity loan early is a great way to save a significant amount of interest over the life of your loan. Early payoff penalties are rare, but they do exist. Double-check your loan contract and ask directly if there is a penalty.
How does a cash-out refinance work? With a cash-out refinance, you take out a new mortgage that's for more than you owe on your existing home loan, but less than your home's current value. You'll receive the difference between the new amount borrowed and the loan balance at closing.
Usually, you will repay your loan on a monthly basis, and your loan is paid in full when the term ends. In some cases, as with home equity lines of credit, you might pay the interest only during the term of the loan and pay the full amount of borrowed funds when the loan term ends.