Posts with tag 'Financing a Home'

When it comes to buying a house, most people know what they prefer: a bungalow or a condo, a hot neighborhood or a sleepy street.

Mortgages, too, come in many styles — and recognizing which type you should choose is just slightly more involved than, say, knowing that you prefer hardwood floors over wall-to-wall carpeting.

First things first: To pick the best loan for your situation, you need to know what your situation is, exactly. Will you be staying in this home for years? Decades? Are you feeling financially comfortable? Are you anxious about changing loan rates? Consider these questions and your answers before you start talking to lenders. (And before you choose a lender, 

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Homebuyers make a lot of mistakes that hurt their chances of getting a mortgage pre-approval from their lender. You don't want to join their ranks and sabotage your home purchase.

To find out what those missteps are, we talked to two lending experts: Casey Fleming, a mortgage advisor with C2 Financial Corp. in San Jose, California, and Heather McRae, a senior loan officer with Chicago Financial Services in Chicago.

Here are the six common mistakes they see borrowers make — and tips to avoid them:

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If you can afford it, it might be simple to pay off your mortgage earlier. But should you? That's a complicated question.

Homeowners with low mortgage rates may be better off putting extra money in a Roth IRA or 401(k), both of which might offer a higher return than paying off the mortgage.

Then there's the college aid factor. If you're applying for need-based aid for your kids, that home equity could count against you with some colleges because some institutions view equity as money in the bank.

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Ready to purchase your first home? Though the process may seem overwhelming, knowing where to start is half the battle. Follow these five tips to help ease your stress and prepare for a smooth home buying experience.

Clean Up Your Credit Score

Having good credit is one of the most important factors when qualifying for a loan. Depending on where your score stands, it may take six months to a year to improve your credit. A...

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It's one thing to dream of buying a home, but it's another thing to actually do it. Buying a home is a complex process and if you aren't at least somewhat familiar with how it works, the experience could be confusing, and in some cases even frustrating, right from the start.

The reality is, buyer confusion is one of the main reasons why people get into trouble with their home loans, and it was just one of many factors that caused the housing market to go south a few years ago. That's why it's so important to have a basic understanding of the terms used throughout the home buying process. This guide will help y...

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