Can I apply for a refi AND get pre-qualified at same time?

Question

On the fence about staying or moving. I'd like to apply for a refi of my current home as well as get pre-qualified for either a mortgage or new construction loan, and THEN make a decision on which route to take, based on how things look.  Is this generally possible?

Andy Finneran · Answer

You could just ask for rates and ballpark fees for both. No need to apply unless you like the numbers. I'm doing a refi right now and I just called my current mortgage company and a few banks to get rates and fee prices.

We ran the numbers ourselves before we applied for the refi loan.

Keep in mind what Kevin said when making your plans. If you are going to move then keep in mind a non-owner occupied loan was about .5% higher on the east coast. So it might not be worth it to refi your current house if you plan on moving.

The safest thing would be to keep your current house and just invest in a new property. Just make sure the numbers make sense as a stand alone deal. Who knows what will happen in the next year? If things look good in a year then swap houses.

Andy

Kevin Romines · Answer

Keep in mind, you can only owner occupy 1 home at a time. Any loan you take out as an owner occupied, you must live there for 1 year before you are allowed to make it a rental. So if you plan to move from your current home, you will want to refinance that home as a non-owner occupied home.

Your lender can run both loan apps. at the same time, however you will have to count the up coming purchase and its  additional expenses into the refinance of the existing home. Also there are guidelines regarding the ability to count rents from a home that you are leaving, so discuss these with your lender as well.

Chris Mason · Answer

It's the same basic paperwork for both. Not a big deal to do this.

Kara Dahl · Answer

It's our primary residence. We want to refinance, but also discuss moving/building soon, which puts us in a position where we'd like to find out the exact financial details and implications of both routes.

Kathy Henley · Answer

That is a serious question @Kara Dahl . You will need lots of facts to help you make a decision. Start with an appraisal of current home to determine its equity and knowledge of the market values of the new area.  Wait, you say 'home'.  Is this a real estate investment? My first step would be a meeting with my current lender.