Refinance
Refinancing a mortgage in Florida
A refinance replaces your existing mortgage with a new one. It can lower a rate, change a term, remove mortgage insurance, or convert equity to cash. It always has a cost, so the question is never just whether the new rate is lower — it is whether you hold the loan long enough for the savings to exceed what you paid to get them.
This may fit if
- Your current rate is meaningfully above what is available to you now
- You want to shorten your term and can support the higher payment
- You have equity and a specific, considered use for it
Look at alternatives if
- You expect to sell or move before you reach break-even
- You are close to paying off the loan and would be restarting amortization
- The only goal is a lower payment and a longer term would cost you more in total interest than you realize
How it works
You establish the real cost
Refinance costs include lender fees, title, recording, and prepaid items. Financing those costs into the balance does not make them free — it moves them into the loan where you pay interest on them.
You calculate break-even honestly
Divide the cost by the monthly payment reduction. That is the number of months before the refinance has paid for itself. If you will not be in the loan that long, the math does not work regardless of how good the rate looks.
You compare total interest, not just payment
Extending from a fifteen-year remaining term back to thirty years lowers the payment and can substantially increase total interest. Our calculator shows both figures side by side for exactly this reason.
What moves the outcome
- Remaining term
- How far into your current loan you are changes the comparison completely.
- Closing costs
- The single largest driver of break-even.
- How long you will stay
- The assumption that determines whether break-even is reachable.
- Mortgage insurance
- Removing it can change the math even when the rate improvement is modest.
- Cash-out amount
- Increases the balance and usually affects pricing.
Run the numbers
Questions people actually ask
Is there a rule of thumb, like one percent?
No. A rule of thumb ignores your balance, your remaining term, your costs, and how long you will stay. On a large balance a quarter point can be worth it; on a small balance a full point may not be. Run your own numbers.
Can I skip a payment when I refinance?
You are not skipping anything. What appears to be a skipped payment is interest handled through payoff and prepaid items. Framing it as free is a marketing tactic, not a benefit.
Sources
Program rules change. These are the primary sources this page is written against and the ones we check before advising anyone.
- Mortgages — buying a house — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Last reviewed 17 August 2026.
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