…and they are better than I could have anticipated! Thank you, crazy DIY efforts to knock the socks off of my appraiser. 

When I bought my place in May, 2010, it was appraised at $265K. Last week, I had the pleasure of reading my bank rep’s email that said the new appraisal came back at $270K. This means that not only has my place weathered one heck of a housing market storm, but it’s actually gained a bit of value. The best part is this figure gives the official green light to move forward with refinancing. Considering that the bank was thinking I’d be lucky to see a value of $240K come back, I’ll take it!

In terms of numbers, this new $270K figure is ultra sweet because it allows me to secure a Loan to Value (LTV) ratio of less than 75%. This means I’ll get another 0.25% reduction in interest rate because my credit score is high and the LTV is low. When all is said and done, I’ll be combining both mortgages into one, shaving 1.25% off the interest rate of the first, 4.74% off the second (which will be non-existent once closing happens), and saving $357.72 per month.

Now it’s a smooth ride into closing….wahooooooooooooooo!