10 Best Mortgage Refinance Lenders

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Talking to people can be a chore.

If you tend to beeline to self-checkout when shopping, you’ll enjoy SoFi, one of the best online refinance lenders.

You can complete your online application and get preapproval in a matter of minutes.

SoFi’s one of the leaders in other areas, ranking on top for student loan refinance, personal loans such as SoFi, and saving accounts.

Members who already have one of those products can get a $500 discount on processing fees.

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New American Funding is a mortgage lender for the 21st century. Founded in 2003, it’s a true Gen Zer at heart—fresh, unconventional, and caring about social fairness.

If you’re self-employed, you know showing proof of income can be a struggle. New American Funding won’t ask you to send pay stubs and W-2 forms.

Refinance with a non-qualified mortgage loan and provide alternative credit and income qualifications.

Customizable I CAN loans allow you to go for an uncommon loan term between 8 and 30 years.

This lender is fast—it boasts same-day preapproval and only two weeks for closing your mortgage.

The company has shown support for Black and Hispanic homeowners—it’s the number one mortgage and refi lender to Hispanic borrowers in the US.

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Homeownership is the cornerstone of the American Dream, and refinance banks lend a helping hand to those in need.

PNC’s the best bank for mortgage refinance on our list.

Low- and moderate-income households can receive a $5,000 grant to cover closing costs or your down payment.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a designated loan for underprivileged borrowers in rural areas. PNC’s one of the rare mortgage providers who offer this program (including as a refinance option).

Other affordable loans—VA, FHA, and PNC Community Loan—are also on the menu.

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Bank of America’s the second largest bank in the country. It also offers the most lucrative benefits to its loyal customers.

By maintaining a certain balance on your Bank of America checking account, you can qualify for—

• Origination fee discount ($200–$600).

• 0.25% interest rate reduction.

• Up to 0.625% discount on HELOC.

To make the process smooth, there’s a first-rate banking app and an online mortgage service (Home Loan Navigator), where you can track your application and submit documents.

If you seek a human touch, you can visit the bank in person or talk to one of over 2,100 mortgage loan officers.

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The best closing costs areno closing costs—Better.com gets the drill (even if it’s not quite there yet).

This mortgage refinance lender has some of the lowest refinance costs:

• No origination fees.

• No processing fees.

• No underwriting fees.

• No application fees.

Better.com saves its refinance customers $8,200 a year by cutting commissions and providing the best home refinance rates.

This lender also strives to one-up its competitors, offering a Better Price Guarantee program. It promises to match any valid offer from the competition—or send you $100 if it can’t.

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Another lender on our list is a true giant. It’s the largest bank in the US, so the expectations for Chase are high.

And it delivers.

Chase offers a 0.25% rate discount to customers who've been using Chase for a while (and made hefty deposits).

It also helps home buyers in need with grants ($2,500 and $5,000) for the DreaMaker mortgage—you can spend the money to lower your interest rate and cover some of the fees.

You’ll also get an extra $500 for completing an education course.

If you’re browsing mortgage rankings at work, you should know that Chase has the best employee benefits in the game. (Ask your employer to add them to your benefits package.)

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The best veterans refinance companies focus on government-backed VA loans and help military members on the path to homeownership.

Navy Federal Credit Union is the cream of the corps.

Besides VA and conventional loans, it has a couple more specialties:

• Military Choice loan is for people who’ve already used up their VA benefit.

• Interest Rate Reduction Refinance loan (IRRRL), also known as VA streamline, helps veterans refinance extra fast and with no additional costs.

The credit union has overseas branches in Korea, Japan, and other countries with US military bases.

Navy Federal Credit Union would easily win the title of the best refinance company if not for one detail—it’s members only.

To join the credit union, you have to satisfy one of the three conditions:

1. You’re a veteran, retiree, or active duty member of the armed forces.

2. You’re the immediate family of the above.

3. You work for the Department of Defense.

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Typical refinance down payment is between 3% and 5%—not bad, but we could go lower.

Enter Northpointe to show other lenders how it’s done—

Not only does the bank supply several loans that don’t require a down payment (VA, USDA, and doctor loans), but it also has a designated program with 100% financing.

If you purchase a home with Northpointe until the end of 2023, you’ll be eligible for Rate Refresh Guarantee. (This feature resolves that icky situation when mortgage rates plummet after closing.)

You can refinance with Northpointe in the next five years—it will cover the costs of one appraisal and other processing fees.

You can also lock your rate for up to 90 days when the interest’s already hit the rock bottom.

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Rocket Mortgage isthe largest mortgage lender in America (it originated more home loans than any other provider in 2021–2022).

They’re fast and flexible.

YOURGage loans let you tailor them to your needs, giving you control over monthly payments and loan terms.

The application process is streamlined through eClosing—you can sign all your documents online.

Preapproval with Rocket takes just eight minutes and the average closing times are astronomically quick at just three weeks.

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Nationwide is an insurance provider first—but it offers a few incredible refi products in partnership with Axos bank.

You can get a $0 Lender Free promotion on loan amounts over $250,000 (or a $200 discount if your balance is lower).

Super Jumbo loans will refinance your property up to $30 million, while Portfolio loans will turn anyone into a designer—you’ll be able to customize loan terms and amounts any way you need.

With an Axos checking account, members qualify for a 3% annualized cash back credit. You can also get up to $100 monthly for paying off your mortgage.

When you refinance your mortgage, you replace your current loan with a new one.

Ideally, you’ll get more favorable terms this time around.

(Don’t confuse this process with getting a second mortgage.)

When you refinance, your provider pays off your existing mortgage in full first, while you get an entirely new loan.

Let’s take a look at the hypothetical example of how different refinancing options work:

For simplicity, we assume you refinance almost right away. Your actual savings will also depend on how much of your loan you’ve already paid off.

1. Lower your interest rate

The number one reason people turn to refinance is to get a better interest rate (even reducing it by 1% can save you thousands of dollars every year). Lowering your rate also leads to building equity faster.

2. Bring down monthly payments

Getting a lower interest rate will naturally reduce your monthly payments (if you stick to the same term).

You can also exchange your remaining twenty years for the brand-new thirty-year loan. This decision can ease the monthly financial burden on your family (even if you end up paying more interest at the end of the day).

3. Shorten your term

Thirty years seems like an eternity. If you’ve got some cash to spare right now, you could pay off your mortgage faster.

When you refinance to a shorter-term mortgage, your monthly payments will go up, but you’ll pay a lot less interest (even three times less).

Check out our Mortgage Payoff Calculator to save even more time and money.

4. Tap into equity

Even your “forever home” can generate money for you. When you’ve build some equity, you can always refinance and cash out.

It’s also a key step in the BRRRR method of real estate.

5. Exchange adjustable rate for a fixed rate

Adjustable-rate mortgage sounds fun—but ultimately it’s a gamble.

Instead of watching your interest rate skyrocket, you can lock in a fixed rate and revel in stability.

6. Get rid of private insurance

With soaring house prices, saving for a 20% down payment is becoming increasingly hard. Most first-time home buyers can’t afford this, while mortgage lenders don’t like taking risks.

You’ll often have to pay private mortgage insurance (PMI) until you reach 20% in equity.

By refinancing, you can eliminate this irritating expense at once.

7. Remove your ex from the loan

Divorce is never easy—but a shared mortgage complicates things beyond belief.

If you refinance the house in your name, you can buy out your partner’s share (see cash-out refinance below).

It’s much easier to refinance before finalizing your divorce—you have bigger assets and can qualify for better terms.

Rate-and-term refinance

This is your most straightforward refinance.

You exchange your old loan for the new terms or interest rate, while its size remains the same. (This type is often triggered by mortgage rates dropping.)

Cash-out refinance

Forget turning wine into water—turn your equity into liquid cash.

You can take out a larger loan that will fully cover your current mortgage. You’ll get the difference between the two loans in cash (the amount comes from the equity you’ve already built up).

Cash-in refinance

When you don’t have much equity yet, you could pay a big chunk of money toward your principal. This helps to reach your lender’s loan-to-value requirement and secure better rates.

No-closing cost refinance

Refinance mortgage companies with no closing costs are rare, but they do exist.

Getting an option to pay no closing costs upfront usually results in a higher interest rate or principal (you’ll still have to pay them in a different form).