Q: How do I determine if I should refinance my home or get a home equity loan?

I need to do some major repairs on my home and am slightly delinquent on my payments.

A: I always get worried when people talk about being “slightly delinquent” on their payments. What exactly does that mean? Are you late on your credit card debt? Your mortgage payments? Your tax bill?

If you are late paying any bills, you may have trouble borrowing money at a reasonable price. Talk to a quality lender about your situation and how you plan to get back to on-time payments with this refinance or home equity loan.

By the way, if your debt payments are out of control, you need to think seriously about repairing your home and then selling it, or finding a way to bring more money in each month until your income and spending are back in balance.