How to Refinance Your Mortgage Online
Refinancing your mortgage online has a pretty standard process and should be fairly simple. With The Cobas Group at Edge Home Finance, homeowners and investors can refinance quickly, efficiently, securely, and with expert guidance every step of the way. No need for the stress of drawn out back and forth traditional bank visits, getting passed around to multiple people, or paperwork with no end in sight.
This guide explains what to expect with an online mortgage refinance with Edge Home Finance, and how to determine if refinancing your home loan is worth looking into.
What Is an Online Mortgage Refinance?
An online mortgage refinance replaces your current home loan with a new one. Generally, the new loan will have a lower rate, shorter/longer term, or have a larger loan amount to provide usable funds from the home’s equity. These funds can be used to consolidate debt or get cash in hand for home repairs and other uses.
With Edge Home Finance, much of the refinance journey happens online and via email, from application to document uploads, to comparing options, while still giving you access to experienced loan professionals to assist, guide, and advise for each step of the process.
Homeowners typically refinance to:
- Lower their interest rate
- Reduce monthly mortgage payments
- Remove their escrow account
- Drop PMI/MIP
- Change loan terms (such as moving from a 30-year to a 15-year loan), or even odd numbers like 23-year terms are available.
- Access home equity with a cash-out refinance or second mortgage
- Switch from an adjustable-rate to a fixed-rate mortgage
Why Refinance Online With The Cobas Group at Edge Home Finance?
Edge Home Finance combines modern digital tools, numerous options, and personalized service with years of experience in the financial, real estate, and lending industries, offering benefits like:
- Simple online application
- Competitive mortgage refinance rates with access to pricing specials and incentives
- Non-Qm, Hard money and untraditional options for self-employed or sub-prime borrowers
- Expert guidance from knowledgeable licensed professionals
- Secure document uploads and e-signatures
- Templates and guidance for speed and efficiency
- Rapid communication throughout the process
You get the convenience of refinancing online without losing the human support that matters. If you’re in the greater Charlotte, NC area, ask us about meeting in person or attending your loan closing!
Step 1: Determining If Refinancing Makes Sense for You
Before we get too serious, like signing your intent to proceed in the initial loan docs, we work together to understand your goals from a high level, so we can determine together if a refinance makes sense, offers you a benefit, and talk though things that may need to be addressed for underwriting approval.
Refinancing may make sense if:
- You can lower your interest rate to save on interest over the life of the loan
- Your credit score has improved allowing for different mortgage products with better terms
- You want to change your loan term to pay the home off sooner, or reduce monthly payments as much as possible by extending
- You want to access your home’s equity for a real estate project or other personal or business use
- Your finances are tight, and you’re looking to consolidate debt or find a solution for a difficult situation
We’ll work together to evaluate your options and determine potential savings.
Step 2: Apply Online With The Cobas Group at Edge Home Finance
The online refinance process at Edge Home Finance is designed to be simple and efficient. You’ll complete a secure application, which usually takes 10-20 minutes, and upload key documents depending on your income type such as:
- Recent pay stubs
- Tax returns or W-2s
- Bank statements
- Current mortgage statement
- Homeowners insurance information
These items are used to help calculate your income in advance, and get an accurate picture of your existing mortgage and current housing costs.
Step 3: Review Your Credit and Financial Picture
We’ll pull your credit to calculate your monthly payments, and to be able to generate an initial automated underwrite depending on the mortgage product. This is where the loan structure begins to takes place. What we typically review at this stage:
- Credit score
- Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio
- Home equity
- Income and employment history
If you’d like to be proactive, before applying, it helps to:
- Review your credit report for errors using the credit bureaus free online tools
- Pay down high-interest debt if possible
- Avoid opening new credit accounts prior to and during the refinance process
Step 4: Compare Loan Options and Sign Initial Docs
After reviewing your mortgage application, credit, and financial picture, Edge Home Finance will present refinance options tailored to your financial goals. There are many different ways to structure a loan based on the situation and personal preference. Once you select the loan you’re most comfortable with, documents will be sent electronically to e-sign so we can start the loan process. At this time, we can also lock your interest rate to protect against market changes, or allow it to float based on the metrics of the file, and the projected direction of the mortgage market if it makes sense.
At this point we’ll look to go over:
- Rate lock timelines
- Available loan programs
- Estimated closing costs
- Monthly payment changes
- Whether you want to bring or receive funds once closed
- The preferred location of your closing
Step 5: Appraisal and Underwriting
Depending on your loan type, and LTV (loan to value), an appraisal may be required. Some refinances qualify for appraisal waivers, or may not be needed at all if they are considered streamlines. If an appraisal is needed, that can be ordered and paid for as soon as initial loan docs are signed, or can be delayed until after the underwriter reviews and conditional approval has been given if you prefer.
During underwriting, the Underwriter verifies:
- Income and assets
- Credit history and liabilities
- Property value and condition
- Loan details meet guidelines
- Other real estate owned
Responding quickly to any document requests helps keep your refinance on track to ensure we can close as quickly as possible. This process can be a bit of back and forth, as some documents could require additional documents or clarity once reviewed. This is totally normal. The Underwriter is just gathering the pieces to be able to complete the puzzle that is your financial picture.
Step 6: Close Your Refinance
Once everything has been reviewed and signed off, your loan file is clear to close! We then work together to schedule a time and location to sign any portion of the loan docs that need to notarized. Many Edge Home Finance refinances allow for at least partial electronic signing of documents, but it’s product and state specific. You can close at an attorney or title company’s office, or have a mobile notary come to your home or nearby location to sign anything that’s required to be notarized for your new mortgage.
At closing, you’ll:
- Review final loan terms
- Sign closing documents
- Pay, receive, or roll in closing costs and/or loan proceeds.
Most traditional refinances include a three-day right of rescission, or waiting period, before your new loan becomes official. Non-qm loans, like DSCRs, are often effective and disbursed once recorded, so those can close and fund as quickly as the same day.
How Long Does an Online Mortgage Refinance Take?
An online refinance with The Cobas Group at Edge Home Finance typically takes 2–4 weeks, depending on factors like documentation, appraisal needs, state or county location where title work is completed, and loan complexity.
We’re typically waiting on the appraiser, title work, or documents needed to be obtained by the borrower. It’s rare that anything needed to be completed on our end takes more than a few days as things come up while in process.
Refinance your Home Loan With Confidence at Edge Home Finance
Refinancing your mortgage online can literally save you thousands a month, and/or much more than that over the life of the loan. With The Cobas Group at Edge Home Finance, you get the convenience of a digital process backed by knowledgeable professionals who put your goals first in an easy and convenient manner.
If you’re ready to explore your refinance options, start your online app HERE. Edge Home Finance is here to help every step of the way.