What is home refinancing? It's hard to believe that many Thais who take out home loans do not understand the process, and some may not even be aware of home refinancing. Part of the reason is that banks do not promote refinancing to customers very much. Simply put, refinancing means applying for a new home loan every three years to reduce interest rates, which can be done with either the same bank or a new one. Click here to find out how you can lower your monthly mortgage payments.

          In the past, applying for home refinancing was complicated and time-consuming, requiring personal effort and often leading to long approval times. However, as Thailand moves into the Thailand 4.0 era, financial innovations are playing a crucial role in making home refinancing easier and offering attractive interest rates.

          Today, TerraBKK introduces you to the CEO of Refinn, a refinancing expert who will share techniques for maximizing benefits from home refinancing in today's market.

          Mr. Pornpimol Pathomsak, CEO of Refinn International Co., Ltd., stated that the real estate business is likely to stabilize this year as borrowers face increasing debt burdens, making loan approval rates more challenging compared to the competitive environment of the past 3-5 years. With interest rates expected to rise next year, now is the right time for borrowers to reconsider and lower their interest rates through refinancing. Each refinancing can reduce monthly payments by 20-30%. For example, if a borrower has an average loan amount of 2 million Baht, refinancing could increase their savings by approximately 6,000 Baht per month. Many banks are currently offering various refinancing promotions, such as covering mortgage registration fees and offering low interest rates ranging from 3% to 4.2%, with some providing lower rates in the first year and others offering attractive rates for 5-6 years.

           You can access these services for free at www.refinn.com. Simply fill out your basic information so the system can process and present loan conditions that best match your needs, such as remaining loan amount, remaining loan term, and current payment rates.

Click the image to access the system

   After that, choose your refinancing objectives, such as:
- Lower monthly payments while keeping the same term
- Keep the same monthly payment but reduce the term
- Increase monthly payments while reducing the term

           Refinn's process begins by selecting the best bank promotions that offer the lowest interest rates for borrowers to choose from. The first three banks selected by Refinn will be those with the lowest interest rates, and borrowers will not know which banks they are until they apply for a loan online with Refinn.

           Once borrowers select a loan promotion, they fill out the online refinancing application, prepare documents/signatures, and then send the documents to Refinn for submission to the bank, allowing for immediate approval. This process is very convenient and quick.

Example: Testing Refinancing with Refinn
   Loan information: Remaining loan amount of 3,000,000 Baht, remaining loan term of 25 years, original monthly payment of 24,000 Baht.
   Purpose of the loan: Reduce monthly payments while keeping the same term and loan amount.

   Processing Results:

   Bank 1: Average interest rate for the first 3 years = 3.21%, average interest rate over the 25-year loan term = 6.06% (MRR=6.75), resulting in a reduced monthly payment of 16,900 Baht, saving the borrower up to 239,485 Baht in interest over the first 3 years.

   Bank 2: Average interest rate for the first 3 years = 3.90%, average interest rate over the 25-year loan term = 5.451%, resulting in a monthly payment of 20,300 Baht for the first 3 years, saving up to 230,449 Baht in interest.

   Bank 3: Average interest rate for the first 3 years = 3.76%, average interest rate over the 25-year loan term = 5.57%, resulting in a monthly payment of 19,300 Baht, with total payments over the first 3 years of approximately 584,438 Baht, saving 208,761 Baht in interest during that period.

           Customers interested in using the refinancing service through Refinn can click here. They must have a payment history of at least 3 years or have completed the original contract period, be aged no more than 60-65 years, and must not have credit bureau issues or have undergone debt restructuring previously. Importantly, they must have a remaining debt of at least 500,000 Baht.

           The main goal of Refinn is to reduce household debt, particularly home loans for the public. Refinn aims to find the best interest rates for home loans that suit customers. Currently, Refinn has been in operation for over a year, with a refinancing target of over 3.4 billion Baht this year, averaging 2 million Baht per customer, including both homes and condos. They coordinate with all banks and have 5-6 partner banks that can connect instantly. In 2018, Refinn aims to grow refinancing volume by 3-4 times compared to this year, expanding home loan information services further. Additionally, they plan to develop new home loan interest services, second-hand homes, increase bank partnerships, and develop technology to connect systems with partner banks to track loan approval results and enhance data efficiency for borrowers, saving time on data entry and improving data assessment. Interested parties can visit www.refinn.com for free services.

Special Interview by TerraBKK