When you refinance you might be able to borrow more than the amount you currently owe on your mortgage. You can take the difference in cash. This is called a cash-out refinance ( link to term on site). This money can be used for any purpose, but many use it to fix up their house. Using a refinance to get the money offers tax advantages and is usually cheaper than a consumer loan. Other types of funding, like home equity lines of credit and second mortgages, would require separate payments and might end up being more expensive.

Because they aren’t secured loans, that is to say they don’t have an asset as collateral like your house, student loans are considerably more expensive than mortgage loans. Many people will leverage the fact that they have an asset to borrow against to secure better terms. They will utilize a cash out refinancing to borrow against the equity built up in the house and use that money to pay for education.

Borrowers can sometimes shift from a 30-year mortgage to a 15-year mortgage without having a big increase in payments. If interest rates have declined the money saved by refinancing to a lower rate can offset the increased payment level that comes with making half as many payments.

This might be car loans, personal loans, credit cards, student loans or any other kind of debt. Most often these forms of loans have considerably higher interest rates than your mortgage might have. By using a cash out refinance you can pay off these other loans and have just one, lower interest payment to make. Learn more in our article on Consolidating Your Debt With Cash Out Refinancing.