Now you want to decide upon how to proceed. A home refinance loan isn't impossible to obtain - even with bruised credit.

Here's how to do it without busting your budget.

First Consider Your Reasons: What do you need the money for? Why you're shopping for a refinance loan in the first place can play a role in whether it's a sensible idea. If you want to lock in at a good rate and pull cash out of your home to take a luxury cruise, that might not pass the "smell" test.

But, if you're refinancing to lock into a fixed rate mortgage to save money on your house payment, that's another story entirely. Refinancing becomes an even more attractive option for you if you want to reduce your payments so you can begin whittling away at some other debts with your monthly savings.

Next Shop around: Don't settle for the first offer you get; hold out until you're sure you have the best offer. Avoid the temptation to "get it over with" because the wrong loan can take years to recover from.

Evaluate your offers: When you have all your home loan refi offers, compare them fairly. Look at the total cost because the devil's in the details. A low APR won't do you much good if you have a lot of fees to pay. Carefully examine how much the loan is going to cost.

Interview Your Mortgage Broker: Question your broker. Check them out with former clients. If they're reputable and are as good as they claim to be, they'll be glad to put you in contact with satisfied customers. If they don't have any, an alarm bell should be sounding in your head ' loudly.

Apply for your loan and provide necessary documentation: Be honest on your loan application. You're going to be swearing or attesting to the truthfulness of your answers. Lying on a credit application is a crime, and the law doesn't provide for colour shading. There's no such thing as a white lie in the eyes of the law.

Once approved, sign the paperwork: Once your refinance loan is approved and you've jumped through all the necessary hoops, you'll seal the deal, not with a handshake, but a series of signatures on all the refinance loan documents.

Refinancing your home loan doesn't have to be a painful process. Following the steps above can make the process smooth and painless.

A good mortgage broker can help make it a positive and memorable affair. You'll walk away from the closing table with a swagger in your step, knowing that you've dealt with rising mortgage rates and that you've locked in at a good rate!