If you are in the situation where you find that there is no discretionary spending money available or you are faced with a financial emergency such as urgent medical needs or home repairs these sorts of things can run into thousands of dollars. So you really only have the two choices on a limited income. One you can sell the house and release funds. That, however, means leaving your much loved home and may also mean that you are forced to take a less desirable property in an inferior neighborhood. Sure you free up, maybe $100000 but in the process you’ve had some pretty heavy expenses with real estate fees for selling your home and all the other legal and moving expenses that are an inevitable part of changing houses.

That is one scenario and one that lots of people employ in this situation. Less well known but a very viable alternative is the reverse mortgage. This loan is taken out on the security of your property but unlike a mortgage there are no payments for the duration of your time in the home. Interest accumulates and is payable either on your death, when the house is sold or on you voluntarily selling your home to move on for whatever reason.

Meanwhile you have had the money to spend at those times of financial emergency or even maybe to take that trip of a lifetime. You have not had to move house and you can continue to enjoy your current lifestyle. Not only that but you can continue to benefit from the increasing property value of your home.

You may like to use your reverse mortgage to take out a lump sum and then as property values rise take out further lump sums. You may even prefer to have a regular monthly payments. Many of the companies specializing in those types of financial instruments can be very flexible and if you are over 60 and have no savings then this is something that you should definitely start to explore.

Fees on these loans can range between very little to very high, depending on your provider. If your need is urgent and important to your well being, you may find that you are eligible for government agency help. In any event check out all your options and get advice on fees. Perhaps you are going to move house in a year or two anyway and for a short term loan the fees may make this type of loan uneconomic. It may be that in these circumstances just a regular loan might be better.

Despite some drawbacks reverse mortgages are a very useful source of money for many older people that own there own homes. It is certainly worth exploring and a way of enjoying the fruits of a lifetime of work while you are still able bodied. What is the use of tying up all your money in property until the day you die when you could be enjoying the use of some of that equity now.

There is a reason that some of the most successful real estate investors, including Donald Trump, use the lease option technique (ok, there are actually several reasons!).

Appreciation: One of the typical advantages of controlling a property using an option is that the buyer retains the right to capture some, if not all, appreciation during the term. The longer the term, the greater the appreciation can be. In the single-family arena, where terms are usually 12-24 months, even moderate amounts of property appreciation can add up. For the buyer, especially, every percentage point of appreciation counts. And, if you’re nice enough to offer (or get) a 24-month term in a market increasing at 3% annually, $6,000 on a $100,000 property is significant.

Principle Pay Down: If an option is accompanied by a lease the possibilities are greater for increased equity build up. By applying a portion of the monthly lease payment amount to the purchase price of the property one has the opportunity to widen the gap between the market value and the loan amount. Depending on whether the monthly rent amount is inline with market rates…this is free money! A 30-year amortized, $100,000 loan at 7% begins at approximately $82 per month of principle payments. A $100 per month rent credit beats that, dollar for dollar, every month for almost 3 years!

No New Loan: Possibly the most noteworthy advantage of using a lease option in the residential market is that when the Optionee begins the purchase process no “new loan” is required. The prerequisite for this may be working with the right and informed mortgage broker but is usually easily accomplished through a refinance. This can mean no additional out-of-pocket monies for closing.

No Down Payment: I know what you’re thinking, “I would never offer such a thing!” You don’t have to. As a real estate investor rich in tools to find motivated sellers, you could get your next home using this lease option technique with no money down. You don’t have to tell the seller that an option fee may be customary!

When you add it all up the numbers are hard to resist, so don’t try! If you’re in the market for a new (or new to you) home, use your own strategy against you!

In the US there are 3 agencies which keep information on you and your credit. This information includes a whole range of details on many of the financial transactions that you make through your life. You may not be aware of it but much of your financial data is kept by credit agencies, and can seriously affect your life.

Opening a bank account, considering letting a bill slide a little until it’s overdue, going for a loan, buying a house? Any one of these transactions and many many more are all recorded on your credit report. Information is kept on where you live, how you manage most of your finances, much of your criminal history if you have one, your history of loan repayments and much more.

And this information is not just kept there for the sake of it. This information is used to assess your credit worthiness so that when you go for a new loan, for example, the organization through which you are applying can access this information to help it decide whether or not it ought to grant you the loan.

You are in fact, rated for your credit worthiness using this information collected on you, and a credit worthiness score is applied to you. This score is part of the information that an organization may wish to find out if they are judging your credit worthiness.

Something as simple as missing a few bills because you were on holidays can quite seriously affect such things as your ability to obtain credit in the future.

So as you can see the information kept in your credit report is important information and can affect your life in ways you may not be aware of.

For this reason it is important to know what information is kept on your credit report. It is not unheard of, for example, for there to be inaccurate entries on your report and if you are unaware of this and therefore cannot correct it this inaccurate information may well cause you all sorts of unexpected problems.

So, how do you get a copy of your credit report? Luckily you are entitled by law to get a free copy of your report each year. You will need to provide your name and address as well as your social security number and date of birth to identify yourself, as well as possible former addresses if you have moved recently.

To get your credit report ring 1-877-322-8228 (toll free) and proceed as directed.

So remember, you are entitled to a copy of your credit report free each year. Make use of your entitlement, check your report and see if there is anything there which could be causing you a problem. If there is then you can start finding out what to do about it.

Equity is the value of your home minus the remaining mortgage balance which is outstanding. While you live, eat and sleep in your home worrying about debts or wishing you could refurnish the living room you may be sitting on the cash that will grant your wishes.

Why Would You Want an Equity Line of Credit?

Unlike a typical loan which deposits a set amount of money in your account and begins charging you interest and payments at a fixed rate until repaid, a line of credit acts as a revolving credit (like your credit card). You do not need to pay interest on the full amount you have access to — you only pay for what you have used. Also, like a credit card, when the debt is repaid you still have access to the credit.

Using an equity line of credit (also known as a Home Equity Line of Credit or HELOC) gives you greater flexibility with the least cost. Not only can you access the credit only as you need it, but your monthly payments will reflect only the balanced used. The less used the lower your payment. Some lines of credit have only the interest as the minimum payment which can be helpful when finances are tight.

An equity line of credit is great when you don’t have a large fixed amount to spend in one place that will take many years to repay and you want access to the credit without asking for a new loan when you have paid it back.

What Can I Use the Equity Line of Credit For?

While you can no doubt find numerous uses for your line of credit, here are samples of the more common reasons for obtaining an equity line of credit.

Consolidate Debts

Using your equity line of credit to consolidate other debts can not only eliminate the stress of multiple bills but can also give you a more favorable interest rate or tax benefit.

Second Mortgage

Use your line of credit to pay off the existing mortgage for better interest rates.

Add On, Update or Go Away

You may use your line of credit for renovating, buying new furniture or a car, or taking a vacation with less interest payments than using a credit card or store card making it a wise choice for large purchases.

When Should You NOT Use a Line of Credit?

Before succumbing to what seems like ‘easy money’ it is important to evaluate the additional risk.

Some debts — like student loans- have features that you may not be entitled to if you switch them to an equity line of credit.

Other items like cars and vacations may seem like a good idea to buy with your home equity line of credit, but with the ability to pay only the interest you may find the motivation to pay off the debt is lacking and end up owing for items that have lost their value or were consumable. Plan to pay off the debt quickly for the most advantage.

Second mortgage (or refinancing) may or may not be a good idea depending on interest rates and your repayment terms. While lines of credit take advantage of current low interest rates you may find that your regular loans protect you better from fluctuating rates if you will not be paying the loan down in the next few years.

Using your finances wisely can give you great relief and freedom. Before taking on any financial obligations it is important to understand the risks as well as the benefits.

Although there are several credit models, the most commonly used is FICO, based on a model created by Fair, Isaac Company. Their consumer website is myfico.com, and you can find information about the FICO credit scores there.

Your FICO credit score can be used to determine your interest rate and how much credit a lender will give you. So taking care of your score, and keeping your credit clean will save you money.

Preserving your FICO score, and improving it, is not difficult, but it may take time. Here are some tips to maintain and improve your score, based on three credit situations.

Strategy One: Obtain a Credit History

There are many reasons you may have no credit history. Maybe you’re just starting out, maybe you pay cash for everything and have never needed a loan. In any case, if you have no credit history, your FICO score is likely to be low.

The easiest way to raise your score is acquire a loan, and pay it off on time. In general, installment loans are weighted more heavily than credit cards. In other words, you will improve your credit score faster if you buy goods with an installment loan, rather than acquiring a credit card.

Another way to acquire a better credit history is to take $1000 and open a 6 month CD account at a financial institution. Now, get an installment loan for $1000, using that CD as collateral. Now, here’s the trick. Take the $1000 loan, and open another 6 month CD account at another institution. Take another loan for the $1000 at the second institution. Do this one more time.

Now what you have is 3 loans. Pay the minimum payment for 6 months. In the last month, cash out your CDs and pay the loans off. You now have a credit history, and did not go into long term debt to get it.

Strategy Two: Maintain Your Good Credit History

Good job - you have paid your bills on time, and do not have high credit card debt. Here’s some ideas to keep your FICO score as high as possible.

First, don’t close your old accounts. One part of your credit score is based on the amount of credit available verses amount of credit used. Closing old accounts can lower this part of your score.

Second, paying off your credit cards every month is good money management, but you may be able to improve in this area. Here’s the scenario: you have a $2000 credit card. Every month, you charge about $1800 to that card. And, every month you pay it off. But here’s what happens - your credit card company reports your credit information monthly to FICO. If they report it before you pay off your card, it looks like you carry a balance on your credit card every month. You may find your FICO score improves if you pay off your credit card at a different time of the month.

Strategy Three: Repair Your Poor Credit History

For whatever reason, if you have a poor credit history, there are things you can do to improve your score. Some of them take time, and you will probably be best served by talking to a credit counselor to be sure that you not only repair your credit history, but also eliminate what caused that poor credit history in the first place.

The most heavily weighted part of your score is based on your payment history. The first thing to do to start repairing your credit history is to pay your bills on time. The mortgage is the most important, followed by installment loans, and finally credit cards.

The next largest portion of your FICO score is based on how you use credit. The fastest way to improve this is to pay down your credit cards.

One final thing to look for is errors in your credit report. Get a copy of your credit report from all three primary agencies, and look at all the entries. You can find the agencies here: experian.com, equifax.com, and transunion.com. If there are any errors, start the process to have them removed. Call your creditors - sometimes they will remove negative information.

Your FICO score is an important part of your financial life, and using these strategies may help improve your FICO score. Before making any drastic changes to your finances, consult with a financial advisor.

Before you decide to buy now and pay later, that is pay “big time” later, take a moment to enlighten yourself a bit more about these so-called “interest only mortgages.” Think about it for a moment. If you just pay the interest on your home, will you ever start paying on principal and will you ever earn any equity into your property?

By definition, a mortgage is a temporary, conditional pledge of property to a creditor as security for performance of an obligation or repayment of a debt. Simplified, that means you borrow money from a financial institution and they essentially buy your house and you pay it back. How can this happen if you’re just paying interest? More accurately, interest-only mortgages are a temporary reprieve for paying off a traditional mortgage. You may actually be prolonging the inevitable and eventually making it even more costly to pay off your mortgage.

Far too many people are in debt way over their heads because of interest-only mortgages. They took advantage of attractive offers to buy now and pay later. With an interest only payment you’re keeping the principal at minimum value while continuing to pay interest at 100%. With a more conventional mortgage you’d be slowly dwindling down the total interest amount.

Most interest-only payment schedules are offered on Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs), but they can also be found on a fixed rate mortgage. Interest-only payment periods almost never run for the entire term of the loan which is typically 15 or 30 years. Depending on the terms of your contract, you could be expected to start paying on the principal in five, seven or ten years. Once the interest-only period ends, your monthly payment will go up because then you’ll be paying on both principal and interest.

Conversely, interest-only mortgages can be a good thing for some people. For those people wanting to purchase a bigger/better home for a lower down payment AND who anticipate moving within seven years, the interest-only payment method may be the way to go. However, keep in-mind that in a “down” realestate market you generally won’t be building equity and making money by doing it this way. The majority of the money made from investing in real estate comes from an increase in value to the home. The average person moves every seven years anyway. Gone are the days when people stay in a home thirty years. Hence, if you anticipate moving before you’ll have to start paying on the principal, then an interest-only payment may be ideal for you.

There’s a great deal of fine print to any mortgage. Evaluate your own goals; be vigilant when reviewing the terms on the loan you’re considering before acting.

Basically, a mortgage refers to a long-standing credit that a debtor obtains from a financial institution or from a property seller.

In most cases, the house is the usual collateral for the mortgage, thus the term “home mortgage”. In turn, the mortgage lender will be entitled to some legal rights upon the property as long as the mortgage is in full force or until the debtor pays back the loan.

A home mortgage serves as security for loans, thus giving the lender the power to acquire the property through foreclosure in the event that the borrower fails to pay the loan on time.

Generally, a home mortgage is comprised of a large loan. That’s why in most cases a home mortgage can take 15 to 30 years before the borrower can pay back the due amount.

In a home mortgage, the due amount to be paid by the borrower stipulates the principal amount of the mortgage and the interest owed relative to the outstanding balance. The real estate taxes and property insurance are also factored into the total mortgage balance.

Some home owners who find it difficult to make their mortgage payments may opt for refinancing of their mortgage. But for those who wish to pay off a home mortgage quickly, there are things to be considered…

First, make sure you have a stable source of income. Organize your overall financial assets to ensure that paying off your mortgage will not over-extend your cash flow. There are many such considerations that should be carefully planned and organized before resorting to pay-off your home mortgage.

It’s also important to your financial security to have a ready reserve of cash just in case of emergencies. This can be in the form of stocks and bonds, a bank savings account, or any other readily available form of cash.

Paying off your home mortgage can be a rewarding experience, but be sure to consider your overall financial status before making the decision to do so. The wrong decision can put you at great financial risk.

If you think that you are ready for the mortgage “experience” and that you have your finances securely organized, then by all means, go for it. After all, nothing beats a worry-free, mortgage-free financial status.

So you know how people throw a bunch of crap together and try to sell it to you for $47? And most of it is recycled garbage they picked up for $1 at eBay?

Well, I’m as sick of that as you are. Which is why this post is so important.

I just found a guy who is giving away brand new stuff he just put together to help us learn how to market our online business with Web 2.0 resources.

Bob the Teacher is an expert in using free advertising. You may know him from his book, “The Best Advertising Money Can’t Buy.” Anyway, he’s put together a special set of resources to help you learn all about Squidoo.

We’re talking a full audio interview, an eBook, and more. And believe it or not, he’s practically giving it away for about a $1.

Well, at least it was $1. I’m not sure how much it is now, since it goes up everytime someone gets their copy of this package.

This is a speedsale which means that the faster you make a decision the lower the price that you will pay. The price goes up a nickel each time someone purchases the package.

Rush over there now, so you can get started with Web 2.0 right away. –> http://www.squidoosecrets.com/chase.php?vip=leaddog50

p.s. By the way, you’ll get 100% affiliate commissions right away. You may notice when you buy the SquidooSecrets kit, you are actually paying me directly! You could be next in line to get paid the whole price.

p.p.s. Of course, if you want the full deal before SquidooSecrets launches on Friday, grab the Super Kraken membership if you get the chance. You’ll be floored by what Bob’s put together! –> http://www.squidoosecrets.com/chase.php?vip=leaddog50

In the US there are 3 agencies which keep information on you and your credit. This information includes a whole range of details on many of the financial transactions that you make through your life. You may not be aware of it but much of your financial data is kept by credit agencies, and can seriously affect your life.

Opening a bank account, considering letting a bill slide a little until it’s overdue, going for a loan, buying a house? Any one of these transactions and many many more are all recorded on your credit report. Information is kept on where you live, how you manage most of your finances, much of your criminal history if you have one, your history of loan repayments and much more.

And this information is not just kept there for the sake of it. This information is used to assess your credit worthiness so that when you go for a new loan, for example, the organization through which you are applying can access this information to help it decide whether or not it ought to grant you the loan.

You are in fact, rated for your credit worthiness using this information collected on you, and a credit worthiness score is applied to you. This score is part of the information that an organization may wish to find out if they are judging your credit worthiness.

Something as simple as missing a few bills because you were on holidays can quite seriously affect such things as your ability to obtain credit in the future.

So as you can see the information kept in your credit report is important information and can affect your life in ways you may not be aware of.

For this reason it is important to know what information is kept on your credit report. It is not unheard of, for example, for there to be inaccurate entries on your report and if you are unaware of this and therefore cannot correct it this inaccurate information may well cause you all sorts of unexpected problems.

So, how do you get a copy of your credit report? Luckily you are entitled by law to get a free copy of your report each year. You will need to provide your name and address as well as your social security number and date of birth to identify yourself, as well as possible former addresses if you have moved recently.

To get your credit report ring 1-877-322-8228 (toll free) and proceed as directed.

So remember, you are entitled to a copy of your credit report free each year. Make use of your entitlement, check your report and see if there is anything there which could be causing you a problem. If there is then you can start finding out what to do about it.

Mortgage rules have tightened recently.  Here’s some good advice.

By Earl Juanico 

The speedy growth in the use of non-traditional home mortgage loans, particularly among less creditworthy borrowers in the population has alerted regulators who now want to tighten up requirements for those who want to avail of the loans. This generally implies that lenders are obliged to squeeze underwriting requirements including less dependence upon credit scores and more reliance on documented proof of one’s income and repayment capacity. The Feds say that models of creditworthiness that incorporate less documentation have not been tried in a stressed environment, like the general housing market at present, characterized by falling home sales and prices and rising mortgage rates. If you haven’t already gotten the trouble-free mortgage money of your preference you could see fewer loan choices, a more stringently examined application and escalating pressure on interest rates due to the combined forces exerted by current market conditions and new rules. Here are some ways to improve the odds of getting the loan of preference.

First, be aware that information resources regarding home mortgage loans are vast. These include, on top of all, the Internet. Other information resources that include mortgage books, topical newspaper articles, consumer seminars and workshops, real estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders, financial planners, are all available to assist on giving the insight regarding what is likely to be your greatest financial transaction ever.

Second, have a clear view of your credit report. You need to know where you stand before you apply for a home mortgage loan. You want to know if there are errors, derogatory remarks or other information that could affect your application. You may also need some time to make things as nearly perfect as possible.

Third, know and accept your limits. As it is imminent from the Feds’ proposal to curb risky home mortgage loans, lenders have been more apposite in qualifying you for as much as they are willing to lend, with terms that seem acceptable today, but could become intolerable in the future. Stretch within your limits to pay for the most home you can purchase, if you want to shun the costs of moving up or adding on later, but do not stretch beyond the limits of what you can truly afford. Determine how your mortgage payment will tally with your current budget and your future financial obligations. Reckon all the costs of home ownership from rising rates on adjustable rate mortgages to insurance and taxes as well as the cost that offset financial benefits of owning a home such as equity growth and tax breaks.

Fourth, comparison shopping is a reliable friend. You have to shop for mortgage lenders, brokers and online mortgage outlets in order to compare and assess what is best. To the extent that it is possible, compare all broker fees, major loan costs, rates, points, and other costs to come up the best assessment.

Fifth, be prepared. When the moment comes for completing your home mortgage loan application, have all pertinent documents ready. You may have to prove employment, job tenure, employment stability, income, assets and liabilities. Keep handy your pay stubs, tax returns, rental agreements, divorce decrees, proof of insurance and any other documentation that might support your application papers.

Sixth, never hesitate to solicit as much help as you need. Whenever possible, pull along all those documents to the broker’s or lender’s office and let the broker or loan officer help you out with completing the application correctly the first time. You can also seek assistance from a housing agency, independent mortgage counselor, financial planner, social service agency or other person you might consider an expert.

Seventh, make sure to settle on one loan if you have done your own research. Complete one application and see it through. Do not hit two birds with one stone at the same time. Online applications make it easy to fire off several quick applications, but each one could trigger a credit check. That could send the wrong signal to a lender who could reject an application that yields a credit report with numerous credit checks in a short period.

Lastly, you have to stay put and have patience. Do not complete filling up an an online mortgage application, if you do not have Internet access at home or you will defeat the purpose of the automated online mortgage process. Do not plan a vacation, road trip or getaway during the application process. If there are questions about your application, you’ll need to be available to address them quickly.