Today's Winning Segment

Fixed or Adjustable?

Everyone knows short-term interest rates are on the rise. The question is, with long-term mortgage rates still at near 40 year lows, should you refinance your adjustable rate mortgage into a fixed-rate mortgage? The benefits are that your payments will be fixed and you won’t have to worry about those rising rates. But if you’re only going to stay in your house a few years, then staying with your ARM may actually make sense. This is especially true if your ARM doesn’t adjust for, say, another couple of years. Also, there’s usually a cost to refinance, easily in the neighborhood of a couple thousand dollars, which means you need to remain in the home after a certain period of time to recoup that cost. So refinancing to take advantage of low rates may make sense, but you’d be best to have a professional do the numbers. I’m Jennifer Openshaw with another segment of winning advice. To get more winning advice, visit me at winningadvice.com