Have you ever thought about selling or buying a house online? Nowadays, you can use the internet to buy and sell practically anything – and real estate is no exception. If you’re curious about selling or buying real estate but don’t necessarily want to go the traditional route of renovations, staging, house tours and multiple
It’s not unusual to carry credit card debt from time to time. But most of us know that paying off this debt, especially if it’s high-interest debt, is a good move. After all, reducing or getting rid of your credit card debt not only helps you save money (and reduces the stress of carrying debt),
Whether you need an emergency loan, auto repair financing or funds to pay for moving across the country, the number of loan options available can feel overwhelming. And if you need cash fast, have bad credit or have a high debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, a high-interest loan may be your only option. High-interest loans are usually
If you’re exploring options for buying or refinancing a home, you might be worried about the minimum credit requirements associated with certain loans. Thankfully, when it comes to buying or refinancing a home with less-than-stellar credit, nonconforming loans can be a great solution. Nonconforming loans often get a bad rap, likely because their name implies
Have you ever wished you could invest in real estate without spending all your savings? Well, a participation mortgage might be the perfect solution for you. A participation mortgage allows multiple people or entities to team up and share in real estate investment costs and profits, while also reducing each participant’s risk exposure on a
When you have a mortgage, you are not the owner of your home – at least, not yet. Until the property has been paid off in full, a portion of your home is owned by the mortgage lender. Eventually, if you keep making your monthly mortgage payments, you’ll own your home in full. This process
If you’ve ever been in the suburbs and wondered why there are no shops or restaurants in the neighborhood, it’s probably because zoning laws won’t allow it. If you’re considering investing in real estate, you’ll want to know which zoning laws apply because zoning laws can limit what you can do with a property. Maybe
Spoiler alert: All investments carry some degree of risk, including the latest currency to take the financial world by storm: cryptocurrency – also known as crypto. Articles and online forums are loaded with whiplash-inducing news of crypto billionaires alongside reports warning us of a crypto crash. It can be difficult to decide whether to invest
Oddly enough, owning a home does not give you complete control over it. There may be a variety of limits or claims on your property rights, including liens and encumbrances. Liens and encumbrances are different – and understanding these differences will help shed light on the broader topic of titles and other legal matters around
Though most buyers will use a traditional mortgage to purchase their home, there are other options to explore when it comes to financing a home purchase. If you’re having a difficult time with traditional avenues of home financing – like a home loan from banks or other mortgage lenders or a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
Lending money to relatives can have potential benefits and drawbacks for both the lender and borrower. However, family loans can work out well when planned for despite the risk. Similar to other types of loans, family loans have legal requirements, tax implications and IRS guidelines to follow. Family loans need clear communication, including upfront disclosure
When you’re shopping for a mortgage, you’ll quickly discover that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is the go-to for most home buyers. But maybe you’re not interested in a long-term commitment with a mortgage. A short-term mortgage is a home loan with a shorter repayment period than a traditional 30-year mortgage. These loans are typically used
If you own real estate, your home is likely one of your most valuable assets. At some point, you might start to wonder if you can give property as a gift. The answer is yes. If you own property, you can give it as a gift to a loved one, friend or even a charitable
When we think of predatory lending, some of us might imagine the stereotypical loan shark. You know, the slightly menacing lender who lends money at ruinous interest rates and threatens to send someone to break a beloved appendage if we don’t pay on time. The truth is, predatory lending is more common than many borrowers
If tapping into your home’s equity is in your future, so is a whole lot of paperwork. And whether you’re taking out a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit (HELOC) (both are types of second mortgages or junior liens), you may be presented with a subordination agreement to sign at closing.
Adulting has its fun side, but paying bills usually doesn’t fall in the fun category. For many of us, paying bills can be time-consuming, boring and even stressful. What wouldn’t we give for a convenient, easy, efficient way to pay our bills? Thankfully, a solution exists: automatic bill payments. Automatic bill payments can rid you
While many homeowners will go through a traditional lender to finance their home, it’s not the only option available. Seller financing can provide potential benefits to home buyers and sellers alike. Seller financing, or owner financing, is a home buying process that lets the potential home buyer buy directly from the current homeowner. Seller financing
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is tasked with insuring home mortgage loans and making homeownership safer and more accessible while reducing risks for lenders. The FHA’s promise to repay a loan if the borrower defaults provides lenders with a sense of financial security, encouraging them to issue home loans with lower down payments and longer
Big expenses usually require big loans. You wanna buy a house? You’ll likely need a mortgage. You wanna renovate your kitchen? You’ll likely make use of a home equity loan. But what about smaller – yet significant – purchases? For those, you might want to consider point-of-sale (POS) financing. We’ll review what a point-of-sale loan
When you need money from a lender, you can get one of two loan types: secured and unsecured. A secured loan uses a pledge of collateral and an unsecured loan does not. When using collateral to secure a loan, you run the risk of losing the asset if you cannot repay the loan. If you
If you’re not familiar with Regulation Z, the name might sound ominous (images of a plotting Dr. Evil or Filch tacking magical decrees to the wall), but it’s one of the most successful consumer protection laws in the U.S. Regulation Z, also referred to as the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), established a series of
If, like more and more Americans, you’ve embraced working from home, you may be wondering if you can write off your home office on your taxes. The answer depends on a lot of factors, including how you use your home for work, whether you have a dedicated space for your home office and whether you
You’re selling your house, but potential buyers may not want to attend an open house or even a private tour of your home. On the flip side, you may want to avoid devoting time and energy to preparing for in-person tours or scheduling them. And finding someplace else to be while your home is being
We all want a roof over our heads. But what if something happens to the roof over your head, and you need to pay for a roof replacement? Roof replacements can get pricey. In 2022, U.S. homeowners spent between $5,619 and $11,949 putting new roofs on their homes. And the cost of replacing a roof
If you’re shopping for a home loan, you’re probably familiar with the concept of mortgage rates. You probably also know that even a small change to that number can change the amount you pay in interest over the life of a loan by tens of thousands of dollars. But you may not have heard of
Real estate transactions are often chock full of complex terms, complex jargon and complex concepts. Even a question as simple as whether you or not you own your home after closing can result in a not-so-simple answer. (Hint: It depends on which state you live in.) The answer to the question of ownership may rest
Buying a car can be costly. It’s no wonder a lot of people purchase a car with an auto loan. Between your car loan payment, car insurance, gas prices (and the occasional snack), your monthly costs to travel from point A to B can add up fast. If your debt has you feeling like you’re
The day you’ve been dreading as a car owner has finally arrived. Maybe your car made a weird noise, a rock hit your windshield or you walked out of a store only to discover a flat tire. A peculiar noise, a cracked windshield or an unwelcome flat can be more than a personal inconvenience, it
As a homeowner, you don’t plan on having to deal with foreclosure – and hopefully, you won’t ever have to. You can help prevent foreclosure by making your payments on time and communicating with your lender, but sometimes life hits unexpectedly hard, making it difficult or impossible to pay your mortgage. A single late payment
If you’re like most people, you may not fully understand the purpose of an impound account. In short, an “impound account,” also known as an “escrow account,” is a way for your lender to ensure your property taxes and homeowners insurance are paid on time. The lender is responsible for managing the account, but it’s
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