Is it possible to refinance my house i have more than 20 equity to pay off other debt 16 000?

Deborah
I know that the economy stinks, but our credit scores are both over 700. I am employed overseas and he is laid off...going back to work (so they say) late this year.

Fransisca
It is possible, but probably not real smart.If you refinance, and you only have 20% equity in your home right now, then you'll have to pay mortgage protection insurance, because you'll have less equity. Also, your employment situation isn't really crash hot if one of you is laid off, even temporarily, and lenders are not going to like that. You might not be able to borrow the amount you need based on one income. Also, even if you could refinance, there would be exit fees for your loan. You need to sit down and do all the maths before you approach a lender.Now, you have other debt. I would concentrate in the meantime on paying that other debt down. Keep paying the minimum repayments on all the debts, but for the one with the highest interest rate (not amount) you must pay extra. The interest rate is what is hurting you, so get rid of them from highest to lowest, in that order. You may need to take on a part time or casual job, or sell some things around your home, or get a boarder or renter into your home, to generate more income. But pay down those loans. I would not refinance. With such little equity in the property, and property values going down right now, you could be in an even worse situation. You need to do the math. I'd speak to an accountant. I'd also speak to your lender about lowering the interest rate on your homeloan. Also, try to transfer some of your higher interest rate debt (if it's credit cards) onto cards with lower interest rates, and use that lower rate to make some headway on the loans. I would not refinance until I had more equity in the house to work with, and house prices were higher. I know it might cost you in interest on the other debts, but I don't think refinancing is safe right now.Best wishes

Isidra
Yes, it should be possible with those credit scores and that much equity. Just be careful to control your spending so that you don't wind up back in debt again.