A mortgage is a major commitment to pay for a property over a set amount of years. Most people cannot pay the cost of a house up front, so it makes sense to spread the payment out over a number of years and pay it through a mortgage.
Mortgages are often paid out over a long time frame, with 30 years being the most common length. The housing market fluctuates constantly, and can see significant changes over the course of a mortgage. Refinancing is essentially working to change the terms of a mortgage to reflect the current conditions of the housing market.
Refinancing can take many different forms, but it is often a useful tool for people who do not want to be stuck with the same terms that they signed years earlier in a different housing market. This could include changing:
These are only a few of the many options that can be adjusted when refinancing.