Path 01
Pre-Qualify.
A ten-minute conversation. We pull a rate range based on what you tell us, compare against your current loan, and tell you whether the breakeven math could work.
Start the conversation →The full walkthrough - when refinancing makes sense, when it doesn’t, what to expect from intake to close. Anti-promise. Pro-math. Read the parts you need.
No commitment, no hard pull. Pick the door that fits where you are - quick check, formal estimate, or run-the-numbers tool.
A ten-minute conversation. We pull a rate range based on what you tell us, compare against your current loan, and tell you whether the breakeven math could work.
Start the conversation →The official document. Real rate, real fees, real terms - backed by verified income, credit, and equity. The number you can plan with and that we can hold during application.
Apply with the studio →Your existing loan against today’s rates. Breakeven months, total interest saved, monthly payment difference - taxes and insurance factored in. No email gate.
Open the calculator →A pre-qualification quote and a Loan Estimate look similar at a glance, but they’re very different documents. One is a conversation. The other is a legally-disclosed commitment of terms. Knowing which you have - and which you need - changes what you can plan against.
A refinance moves through six named stages. The file is simpler than a purchase - no offer, no listing dance - but the milestones still matter. You’ll always know which stage you’re in and what’s required to advance.
A short conversation. We estimate whether refi pencils based on current rates, your loan, and your goals.
Documents in. Income, assets, credit, and equity verified. Loan Estimate issued with real numbers you can plan around.
Rate & term vs. cash-out vs. streamline. Different products, different math. We walk through which path fits the file.
Lock in today’s rate so it can’t move during underwriting. Typical lock period: 30–60 days, depending on file complexity.
File submitted to underwriting. Appraisal ordered if required (FHA Streamline and VA IRRRL often skip it). Conditions identified and cleared.
Final docs signed. Old loan paid off. New terms take effect at the next payment cycle. Mandatory 3-day rescission period on primary residences.
The questions that come up most often on the first refi call - answered the way we’d say them on the phone. Direct. Brief. No marketing dressed as advice.
Closing costs typically run 2–5% of the loan amount. That covers lender fees, third-party fees (title, appraisal, escrow setup), and prepaid items (taxes, insurance, interest).
You have three ways to pay them: out of pocket, rolled into the new loan (raises the loan balance), or offset with lender credits (raises the rate slightly). We’ll model all three and show you which makes the math work best.
Streamline products (FHA Streamline, VA IRRRL) have lower closing costs because they require less documentation and often skip the appraisal.
Typical timeline: 30–45 days from application to closing. FHA Streamline and VA IRRRL can close faster - sometimes in 14–21 days - because they require less documentation and usually skip the appraisal.
The biggest variables: how quickly you submit documents, whether the appraisal needs to be ordered and how busy appraisers are in your area, and whether any title issues surface.
Don’t forget the federal 3-day right of rescission on refinances of primary residences - you can’t close and disburse funds until 3 business days after final docs are signed.
When the math works - specifically, when your breakeven point (closing costs ÷ monthly savings = months) is shorter than how long you’ll be in the home.
Refi also makes sense for structural reasons that aren’t about rate: shortening the term (30 → 15 years can save tens of thousands in interest), removing PMI at 80% LTV, switching from ARM to fixed, or cash-out for renovation, debt consolidation, or investment.
Refi rarely makes sense just because rates moved an eighth, or because your neighbor refi’d. We’ll run the math before recommending.
Depends on the product. Conventional rate & term refinances typically require no seasoning - you can refi at any time if it makes financial sense.
Cash-out refinances typically require 6 months of seasoning on the existing loan and a documented payment history. FHA Streamline requires 6–12 months of FHA loan seasoning. VA IRRRL requires 210 days from the first payment.
Even when product rules allow it, the breakeven math has to work - you’re paying closing costs again, so the savings need to justify them.
Briefly, yes. The hard credit pull when you formally apply typically drops your score 3–5 points, recovering within a few months. The new account also lowers your average account age slightly.
You can rate-shop within a 14-day window and have multiple lender pulls counted as a single inquiry by FICO. Use that window to compare.
Pre-qualifications use a soft pull that doesn’t affect your score.
A rate & term refinance replaces your current first lien with a new one at a lower rate, different term, or both. You don’t take any cash out. The new loan balance is typically equal to your current payoff plus rolled-in closing costs.
A cash-out refinance replaces your current first lien with a larger one and pays the difference to you in cash. Useful for renovation, debt consolidation, or investment redeployment. Cash-out rates are typically 0.25–0.50% higher than rate & term, and you’re capped at 80% LTV on conventional primary residences.
Sometimes, yes. Standard refinances require enough equity to maintain the program’s loan-to-value caps - conventional rate & term typically allows up to 97% LTV.
If your home value has dropped enough that you no longer meet those LTV thresholds, your options narrow but don’t disappear: FHA Streamline and VA IRRRL generally don’t require an appraisal and don’t care about current value. The federal HARP program is no longer active, but its successors (Fannie Mae’s RefiNow, Freddie Mac’s RefiPossible) help underwater or near-underwater borrowers.
Worth a call to walk through the file.
Send a note. We’ll answer directly - and if it’s a question other homeowners should be hearing, it goes into this list.
A twenty-minute conversation. Your current loan, today’s rates, your timeline in the home. We tell you honestly whether a refi is worth opening a file for - and which product fits if it is.