Bankruptcy New

By Jennifer Stromsteen

 One key factor of buying your first home, or any home really, is the ability to save. People looking to buy a home have to be serious enough about it to save for a down payment first. There are loan programs available still that help the first time buyer buy a home with less cash upfront; however, most financial planners will encourage their clients to rent until they have a 20 percent down payment.

It is the discipline to save that pays off when the renter is ready to become a home owner. When you become a home owner, you not only have to make the predictable monthly expenses, but you also have to be prepared to protect your investment.

The amount the would-be buyer will need to save really depends in part on how reliable their income is. Ask yourselves how long you can go without a paycheck if you loose your job or become seriously ill. Additionally, the would-be buyer should also consider the costs of owning a home and continuing to reach other financial goals such as buying a car or saving for retirement and or college. For anyone who is mid-career, there is a real need to put a lot of money into a retirement fund and this needs to be a priority when choosing a home to avoid having more home than retirement fund.

Research the loan application and home buying process while saving your money. There are a vast number of resources, including books and web sites, to explain how the loan and buying process works. Additionally there are free and lost cost seminars that are available to the first time home buyer.

Prospective buyers need to fully understand the elements of a responsible mortgage because the financial companies are good at marketing a monthly payment that does not really reflect the true cost of a mortgage loan.

Financial planners recommend that the aspiring first time buyer look for a counseling agency that is approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, whether for a one on one session or for a class. The programs offered can help the first time buyer understand mortgage terms, budgeting and the process and role of the players involved in a typical real estate transaction.

Buying the first home is complicated; when additionally persons are involved it grows more complicated and complex. Couples often wonder whether they are ready to buy, they should consider the state of their relationship as well. Buying a home is often a stressful part of life; make sure you are both on the same page in your needs and wants.

It is vital to pay attention to the emotional health of your partner and your relationship. When you make the kind of investment such as buying a home you are making a huge statement that you believe in your relationship. Take care of it as you will your home.

J Stromsteen has many years expertise in the finance, real estate, and insurance industry. She contributes to various websites such as First Time Home Buyer where you can find today’s mortgage rates as well as a wealth of information on getting a First Time Home Buyers Loan .

Asset Protection - A Piece of Insurance
By Shawn Burgy

 

Asset Protection A Piece of Insurance:

Asset Protection or Asset Management can be a life and death insurance policy for you and your family.
It can insure whether or not you keep you home or finances.

Don’t be the fool when it comes to your personal well being.
In this world of today, You have the choices to stop creditor’s and Attorneys from taking your goods and finances.
Don’t be the person who let’s that happen to you and your family.

Get the information and hep that you and your family need to stop them in there tracks.
Learn to allocate and manage Asset Protection for yourself.
Don’t play the court jester, Play the knight of the round table.

Be the one who has your finances locked away so they are not taken from you.
No matter what type of action or lawsuit that may be against you.
Asset Protection can be the life and death insurance policy to your future.

Be protected, No matter what the case maybe.
A good Lawyer will tell you, Without Asset Protection they can take everything you own from you and your family.
Stop and think about what you are doing with your finances.

Don’t let yourself or family suffer because you did not implement a finance saving measure.
Wouldn’t you feel bad if you died and your family was pennyless.
Penny less because you didn’t know how to protect yourself and your family?

Don’t let it happen, You can stop it now!
Be the one who has there priority’s straight for you and your loved ones.

No matter how you figure to use your asset protecting rights.
Learn to use them now, Not the latter.
You can come in and fix whatever needs fixing now.
Don’t let a suit or medical bills steal everything away from you and your loved ones.

The sooner you use Asset Protection the better for you and everyone around you.
Only you have the power to help yourself and your family today.

Protect your family and Asset’s today with Asset Protection Information

Find The Answers On Banruptcy And Get The Best Advice

Are Mortgage Insurance Companies Affecting Your Owner Builder Construction Loan?
By Chris Esposito

 An owner builder construction loan, just like any construction loan, will not have any mortgage insurance payments while you build. So, why is it then that mortgage insurance companies are having a huge impact on your ability as an owner builder to secure your loan? The answer lies within the banks’ rules for converting you to permanent financing once the home is built.

Even though an owner builder loan has no mortgage insurance to worry about during the construction phase, the lender has to have a plan for when you are done building your home. They need to know that there is a way to secure financing once the home is built. Otherwise, the construction lender will be stuck holding the mortgage and unable to free up enough capital to lend to other owner builders. In fact, the best owner builder construction loan programs are designed to convert automatically from construction to permanent financing without making the borrower go through two rounds of closing costs.

Therefore, construction lenders have to take the permanent loan into consideration when qualifying a borrower for the construction phase. And, thus, the mortgage insurance guidelines that apply to permanent financing will greatly affect the construction loan, whether it’s for an owner builder or for someone who has hired a general contractor.

So, what are the recent mortgage insurance guidelines that are reeking havoc on banks’ ability to provide loans? Let’s start with the basics. Mortgage insurance companies provide a safety net to banks in the events that the borrower does not make payments on time - or at all. Therefore, banks do not like to lend money without having mortgage insurance in place.

In the past, an owner builder lender, just like other banks, could easily purchase mortgage insurance for its loans. The mortgage insurance companies had very lenient guidelines on what was required to get a mortgage insurance commitment. However, with all of the foreclosures that have been dumped on the market and all of the people having trouble making their mortgage payments on time nowadays, these mortgage insurance companies have come up with some stricter guidelines to protect their investment in the loan.

For example, let’s say you are an owner builder who wants to build his own house for his family to live in. Even though there is no mortgage insurance during construction, the owner builder lender will want to have a permanent loan lined up for you so that you can move into your new home once construction is complete. Even if a bank is willing to lend money based on their set of guidelines, they still need to acquire the mortgage insurance commitment for the loan. If the mortgage insurance company has stricter guidelines than the bank, then the bank will have to default to the stricter requirements in order to get the mortgage insurance commitment and fund the loan.

Looking back to the example of our owner builder construction loan, the bank might be willing to fund your loan based on the fact that the value of your future home is going to be well above the total cost to build. In other words, when you’re done building as an owner builder, your total loan amount will be less than the appraised market value of the home. For example, the bank might be willing to fund the construction loan based on the fact that your total loan amount will be 90% or less of the future appraised value.

In this way, the owner builder lender can say to the borrower that no cash is needed out of pocket. Indeed, the lender is willing to treat the future equity in your home as a replacement for a down payment. But, if the mortgage insurance companies refuse to provide mortgage insurance without seeing some cash into the deal from the borrower, then the lender is forced to tighten their requirements to meet the mortgage insurance company’s guidelines.

Owner builder construction loans have certainly fallen victim to these tightening guidelines, making it difficult for them to provide financing without a down payment. So, what’s the solution? Really, there are only two basic ways to work around this. One way is to simply require the owner builder to bring cash to closing for the construction loan. The second way is to try to lend without mortgage insurance.

The only way to avoid mortgage insurance with most lenders is to have a loan that is less than 80% of the appraised market value of the home. In the lending world, this typically requires a 20% down payment. But, owner builder construction offers a unique way to achieve this without putting 20% cash into the project.

Instead, the owner builder can create 20% in sweat equity while they build their home, saving money by eliminating the general contractor and doing some of the labor themselves. Therefore, when an owner builder finishes construction on his new home, it is not unreasonable that there will be 20% or more in instant equity built into the home.

If owner builder construction loans can finance the construction based on an approved budget that shows that the permanent loan will be no more than 80% of the finished appraised value, then these owner builder lenders do not have to get a commitment for mortgage insurance. If there is no need for mortgage insurance, then the lender can fund owner builder loans without having to adhere to any extra requirements from the mortgage insurance company.

Because owner builder construction loans typically have their own minimum construction budget requirements, it may be tough for a borrower to get a budget approved at the 80% level. In some cases, the owner builder will still have to bring some minimal amount of cash to closing to make up the difference. But, even in these cases, it is a far cry from the larger requirements from the mortgage insurance companies. This is something every owner builder can be grateful for.

Chris Esposito provides owner builder construction loans through Owner Builder 101, a program designed specifically for someone who wants to build his own home without paying the costs of a general contractor. For more information, please visit www.OwnerBuilder101.com, or call (877) 876-3688.

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