Should I refinance? Pt 2.

[Johnnie Bembry]

I talked to a lender and I could refinance my house and get $32K out of it. My new loan would be $195k at 4.9% and my current loan was orignall loan was at $170K at 3.8% (before being paid down to $159K). My new mortgage payment would go up $225/month (definitely managable) but I'd be free of "bad debt". I want to use the $32K to clear my debt but I'm not sure if it's worth going up a whole percentage point. I'm also lined up for a $30K bonus next year so my thought was to use the cash-out refinance to clear my debt and improve my credit score then use the bonus money + much improved credit score to start real estate investing. Any advice would be much appreciated.