Refinance your DC mortgage

A refinance makes sense when the new loan lowers your payment enough to recover the closing costs before you move or refinance again, or when you want to change your loan term or loan type. Divide the total closing costs by the monthly payment reduction to get the months to break even. To run your own figures, request the free savings analysis.

Closing costs for a DC refinance run about 2-4% of the loan amount, covering lender fees, the appraisal and title insurance. DC fully exempts residential refinances from recordation tax, including cash-out refinances, with a one-page affidavit your settlement agent files at closing (D.C. Code § 42-1102(21)), so budget $0 for that line.

The break-even point is how long your monthly savings take to cover your closing costs. Divide the total closing costs by the monthly payment reduction to get the number of months. If you will stay in the home longer than that, the refinance costs less than keeping your current loan; if you might move sooner, it does not.

A rate-and-term refinance changes your interest rate, loan term, or both without increasing the balance, to lower the payment or pay the loan off sooner. A cash-out refinance replaces your loan with a larger one and pays you the difference in cash. The DC cash-out refinance guide explains how a cash-out works.

Conventional refinances require a score of 620 or higher, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac price them in credit-score tiers, so a higher score gets a better rate. FHA and VA streamline refinances have lower credit requirements. If your score is under 620, ask your loan officer about FHA and VA options before you rule out a refinance.

A conventional rate-and-term refinance can work with as little as 5% equity, and 20% equity avoids mortgage insurance. A cash-out refinance requires you to keep at least 20% equity after taking cash. FHA and VA streamlines may not require an appraisal at all.

A streamline refinance is a simplified refinance for existing FHA and VA loans: less documentation, often no appraisal, and a faster closing than a standard refinance. A streamline is rate-and-term only; you cannot take cash out.

The VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) is a streamlined refinance for veterans with an existing VA loan. The VA requires no appraisal and no income verification, and the funding fee is 0.5%. You are generally eligible if you have a VA loan, you are current on payments, and at least 210 days have passed since your first payment.

Yes. Lenders generally let you add the closing costs to the new loan balance instead of paying cash at closing. You then pay interest on those costs over the life of the loan. Your loan officer shows you both ways, paid at closing and added to the loan, so you can choose.

Yes. A condo refinance adds one step: the lender reviews the building as well as you, including warrantability, the HOA's finances and owner-occupancy. If the building is non-warrantable, a portfolio loan can still refinance the unit.

District Mortgage is a licensed mortgage broker, not a bank or direct lender. We do not fund loans with our own money. We take your application, prepare your file, and submit it to a wholesale lender, which funds the loan. NMLS #2819502 — verify us at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.

No. We are licensed in the District of Columbia only, so the property has to be in DC. We cannot accept an application or a pre-qualification request for a property in Maryland, Virginia, or any other state. If your property is elsewhere, nmlsconsumeraccess.org will show you licensed originators in that state.

Alan Trombley, Principal Mortgage Loan Originator, NMLS #2805044, is your loan officer. He is licensed in the District of Columbia and handles every file from pre-qualification through closing.

Our rates page is the source for our pricing. It shows an effective date, the APR next to every rate, and the borrower assumptions each example is priced on. Rates shown anywhere on this site are current rate examples priced for the borrower assumptions published with them. They are not offers of credit or commitments to lend, and pricing changes daily. Anyone quoting a rate from us should cite the effective date it was published with.