Refinance breakeven calculator
Zillow, Chase, and NerdWallet all explain refinance breakeven the same way: add up refinance costs, calculate your monthly savings, and divide costs by monthly savings to find the number of months needed to come out ahead. MortgageCalculator.org and Churchill Mortgage also note that refinance closing costs often land around 2% to 6% of the loan amount, depending on points, appraisal, title, and lender fees.
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How to read this
If your expected time in the home is shorter than the breakeven period, Zillow says refinancing is probably not worth it because you would sell before the savings outweigh the costs. Navy Federal and LendingTree also frame breakeven as the moment when accumulated monthly savings finally offset the refinance fees paid upfront or financed into the loan.