Archive for July 16th, 2008
Posted by: Ray Lam in Loans, tags: Loans
by Ray Lam
Mortgage is a long term loan and the mortgage monthly payments form a major monthly expense. A lower mortgage rate means lower monthly mortgage payments. This is one reason why people hunt for low interest rates on a mortgage.
As we know, there are two types of mortgage rates i.e. fixed and floating, and different people prefer different types of rate. Again, the prevailing market rate keeps changing all the time. So it’s quite possible that you entered a mortgage at a rate that is higher than the current rate. This is when you start thinking of mortgage refinancing. By mortgage refinancing we mean full payment of the current mortgage loan by entering into a new mortgage loan at a lower rate. So mortgage refinancing starts making sense as soon as the difference in the mortgage rates becomes significant (say 1.50-2% points) i.e. prevailing market rate comes down significantly as compared to the mortgage rate on your current mortgage.
Before you decide to refinance you mortgage you need to weigh the costs against your potential savings. The costs you pay to refinance are very similar to the costs you paid when taking out your original mortgage. Ideally you will want to recoup all of these expenses within two years in order to make refinancing worth your while. Typical fees for refinancing your mortgage include administrative lender fees, appraisals, credit reports, and underwriting fees.
Another reason for mortgage refinancing is ‘need for money’. So, if you have built a significant home equity, you can use mortgage refinancing to get a home mortgage loan that will generate cash for you (by bartering your home equity). This money generated from mortgage refinance can be used for various purposes like financing the education of children, debt consolidation or home renovation. Debt consolidation is one big reason for mortgage refinancing. You can use mortgage refinance for creating money to get rid of high interest debts (like credit card debt, personal loans etc) and hence save money and your credit rating too.
Saving money with a lower payment is not the only reason to refinance. Refinancing for more favorable terms, a different lender, or even to borrow against the equity in your home are all valid reasons for refinancing your mortgage. You can learn more about your mortgage options, including costly mistakes to avoid with a free mortgage tutorial.
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Posted by: Amy Bonis in Finance, tags: Finance
by Amy Bonis
The mortgage market has changed but for many, it has gotten better. Most folks don’t know this. Interest rates have come down. Tell your friends and neighbors and be happy. Now, for those of us currently without jobs, or those that have some credit issues and no money down, the approval requirements have become a bit stricter as they should. On the flip side, new first time buyer programs have evolved that are absolutely fantastic and even offer below market interest rates. Even with all these good things happening, we find that there are many folks out there right now paralyzed by the negativity of the press. We term this analysis paralysis! Folks want to buy or refinance a home, or investment property but are scared. They don’t realize how good we have it here, especially in the RTP area which is really a bright light in the USA right now. This is a great market here. People think “I am not sure I want to sell my home right now but I really do want to buy a new home..” They may not really realize they can buy that bigger home and get a really good deal on the next house and the mortgage right now. The home they are buying is more expensive than the home they live in currently, this can be a good leverage advantage. The other thing to consider here in the RTP area is consider keeping your home, renting it and buying another home. We do have a strong rental market here. Don’t be too fearful of making a move, if you wait until everyone else makes a move, then the laws of supply and demand kick in and prices go up as demand goes up.
Here is more good news; Mortgage rates really have come down quite a bit. Most folks are not aware of this at all. Mortgage rates are at 12 month lows. It is a GREAT time to refinance, look at mortgage options and get out of adjustable rate loans. Many families are considering equity repositioning and taking cash out of their homes to buy other properties and taking advantage of the real estate market. Many investors are sitting on the sidelines waiting to pounce on every good deal they can get their hands on. There have been some excellent new loan products that have come out in the market, particularly for first time home buyers to help them get into homes. Here are a few: down payment assistance programs, bond programs with below market interest rates, programs that are 100% financing with no mortgage insurance (even if you are not a first time home buyer)! Folks are just not aware of this good stuff because the media is showing more bad things than good things right now. This scares people. Have the courage to step outside of what the press is telling you and examine what our geographic market offers. It could be huge opportunity for you.
What has changed? You want to know the facts:
1. If you have credit issues, it will be more important now to get a formal preapproval with a lender that you meet with. Allow your mortgage planner to help you get a better deal/rate by helping give you tips to increase your credit scores. We do this at no cost for our clients. Look for our credit improvement workshops on line.
2. No doc loans- These are loans where no income or no assets are verified. These have become much tougher to do in the current mortgage market. If you need this type of product, talk to a certified mortgage planner in advance of purchasing.
3. When buying investment property, you need to put down approximately ten percent. There are no PMI options only with 10% down. This is a good thing and makes more of the payment tax deductible.
4. As with all things in our world, business cycles as does everything. This is normal and expected and necessary. We as lenders are not giving zero down loans to folks who do not have enough income or who do not have decent credit any more. It is my opinion that the mortgage market was in a way a microcosm of our economy. The market was/is looking ways to make money and just became too lenient w/ some practices. This is why the mortgage correction happened. This is a natural cycle and happens in every business. For the many of our customers there is a big opportunity to buy now. We are in a great market and many families are finding ways to take advantage of moving up, renting their existing homes and cashing in on these low rates. There is a lot of information on Real Estate Investing as a wealth building tool and you are welcome to check our website for upcoming workshops.
Talk to your real estate agent about your current situation they are great partners and can give you an accurate idea about both your current property situation and your new property scenario. They know the market better than anyone.
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by Caden Flynn
There’s no denying that we all want to be wealthy. For many of us this may seem like nothing more than a pipe dream, and realistically we can’t all be as wealthy as the next person, but we can improve our wealth at the very least, to the point where we no longer stress over money and can lead fairly comfortable lives.
Building wealth over the long-term boils down to three simple, yet not so easy to execute steps. Making money, saving or not overspending that money, and finally, investing a good portion of it away for the future.
Making Money
This is the most vital part of the equation, and also the one that is most effected by outside forces and even a little luck, whereas steps 2 and 3 are primarily up to you. You can be the smartest investor and the wisest money saver in the world, but it simply won?t do you any good if you’re not making enough money.
The most important aspect of determining your income potential is the field you’re in, and you may need to ask yourself some questions regarding it. How well are you being paid now, and what potential income will you be earning in 5 or 10 years? If you?re doing something you love but it doesn’t pay well, are you willing to work a job you may not like as much to make extra money? You can be the best in the world at what it is you do, but if you?re stuck in a low paying field, your options are limited.
Step #2 - Saving Money
Maybe you’re already in a nice position income wise, yet you still can’t seem to get ahead. In this case you’re simply not doing a good enough job of saving your money. You can make $100,000, but if you’re spending $110,000, you’re getting nowhere fast.
The good news is that the potential to save is there. Like we said above, making money is the hardest part, so if you’ve got that down pat, you can be saving nice chunks of money away in no time with just a little effort.
To get started you should track your spending for a whole month. You need to see where all the expenses are coming from, and you may be surprised at how easily you fritter money away and possible damaged your credit rating. Once that?s done you can begin to cut some of the extra fat, those expensive little conveniences that won?t affect your way of life when gone. This boils down to figuring out what you need and you merely want. If you have a sizable income and aren’t saving any money, there is definitely a lot of wants - in your spending, and that’s fine. You won’t need to cut them all out, even just a few could save you a good deal of money each month.
Step 3: Investing Money
Once you have enough money saved away you can begin to invest it. Depending on your age, you may need to take on greater risk in your investing than if you were younger. No matter your age you should avoid being too conservative. Your portfolio will need at least some equity exposure to guard against inflation, which is often not considered by new investors.
Conclusion
Building wealth is not rocket science, it just takes some the execution of three fairly simple steps. If you’re making the money, there?s no reason for you not to be saving and investing it, unless of course you plan to work all your life. No? I didn’t think so. It’s time to get going in that case, you have nothing to lose and your retirement to gain.
About the Author:
by Terry Stanfield
As the title of this says, the belief that you cannot afford long-term care insurance is nothing more than a myth. The truth of the matter is that everyone can afford long-term care insurance, and everyone who is interested in retirement planning should. The premiums are not high when they are compared with the long-term care cost that families, or the individual, will have to incur over the course of the long-term care life.
If you are worried that you cannot afford long-term care insurance, then start getting the premiums as early as you can. There is nothing wrong with a 30-year-old doing retirement planning. In fact, the younger you are, the lower your premiums are. Often, a 30-year-old will pay $100 or more less than a senior citizen will in their monthly insurance premiums to pay for their long-term care insurance. The types of young individuals who take the initiative to start retirement planning understand the long-term care cost they may have to pay for without the insurance, and they understand that nearly half of all those who use long-term care services are not over the age of 65.
Long-term care is incredibly important and an individual should make the effort to afford long-term care insurance because it will make things easier, financially speaking, on their family and themselves. Costs can run as high as $5,000 per month for long-term care, and without long-term care insurance, an individual’s savings can disappear very quickly.
For the cost of cable television or monthly payments on that exercise machine you bought but never use, you can afford to pay your insurance premiums on your long-term care plan. There is no reason you cannot afford long-term care insurance when you make the effort to cut back on non-essentials. There is nothing more essential than making sure you have the money to get the long-term care you need in case you need help with your day-to-day activities.
Do not think that you will only need it when you are 80. Your life can change in an instant, and even at the young age of 40 you can require long-term care because of an accident, surgery, or illness. Christopher Reeve was healthy and fit at the age of 41, at the age of 42 he was paralyzed from the neck down because of a fall from a horse. He required long-term care for the rest of his life. If it can happen to Superman, it can happen to anyone.
Conclusion
If you believe the myth that only some can afford long-term care insurance, then you need to give your head a shake. Everyone, even if they have to cut back on that latte every day, can afford long-term care insurance when they make the initiative. Retirement planning for long-term care cost is an effective way of taking your future by the horns and ensuring your family does not have to pay for your care, thereby putting financial stresses on them as well. Everyone can afford long-term care insurance, it is just a matter of whether or not they want to take the initiative and pay for it.
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by Martin Sejas
The fourth part of this series deals with the debt/equity ratio, which is another key component of Warren Buffett’s legendary methodology. In fact, it is a component that the man himself treats very carefully when deciding which stocks to invest in. Just like the return on equity in the previous part of this series, it is an equation that is commonly used in finance, however, Buffett is the one who makes the most and greatest use of it.
The components that make up the debt/equity ratio are fairly obvious and I’m certain that many people first heard of it in high school in a commerce or business class. But just in case, there’s still some confusion, I will give a quick, brief explanation. The debt/equity ratio is given by total liabilities of a company divided by shareholders’ equity.
Both of these are freely available on a company’s balance sheet (sometimes called the statement of financial position). Taking these numbers from these reports is known as taking its ‘book value’. On the other hand, if the debt and equity of the interested company are traded publicly, you have the option of using the market value instead. In addition, you may also choose to use a mixture of both the book and market value.
The ratio illustrates the proportion of debt and equity the company is utilising to support its assets. If a ratio is high, this corresponds to a situation where debt is mainly shoring up the company. The principal dilemma with a high ratio is that it renders earnings volatile and leaves it at the mercy of interest rates, which can be expensive.
Buffett pays a lot of attention to the results of this ratio and the reasons behind this is a important lesson for all investors. He doesn’t differ from other investors, in that he would much prefer companies which have a low amount of debt and the reasoning behind this that a low amount of debt implies income growth is being derived from shareholders’ equity rather than borrowed money in the form of loans. The problem is that if a company uses loans to prop up its income, this normally leads to a vicious cycle of debt and repayments forming which in inherently inconsistent and dependant on the level of the rate of interest.
What investors should take from this part of the series is that they should focus on companies that possess a low ratio, but not just any low ratio, it must be low compared to other companies in the same sector. It’s not difficult to get the numbers necessary to calculate such a ratio, because as I highlighted in a previous paragraph, this is all available on company reports which themselves are publicly available.
Several investors choose to only use long-term debt rather than total liabilities when calculating the ratio. This could be more effective and handy as stocks investing is for the long run not the short run. This doesn’t come from my own personal view, but in fact it’s part of Warren Buffett’s own methodology.
The fifth and final section of this publication will concentrate on one final component of Buffett’s methodology known as profit margins. Coming soon!
About the Author:
About the author: Martin Sejas is the chief writer of Stocks-And-Commodities.com, an influential stocks trading website dedicated to finding the best and the latest strategies and techniques for stocks and commodities trading. Its mission is to become the ‘one-stop shop’ on the best stocks trading websites and programs on the World Wide Web.
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