[quote author="citypicture" date=1253094379][quote author="USCTrojanCPA" date=1253093298][quote author="citypicture" date=1253092075]I am currently buying a home and am not quite sure how "buying down the rate" works and am wondering if my lender is trying to pull a fast one on me.
I am being charged a $3,809.20 origination fee to buy down the rate from 4.5% to 4.375% on a 5/1 ARM $387,586.00 loan amount.
Is that correct? Can anyone explain how this works?</blockquote>
The first question I have is why are you getting a 5/1 ARM with 30-year rates are so low??? You should not be charged almost 1pt to buy down your rate by only 1/8%. Sounds like you are dealing with a shady lender.</blockquote>
It makes my monthly payments a lot lower with the 5/1. Well, I have to pay PMI as well, does that justify the high origination fee?</blockquote>
Seriously, you (generally) literally cannot afford the home if you cannot afford a 30-year fixed loan. I'm looking for a home as well, and the maximum house I can afford is the maximum house I will buy. When I say "afford" I mean it - afford to save, afford to pay for the myriad costs associated with owning a house, afford to take vacations, have kids, go to dinner - afford to enjoy my life, not enslave myself to a mortgage payment.
With rates at historic lows, an ARM is NOT a good option, as the rates will only go up. Unless you have some sort of upcoming inheritance, structured payout or legal settlement, etc. that you can use to pay down/off your mortgage, an ARM is a bad idea.