Your Lender

• The first person you should contact regarding your fixed rate home loan is your current mortgage provider. The reason for this is that you have already built up a history with this lender, having made numerous monthly payments to them on a consistent basis. Contact your lender and explain to them that you would like to renegotiate your loan to a lower rate.
  
  Many lenders will work with you because they know that if they cannot satisfy your request, then you'll take your business elsewhere. From a consumer's standpoint, refinancing your loan can save you money as your lender may absorb some if not all of your closing costs. Verify the current rate on fifteen- and thirty-year fixed mortgages by visiting bankrate.com for that information.
  
  Verify the current rate on 15- and 30-year fixed mortgages by visiting Bankrate.com. Many lenders will work with you because they know that if they cannot satisfy your request, you'll take your business elsewhere. From a consumer's standpoint, refinancing can save you money as your lender may absorb some, if not all, of your closing costs.
  
  

Other Lenders

• After getting rate quotes, determine if refinancing is right for you. Closing costs can eat away at your savings, therefore use a refinance worksheet such as one provided by smartmoney.com to help you determine whether you will save money in the long run. Recouping home-refinancing costs may take several years, or you may be able to come out ahead right away.
  
  

Tips

• Visit MakingHomeAffordable.gov if you are having difficulty making your mortgage payments because of job loss, health problems or some other factor. In this case, you may not be able to refinance your home independent of government intervention. The government website will help you learn if you're eligible for the federal government's loan modification program.
  
  Obtain free copies of your credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com to make sure no information on your reports might cause a lender to offer you an unfavorable interest rate on home refinancing or turn down your mortgage. Follow the instructions given by each credit-reporting bureau on how to clean up your credit.