Monday, June 30, 2008

E Loans Free Credit Score Offer - Is it useful

E Loans free credit score offer will give you a CreditXpert credit score. It is not a score from the three credit bureaus, those being experion, equifax and transunion. The credit score that you get from ELoan will not be useful to you for getting a mortgage at any other mortgage company. The only place the E Loan Free Credit Report will work will be at ELoan. (What is the E Loan credit report offer)

How do I raise my credit score?

Thursday, June 26, 2008

How do you dispose fluorescent light bulbs? Answer: Home Depot

How do you dispose fluorescent light bulbs? The worlds largest home improvement retailer Home Depot announced today a program to forward favorable environmental protection. They will be launching a national in store consumer compact fluorescent or CFL bulb recycling program at all 1973 Home Depot locations. The bulbs must be unbroken. Just bring them in and Home Depot will dispose of them properly.

How can I go green?

What is FHA Secure?

What is FHA Secure? FHA Secure is for homeowners that are behind, getting behind or have had recent late payments on their mortgages. The government stepped in and created this program to give relief to homeowners. Many of these homeowners have subprime mortgages that are going to adjust. Many of these homeowners will be unable to afford the new payments when their ARM loans adjust.

If you are concerned about your mortgage adjusting or the payment is too high contact any lender or mortgage officer. FHA Secure is offered across the entire country. Do not delay if you are in trouble. The sooner that you act the better.

What is FHA Secure

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

How do you get an FHA loan?

How do you get an FHA loan? It's actually very easy. The majority of mortgage brokers, banks and lenders can arrange an FHA home mortgage for you. FHA allows people to buy homes with lower credit scores. You can even have collection accounts. Ask your loan officer to see if the can pre qualify you. It should not take very long and there should not be a fee to do this. You may also want to ask about the Ameridream gift program. You can get up to a 3% gift of equity with this program so be sure to ask. A seller has the option to pay all of your closing costs as well. So technically you can buy a home with an FHA loan with no money down and and no money out of pocket.

FHA information

Monday, June 23, 2008

When is my mortgage payment due?

When is my mortgage payment due? Your mortgage payment most likely due on the 1st of each month. Most lenders do their accounting with mortgage payments being due on the first. There are a few lenders like World Savings can have their due date on a different day of the month. My old World Savings loan was due on the 15th of the month. Like I said earlier, your payment will most likely be due on the first of the month. It will be late after the 15th of the month and will show up as late on your credit report once you go over 30 days. So the late that is going to be bad for your credit report will show up after 30 days from the due date have passed.

To be on the safe side, just get your payment in on the 1st of each month.

When is my mortgage payment due?

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Mortgage interest rates hit the bottom

GetPrequalified.com is making its official statement that this is the bottom of the mortgage interest rates. Rates wont be going any lower. If you have been waiting to refinance your home or buy a home, you may not want to wait any longer. If you are waiting for lower rates, you may be disappointed by getting higher rates in the future.

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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Wilmington Finance closes its doors - Another one bites the dust

Wilmington Finance will be closing its doors. Another dead body of the mortgage crisis. Wilmington Finance was known for Alt A and some sub prime products. My guess would be the losses just started to pile up to high.

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energia solar - solar energy, now is the time to act

Energia solar when translated to English simply means solar energy. Solar energy is what we need to be seeing more of as the cost of gasoline and fossil fuels keeps rising. In the southwest where there are over 300 days of sunshine every year, energia solar just makes sense. I think government needs to get in with mandates and incentives for people to start installing solar devices on their homes. Anything we don now will impact our future greatly. Fossil fuels will not be able to carry the day in the future. We need to act now. (solar energy articles)

Monday, June 16, 2008

E Loans Free Credit Score Offer - Useful For A Mortgage?

E Loans Free Credit Score offer does not give you your real credit scores. To get them, like so many other free credit report and credit scores you have to pay for them. On FreeCreditReport.com you will get a free credit report, but you will also be enrolled in a credit protection program to get the free credit report. The credit protection program cost money. So it's not really free. Just be sure to read the fine print before you sign on the dotted line for a free credit report. (Free Credit Report Information update)

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Saturday, June 14, 2008

Fortuna Murcia Property Spain - Real Estate Investing

Real Estate Investing in Fortuna Murcia Property Spain could be a smart thing to do in 2008. Regions in Spain have huge inventories including Fortuna and Murcia. (The real estate market in Fortuna Murcia Spain)

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Servamatic Solar Hot Water Heaters - Low cost solar solutions

Servamatic Solar Hot Water Heater Systems are cheaper then PV systems and they are nearly maintenance free. Convert your hot water to solar. Solar hot water heaters can provide year round hot water in most climates. (Servamatic Solar Hot Water)

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Solar Panel Narrowboat Conversion - Becoming More Popular

Solar Panel Narrowboat technology reduces environmental damage caused by running on diesel and reduction of noise pollution. Save money, make a difference and convert to solar. Solar solutions may be the best chance we have to reduce greenhouse emissions. (Solar Panel Narrowboat article)

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Friday, June 13, 2008

Property Lanzarote - Some interesting tips for buying in Lanzarote

Lazarote is an island that is about 80 miles off the coast of Africa on the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Canary Islands. It is the fourth largest as well. If you are buying property there you need to be aware of the sellers unpaid bills. If you buy a home in Lanzarote and there are unpaid bills, the new buyer inherits them. You need to have a solicitor check the record to make sure that you are not getting more than you bargained for. The other thing is that no one agent lists a home for sale. It is possible for a property to be listed for sale by more than one agent in Lanzarote. It pays to speak with a few agents about a particular piece of property that you are interested in.

Additional inforomation on Lanzarote

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Property Tax Consultants - 1031 tax deferred exchanges

Property Tax Consultants can help you save a fortune in deferring capital gains on your investment property. A 1031 Tax Exchange is a great way to defer capital gains taxes on sold real estate investments. There are some rules to follow - learn the basics. (What is a 1031)

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Fortuna Murcia property Spain - it could be a great time to buy real estate in Spain

Real Estate Investing in Fortuna Murcia Spain Property could be a smart thing to do in 2008. Regions in Spain have huge inventories including Fortuna and Murcia. Real Estate markets never stay the same. Now could be a great time to purchase property in Fortuna Murcia Spain. (Fortuna Murcia Property Spain)

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You may not be able to use disability income to qualify for a mortgage

On a loan that I was working on for someone, I ran into a bit of a snag when it came time to verify the disability income with Social Security. To be able to count an income stream for conventional financing, you must be able to demonstrate payments for 3 consecutive years. That's fine, but the social security administration will not provide a letter stating that they plan on making these payments out to the beneficiaries. I asked someone there why and I was told that their position is that everyone is rehab able. From this standpoint anyone can get better, therefore no 3 year letter.

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Saturday, June 7, 2008

What is Debt Negotiation?

What is debt negotiation? Debt negotiation is an alternative to bankruptcy. If you are behind on your credit cards and unsecured debt, you do have options. Often times you can settle your debt for pennies on the dollar. The average debt negotiation settlement will range anywhere from 40-60 cents on the dollar. Once the debts are settled with you creditor, your credit score will go up. You will no longer have negative trade lines reporting on your credit report. If you are having financial trouble, debt settlement is a great option but it still may not be appropriate for you. You still may want to speak with an attorney just to see what the ramifications are of your financial condition. Do your homework before making your decision. Getting out of debt is one step at a time.

Get me out of Debt

Mortgage Rates could be in for a bumpy ride

The stock market has been on a wild ride of late. Mortgage interest rates have also been along as a passenger with the market. I have seen .25% swings in one day. If you are in the market for a new mortgage, you need to pay attention to the stock market. I recomend being in close communication with your mortgage broker or mortgage banker about locking. One hour can make a big difference if the market decides to take a tumble or surge. You need to be ready to act quick because mortgage rates don't seem to stay in one place for very long.

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Thursday, June 5, 2008

What is the BBB?

The BBB stands for the better business bureau. The BBB is designed to help you find trustworthy and responsible business and charities. It gives you information about a company before you do business with them. It can also help you resolve a complaint that you have with a business. It will also alert consumers to bad business and advertising practices. If a company wont cooperate with the BBB they will be eliminated from the rating system.

GetPrequalified.com more consumer articles

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

What is a secured loan?

A secured loan is a loan that is collateralized by an asset. For example a home and a car are secured by the home or the car. If you stop paying on them, they will be foreclosed or repossessed. The bank or finance company will hold on to the deed or title until the loan has been paid off in full. Secured loans are the best way to get large amounts of money fast. A lender is not likely to loan a large amount of money to you without some skin in the game.

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What is APR?

APR is also referred to as the annual percentage rate. It is a figure used to disclose the cost of credit. It is the yearly amount a borrower must pay for getting a loan or other type of consumer credit. By law, lenders are required to disclose this number to consumers. The function of the APR is to allow consumers to compare the costs of financing from different financial institutions. The APR makes it more difficult for banks and lenders to hide fees.

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Tuesday, June 3, 2008

What is Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac stands for the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation or FHLMC. It is a federal controlled organization designed to support the secondary mortgage market. It was originally chartered by Congress to increase the supply of funds that mortgage lenders, banks, mortgage brokers, credit unions and savings and loans to consumers to make home purchases. Freddie Mac was started in 1970, and is a business that buys mortgages from lenders and packages the mortgages into securities and then sells the securities to Wall Street. The proceeds of the sale of the securities is used to issue more loans.

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What is Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae stands for the Federal National Mortgage Association. It is referred to as Fannie Mae, Fannie, FNMA or Fanny. Fannie Mae provides the secondary market for home mortgages. Fannie Mae has a specific criteria for mortgages that it sells. The loans are then put into mortgage pools and then are sold to Wall Street and other investment entities. Fannie Mae only deals in conforming loans. Currently a loan is conforming if it below a certain amount. For example in Maricopa County Arizona, the conforming loan limit is $417,000. Anything about this amount would be considered a Jumbo Loan and would have a different set of lending criteria.

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Monday, June 2, 2008

What is a 1031 exchange?

If you hear people talking about doing a 1031, they are referring to Section 1031 of the IRS code that allows real estate investors to sell an investment property and to buy another one with out paying capital gains taxes. To do a 1031, you do have to follow certain rules as prescribed by the irs tax code. The new properties that are going to be purchased must be Like Kind and must be identified within 45 days of closing of the initial property. All of the proceeds from the initial sale must be used to buy the new investment property and must be turned over to an intermediary or a Qualified Intermediary. The funds will be held in escrow until they are need to complete the next purchase. For the rules of doing a 1031 exchange, contact a title company. Most title companies have departments that specialize in handling 1031 exchanges. They can answer all of your questions.

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What is a FSBO

The acronym FSBO simply means For Sale By Owner. The term is predominantly used in the world of Real Estate. When someone sells their home without the use of a real estate agent they are selling their home on their own or they are For Sale By Owner. The benefit of being a seller and being a FSBO is that you don't have to pay a real estate agent a commission to sell your home and you can put more of the equity in your pocket at the time of closing. Buyers assume that since no commission is being paid to a Realtor they can get a better price. This assumption may not always be true since the seller probably isn't going to pass the benefit on to you as the buyer. It is mainly held to be more of a benefit to the seller of real estate and not the buyer.

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What is Ameridream

AmeriDream is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that is committed to helping those who want to purchase affordable and suitable housing and need financial assistance with their down payment and closing costs. As a buyer you can negotiate with a home seller to give you a 3% down payment and cover all of your closing costs. This give you the ability to buy a home with no money down and move in with a little equity. To find out more about the Ameridream down payment assistance program, contact your Realtor or Loan Officer.

Additional info on Ameridream