Refinance

Third Federal Savings and Loan in Cleveland has long offered mortgage refinancing in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina and now it plans to offer purchase loans in those states.

While the percentage of properties with negative equity decreased during 2015, the lowest-priced homes continued to struggle to regain value, according to Black Knight Financial Services.

Fifth Third Bank is offering a teaser rate to new home equity line of credit borrowers through July 31.

If the Federal Reserve raises short-term rates in June, market volatility will spur investors to buy long-term bonds, driving down the 30-year mortgage rate to around 3%, consultant Barry Habib argues.

It took an average of 46 days to close a residential mortgage loan in February, the shortest closing time since May, according to Ellie Mae.

Mortgage applications ticked up slightly last week, as low refinance activity continued to offset gains in new purchase applications, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

The number of homeowners who would benefit from refinancing their mortgage has swelled since the beginning of the year, according to Black Knight Financial Services.

Low borrowing costs and rising home values are just two of several reasons why owning a home is far less burdensome than it was a decade ago.