Mortgage

Average closing costs of a mortgage are anywhere from 2-to-6% of the total loan amount. A no-closing-cost mortgage refinance rolls those costs into the overall mortgage amount, or trades them for higher interest rates. No-closing-cost refinances almost always cost you more money in the long run, but can be a good short-term solution when money […]

About every three months, our mortgage lender sends us a letter. It’s to encourage us to pay our mortgage bi-weekly, instead of monthly. The pitch is simple. We would send off half of our normal mortgage payment every other week. That would make 26 annual payments, instead of 24 (12 months x 2). So we […]

Owning a house is an accomplishment that takes quite a while to achieve. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can make that dream come true, especially nowadays. Purchasing a house with an FHA loan is one of them. You may have previously heard about FHA loans. However, did you know you can use this […]

If you’re tired of renting, but don’t have great credit, don’t give up hope! Yes, it is actually possible to obtain a home loan with poor credit. Lenders know that not everyone has perfect finances. Life happens! Having a low credit score shouldn’t keep you from owning your dream home. Rest assured, there are options […]

You may have noticed a stark increase in advertising for “ultra luxury condos” in your area lately. These swanky apartment rentals or real estate options are becoming increasingly popular — especially in larger cities. At first, you’d only find them in more “glamorous” cities like New York, Los Angeles, or Miami. However, now they are […]

Being the subject of a personal injury or negligence claim can be a stressful experience. If you’re judged to be liable for a person’s injury, you could have to pay out a substantial sum of money. Additionally, the media attention surrounding the claim could be damaging to your brand if you run a business. To […]

Everyone is prone to at least a bit of impulse buying. You know, those purchases that you didn’t really plan (or even need, for that matter), but still still end up in your shopping bag or virtual cart. They are the sugary snacks near the checkout line. They are the targeted ads you see on […]

When it comes to saving for retirement, a Roth IRA is one of the best vehicles you can use. This is especially true if you think you might have a higher income in retirement than you do while working. This could be the case if you have significant non-cash assets, like stocks or real estate. […]

The holidays are right around the corner, and that means you’ll be hearing about two sales a lot: Black Friday and Cyber Monday. These huge deal days have blurred together in the minds of some shoppers, but they aren’t carbon copies of one another. Something marked down on Black Friday may be even cheaper on […]

Once you hit retirement age, you might have a bucket list you intend to check off. These are your golden years, which typically means you have more time to spend on yourself. Unfortunately, spend is often the operative word. If retirees aren’t careful, they might overspend on big-ticket bucket list items they wind up regretting. […]

About every three months, our mortgage lender sends us a letter. It’s to encourage us to pay our mortgage bi-weekly, instead of monthly. The pitch is simple. We would send off half of our normal mortgage payment every other week. That would make 26 annual payments, instead of 24 (12 months x 2). So we […]

Buying a house can be complicated — especially if you’ve never done it before. You have to figure in a ton of different numbers. There’s the down payment, the mortgage term, the interest rate, the property taxes, and house insurance. And then there’s also potentially land transfer taxes, legal fees, appraisal fees, or inspection fees. […]

These days, getting creative with your money puts you ahead of the game. One way you can consolidate debt is refinancing your home to pay off your student loan debt. That said, refinancing your home may not be the smartest option for everyone. To help guide you towards that decision, we’ve put together the following […]

Buying your first home can be a daunting task. It’s not only a major life milestone but a financial one too. Making matters worse, soaring prices and stagnant wages have made it more difficult for millennials to enter the real estate market. Much harder than it was for their parents’ generation, at least. However, that […]