Interested in buying a fixer-upper? There are several different methods of acquiring a renovation loan, but two federally backed renovation mortgage programs will allow you to do a combined purchase and repair mortgage loan – the FHA 203(k) loan and the Fannie Mae Homestyle Renovation mortgage. They are perfect for rehab work on foreclosed properties,
Foreclosure & Eviction
As the housing market recovers, many homeowners still owe more on their house than it is presently worth. In many cases, people who are “upside down” on their mortgage, as this is known, can negotiate with their lenders to sell their homes for less than what they owe, rather than go through foreclosure. These types
While most people know what a foreclosure is, a short sale is still a bit of a mystery. Short sales began to occur more frequently after the 2008 sub-prime mortgage housing crisis, as distressed homeowners found themselves unable to handle their mortgage payments.
Essentially, in a short sale, the homeowner sells a home for less
Millennials are supposed to be the cautious generation where credit is concerned. Many were burned during the housing crisis and Great Recession and vowed not to be overextended with credit. However, evidence is growing that millennials are headed down the same dangerous credit path as previous generations.
While millennials do have lower average credit card
By Eric Olsen, Executive Director, HELPS Nonprofit Law Firm
Recreational Vehicle (RV) loans last typically for 10-15 years and sometimes up to twenty years. Often a medical condition or simply a change in lifestyle makes the RV no longer necessary. Sometimes a high RV payment can become simply unaffordable. What are the solutions for seniors
Watch Your Credit Card Debt Are you keeping your credit card debt under control? Recent data from Bloomberg shows that more consumers are having a hard time doing so.
Credit card issuers reported a 3.82% charge-off rate on credit cards in the first quarter of 2019 – the highest percentage of written-off accounts in almost
Survey Suggests Economic Overconfidence If the economy is so great and unemployment is so low, why do so many Americans live paycheck to paycheck? And why don’t we seem to care?
The February PYMNTS.com Financial Invisibles Report attempts to answer these questions, noting, “For three consecutive quarters, consumers have been optimistic about their financial futures
If you’re a furloughed government employee or other worker sidelined by the shutdown – or worse, working without a paycheck – you’re probably at risk of missing payments or racking up large credit card bills. How do you keep your credit score from dropping as a result?
On-time payments are one of the
According to Federal Reserve data, serious credit card delinquencies rose sharply in late 2016 and continued to grow through 2018, nearing 5% of cardholders. Similarly, involuntary account closures rose from 4.2% in 2016 to 7.2% in 2018 – but why?
If the economy is doing so well, why are people having trouble paying credit card
According to the latest Household Debt and Credit Report from the New York Federal Reserve, America’s total household debt has surpassed $13.5 trillion. Do you sometimes feel like $13 trillion of that debt is yours?
Based on a recent survey by LightStream, almost one-quarter (23%) of Americans believe that it’s nearly impossible to climb out
According to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit report, America’s outstanding revolving debt – mostly credit card debt – was closing in on $1.04 trillion as of June 2018. How will we pay all that money back? An increasing number of Americans may not be able to do so.
ValuePenguin analyst Joe Resendiz calls credit
We frequently hear about America’s crushing student loan debt – but auto loans are not far behind. While student loans are approaching $1.5 trillion, outstanding auto loans topped the $1.2 trillion mark in the third quarter of 2017 according to the New York Federal Reserve.
Subprime borrowers (FICO credit scores below 620) hold almost one-quarter
America’s economy is improving by most standards – but is it improving on the backs of excessive debt?
According to the New York Federal Reserve, total household debt reached a new high of $13.15 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2017. While the majority of household debt is mortgage debt, consumer credit rose by the
The Equivalent of Debtors’ Prison Is there such a thing as a modern-day debtors’ prison? Not literally, as
debtors’ prisons were outlawed by Congress in 1833. However, a recent ACLU
report on the criminalization of private debt points out that some private debt
collectors are creating the equivalent of debtors’ prison via the courts.
The
“Dude, Where’s My Car?” may be the name of a lame Ashton Kutcher movie, but it could also be your response as you realize that your car has been repossessed.
Just like a home, a car is not yours until it is fully paid off. The creditor has the right to repossess it under certain
Has your rental application just been rejected? Determined to make lemonade out of lemons, you resolve to find out why you were rejected and change the situation so that your next application is approved.
Assuming that you filled out the application correctly and made no obvious mistakes such as bringing your pet rattlesnake or a
America may be in a continued economic recovery, but that recovery is not currently translating into more consumers paying their debts on time. At least that is the case with respect to auto loans and credit card debt in the third quarter of 2016, according to the American Bankers Association (ABA).
The ABA tracks delinquency
Figures show that six million Americans are behind on their auto loan payments by at least 90 days. This delinquency is causing concerns for lenders. Researchers from the Federal Reserve Bank say that late payment levels are now at their highest since 2010, and pressure may increase for borrowers to prove their financial circumstances.
The
On August 4, new rules by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) came into effect. These will protect homeowners from wrongful foreclosure, and give them a chance to catch up on their payments before lenders can seize the property. These rules require mortgage servicers to provide various protections to those in foreclosure. Under the old
The Washington state Supreme Court has ruled that lenders cannot take possession of a property due to missed mortgage payments without first going through foreclosure. This ruling opens the door to a federal class action spearheaded by Laura Jordan and joined by more than 3,600 borrowers. Jordan started the case after her mortgage provider seized
As the auto loan industry tops $1 trillion dollars, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has voiced concern over the unprecedented growth, increased delinquencies, and decreasing value of used cars. Many banks and other lenders have also relaxed their standards for borrowers to beat the competition, which has led to many unqualified
New York City is implementing a new program, the Community Restoration Program, to assist those in foreclosure from losing their homes. Under the program, the city will buy several mortgages owned by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The program, according to Bill de Blasio, mayor of New York City, is unique. It is designed to
One of the consequences of the foreclosure crisis is that mortgage companies were told they needed to be more proactive in contacting and helping delinquent borrowers. However, this comes into conflict with another mandate from the administration: reducing the number of calls that consumers receive on their cellphones. With the two mandates in conflict, the
You should be enjoying the fruits of your labor in your later years, not worrying about how to pay back debt. Unfortunately, too many seniors find themselves with high levels of debt and uncertainty about their future.
If you are in this situation or heading that way, consider these steps to reverse your slide into
During the financial crisis and Great Recession, thousands of Americans lost their homes to foreclosure when they were unable to pay their monthly mortgages. But now, a new type of foreclosure crisis is emerging in which people are losing their homes as a result of delinquent payment of their property taxes.
How Tax Liens Work