What to Expect when Refinancing?

[William Donaldson]

I'm looking to refinance an owner-occupied condo I bought in February '13 in order to pull out some cash for other investments. I've never refinanced a property before, and wanted to get members' input on the process and if the numbers I am getting seem reasonable.

I've mainly been working with TD Bank. I've been really satisfied with their customer service, and my grandparents had a good experience when taking out a HELOC on their primary residence. I will continue to occupy the condo, and TD recently gave me the following numbers based on my estimated credit score of 700 and 80% LTV. The property value is around $90k.

-Closing costs $1,274; 5.625% 30-year fixed

-Closing costs $2,700; 5.125% 30-year fixed

Obviously which loan I go with depends on the length of time I plan to own the property; I save about $265/year by going with the 5.125% loan with higher closing costs. Unfortunately for me, I have no idea how long I want to keep the property!

What do you think of the numbers I posted - do they seem reasonable? What tips can you provide about refinancing a property? What has your experience been like with TD Bank?

Thanks in advance! Hope everyone has a great day, and I hope there are others out there who can learn from this thread as well!