With long-term interest rates bouncing around near record lows for the last several months, it’s been a great time for home owners to refinance–unless they live in New York, that is. According to stats from Inside Mortgage Finance, while there were 92 percent more mortgage refinancings nationwide in the first quarter of 2009 versus the same period a year earlier, the increase in New York State was only a modest 6 percent. The reasons? First of all, New York has a lot of high-priced real estate, and the best rates are only available on conforming loans ($417,000 and under); if there’s enough equity in your house and your credit score is high enough, competitive rates are available for so-called agency-jumbo loans ($417,001 to $729,750). Secondly, New York State has a painfully high mortgage tax of 2.05 percent, and it’s become harder and harder to avoid in the case of refinancings. Has anyone refinanced a jumbo or agency-jumbo loan in the last few months? What kind of rates and fees did you encounter? What are the best banks to go to in this category?
New Yorkers Miss Refinancing Spree [NY Times]