Refinance savings calculator
Should your church refinance this loan?
Compare your current rate to a new rate and see monthly savings, total lifetime cost difference, and the exact month closing costs are recovered. Then decide.
Your current and new loan
Payoff timeline overlay
Both loans' remaining balance plotted over time. Vertical marker shows the month closing costs are recovered. If the new curve sits below the current curve throughout, you're saving every month from day one; the question is just whether the total savings exceed closing costs.
Current vs. new, line by line
Every dimension that matters when deciding whether to refi.
When refinancing makes sense for a church
The refi math hinges on three numbers: how much your monthly payment drops, how much closing costs total, and how long you plan to keep the property. If monthly savings recoup closing costs in under 2 years and you intend to stay through the new term, the math almost always works. If break-even is 4+ years, you need to stress-test whether giving will hold up that long.
The rate gap that justifies a refi scales with balance. On a $5M loan, even a 0.5% drop saves about $25K/year, easily worth $20-30K of closing costs. On a $500K loan, the same 0.5% saves only $2.5K/year, so closing costs take a decade to recoup. The bigger the balance, the smaller the rate gap that pays off.
Extension funds vs. commercial banks
One of the most common refi paths in church finance is moving a bank loan to a denomination extension fund. AGFinancial, ECCU, Wesleyan Investment Foundation, and similar funds frequently offer 1-2 points lower than commercial banks for member churches. The catch: eligibility requires denomination affiliation and the extension fund will underwrite as if it were a new loan (DSCR, LTV, leadership profile, giving trend). Start the conversation early; closing timelines run 60-120 days.
- Prepayment penalty on the old loan. Bank loans often have a 1-3% penalty in years 1-5, or yield-maintenance on fixed-rate loans. Add it to closing costs before computing break-even.
- New appraisal required. Lenders order their own, usually $3-8K for church property. The figure you used above (1.5% of balance) often covers it, but ask.
- Title and legal at refi. Even on the same property, the new lender wants fresh title and lien work. Roughly $2-5K depending on state.
- The "no-cost refi" usually isn't. Closing costs rolled into the new loan still get paid; they just hide in a slightly higher rate.