STEVE INSKEEP, host: And new study shows an increasing number of homeowners have refinanced their mortgages to take equity out for cash. This study comes from Freddie Mac, the giant mortgage buyer. In the third quarter of this year, nearly nine out of ten loans that were refinanced resulted in an amount at least five percent higher than the original mortgage balances.</s>STEVE INSKEEP, host: That means people are taking cash out, using their houses as ATMs - as people used to say. This is the highest rate of cash-out refinancing in 16 years and it's a slight increase over the second quarter. Most of the new loans carried interest rates higher than the old mortgages.
A new Freddie Mac study shows an increasing number of homeowners have refinanced their mortgages to take equity out for cash. In the third quarter of this year, nearly nine out of 10 loans that were refinanced resulted in an amount at least five percent higher than the original mortgage balances.