You might be one of many Americans who could benefit from refinancing your home.

About 3 million borrowers could save at least $200 a month by refinancing. By refinancing and locking in a better rate on your loan, you could reduce your monthly payment and save thousands of dollars in interest on the life of your mortgage.

A lower interest rate also could allow you to build equity in your home more quickly. If you’re considering refinancing, your lender will run a copy of your credit report.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Items to bring with application

Include:

• Copies of previous two years’ W-2 forms and complete Federal Tax Returns
• Copy of three most-recent pay stubs
• Three months’ worth of the most recent statements for checking/share draft and savings accounts
• Copy of current homeowners and flood insurance policies
• Copy of Property Tax Bill
• Copy of Mortgage Statement
• Social Security card and State ID of all applicants

Approval

When you refinance, you close your existing mortgage and create a new one. The approval process to refinance is similar to the process of obtaining your original loan.

The mortgage specialists GNO FCU will consider your income, loan to value of your home as well as your credit score.

Your new interest rate will be based primarily these factors. When considering a refinance, you also want to understand your break-even point: Weigh the costs of refinancing against how much you’ll save each month to know when you will recoup costs over the length of your new loan.