Why and How You Should Avoid Late Payments on Your Mortgage
In this tough economy, home owners are increasingly struggling to make mortgage payments. The good news is that being a few days late paying your mortgage is not a big deal; most lenders give a 15-day grace period and as long as you get payment in during that time, there is no penalty whatsoever. After the grace period, you have an additional 15 days during which you will be charged a late fee. As long as you pay during this period, you are still considered to have paid on time. Now onto the bad news…
If you are 30 days late, your credit takes a hit. Depending on your beginning credit score, being just 30 days late can lower your score by 60-110 points and can take between 9 months and 3 years to fully recover from. The higher your score was before the late payment, the longer it takes to fully recover. If you start with a score of 780 and are 90 days late with a mortgage payment, your score may drop by 130 points, almost as much if you go through foreclosure. A low credit score can cost you more in many other areas too – they drive credit card rates up, affect auto loans and even drive up auto insurance premiums.
Clearly, it’s in your best interest to remain current on your mortgage payments. What should you do if you are having problems? First, keep your wits about you and don’t panic. Refusing to admit there’s a problem will not solve anything. Be proactive; contact your lender with your issues. Most of them are willing to work with you, but communication is key. Don’t just hope they won’t notice if you are late; they will.
Secondly, you need a plan. Track all of your expenditures to see where your money is going. Do it by hand, do it by computer spreadsheet; just do it. Keep track of everything for a month or two. This exercise alone may open your eyes. You may not have ever realized that you spend $15 a month on office birthday cards, for example, and may find something right away that you can cut out or reduce easily. It’s important to find out where your money is going.
Once you do that, you get to look for “extra” money. Don’t look at it as cutting things out or depriving yourself. Make it a challenge; make a game out of it. Cut back on obvious things first, like excessive shoe shopping or those office birthday cards. Analyze the expenditures you identified, and see what can easily be discarded without much trouble. Be ruthless, but make it as painless as possible. You may love your morning Starbucks coffee, but could you buy it at the grocery store and still enjoy it for less?
Then, take a closer look. There are tons of ways to save money you may not have considered. Cook more from scratch. Not only will you save money, you will eat healthier. Use generic products when possible; clip coupons and couple them with sales. Grow spices. Cut out commercial cleaners and start cleaning with baking soda and vinegar. You’ll breathe fewer toxins and help the environment at the same time. Be creative with your cost-cutting, but don’t make it painful or you will have a hard time sticking to it for long.
As you identify areas you can trim, take the “extra” money and pay that mortgage payment on time every month. You may find enough that you can even begin paying down other debts like credit cards too.
Hard times have a tendency to cause people to panic and get stressed out. You don’t need the added burdens that late mortgage payments and lower credit scores can bring. Remember, denial is never a good plan. Get help from your lender if you need it; then make a plan and stick with it.
When you start shopping for a car, it is important to remember that there are more expenses involved in car ownership than just the initial sticker price. Once you pay for the car, you will need to purchase the title, pay the state taxes, and deal with regular maintenance costs. The amount of insurance that you carry on your vehicle may depend on what kind of car you purchased and how you paid for it. Many lien holders will expect you to carry full comprehensive coverage as long as the car is being paid off. Because of the various expenses involved in car ownership aside from just the sticker price, you must consider all expenses before you understand how much you can afford to pay for a car.
The housing and financial crisis of the past few years has caused Congress to take another look at the regulations surrounding these two industries. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which was signed into law by President Obama last July, contains a number of new regulations and reforms many others. Several of these relate to home mortgages, and, unfortunately, the end result may be that it becomes almost impossible for the average household to purchase a home.
Each person who has had their taxes prepared by H & R Block or Jackson Hewitt has heard of refund anticipation loans, also referred to as RAL. Regulation changes for this tax season has taken H & R Block out of the race on these. However, in the future they will no longer be offered at all.
Should you pay off your student loans early? Absolutely! Paying off your student loans as soon as you possibly can is the best thing you can possibly do with your money. Tons of people graduate from college with thousands of dollars worth of student loans and completely forget or neglect to pay the money back once they are out college. This is one of the worst mistakes you can make. There are a number of reasons to pay your loans off as soon as possible.
Businesses of all sizes frequently acquire loans for numerous needs. Before journeying into the world of company management and ownership, individuals require some knowledge of small business lending basics. Some lenders prefer to work with companies established for 3 to 5 years, while others readily assume the risk of new business ventures. Lenders provide various loan types to accommodate different business aspects including start-up expenses, cash flow, expansion, investments and inventory.
Many families continue paying monthly mortgages by tightening monthly budgets, scrimping and saving. As the housing market declined, homeowners became strapped with properties worth less than the original mortgage amount.
Reduce mortgage repayment time by half or more! That’s an attention-getting message, isn’t it? Money Merge Accounts advertise that you can eliminate monthly mortgage payments sooner, saving thousands of dollars in interest. But these ventures do not provide their services for nothing. In the end, you’re probably better off just passing that offer by.
