Buying a home is a dream that many people want to make come true. At the same time, many people dream of buying a second home. Perhaps you are looking for a rental property. Maybe you are looking for a vacation home. Regardless, you might be wondering how you can come up with the necessary cash to finance this dream. You might even be thinking about tapping into the equity in your current home to make that happen. It could be your down payment for your second house, but what do you need to know? How To Get A Home Equity Loan If you want to take out a home equity loan for a second house, there are a few steps to follow. First, you need to figure out how much money you need. You need to … [Continue Reading...]
If you plan on retiring soon, you are probably looking at a few options that can get you over the hump. You are probably excited to start a new phase of life. With a record number of people closing in on their retirement age, many are starting to assess their resources to make sure they have enough money to last them for the rest of their lives. If you already own a home, you might be able to tap into your home equity to help you fuel your retirement. Your Home Has Probably Gone Up In Value Your house is an investment and now is your opportunity to capitalize on that investment. There is a great chance that the value of your home has significantly increased since you first bought it. … [Continue Reading...]
If you're a parent of school-aged children, you've likely been concerned with their study habits at some point. Sitting down in front of the television or at the dinner table to crack open the books is going to be less efficient than doing so in a quieter, more productive work space. Let's explore how to create a study space that will help keep your children focused and on task. Ask The Kids What They Need To Be Productive Before you get to work on creating a new studying space, it's a good idea to have a chat with those will be using it most. Ask the children what kind of surroundings they feel would help to keep them productive. Younger kids may only need a small desk area but would … [Continue Reading...]
The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices for July showed a sharp slowing in home price growth from June to July. National home price growth slowed from June’s reading of 18.7 percent year-over-year growth to 16.10 percent home price growth in July. This reading translated to an 0.20 percent loss in month-to-month home price growth.
The S&P Case-Shiller 20-City Home Price Index fell 0.40 percent in July after increasing by 0.40 percent in June. This was the first time since March 2012 that the 20-City Home Price Index posted a decreasing pace of home price growth; all 20 cities posted slower year-over-year home price growth in July than in June.
Seven cities in the 20-City … [Continue Reading...]
The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices for July showed a sharp slowing in home price growth from June to July. National home price growth slowed from June’s reading of 18.7 percent year-over-year growth to 16.10 percent home price growth in July. This reading translated to an 0.20 percent loss in month-to-month home price growth. The S&P Case-Shiller 20-City Home Price Index fell 0.40 percent in July after increasing by 0.40 percent in June. This was the first time since March 2012 that the 20-City Home Price Index posted a decreasing pace of home price growth; all 20 cities posted slower year-over-year home price growth in July than in June. Seven cities in the 20-City Index … [Continue Reading...]
Are you in the market for a new house or apartment? If you are financing the purchase by taking out a mortgage, you'll want to know how to make this transaction run as smooth as possible. In today's article, we'll share a quick four-step guide to speeding up the mortgage closing process. Step #1: Check In On Your Credit Score The first step before applying for your mortgage is to check in on your credit. Request a copy of your credit score and history from one of the major reporting firms. Go over this report, paying close attention to any old or outstanding items that you may have already dealt with. Many individuals have old delinquencies that must be challenged to be removed from the … [Continue Reading...]
