6 Easy Steps Guaranteed to Put A Little Spring into Your Personal Finance
March 31, 2008
Spring time rituals for several hundred years have involved airing out musty houses, cleaning up yards, and generally doing things to improve the quality of our lives. When you touch up your personal living environment, don’t forget to take the time to closely examine your entire personal finance picture and make sure everything is just the way you want it.
Here’s an easy 6 step process that will help you to ensure your financial planning is in order and that you’re ready for the months to come.
Credit Report – Your beacon score paints a numeric picture of your overall credit health. Your beacon score is determined by the information contained in your credit report so it’s a great idea to give it an annual review to ensure that the picture creditors and potential creditors see casts you in your most positive light. If there is outdated or inaccurate information affecting your beacon score, it can affect your ability to make financial decisions, such as that new car purchase or a mortgage refinance you might be contemplating.
Need to unlock your home's equity - but have a few questions? Why not consider a free private email consultation with me, Darrin Roseborsky? There's no obligation or commitments to worry about. Just helpful answers to your questions. Use the short form in the top-right corner to get started. And in a few minutes, you'll have the answers to all of your questions.
Are “Insta-Quote” Refinance Sites A Help or Hinder? Here’s What You Should Know!
March 30, 2008
Shopping for a refinance or home equity loan? You may be tempted to turn to one of those “big box” mortgage search sites, hoping against hope that with one click of your mouse you’ll enter some kind of borrower’s utopia and find the “perfect” loan.
Can you think of the types of websites I’m referring to? You know, websites that offer big promises about how you can enter a few details and in the time it takes to change the batteries in your T.V remote control, your email inbox can be flooded with refinance and equity loan offers from lenders willing to fight to the death for your business.
While you certainly can get many refinance offers quickly, there are some perils in taking this approach. I know the idea of saving time can be very appealing but, in the end many of these sites tend to over promise and under deliver.
So, if you decide to go the way of the lending mega-plex, here’s what to watch out for:
How to Manage Risk When Refinancing an Adjustable Rate Mortgage
March 28, 2008
You’d have to be living on Jupiter to not know about the mortgage mayhem in the United States, as the sub-prime mortgage market crumbles and home prices continue their free-fall. Even with all this volatility, it might be a good financial strategy to consider refinancing into an adjustable rate mortgage ( ARM ).
If you have a higher threshold for risk than the average consumer and the numbers are right, it might make sense to you. Here are some ways you can have the best of both worlds while protecting yourself – and your wallet.
If your credit score is a little rough around the edges refinancing into an adjustable rate mortgage might make sense. There are benefits and risks to making this decision. This is a highly personal decision and you can decide what makes most sense to you.
4 Tangible Benefits To A Commercial Mortgage Refinance
March 26, 2008
If you’re in business for yourself you know that profit margins can be razor thin; consequently you’re always looking for cost reduction ideas and how to increase profitability. Instead of cutting the quality of the goods and services you offer your customers – which could subject you to customer backlash – reduce your expenses and slash your interest payments by considering a commercial mortgage refinance.
Regardless of whether you carry loan balances for revolving debt, capital improvements, research & development, payroll, etc., you sometimes need ready access to cash. In business, the difference between turning a profit or posting a loss can sometimes be a few pennies per item. If you carry loan balances, a reduction in interest rates of as little as a single percentage point through a commercial mortgage refinance could mean an extra few hundred dollars to your bottom line each and every month.
Got Five Minutes? Learn The Five Step Refinance Dance
March 24, 2008
When deciding on whether or not to refinance your home you want to do your best to ensure that your timing is as good as possible so you can lock in on a good interest rate that will help you to maximize your home equity and help you to reach your financial goals.
Timing is important; there’s a window of opportunity for you to refinance while rates are great, but you want to be sure to seize that opportunity before that moment passes and your fingers get crushed by a closing window. Rates are at their lowest point in nearly 40 years, so now may be your time.
Here’s a quick and easy guide to help you decide if now is the time to lock in on a nearly historic opportunity for a great refinance loan.
How to Make Your Loan to Value Numbers Count - LTV Simplified
March 22, 2008
Springtime is a time for new life, spring cleaning, and home equity loans. If you’re like a lot of Canadians, you may just now be realizing that you could really use some new carpet, a fresh coat of paint, and…the list goes on.
If your savings account balance is hovering just above zero, you might want to consider a home equity loan as a way to renew your commitment to your home and endear yourself to your neighbors. In order to make the numbers work to your advantage you need to know how to calculate – and define loan to value.
Know Your Goals: Calculating Decisions For Cash Out Refinance Success
March 20, 2008
It’s nearly springtime and soon baseball season will be upon us. If you’re considering a cash out refinance loan you may be inclined to rush the process and see how quickly you can sign on the dotted line. Before you get too carried away, it would be wise to treat the loan process the way a good hitter approaches every at-bat. By doing this, you can swing for the fences knowing that your loan has a good chance of being a home run.
Take a step back – A good hitter isn’t always ready for the first pitch, so if you’re not clear on what you need the money for, take a step back out of the batter’s box and analyze your needs. A refinance calculator can help you decide how much your payments will be, based on interest rate, term and amount financed. Cash out refinance loans aren’t all the same – some are much better than others – so don’t plan on automatically swinging at the first pitch a broker sends your way.
Difference Between Secured Loan And Unsecured Loan – What You Should Know!
March 19, 2008
If your monthly budget is fighting the Battle of the Bulge, you may be considering a debt consolidation loan as a way to reduce your overall debt load, and you may have heard that secured loans are always superior to unsecured loans.
With so much competing financial information available on the net it can be difficult to know in which direction to turn – and to whom to listen – when debating the merits and the difference between secured loan and unsecured loan.
Weekly Q and A: Can I Keep A Credit Card If I Refinance Debt Loans?
March 18, 2008
Question: Would we be able to keep one credit card with a high available credit for emergencies if we refinanced our debt loans? Thanks.
Answer: Thank you for your question. In short, the answer to your question is yes. When it comes to your credit card, most lenders will require the balances on your card to be paid. But, most lenders won’t request termination of your credit card account(s).
Don’t Trip Over Your Line of Credit – Slip into the Perfect Loan Instead
March 17, 2008
If you’re one of the millions of Canadians who have taken advantage of easy credit and repayment terms on a line of credit, listen up, because the rules of the game could be changing. If they do, you stand to be caught in no man’s land – in need of cash for an emergency or monthly credit obligations – and potentially unable to use a home equity loan to pay bills or pay off previous debt loans.
There are signs that some of the financial problems in the United States are beginning to creep across the border and if their sub-prime lending problems follow suit, some Canadian lenders could clamp down on your line of credit – available cash that draws upon equity you have in your home that works similar to a credit card but without the high interest – and cancel your credit line.
