Mortgages
• Apply now for a home loan!
• Today's Mortgage Rates.
• What are my closing costs for my mortgage? Here’s a list of the possible closing costs.
• What is an Escrow Waiver? What is an escrow waiver and what does it mean to me?
• Mortgage Application Checklist Typically here are the items needed to get your mortgage started. This check list is very handy to follow to help with a speedy refi or a home purchase.
• Equal Credit Opportunity Act. Here’s a sample Equal Credit Opportunity Act form
• Borrowers’ Certification and Authorization. Here’s a sample Borrowers’ Certification and Authorization
• Good Faith Estimate. The good faith estimate is very important in the beginning of the mortgage process. While in the beginning stages of either home hunting or refinancing a current property, make sure you prepare for comparing good faith estimates. Also visit goodfaithestimate.biz for more information.
• Buying a Home Buying a home is a very daunting task. If this is your first time with a new home purchase or your 5th home purchase it’s all the same. The process of buying a home remains the same, but sometimes it just seems like it doesn’t get any easier.
• What is an APR? When a loan officer explains it to me I still don’t get it. In all my years in the lending business, I found that one of the most difficult lending terms to explain (especially over the phone) was APR.
• Mortgage Process and the Loan Officer Relax... the mortgage process can be very simple when laid out in steps.
• Rent or Buy One of the questions that would often be asked, whenever people found out I was in the mortgage business was, should I rent or buy a house?
Loans
• Find the loan that works for you.
• Understanding Vehicle Financing. With prices averaging more than $20,000 for a new vehicle and $9,500 for a four-year-old vehicle, most consumers need financing or leasing to acquire a vehicle. In some cases, buyers use direct lending they obtain a loan directly from a finance company, bank or credit union.
• Applying for a Loan. When applying for a loan, you must prepare a written loan proposal. Make your best presentation in the initial loan proposal and application; you may not get a second opportunity.
• Financing Basics. Before inquiring about financing, ask yourself the following:
• Personal loans What's a little money between family members? The IRS has a response to that: interest income-tax and the gift tax. For a loan to be a loan, according to the government, interest must be paid. If not, it's a gift. In either case, it's subject to taxation laws.
Real Estate
• Thinking of Selling Your Home? Let REALTORS® Compete For Your Business!
• Apply now for a home loan!
• Financing Houses. Lenders control many programs -- some make use of over 200! Generally, lenders look for the following typical standards:
• Buying Houses To make a good profit in real estate, you must buy right. Check out all property types available to find the best transaction for your specific situation. Consider fixers, distressed sales, repossessions, multiple listings, for sale by owners, and vacant properties just wasting away.
• Talk to a Lender Before You Sell Your Home. If you're looking to sell your home quickly, and for top dollar, the best thing you can do is to be able to offer your buyers some sound financing options.
• Finding safety: Investments shifting from stocks into real estate. Adam Slone got burned by the stock market. But his home and rental property stayed rock solid. So now Slone is out of stocks and into real estate.
Credit
• FREE Credit Report and Credit Score
• Solving Your Credit Problems. Your credit report influences your purchasing power, as well as your chances to get a job, rent or buy an apartment or a house, and buy insurance. A history of timely credit payments helps you get additional credit. Accurate negative information can stay on your report for seven years.
• Credit and Divorce. Mary and Bill recently divorced. Their divorce decree stated that Bill would pay the balances on their three joint credit card accounts. Months later, after Bill neglected to pay off these accounts, all three creditors contacted Mary for payment. She referred them to the divorce decree, insisting that she was not responsible for the accounts.
• Stolen Identity "I don't remember opening that credit card account. And I certainly didn't buy those items I'm being billed for." Maybe you never opened that account, but someone else did...someone who used your name and personal information to commit fraud.
• Protect your identity. Identity theft involves someone else using your personal information to create fraudulent accounts, charge items to another person's existing accounts, or even get a job. You can minimize the risks by managing your personal information wisely and cautiously.
Investing
• Women and Retirement Savings. Planning and saving for retirement may seem like a goal that ís far in the future. Yet saving, especially for retirement, should start early and continue throughout your lifetime. Here are four reasons why saving matters for women and especially for you!
• Top 10 Ways to Beat the Clock and Prepare for Retirement. Retirement is expensive. Experts estimate that you'll need about 70% of your pre-retirement income-lower earners, 90% or more - to maintain your standard of living when you stop working.
• Retirement Tips for Individuals.
• Types of Retirement Plans. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) covers two types of pension plans: defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans.
• 10 Common Causes of Errors in Pension Calculation.
• Planning Your Estate. Planning your estate is to distribute your assets according to your wishes after your death. Successful estate planning transfers your assets to your beneficiaries quickly and usually with minimal tax consequences.
• Beach condos, townhouses, cabins - boomers keep market for second, third homes booming. After losing $700,000 on Wall Street, Steven Style has stopped buying stocks. But he's still investing - in real estate.
