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Is It Time to Take a Fresh Look at Your Mortgage?

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A mortgage can be one of those things that gets pushed into the background once the paperwork is signed. You make the payments, life carries on, and unless renewal is approaching, you may not think about it very often.

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But a lot can change during the life of a mortgage.

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Maybe your income has changed. Maybe you've accumulated higher-interest debt. Perhaps you've renovated, your home's value has increased, you're thinking about moving, or you're simply wondering whether the mortgage you have today still makes sense for where you are now.

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Taking another look doesn't necessarily mean changing anything. Sometimes the best decision is to leave your mortgage exactly where it is. The important part is understanding what your options are before deciding.

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Your Mortgage Should Fit Your Life — Not the Other Way Around

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The mortgage that made sense when you purchased your home was based on your circumstances at that particular point in time.

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Your income, debts, credit, available down payment, interest rates and future plans all played a role.

Three or five years later, that picture may look completely different.

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You may be earning more. You might now be self-employed. Your family may have grown. You could be carrying credit-card balances or other debts that didn't exist before. Maybe you're approaching retirement, considering an investment property or trying to create more breathing room in your monthly budget.

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That's why looking at a mortgage shouldn't simply be about asking, "What's the lowest rate?"

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The better question is:

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"What mortgage structure makes the most sense for what I'm trying to accomplish?"

Those can be two very different conversations.

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There May Be More Options Than You Realize

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Homeowners sometimes assume that if their current lender offers them a renewal, their choices are either to accept it or find another lender.

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In reality, there can be considerably more to explore.

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Depending on your situation, you may want to compare renewal options, refinance the mortgage, consolidate higher-interest debts, access equity for renovations or another purchase, change the amortization, or simply see whether another lender offers a structure better suited to you.

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None of those automatically means you should make a change.

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There can be penalties, fees, qualification requirements and other costs involved. Those need to be considered alongside any potential savings or benefits.

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The goal isn't to move a mortgage just for the sake of moving it.

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The goal is to understand the numbers well enough to make an informed decision.

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A few reasons homeowners take another look:

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• Their mortgage renewal is approaching

• Monthly cash flow has become tight

• Credit-card or other high-interest debt has accumulated

• Their income or employment situation has changed

• They have become self-employed

• They are considering renovations or major expenses

• They want to access equity in their home

• They are planning another property purchase

• They simply haven't reviewed their mortgage in several years

And sometimes the answer after reviewing everything is: you're already in a good spot.

That's useful information too.

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NOT SURE WHETHER YOUR MORTGAGE IS STILL WORKING FOR YOU?

You don't need to know exactly what you need before asking the question.

Tell me a little about what's going on and we can start by figuring out which options are actually worth exploring.

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