Business Loans
Same-day business loans can get you funds the same business day as you apply, rather than making you wait 24 hours or more.
Heather Petty was a personal finance writer at Finder, specializing in home and personal loans. After falling victim to a disreputable mortgage broker when buying her first home, she’s on a mission to help readers avoid similar experiences when managing their own finances. A self-proclaimed word nerd, her writing and analysis has been featured on MSN, Credit.com and MediaFeed, among other top media. Heather previously worked as a technical writer and editor for the casino systems industry and is an internationally published young adult mystery author. She earned a BA in English with a minor in journalism from the University of Nevada, Reno.
We asked Heather to shed some light on the wild real estate market and what it means for homeowners and potential buyers — post-COVID.
If you have a good credit history, applying to refinance your existing home equity loan can help you lower your payment and interest rates. Refinancing is also a great time to shop around and make sure you’re getting the best deal with your current lender. But if your credit has seen better days, going through the refinancing process could cost you more than it saves you in the long run.
Some banks offer mortgages designed for professionals like doctors, lawyers and CPAs, which allows them to set aside student debt when qualifying for a loan. But even if you don’t fit into one of those job categories, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) under the Biden administration recently announced a change in how student loan payments are calculated for FHA loans that could help you qualify. The new underwriting rules allow mortgage lenders to use your actual student loan payment to calculate your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, rather than an inflated figure that was based on the assumption that your payment would be 1% of your total student debt. That reduction in your DTI could be exactly what you need to qualify for a mortgage.
Possibly, but it can be difficult. If you have someone willing to sign onto your loan as a guarantor or have proof of another source of income to repay the loan, you should be able to refinance. But you also can consider special loan offerings, too. Most government-backed loans require less documentation, and the FHA offers streamlined refinancing that doesn’t require income verification. Some lenders also offer special refinancing options for low-income borrowers. If none of those options are available to you, consider alternatives to refinancing, such as loan modification or the foreclosure and forbearance relief available through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
79 articles written by this author
Same-day business loans can get you funds the same business day as you apply, rather than making you wait 24 hours or more.
Use your equity to get a flexible credit line, if you can qualify.
Compare other apps to find higher advances with lower subscription fees.
Breakdown of what you might pay monthly over the life of an $850,000 mortgage.
See the 5 best cash advance apps and loans that work with Varo.
Tips for women on how to utilize resources to find funding for their small businesses.
Choose carefully from the multitude of options available to you in this very large state.
Learn the ins and outs of this new low down payment program from Rocket Mortgage.
How to Use Your Home Equity to Fund a Home Improvement (2026)
Determine the best way to access your home’s equity for renovations.
This type of HELOC could be a good option if interest rates are about to rise or you want predictable payments.
Finder.com is an independent comparison platform and information service that aims to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions. While we are independent, the offers that appear on this site are from companies from which Finder receives compensation. We may receive compensation from our partners for placement of their products or services. We may also receive compensation if you click on certain links posted on our site. While compensation arrangements may affect the order, position or placement of product information, it doesn't influence our assessment of those products. Please don't interpret the order in which products appear on our Site as any endorsement or recommendation from us. Finder compares a wide range of products, providers and services but we don't provide information on all available products, providers or services. Please appreciate that there may be other options available to you than the products, providers or services covered by our service.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
How likely would you be to recommend Finder to a friend or colleague?
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.