Are you thinking about refinancing your mortgage loan to lower your interest rate or shorten the term of your mortgage? You might want to consider doing it very soon. Many economists (92% of the ones polled by the Wall Street Journal) have said that they expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in its December 15-16 policy meeting. Interest rates have been historically low since 2008 to facilitate recovery after the recession. Now that the economy has improved and the recently released jobs report noted a U.S. unemployment rate at under 5%, most economists believe it is time to raise the federal funds rate.

What Does This Mean for Homeowners Who Want to Refinance?

The federal funds rate does not determine mortgage interest rates. In theory, lenders are more concerned with market activity than anything else. However, as Bankrate does a nice job of pointing out, the federal funds rate does impact the cost of borrowing for lenders. Therefore, it’s very likely that any increase in costs will be passed on to the consumer in the form of higher rates.

If you look at the federal funds rate in June of 2007, it was approaching 6%. Consequently, the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was just about 7%. Once the recession hit, the federal funds rate went down to near-zero at the end of 2008 where it remains today. As a result, mortgage interest rates went down too. Today, getting an interest rate on a single family mortgage that hovers around 4% is not out of the question. However, if the federal funds rate does go up in December, those looking to refinance or purchase a mortgage may have to pay a higher rate, which means you’ll pay more over the lifetime of the loan.

Therefore, if you want to refinance your home’s mortgage, there’s no better time than today. From now until the end of the year, OneUnited Bank is offering a special promotion called the OneUnited Waive Program. Applicants who apply for a new single family mortgage or mortgage refinancing will have their appraisal, credit report, loan origination, processing, underwriting, loan documents, document review, tax transcript, tax service, flood certification, and flood monitoring fees waived.* This could help you save lots of money!

By applying today and taking advantage of the Waive program, qualified applicants in California, Florida, and Massachusetts may be able to get the best deal on its financing. Visit www.oneunited.com/waive today to learn more.

*With the OneUnited Bank Waive promotion, there will be no charge to you for appraisal, credit report, loan origination, processing, underwriting, loan documents, document review, tax transcript, tax service, flood certification, and flood monitoring fees. This promotion is for applications received to purchase or refinance a single family home in OneUnited Bank’s lending areas in California, Florida and Massachusetts between June 15 and December 31, 2015. Loan and credit qualifications apply. OneUnited Bank reserves the right to cancel this promotion at any time.