How to Refinance a Land Contract to a Conventional Home Loan

Refinancing an existing land contract can help lower monthly payments and free up some cash for other parts of your budget. Refinancing is essentially the process of one lender selling your debt to another lender, in this case your land contract. You may have purchased your home and/or land on a land contract, planning to pay off the purchase price over time, but you may be able to save considerably by financing through a different lender with a low interest rate. Refinancing a land contract is not difficult and can be straightforward if you follow a set of simple steps.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Ask your land-contract company for the payoff amount on your current contract and if there are any fees associated with a payoff (your loan might incur fees for payoffs within one year of the purchase).

2. Have your property appraised, then begin applying for loans through some of the lenders listed in Resources below. One thing they'll look at is the loan-to-value ratio of your property (the total payoff of your current loan versus the value of the land).

3. Provide your name and social security number to lenders you would consider working with. This will allow them to check your credit history and gauge your net worth (another factor that they will use to decide if you qualify).

4. Choose your new lender and follow their instructions on transferring the title to their possession and paying off the loan. Your part of the process is now finished and the two loan companies will work out the specific details of the transfer.

Tips & Warnings

• You should only consider refinancing if you have $7,500 or more left to pay on your land contract and the interest rate on a new loan is at least 1 percent lower than your old rate.

References

• Refinancing Land Contracts

Resources

• Shop for New Mortgage Loans