Well, the two federal government supported mortgage entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, just announced a number of steps designed to ease the way for homeowners trying to refinance under the Government's HARP (Home Affordable Refinance Program) program. These steps were taken to make it a bit easier for homeowners struggling with high interest rate loans to be able to make their mortgage payments on time, and thus not have to worry about a default and possible foreclosure.
With the revisions, Fannie & Freddie have raised, and in some cases, eliminated the loan to value cap on refi's. What this means is that at a minimum, the amount relationship of the loan to the total value of the financed home can be higher, so borrowers can borrow a higher percentage of the appraised value of the home as part of their refi. In some cases, the cap is now eliminated completely.
These two entities have also relaxed representation and warranty stipulations. This latter step is expected to heat up competition among lenders to make new refi loans, and thus drive down borrowing costs for homeowners.
For more details, either check these items with your lender or contact Freddie or Fannie, whichever institution is backing your loan.
Good luck.
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