Google mortgage rates today and you might be surprised: Current mortgage interest rates have fallen to historic lows. This means that homeowners can spend less money than ever on financing the purchase of a single-family home or condominium.

Financial Web sites reported that as of the third week in January the average mortgage interest rate on a 30-year-fixed mortgage loan stood at 3.92 percent. The average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage loan was even lower, coming in at 3.26 percent. These historically low current mortgage interest rates could mean dramatic monthly savings to homeowners.

Consider this equation: If you took out a $165,000 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with an interest rate of 6 percent, you’d pay $989.26 to your mortgage lender every month. But if you took out that same loan with today’s average interest rate of 3.92 percent, your monthly payment would be just $780.14.

That’s a savings of more than $200 a month. Over a year, that comes out to a savings of more than $2,500. Think of what you could do with that extra money, especially in today’s challenging national economy.

Of course, refinancing is not a free process. The Federal Reserve Board estimates that the average homeowner will spend from 3 percent to 6 percent of their outstanding mortgage loan balance in closing costs and origination fees when they refinance. If you are refinancing a $250,000 mortgage loan, that comes out to a cost ranging from $7,500 to $15,000 to close the deal. That’s why it’s so important to google mortgage rates to make sure that your drop in interest rate will save you enough money each month to quickly pay back the costs of refinancing.

The good news is that you don’t have to refinance with your existing mortgage lender. In fact, you can refinance your mortgage loan with any lender licensed to do business in your state, no matter where this lender is located. This gives you the power to shop among several mortgage lenders in an effort to find the ones offering the best service while charging the lowest mortgage interest rates and closing costs.

Remember, too, that closing a mortgage refinance can be a time-consuming process. Any lender with which you work today will require you to provide documentation of your income, savings and debts. Lenders will also check your three-digit credit scores to make sure you are a safe lending risk.

The potential savings that can come with refinancing, though, make this extra scrutiny and time worth it. If you’re ready to take advantage of current mortgage interest rates, it’s time to start doing your research. You’re just a mortgage refinance away from realizing dramatic monthly savings.