Educate yourself on mortgage calculator
It would be a larger one, they say, if new lending practices were not so tight and values were not so low. Value decreases have caused decreases in homeowner equity, and in some cases homeowners now own so little equity that they are not eligible for mortgage refinancing. In Ventura County in California, for example, it is estimated that of the properties purchased there within the last five years, about 40 percent are now worth less than their purchase prices. Other homeowners who may have been approved for mortgage refinancing just a year ago may not have a high enough credit score to qualify under the new lending practices. Some banks are now requiring a credit score of 700 or higher to be eligible for the low rate mortgages.