The Second Time Around

On Tuesday we signed paperwork to refinance our mortgage loan with a different bank.  By doing this, we are paying only $12 more each month and the term of our loan is only 15 years as opposed to 30 years.

The reason that we were able to do this with so little effect on our monthly payment is because of interest rates being so low.  Our new loan has an interest rate of 3%.

This is actually our second time refinancing.  The first time we refinanced it was from a standard mortgage to a line of credit (LOC).  We did this because, at that time, rates for LOCs were low.  I remember sitting in the bank office and not understanding much about anything that was being said, the paperwork that we were signing, or the fact that our interest rate may vary.  We were in debt, and trying to save some extra money each month.  My understanding was that doing this would help us and that was all I needed to know.

This time around, I was at the kitchen table with Ross.  The representative went through our paperwork, similarly to how the other one did with our LOC, but this time I felt in control because I understood the terms that she was using.  Ross and I had gone through the school of hard knocks to get out of debt.  As graduates, we were no longer intimidated by money money matters--and boy did it feel good!

When I shared with a friend that we were going to refinance our home, she asked a question that made me think.  "Why are you refinancing when God's going to pay off your mortgage in 5 years?"  Her question arrested me.  Even to hear her say 'God's going to pay off your mortgage in 5 years' stunned me because it made me feel like she believes it more than I do.  There are two things that God showed me as I was pondering her question:

1. I need to believe that He will do what He says He will do
2. Refinancing makes sense because it saves us money while we wait

At the end of our time with the bank representative, she shared that what we were doing was smart because it cuts the term of our loan down to 15 years and will save us a lot of money.  I let her know that yes, we were thankful for the shorter term, but that I am trusting God to pay off our home in five (now four) years.