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The latest news is that mortgage interest rates are approaching all time lows. All though house buying is still low there has been a big upswing in refinancing. In fact lenders across the country are struggling to keep up with this demand. This has been problematic for banks as many have let a big proportion of their mortgage staff go when interest rates rose at the beginning of the year. This means that the time it takes to refinance has gotten longer and the average is now sixty days.

Now refinancing applications are up a massive 83% since the beginning of the year. The average rate on a thirty year fixed loan is now 4.15%. A rate this low has not been seen since 1971!

Delays are being accentuated by stricter requirements from the underwriters. Added to this are disclosure guidelines that leave little room for shortcuts. However its the manpower issues that are really hampering the speed and because its an industry that relies on the human interaction its paying the price. All aspects including appraisals, title cos, insurance – have all been downsizing.

Now the current government is trying urgently to get the housing marketplace moving again – however speed of operations is a factor that holding them back. Also many homeowners have negative equity therefore they are having problems refinancing.

If the refinance industry was to get up to speed it may well affect the nations economy. Mortgage payments would go down and households would have more disposable income to spend. Banks could then get back on track as this boost would spur new home loans.  This would help to get the nation’s mortgage industry back in gear.

Information provided by the Mortgage Calculator helping consumers to answer questions such as – How much mortgage can I afford?