USDA lowers cost to refinance rural home loans

​​​​WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Housing Service Administrator Tony Hernandez has announced a series of changes that will make it faster and cheaper for homeowners to refinance USDA mortgages.

The changes take effect June 2, 2016, and apply to mortgages issued through the USDA and t​hose where the USDA has issued a loan note guarantee.

Homeowners current on their mortgages for the past 12 months will no longer be required to secure an appraisal, provide a credit report, or undergo a debt-to-income calculation when they refinance for a 30-year term. These changes will save time and money.

​The streamlined rules are consistent with banking industry lending standards. Interested homeowners with USDA loan guarantees should contact their lender about refinance procedures. Homeowners with USDA Direct loans should contact a USDA housing specialist.

For additional details on these new changes, see page 26,461 of the May 3 Federal Register. To learn more about USDA housing programs, contact a housing specialist at a USDA Rural Development office. A list of state offices is available here​. ​