Whenever interest rates drop, a refinancing frenzy naturally follows. Whether you’re looking to trim your mortgage payments, eliminate credit-card debt or pay off your car loan, experts say you should fully understand all of the options available to you before deciding to refinance.

Allied Mortgage Consultants, a mortgage company recognized for educating consumers on the realities behind new home loans and refinancing, reveals seven common mistakes people make when refinancing.

1. Not saving enough to justify refinancing. It’s best to decrease your rate by at least .75 percent to 1 percent. This will save you about $100 a month on a $150,000 mortgage. (more…)

Debt and bill consolidation is the practice of paying off many loans with one loan. This is undertaken by debtors for lowering their interest rates on loans and to enjoy the convenience of making a single monthly bill payment than multiple ones. Multiple bill payments increase the chances of missing a payment, which could adversely affect one’s credit score. Sometimes, debtors take one loan to pay off multiple loans with the intention of locking in a fixed interest rate.

The debtor secures a lower interest rate through debt and bill consolidation by paying off unsecured loans, like credit card balances, with a secured loan, like a loan on the house. Since secured loans are less risky for the lending agency, the debtor gets charged a lower interest rate. There can be sizeable gains from reduced interest rates, since credit card interest rates are substantially higher than mortgage interest rates.
(more…)