So many times when you speak with a lender, you will often just be offered a choice between a 30 year fixed rate program, or an adjustable rate mortgage that changes yearly.
Few people are aware of how many very different mortgage programs really exist.
These loans offer a fixed rate for the first five or seven years, then convert once at the end of that time for the remaining 25 or 23 years. A major benefit of these loans is that they offer you a much lower interest rate to start than your standard 30 year fixed rate program. A strong advantage of these programs is that you qualify based on the interest rate you pay the first year. There are programs where the rate is fixed for the first three to five years, then adjusts annually afterwards. Many of these also allow you to qualify at the starting interest rate.