Practical solutions to financial problems
Information about refinancing a home loan
When a homeowner defaults on his/her mortgage the lender forecloses on the property. Generally a foreclosure is the process prescribed by law for a lender to sell the property in order to ensure payment of the home loan. Each state has specific laws that dictate how the foreclosure is conducted but the end result is … Continue reading
Loan to value is the percentage of the home’s value that you are borrowing. As a general rule of thumb purchase price is used for loan to value when purchasing and appraised value is used when refinancing. The purchase price – the down payment = the loan amount. The higher the loan to value, the … Continue reading
Your employment history and income are very important when applying for a loan. Lenders want to see that you have sufficient stable income to pay the loan back. They usually want to be able to verify your income is actually what you say it is on your application. The last two years of your employment … Continue reading
Your debt to income ratio determines how much you can pay for a home. To obtain your debt to income ratio, you will first need to figure your gross monthly income. Your gross monthly income is the income you earn per month before taxes or any other deductions from your paycheck. If you are on … Continue reading
There’s an old saying that there are two things in life that are certain – death and taxes. The statement is pretty true. You have to pay your taxes and you have to pay them on time. If you owe taxes and you don’t have the money to pay them you should work out a … Continue reading
You have to have some money in the bank in order to get approved for a home loan. You should have enough money in the bank to cover two months’ worth of house payments – including principle, interest, taxes and insurance after your down payment and closing costs are paid. These reserves are particularly important … Continue reading
Bankruptcy is the legal process in which a person or company declares inability to pay debts. Bankruptcy laws and procedures are quite complex but for our purposes there are two types of bankruptcy. Chapter 7 bankruptcy eliminates (discharges) most of your debts in exchange for giving up property that is not protected by “exemption” laws. … Continue reading
A judgment is a ruling by a court that you owe someone a certain amount of money. The most common way you would end up with a judgment on your credit report is for one of your creditors to sue you to collect on an account you have not paid. A creditor may choose to … Continue reading
A collection account is a delinquent debt that goes to a collection agency. Every account that has gone to a collection agency is a negative mark on your credit. This is another reason it is so important to pay your debts on time and to catch up quickly if you have gone behind. Having a … Continue reading
What exactly is “debt consolidation?” Unfortunately the term as been tossed around so much that its meaning has become clouded. When someone says, “I’m doing debt consolidation,” you have to ask a few additional questions to determine precisely what they’re doing. To keep things as simple as possible, there are three widely discussed forms of … Continue reading
