advice: How To Know If Your Adjustable Rate Mortgage Will Adjust Lower - 04/09/09 10:31 AM
When conforming mortgages adjust, they're often tied to an interest rate index called LIBOR.
LIBOR is an acronym for London Interbank Offered Rate. But what LIBOR stands for isn't as important as the role it plays.
LIBOR is an interest rate at which banks borrow money from each other. Therefore, … (0 comments)
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advice: April 15 Is 1 Week Away And 27 Million Taxpayers Have Yet To File. If You're One Of Them, Here Are Some Tax Tips - 04/08/09 09:43 AM
There are 138 million taxpayers in the United States and, according to the IRS, 20 percent of them file their taxes within 7 days of April 15. In a holiday-shortened week, that means that 27 million people had better get a move on.
And while a portion of this year's last-minute filers … (0 comments)
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advice: How To Know If You're Eligible For A Making Home Affordable Refinance - 04/07/09 07:55 PM
April 4, 2009, marked the official start of the Making Home Affordable refinance program.
Expected to help 5 million homeowners, the Making Home Affordable program "looks the other way" with respect to falling home values, approving mortgage applications based on borrower payment history and benefit to the homeowner.
Not every homeowner … (0 comments)
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advice: You've Been Pre-Approved -- Now Get RE-Approved - 12/19/07 10:21 AM
Even if you've been recently pre-qualified (or pre-approved) for a mortgage, it may be prudent to get "re-approved". The mortgage industry is changing quickly; being prepared beats the alternative.
Recently, mortgage lenders have made adjustments in what they will lend, and to whom. This shrinks the pool of eligible mortgage borrowers.
… (3 comments)
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advice: How to Squeeze Extra Tax Deductions from Your Mortgage In 2007 - 12/18/07 04:55 PM
For most Americans (but not all), mortgage interest is tax-deductible in the year in which it was paid.
With some advance planning, therefore, a homeowner can increase his 2007 tax deductions by paying additional mortgage interest while the calendar still reads 2007.
The key is to make the mortgage … (1 comments)
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advice: Mortgage Rates are Going Up -- But Not for the Reason You'd Expect - 12/13/07 12:16 PM
Conforming mortgages are getting more expensive -- but not because of mortgage rates.
To protect against further weakness in the housing sector, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are instituting "delivery fees" on all conforming mortgages, effective March 2008.
Fannie Mae's Adverse Market Delivery Charge and Freddie Mac's Market Condition Delivery Fee will … (7 comments)
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advice: Just Because You Can Borrow From a 401(k) Plan Doesn't Mean You Should - 10/19/07 09:15 AM
According to the Wall Street Journal, the number of Americans taking loans against their 401(k) plans is increasing because most plans allow participants to borrow funds to purchase a home or to avoid foreclosure.
But just because the avenue is there, though, doesn't mean that borrowing from a 401(k) is a good … (9 comments)
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advice: How Japan and China Can Impact the Mortgage Rate on Your Home - 10/17/07 09:33 AM
Mortgage rates are determined by the prices of mortgage bonds; this, we've covered before. As bonds prices go up, bond rates come down.
And the price of a mortgage bond is a matter of Supply and Demand.
The greater the demand for a bond, the higher its price. High … (3 comments)
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advice: The Week in Review (October 15, 2007) : What to Watch For - 10/16/07 10:35 PM
The economy appears to have shrugged off August's credit market turmoil and is continuing to expand. This pushed mortgage rates higher last week as market players move money into stocks and hope to capitalize on the Dow Jones rally.
After the Fed's last meeting, the central bank lowered the Fed … (2 comments)
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advice: How Mortgage Calculators Can Be Misleading - 10/16/07 09:38 PM
Mortgage calculators are ubiquitous on real estate-related Web sites but that doesn't mean that they're helpful.
See, Internet-based mortgage calculators take three figres into consideration when determining "how much home can you afford".
Income Debt Downpayment/Equity Next, the calculator figures in your downpayment, multiplies your income by a factor of … (3 comments)
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advice: Need $$ for Downpayment? Think About . . . (4 of 4) - 10/06/07 02:17 AM
Option 4: Lease-To-Own With a lease-to-own, you essentially lease a home, but make larger payments in order to begin accumulating a downpayment. For example, if a house would normally lease for $800, you might lease it for $1,000/month, with $200/month going into a special account. At the end of a … (7 comments)
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advice: Need $$ for Downpayment? Think About . . . (3 of 4) - 10/06/07 02:15 AM
Option 3: Owner Financing Owner financing means exactly that: the owner (or seller) finances a portion of your home purchase. For example, you might borrow 80% of the value of a home from a lending institution, and "borrow" the other 20% from the owner. In this situation, the owner "carries … (1 comments)
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advice: Need $$ for Downpayment? Think About . . . (2 of 4) - 10/06/07 02:13 AM
Option 2: Special Loan Programs Special loan programs come and go quickly. There is many available right now that will allow the seller to provide up to 6% towards the down payment and/or closing costs required for a home loan. That means no money out of your pocket if you … (2 comments)
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advice: Need $$ for Downpayment? Think About . . . (1 of 4) - 10/06/07 02:10 AM
Option 1: FHA Loans Although there isn’t a "No Money Down" option yet, the FHA loan is by far one of the best alternatives for people who want to buy a home and don’t have much money to put down. With an FHA loan, you could put down as little … (0 comments)
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advice: Simple Ideas for Raising Money for a Down Payment… - 10/06/07 02:02 AM
With all the credit tightening going on, many programs will require that buyers come up with at least some small downpayment. Even if you are able to secure 100% financing, you will still need to pay closing costs (if the seller does not agree to pay for you). So, here are … (9 comments)
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advice: Investing in Your College Student's Housing - 09/28/07 09:48 AM
For parents with children in college, or nearing college age, this video from NBC's Today Show is worth watching.
Investing in collegiate housing is not for everyone, but if the angle interests you, don't forget to purchase an accompanying personal liability insurance for injuries that may occur on-site.
Something to think … (4 comments)
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advice: What Happens on the National Real Estate Scene Shouldn't Matter to You - 09/26/07 05:05 PM
The National Association of Realtors® released its monthly Existing Home Sales report for August 2006 and, as usual, you should be ignoring it.
The report discusses real estate on a national level and we all know that real estate is a local phenomenon.
It's not that the report isn't helpful … (10 comments)
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advice: Can't Find Your Cash? You Probably Ate or Drank It! - 09/25/07 02:17 PM
In a study of 2,036 U.S. adults commissioned by Visa USA, nearly half of all Americans are losing track of their money.
An average of $45 in cash is "lost" each week in what Visa dubs "mystery spending", Visa's version of "I know I had this money in my … (11 comments)
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advice: Do you read every article in the newspaper or in a magazine? - 09/24/07 11:41 PM
Probably not. So, how do you decide which ones to read? By the headline, of course. The headline first gets you interested, and then you read for more details.
And a good headline is exactly how you can increase readership of all your ads.
Have an interesting headline in every ad … (6 comments)
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advice: Trusting in Trust - 09/22/07 10:06 PM
What do today's outstanding salespeople have in common?
They share a commitment to base each of their business relationships on trust, according to sales trainer Stephan Schiffman.
He notes, "Too many salespeople focus on whether or not they appear trustworthy. That's not the point. To earn a customer's trust, you must be trustworthy."
And … (8 comments)
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