Archives for June 2010

Minimizing Risk in Private Mortgage Lending

Private mortgaging lending can give good returns without too much risk. You can ask for a high interest rate as only those borrowers who have not been able to get loans from banks and other traditional lenders turn to private mortgage lenders. This means that you can get better returns than those from traditional investment options like the stock market. And if the borrower starts defaulting, your equity in the property will increase, which will cover your investment

The property is the collateral for the loan due to which the investment is relatively secure. Moreover, a private mortgage lender gives loan for only about 50 to 70% of the total value of the property, and this low loan to value ratio makes the investment even safer. But to be able to benefit from this low risk and high return investment, you need to keep a few important things in mind.

Inspect the property

Before you give a private loan for a property, you should personally inspect it as photographs can be misleading. Inspect all the documents carefully. You should get the property deed and read the description of the property and this description should match the property. It is always better to finance a property that is in your own area. You can personally inspect the property and make enquiries, and you will know the kind of risks involved.

Make sure it is a primary mortgage

You should carry out a complete investigation and see that there is no prior mortgage on the property or the property is not about to be foreclosed. If there is another mortgage, then your risk will increase significantly and your LTV ratio should be lower. It is always better to finance a fresh mortgage than refinancing an existing mortgage. Your investment will be more secure as a primary mortgage.

Insurance

Another thing that you should look out for is whether the property has adequate insurance cover. The standard insurance will not cover many risks such as floods. If the property is in an area where such a risky event occurs frequently, then you should insist on separate insurance for that risk.

Paperwork should be in order

You should sign a proper legal contract when you are getting into a private mortgage deal. This will not only help in case of legal disputes, but will also be needed when you are filing tax returns.

Get Current Auto Loan Rates

In general, the most important matter to think about when requesting for a car loan is the current auto loan rates. These rates are accountable for ascertaining the total amount that you’re going to pay for the car that you’ve bought or thinking of buying. Thus, if you want to save some money, you have to find a loan provider that offer low car loan rates. [Read more…]

Tips to Help Single Moms Save Money

Women are often not paid as well as men are. It is said that for every dollar that a man earns, a woman takes home about 78 cents. Added to this, household needs eat into a major portion of their salaries, thus making it very difficult to set aside savings. All this means that as a woman, you need to make smart choices to achieve true financial independence. And the most important aspect of improving your financial situation is to save more. [Read more…]

What You Need to Know About Refinancing Mortgage Loans

A home owner can use their mortgage to get needed cash by refinancing mortgage loans. By refinancing a mortgage the borrower will acquire a new loan that will pay off the first one and have remaining fund that he can use for whatever purpose the money is needed. This is commonly done by homeowners when they want cash for improvements, purchase or acquisition of new property.

Refinancing mortgage loans has its disadvantages as well as advantages. It is therefore necessary for a person who would like to avail of this loan to examine each detail and act accordingly. Below are things to look for when considering refinancing mortgage loans.

Rate of the loan

Rate is of primary consideration in every discussion of loans. The rate of the refinanced loan is usually lower that the original loan. Borrowers should take all necessary steps to make sure the refinanced loan is acquired at a new lower rate and that the rate is acceptable. Another consideration regarding the rate is the manner that it is computed monthly. There are loans that are variable. This means the rate changes from time to time. As opposed to the fixed rate that is paid in the same rate from beginning to end.

Monthly payment.

Many get a new loan because they want their monthly payment to go down. Low monthly payments are not only easy to pay it frees certain amount in the budget that could be used for more important matters. This is not to say that paying loans is not important. Refinancing loans will allow easy management of funds because it is not overburdened by loans that take away a large part of the budget.

The amortization period.

The total number of times a loan is to be paid monthly is called amortization. When the amortization period is long, the monthly payment becomes less. Some people would go for a long-term loan with a lower monthly that a short-term loan that is difficult to pay.

Cash left after the refinance

Many people are interested on how much cash is left after the original loan is refinanced. Getting cash using the refinance loan is one of the common reasons for refinancing. People want to have a quick source of money. Refinancing qualifies for that because it is easy to acquire and money can be obtained quickly and painlessly.

Refinancing mortgage loans helps many people in many different ways. It can ease the burden of having too much to pay for monthly. It makes sure that the rate could remain the same for the whole period of the loan by changing from variable to fixed rate. It provides source of funds that is easily acquired. There are many other reasons why people would want their mortgage loans refinanced. There are good and bad sides to refinancing but many people avail of this kind of loan. It frees people from previous mistakes that lead to a difficulty in paying up loans. These loans become a problem as unpaid monthly dues accumulate. Good thing there’s a solution which is found in refinancing mortgage loans.

What is a Good Small Business Loan Interest Rate?

A small business loan can be very helpful to entrepreneurs who are putting up a business but do not have an adequate capital to do so. Anyhow, each time that we think of requesting for a loan, we usually think of lending companies and banks, right?

This is because any loans acquired through these banks always have an impression of legality and of course, where else can you get money? However, the small business loan interest rate that these banks apply is often so hard to settle up. As a result, the borrower fails to pay his fixed monthly dues. The common reason why this takes place is because the business is just starting out so it is possible that the business is not yet making enough to pay for such soaring interest rates. [Read more…]

What are Unsubsidized Student Loans?

Anyone should have a chance at a good education, whether at the age of 6 or over 60. They also have the right to have necessary financial aid available to make this dream a reality. For students in financial need, there are several options available, there are scholarships, grants, Federal Perkins Loans, but unless you have an exceptional academic record, you will most probably end up having to make a Stafford Loan to finance your college studies. [Read more…]

Stimulus Packages are Coming to an End and Governments Cut Down on Public Services

After months of squabbling, federal spending to stimulate the economy is all set to come to a halt soon. Up until now, the government’s stimulus packages provided valuable support to a struggling economy. But the funding is running out and both federal and state governments are looking at cutting down on public services. It is expected that the administration will have to make additional cuts or find new sources of revenue for fiscal year 2011 to avoid deficit from spiraling out of control. [Read more…]

Learn What Subprime Home Loans are and How They Work

Getting a loan for your dream home can be easy, especially if you are credit worthy. However, if you have a credit standing that is in the red or less than impressive, getting good deal of a loan can be quite a challenge. However, because more banks and finance corporations do recognize the fact that there are quite a lot of individuals and potential homeowners with bad credit, they began to offer subprime home loans. [Read more…]

Underwater Mortgages Continue to Trouble Housing Market

From 4% in 2006 to more than 23% in the first quarter of the current year, the steep increase in the number of ‘underwater’ mortgages has underscored the slowdown in the housing market.

After years of easy mortgage loans and soft terms of repayment led to thousands of Americans opting for these loans to buy homes, the downturn brought with it a dramatic decline in the market. A huge percentage of the borrowers who had taken advantage of easy terms ended up unable to pay back the loans and were forced to foreclose on their homes. [Read more…]

Goldman Admits it May Have to Face More Legal Battles

Goldman Sachs has been in the eye of a storm over the firm’s allegedly unethical conduct before and during the financial crisis. Lawmakers have criticized the firm for selling poor quality mortgage based products to unsuspecting buyers. As the housing segment took a nosedive during the recession, more and more borrowers defaulted on their mortgages, leaving investors with huge losses. [Read more…]

Should You Let Your Teenagers Have a Credit Card?

Credit cards for teenagers is a controversial topic with many parents supporting them and others strongly opposing them. There are many reasons due to which credit cards should not be given to teenagers. The most important one being that no one should take a debt that they cannot pay back on their own. [Read more…]

How to Save on Health Care with Open Enrollment

Most companies are looking to reduce their contributions or transfer a greater portion of health care costs over to their employees. Open enrolment, during which you can change your coverage options, gives you the chance to adjust your plans if the current coverage is turning out to be too expensive for you. For most Americans, this is the only time every year they can make any changes to their prescription costs. [Read more…]

Strategic Default on Your Mortgage How Will it Impact You?

There are some ways to tackle a mortgage if you find yourself unable to afford the payments, like loan modification and refinance, but they don’t always help. There is one other alternative that can save you from paying thousands of dollars in mortgage payments – strategic default. [Read more…]

How to Protect Yourself When Using a Debt Consolidation Service

The easiest way to spoil your credit history is by piling up a lot of debt and missing payments. Other than its impact on your credit score, a huge debt will also significantly affect your lifestyle and peace of mind.

If you’ve made some bad financial decisions or have had to make a huge emergency expense using debt, you may be wondering how you are going to get out of this situation. If you’re desperate to steer yourself out of a debt trap, you can go for an effective debt management method known as debt consolidation. [Read more…]

Protect Your Finances from Online Fraud

Most of us use online payment gateways and visit our banks more often virtually than in person. But a lot of the information you view and input on the internet is not as safe as you think it is. In fact, by running a simple Google search, you will come across several tutorials on how to easily bypass firewalls and other security measures. It is therefore very important that you take precautions to protect your money when you transact online. [Read more…]