Mortgage
12 articles
The decision to buy a house is one of the most consequential financial decisions you’ll ever make. The high cost of real estate only raises the stakes. It pays to find the best mortgage rates and loan terms and lowest overall monthly payment. Start your search with the best mortgage lenders around.
Whether you’re purchasing a prefab dwelling, building a new construction home, or planning to fix up an older house, you’re probably excited about the prospect of closing the deal and moving in. Not so fast. Buying a home is an expensive proposition – the biggest investment that most families ever make. While you aren’t required to cover the
Historically low interest rates have made borrowing money for home mortgages cheap. But buying a home in cash to avoid debt remains appealing to many. For those who have the cash on hand to buy a home outright, the question remains: Is it a good idea? Read on to learn the pros and cons.
The impacts of a mortgage appear as soon as you apply and continue until you sell or make your final payment. That’s why it’s important to understand exactly how homeownership affects your credit score and what you can do to minimize the potential negatives.
Homeowners with ample equity have a ready-made source of low-cost capital to finance significant expenses: their home’s equity. If you’re shopping for a home equity loan or line of credit in the hope of taking advantage of low interest rates, get the scoop on the lenders with the best rates.
The worst part about foreclosure is losing your house, but the indirect financial fallout is pretty bad too. A foreclosure can cause your credit score to drop by 100 to 200 points, with much of the damage coming in the first two or three months after you first fall behind on your mortgage. If that’s
Your debt-to-income ratio is the percentage of your monthly income that goes toward debt payments. While the math is easy, knowing what to put in the formula isn’t as simple. Learn how to calculate your debt-to-income ratio to keep tabs on how attractive you are to lenders.
Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer, looking to purchase a second home, or downsizing after a life change, you can’t move into your new house until you officially close on the property. Your closing day – the day you meet with the seller, your real estate agents, title or escrow agents, and possibly other parties involved in
Recently, we discovered the #1 financial perk for military families: the VA Home Loan Guaranty, commonly known as the VA loan program. It is designed to make homeownership more affordable for current and honorably discharged members of the Armed Forces and certain other service organizations. If you’ve joined the military and now want to buy
Once you’ve determined to buy a house rather than rent, you need to get approved for a mortgage. Then you need to go through a multi-week underwriting process that climaxes on closing day – the day your dream home officially becomes your home. The magnitude of the home buying process can’t be overstated. Statistically speaking, your
If you’re ready to buy a house, congratulations. You’re one step closer to making what’s likely to be the largest single purchase of your life – at least until your family grows larger and you’re forced to upsize to a more spacious abode. Whether you’re buying a new construction home or an old fixer-upper house, chances
Like millions of other homeowners paying more than necessary each month, you can take advantage of current low interest rates by refinancing your mortgage loan. But it’s not always the best decision. Before you can decide, you need to know more about the pros and cons of refinancing.