Archive for July, 2010

• Jul 10

  Next-Tier Borrowers

  The next tier consists of those with a credit score ranging from 700 to 719. If your scores were in this range on that day then the lenders would quote you a slightly higher interest rate which is 5.88 percent. This of course would boost the payment but not by much. You would pay $1,184 each month which is just $16 more than a borrower with the very best score. You still would be offered a broad assortment of loan types.

  Although the difference between a perfect and a good enough FICO score isn’t that great, the difference between a good enough score and a poor one can be huge. If your score ranged from 620 to 674 on that day then you could expect to pay much more in interest which is 6.42 percent. This translates to a monthly payment of $1,254. That’s $86 more than a borrower with a top score would be paying month after month. In addition to being required to pay a higher rate you would be offered fewer loan choices. It could mean being offered only adjustable-rate loans even though you might prefer fixed. You also might be stuck with a nasty prepayment penalty if you try to refinance to a better loan within two or three years.

  Tags: Credit scores, fico score, mortgages
  Posted in Home Buying | No Comments »

• Jul 7

  Points to Remember Before Searching for a Home

  Make sure that you have everything figured out before starting your home search – both on the financing side and in terms of your own wants and needs. Below is a checklist you can use as a guide for your home search:

  • Get your financial house in order first and that includes determining what your budget will comfortably allow and sticking to it and getting pre-approved for a mortgage.
  • Familiarize yourself with the different housing types available to help you narrow  your search.
  • Determine your minimum requirements as well as any desired additional features.
  • Clearly outline any items that you don’t want in a house.
  • Determine the desired location – close to schools, work, public transportation and other amenities or infrastructure.
  • Familiarize yourself with the mortgage process.
  • Check listings and prices throughout the United States on the internet.
  • Use a record to compare homes.
  • Familiarize yourself with the home inspection process that you will need to conduct in a short period of time on all homes that you look at.
  • Maintain your perspective through it all, keep a critical eye open and try your best to keep emotion out of the process.

  Tags: clean wood furniture, removing stains on wooden furniture, wooden furniture
  Posted in Home Buying | No Comments »

• Jul 5

  Options for Window Shades

  Window shades come in a wide variety of options, ranging from no-nonsense roller models to romantic balloon shades. All shades provide varying degrees of privacy and light control, pleated shades are the most energy-efficient. Bottom-up shades allow you to adjust for privacy while still letting the sun shine in.

  • Roller shade – Offered in many colors, textures and materials, rollers shades have several roll-up options.
  • Roman shade – Usually made in a decorator fabric and lined, a Roman shade draws up into neat overlapping folds.
  • Bottom-up shade – Offered in flat roller or accordion-pleated models, this shade pulls or rolls up from the bottom.
  • Balloon shade – Made of decorator fabrics, sheers and solids, a balloon shade pulls up into scalloped poufs.

  Occasionally the bottom hem of a roller shade with a lightweight wood slat inside will curl. To correct this, add a drip or two of bead drapery weights inside the hem. Bead weights are sold by the yard at sewing centers.

  A weak spring can cause a shade to roll too slowly or a too-tight spring can make it snap up at the slightest provocation. These problems that are easily fixed. To tighten tension, partially unroll the shade and remove from brackets. Roll it up by hand then reinstall it. To reduce tension, roll the shade up completely and remove from the brackets. Unroll it halfway then replace the shade in its brackets.

  Tags: home decorations, window shade types, window shades
  Posted in Home Decoration | No Comments »

• Jul 2

  PITI – What Is It?

  During your ventures you will probably hear this term used a lot. It stands for principal, interest, taxes and insurance. Every loan includes principal and interest payments and those labeled PITI also include taxes and insurance. Property taxes and homeowners insurance payments can be paid in an annual lump sum. PITI means that these payments are instead spread out over the year and included in each mortgage payment.

  Because mortgages are such loans paid off over a period of fifteen to thirty years then the monthly payments comprise all or some of the following five components:

  • Principal – the actual loan balance.
  • Interest – the interest you owe on that balance.
  • PMI
  • Real Estate Taxes – assessed by different government agencies to pay for school construction, fire department service and other facilities.
  • Property Insurance – insurance coverage against theft, fire, hurricanes and other disasters.

  With PITI you essentially ‘escrow’ your tax and insurance payments, meaning that the amounts are tacked on to your monthly mortgage payment so that they are covered when the tax or insurance bill comes in. You can also opt to pay the latter in full when they come due rather than in monthly installments to the escrow account which is also known as an ‘impound’ account.

  Tags: Piti, principal and interests, property insurance
  Posted in Financing, Home Buying | No Comments »