Guide to Refinance, Mortgage,
& Home Equity Loans in
Reading, Pennsylvania (PA)

Reading, Pennsylvania was once home to the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln and his family lived in Reading before emigrating west. Just think, the home to one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history could be your next home. First, you must get a mortgage. That word’s not as scary as it once was if you go into it knowing what to look for.

If you’re looking for the right Reading mortgage, you will need to know what kind of loan you want and you will want to get pre-approved. It would be silly to spend time looking at homes that just aren’t right for your budget.

Pre-approval is the process of having a lender look at your current and past financial situation, and letting you know how much home you can afford. Talking with a lender before you even get a house is usually the way to go for two reasons:

• It helps to set a budget for homes in your price range.
• It helps you to get into the home of your dreams, because everyone involved in the process, including the seller, knows that you are truly interested in that particular home if you’ve taken the time to get your financing in order.

Before you can even get pre-approved, you need to know what kind of loan is best for you. With the explosion of the mortgage market in recent years, there are hundreds of kinds of loans out there, but they all fall under two primary options:

• Fixed rate mortgages are very popular because, although the initial interest rate is sometimes higher than most homebuyers would like, the rate is fixed throughout the life of the loan. This type of loan is popular with consumers who want to know exactly what their monthly payment is going to be with no surprises.
• The second type of loan, the adjustable rate mortgage, is also popular. With this type of loan, the payment in the first few years is relatively low. But after that, the rate is subject to several factors: your lender’s index, the market fluctuations, and the caps set by your lender.
• Within adjustable rate mortgages, you have the option of choosing from many different kinds of loans. An interest only loan allows you to put off making payments toward your principal for the first ten years of the loan. An options ARM lets you pick your monthly payment amount. A fifty year mortgage stretches out the term of your loan to allow you to buy a more expensive property.

And if these loans don’t seem like they’re going to work for you, talk with your lender. With so many lenders come lots of options, and there’s sure to be one that’s right for you.

Once you’ve made your home in Reading, your involvement in the mortgage market isn’t limited to your payments. Maybe you’ve found yourself with a need for some extra cash. A home equity loan may be your best bet. You have two options: A home equity lump sum loan or a home equity line of credit.

• A home equity lump sum is what you want if you want all the money up front. With this option, you begin paying interest on the full amount immediately.
• With the home equity line of credit, you only pay interest on the amount you’ve borrowed. But, you can borrow the money over a longer period of time.

But what if you already have a home, but don’t want to take out a home equity loan? What if you just want to lower your monthly payment, change the terms, or pick a different kind of loan? Well, there’s a loan out there for you too.

A mortgage refinance loan is very simply, a brand new loan on your existing house. You’ll pick a brand new loan type, term, and interest rate when you apply for refinancing, and you can even choose if you’d like to cash out the equity you’ve built up in your home.

Whether you’re looking for a Reading mortgage, refinance, or home equity loan, we can help. Take a moment to fill out the form below, and a qualified lender will contact you right away.