For the past month, I've been meeting with previous clients and doing their yearly loan reviews. When the topic of refinancing comes up, I keep hearing the same things. "Refinancing only means taking money out of your mortgage or your house."

That's not necessarily true. When refinancing, you have several options. The most common is refinancing an FHA loan into a conventional loan so that you can remove your mortgage insurance.

Another reason people refinance is to lower their interest rate. Depending on how much you have on your loan, this could save you thousands and thousands. It's always good to try to lower your interest rate by at least 1% if you refinance.

"There are many reasons to refinance."

When you refinance, you are able to take money out due to appreciation. Last year, properties in San Diego appreciated by close to 10%, which you can tap into as an owner. Equity is imaginary money until you put it to good use. You can refinance take some of that equity out, and use it to remodel your home to increase your equity even more.

Refinancing also means changing the terms of your loan. For example, if you own a home with an adjustable-rate mortgage, your payments are going to jump dramatically at some point if they haven't already. Always switch from an adjustable-rate mortgage to a fixed-rate mortgage if you are able to.

Finally, you can refinance to shorten the term on your loan and lower your rate. You can switch from a 30-year loan to a 20- or 15-year loan.

If you have any questions for me or you're considering refinancing anytime soon, I'd love to sit down with you and go over your options. Don't hesitate to give me a call or send me an email anytime.