Most people tend to shop for a mortgage based upon the payment. They figure the lowest payment will be the cheapest loan. This is the way most people make banks rich. Because they are looking for the loan with the lowest rate and the lowest payment, they choose the loan with two or three points …
Continue reading “Payment, Interest Rate and Up Front Costs: Choosing a loan intelligently”
This is intended as one of those occasional posts that gets expanded and reposted from time to time. This list is not exhaustive, although over time it is intended to become closer. If you have one, send it to me (dm at) Any of these is sufficient reason, all by itself, not to do business …
On a regular basis, I get emails that ask me what I think of a particular company. When I check out public forums, I see questions about particular companies every time. “What do you think of X Realty, or Y Mortgage?” Reputation has a certain value of course, but in my experience, these people are …
Continue reading “Relying Upon Reputation: There Are No Silver Bullets”
One of the standard arguments I hear about negative amortization and Option ARM loans is that they “give the client the option to make a smaller payment if they need to.” This so-called “Pick A Pay” benefit is a real benefit, but it’s an expensive benefit, one that the client will pay for many times …
Okay, you might expect a Real Estate Agent to have a post with that title, but I’m going to surprise the doubters by hauling out a spreadsheet and proving it with numbers. The more you have for a down payment, the better your interest rates and the lower your payments, but even so, you can …
Continue reading “Why Renting Really Is For Suckers (And What To Do About It)”
what happens if partner refuses to pay his half of the mortgage? The lender will hold you each responsible for payment in full. That’s the long and the short of it. You both agreed to the loan contract, and if it’s not paid in full there will be all of the consequences: Hits to your …
About half the listings around here do not have a single number asking price, but rather a range in which offers will be considered. Even many agents have trouble understanding range pricing. I’ve seen and heard more than one agent rail against it, saying that it is essentially “repricing the home”. Range pricing began in …
Veterans Administration, or VA loans, are government guaranteed loans available to veterans and active duty members of the armed services, that enable them to purchase homes for not money down. In fact, VA loans go up to 103 percent of purchase price to allow for some closing costs as well. VA loans are a unique …
This is one of those commercial gambits I keep seeing that has nothing intrinsically wrong with it, and yet it is most often a tactic employed by the more costly loan providers. In short, sharks and scam artists. The basic come-on is this: Loan provider offers to pay for your appraisal if you do the …
Continue reading ““I’ll Pay For Your Appraisal” From a Loan Provider”
Legally, immediately. With that said, there are economic reasons why it may not be a good idea for you to refinance. If you have a prepayment penalty, you’re going to have to save a lot of money to make it worth paying that penalty. Suppose you have a rate of 7 percent, and an penalty …
Continue reading “How Soon After You Purchase A Home Can You Refinance?”
