William Bud Gragg Jr asked:




Normally the kind of mortgage advice we give is for people who may need to get out of their mortgages. But what if you’re looking to dive into the housing market? What kind of mortgage advice do you need?

Well, it certainly is a buyer’s market out there with over a million foreclosed houses alone available for sale! If you’re moving to take a new job or just like the idea of owning the place where you live, this might seem like a great time to invest in a mortgage and in a roof over your head.

With that in mind, as Realtors we do have some solid mortgage advice for you.

First, don’t think of any house you buy as an investment. Yes, you may get lucky, and property values might rise enough for you to get some money out of the house after your mortgage is paid off, or even before. But if you look at your house as an investment bank that’s going to constantly pay off for you-well, those days are long gone.

It’s much more likely that the property you’re looking at will fall in value before it ever rises again.

The next thing you need to know about mortgages is that there is one kind of mortgage that you should never, ever get-even if you have to walk away from the sale. That mortgage is called an adjustable rate mortgage, or ARM.

With ARMs you get a nice, low monthly payment for the first 1-7 years, depending on the terms you get. After those 1-7 years, though, the mortgage resets to reflect inflation. And it keeps resetting every year after that. Sure, if inflation goes down, you’ll see a decrease in your mortgage payment. But don’t count on that happening!

When you’re applying for mortgages, the mortgage lenders are going to be looking at something called a loan to value (LTV) ratio. That’s the ratio of the amount of the mortgage to the actual value of the house. For example, if you take out a $130,000 loan on a $150,000 house, you’ll have an LTV of 87%-you’ll owe 87% of the house’s current value on your mortgage.

Mortgage lenders are only likely to write you a mortgage if your LTV is 80% or less-especially these days!

We know that there are some incredible-looking deals out there. Property values have dropped so low in some places that you might be able to buy at least a condo outright! But before you decide to make a mortgage commitment of any size, we want you to ask yourself these questions:

· How is this area economically? Is the economic base diverse enough that you aren’t going to be as likely to have to move and then be stuck in a mortgage you don’t want to pay anymore?

· Property values are likely to drop even more before things get better. And it’s unlikely we’ll ever see a real estate bubble like we did during the past decade and a half. In that case, would your money be best spent on a mortgage or on your financial future?

Finally, be sure to get someone beside a mortgage lender-or anyone else who has a stake in your financial decisions-to give you personalized mortgage advice based on your family’s specific situation. You’re going to want to learn as much as you can online, of course, but there’s no substitute for a qualified person who can tell you how the ins and outs of mortgages can affect you personally.

Jesse

minibikemulisha asked:


I have $15,000 in government student loans at 5.5%. They go back into repayment in 6 months. I’m just entering the work force and I’m thinking about doing a graduated repayment plan, it will rise as I make more and inflation rises. I have $20,000 saved in my bank account from work and saving. One friend of mine told me to use half of the $20,000 towards my loans before I consolidate making my loans at $5000, but that is money that didn’t come very easy for me and not very easy to make back since my income is currently low. Another friend told me to put my loans into repayment and invest my $20,000 I have saved and use my student loan interest tax write off to put towards taxes I have to pay from my investing. Use the money earned to pay my student loan monthly payments. I have no credit card debt, mortgage payments or any other debt besides a small car loan.

Any advice towards this situation would be great. If I should invest I’m open to investment advice, I’m not familiar with investing and I know the stock market is a mess at the moment. Thanks for your time.

Yolanda

Reno Charlton asked:


Over the past couple of years the risk of repossession has become a very real one for many homeowners and the UK, and this has been partly fuelled by the series of interest rate hikes applied to the base rate by the Bank of England. Between August 2006 and July 2007 the interest rate rose fives times, each time by 0.25%, taking the base rate to 5.75% by July 2007.

Interest rates were hiked during this time so that the government could try and keep a lid on inflation, which had spiralled out of control and exceeded the government’s 2% target. However, the rate rises inevitably impacted on household finances, with many homeowners facing rocketing mortgage repayments, and this had a knock on effect on the economy as well as on consumer confidence.

In December of last year, and again in February of this year, the base rate was cut, again each time by 0.25%, taking the base rate back down to 5.25%. However, despite these rate cuts many homeowners are still struggling, as any cuts in their mortgage repayments have been counteracted by increases in other costs such as energy bills, food prices, and petrol costs.

Recent figures have shown that in 2007 the level of repossessions in the UK soared by 21%, with around 27,000 homeowners having their properties repossessed over the course of the year because they could not make repayments. A number of industry officials have predicted that this year will see the level of repossessions continue to rise as a result of strained household finances and rising costs.

However, homeowners that are struggling to keep up with repayments on their mortgage loan are advised to seek advice and help as early on as possible, and often the first line of enquiry will be the mortgage lender. Unlike unsecured finance, your mortgage loan is tied to your home, and missing repayments could result in losing your home.

One official from the Council of Mortgage Lenders said that anyone struggling with mortgage repayments should contact their lender as soon as possible with a view to coming to an agreement, at least in the short term. He said: ‘Lenders take their responsibilities to borrowers facing repayment difficulties very seriously, and many go to exceptional lengths to provide debt counselling, reschedule payments, extend loan terms, or in some circumstances even allow payment breaks. They will abandon repossession action right up to the last moment if they can reach a payment solution consistent with both the borrower’s and the lender’s interests.’



Grace