Wells Fargo No-Cost Refinance

The archived thread is here: Archived WF No-Cost Refi

Resurrecting this topic because Mortgage rates are dropping and this may be a good option for many existing WF mortgage customers.

Wells Fargo Online Refinance (Three-step refinance)

Wells Fargo Mortgage Rates

Went through the application online, and received this message:

We´re sorry, but due to state or local requirements, our online refinance process is not available for your property.

However, we have a number of refinance programs available offline, and we would like to work with you to find a refinancing solution that meets your needs.

Please use this email form to contact us, or call us toll-free at 1-866-389-4326 to speak to a mortgage specialist.

Our hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to Midnight, ET, and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., ET.

We apologize for the inconvenience.

Called the 1-866 number and got through to a csr after about 25 minutes. Explained that I had a second loan, but planned on paying it off before month-end. He suspects that is why the online app was rejected. He confirmed that this product is available in Texas. He also stated that the second loan would not be a problem, as long as it was paid off quickly and bank could confirm that fact when it came time for them to process the title (in ~2-3 weeks).

He quoted me %5.25 for a 30 yr fixed (which is .50% higher than the 30 yr fixed rate on their site as of 12/17/2008 10:01 PM Eastern.

I now have to crunch numbers between this rate and a low cost 4.625% 5/5 ARM with Penfed. After the fact, I thought about accepting the rate and starting the process as a fail-safe in case (a) rates go up tomorrow (b) I have issues with penfed or (c) this option ends up being better deal for me than Penfed option. Has anyone initiated, then canceled this program? Is there a fee/penalty for doing so? I'll try to call back csr, and post results.

Thanks,
pimy

whats the usual rule? drop 2 points (6% to 4%) to recover closing/points cost to make a refi worth the trouble?

2%? I thought it was 1%? Of course there are other factors like refi-ing from an ARM in to the security of a fixed, etc.

I am current WF customer , trying to do refi ...

I am on 6.375 /30 year , as of last week no cost refi rate 5.65 with no closing cost(according to them 9000 closting costs), but when I talked with my local WF consultant, he said it's 2300 is the closing cost since there is no stamps/stamps for the state.. got the good faith estimate also , I am at 5% for 30 year fixed now as of yesterday .. he is going lock today after looking at the market data..

Where can you find the no-cost refi rates? Surely they're higher than the standard rates?

sanereddy said: I am current WF customer , trying to do refi ...

I am on 6.375 /30 year , as of last week no cost refi rate 5.65 with no closing cost(according to them 9000 closting costs), but when I talked with my local WF consultant, he said it's 2300 is the closing cost since there is no stamps/stamps for the state.. got the good faith estimate also , I am at 5% for 30 year fixed now as of yesterday .. he is going lock today after looking at the market data..

So you got 5.00% with no out of money for a ReFi???

The Online Refinance isn't working for me, so I called the refinance number on my mortgage statements. Their phone system said we are too busy and hung up.

once again the refi. wave will be tide high...... the spring market next year will be good. not the price going to pick up, but the market will start moving when people trying to get those sub-4% 30 mortage.

AnimEva said: i applied for one 2 days ago and got quoted for a 5.5% 30 yr fixed. this is when WElls Fargo Rates site stated 5% for a 30 yr and they have traditionally added .5% for no cost refinancing. However, today its at 4.75%, im trying to call them to lower the rate to 5.25%. i hope it works
I was wondering what the mark-up is for no cost refinancing (and I think it was asked earlier in this thread). Is this from your experience or something more? Does anyone else have experience with it?
Thanks

DealWalla said: They quoted me 5.125% today for a 30 fixed no closing cost refi (current customers only).

Whonder, does that include Wachovia cutomers since WF owns them now???

But 5.125% with no cost would be good for me.

pimy said:
Has anyone initiated, then canceled this program? Is there a fee/penalty for doing so? I'll try to call back csr, and post results.

Thanks,
pimy

I called back earlier today and spoke with a seemingly knowledgeable csr. He stated that there are absolutely no cancellation penalties of any sort. I asked if there would be any penalties if I canceled after the title search/evaluation was done, and he said no, zilch. I assume there is a point of no return, does anyone (who's gone through the process) know what that would be?

Further, regarding having multiple loans, this csr said it would not be a problem whatsoever. He said they would work with the other lender to subordinate the second loan, and they would pay all the associated fees. That's good news for me. I didn't want to payoff the second loan at this point. Still a slight concern though, as the other lender might put their foot down, but I doubt it since that seems to be a fairly common occurrence with Refis nowadays.

In terms of the rates, the CSR initially quoted 5.125%, but then quickly asked where I was located, and corrected himself, with a rate of 5.25%. Apparently, if you're in TX, FL, IA (and possibly other states) you pay a 1/8 point premium. In NY, you pay a 1/4 point premium. I tried to haggle a little, but he said WF would not budge on the rates whatsoever, since they are "so good", and of course they're getting a ton of business, so why bother budging. He did say that historically there has been an undocumented 1/8 pt float down. I suppose for the people who notice, and ask nicely for the rate drop. He briefly mentioned talk of a same day automatic rate change. My perception was that WF could potentially drop the rate for you automatically. I got side-tracked with the conversation and forgot to press for more info about this. For those of you about to call, please inquire about this.

Lastly, I would say, definitely call during the day, early morning if possible. They seem to have the more experienced (and capable) CSRs working that shift. I've called late at night in the past, and they've given me wrong information about not being eligible for the Refi if you have multiple loans. Keep in mind that I think it varies from state to state, and/or whether or not your other loan is a HELOC, rather than a piggyback loan.

He also stated that they are slammed right now, and not to expect to close before end of Feb '09.

Thanks,
pimy

buyonsale3 said: I always thought the interest rate for a 20-year would be less than 30-year.
I would like to refinance at a lower rate, currently at 5.375%, but I don't want to start over at 30-year and would rather have 20, already 5 years into mine now.
Any thoughts or reasons for this?

Take the 30 and pay on a 20 year schedule. You get best of both worlds. If you need to back off for some reason over a period of time to save cash, you can do it.

called WF for their 3 step Re-fi. CSR transferred me to a different department and the CSR there "cruched the numbers" and asked what i thought the home was worth. told her and she states that at least 80% LTV was needed in order to take advantage of the good rates.

is this everyones experience? (those with < 20% equity anyways). anyway to get around this?? (other than being a deadbeat). is that home estimate a stated value or do they check??

buyonsale3 said: Ok, I may not be that finance/mortgage savvy, but I just didn't want to start all over again and continue to make most of my payments going towards interest.
So you saying if the 30 year payment would be say $1000 and the 20 year would be $1400, just pay the $1400/month? And that would pay off my mortgage in 20 years instead of 30?

I was wondering the same thing until I ran the numbers through a amortization calculator and saw they were very similar. Calculate 20 years vs 30 years with the same payment amount. Do the amortization schedule and see when the loan will end the the total amount of interest paid. They were not the same, but the loans would be paid off within months of one another and the interest paid was about the same.

With my calculations I assumed the interest rate was the same in both examples.

amortization calculator

My Example 15yr vs 30 yr

15yr
Payment = 708
Paid off Dec 2023
Total Int= 38600

30yr
Payment = 487
Additional = 221
Paid off Feb 2024
Total Int = 39021

cleoscat said: Wells Fargo offered me a no cost refi at 5.25%. I currently pay 6% and my brother is a notery so I figure it's ok, for now, agree?

No, you can get 4.625 w/ no points at Indymac. You can do negative points to make it very low closing costs and still be under 5.25%.

ilikebtmoney said: cleoscat said: Wells Fargo offered me a no cost refi at 5.25%. I currently pay 6% and my brother is a notery so I figure it's ok, for now, agree?

No, you can get 4.625 w/ no points at Indymac. You can do negative points to make it very low closing costs and still be under 5.25%.

Not apples to apples. With the WF program, there are no costs whatsoever. Ok a couple bucks for a notary if you don't have a friend. IndyMac's rate is fantastic and I just locked in at 4.625, but closing costs are going to cost you a couple grand. If you're not planning on staying in your house all that long, the WF deal is a no brainer.

jaja said: Sorry, this may be a dumb question. What does it mean exactly by no-cost? Does it mean after all it is done, the only thing changed on the mortgage is the interest rate? And there is no change on the money I own to the bank? Last time I did a no-cost refinance on my mortgage. But I think it means the mortgage broker does not take the bonus from the bank, but the mortgage broker actually charged about $2000 for the refinance.

With the WF no closing cost three-step system, you are right that it essentially is a rate change. it's only for existing WF mortgagors. The rate won't be as good as you could get if you pay closing costs, but it is a beautiful thing if you don't plan on staying in your house all that long.

I applied online, and within a few hours, a friendly local rep had gotten back to me. I have 80% LTV and top-tier credit, and I was sent a GFE quoting 4.875%. HOWEVER, this does not appear to be the online special, as there were about $1000 worth of fees ($475 Underwriting fee, $460 Appraisal Fee) in the 800 section of the GFE. I will ask him tomorrow what effect negative points could have. He asked for my SSN to do a hard pull, but when I explained I'd rather hold off on that, he understood.

Also, I seem to be in the same boat as the poster above me... Pennsylvania requires title insurance and stamps to be purchased even for refis, which will run $1600 for me! Not Wells Fargo's fault, but ugh!

I'm in FL also and will be calling WF based on this thread. I'm currently on a fixed 30yr at 5.75% and have been in the place for 3 yrs. I'm wondering also what this no cost refi really means cause Indymac is giving out some good rates also.

I am surprised they let it get that low now. 4.25% no cost is barely offered by anyone since a couple weeks ago. Wells is slow to adapt.

For those looking, go to their mortgage website and look for the links to streamlined refinancing. After entering in your loan number and some other info, it should be able to give you an instant online rate quote if you are eligible or number to call. I think it only applies to fannie mae loans for now.