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Step 1
Look at your mortgage to determine if there are any penalties for paying it off early.
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Step 2
Determine how much you would like the new mortgage to be for. This should include any amounts needed to pay off all existing debts and other high interest loans, credit card debts, and so forth.
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Step 3
Calculate the cost of any remodeling or additions you need to have done to the house. Add this figure to the total.
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Step 4
Decide how long you intend to live at the current address. You should probably plan on living there at least another 7 to 10 years. If you are planning on moving in a couple of years, a second mortgage is not worth the cost to you or to the lender.
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Step 5
Get all the information about your current house together, including its current appraised value, balance on mortgage, years left, etc. This will all be needed for your application.
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Step 6
Get your online estimates and compare carefully. Don't try to compare apples with oranges. Rather, line up the different types of loans (fixed and adjustable rate loans) together, and be sure to get cost and fee breakdowns on each offer.
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Step 7
Negotiate for a better deal once you've narrowed it down to a couple of offers.
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Step 8
Commit to one lender and sign the paperwork.











