It is highly recommended that you prepay as much of your mortgage as possible every month, which will drastically reduce the total amount that you pay. However there are times where this could be disadvantageous. If you are in a situation where you don’t have funds to cover three to six months of expenses, it is recommended that you save that amount before you pay additional amounts on your mortgage. If you have a large amount of credit card debt, over the long run, you will save more money by knocking down those high interest loans first. There also may be times where that…

This could be a low-cost option for borrowing but there is some risk involved. Deductions are not allowed for the interest unless that loan is used to invest in a business.

In order to refinance your home, the current market rate should be at least 2 percentage points lower than what you are paying on your mortgage. Speak with a lender to see what rate you may be able to get. Remember to factor in costs like appraisals, points from the lender, and others, which may not be apparent in your initial price assessment. After assessing that cost, get a quote of what your total payment would be after refinancing. The simplest way to find out how long it will take to recover the refinancing costs will be to divide your closing…

The costs associated with getting a home equity loan are basically the same as a refinance. Appraisal A non-refundable application fee Up front points, which equal one percent of the entire credit limit Closing costs, which are the same as the closing costs you would pay upon purchasing a home Yearly fees and the possibility a transaction fee per draw

A home equity line of credit is a form of credit which allows you to borrow and use your home as collateral. Since for many, a home is their greatest asset, they tend to use these sorts of credit lines for large things like a college education for their children, medical expenses or for large unexpected bills as opposed to luxuries or day to day expenses. After receiving a home equity line, one is approved for an amount of credit, or a maximum that may be borrowed at any given time for the duration of the plan. On many occasions a lender…

The lender is obligated by the Truth in Lending Act to provide you with a written statement with a list of all of the costs associated with the loan and the terms of financing. This statement must be delivered to you before the settlement. If you want to rescind the loan, you may do so within 3 business days of the receipt of the Truth in Lending paperwork, receipt of cancellation notice, or your settlement, whichever was the most recent. You will want to carefully review the disclosure that you are given before you sign. This disclosure will have all of the…

After choosing a lender, you may be quoted a rate, which may “float” until the actual closing, meaning that it is not guaranteed. With a lock-in you are guaranteed that the interest rate will not change before your closing. You may want to ask for an agreement that ensures that your rate is capped, but allows you to take advantage of a lower rate if the rate lowers before your close. There is usually a time limit that a lender will put on this guarantee, and if you don’t close before that time, they no longer have to honor that lock-in.…

A reverse mortgage is a way for you to take advantage of some of the equity that is currently tied up in your home. A reverse mortgage works in the same manner as a normal one, reversed, and the homeowner is paid monthly versus having to pay. The major difference between this and a home equity loan is that you aren’t required to pay anything back to the lender as long as you retain ownership of the home. The major benefit of a reverse mortgage is that it allows homeowners to take advantage of some of the equity that they have…

These interests are deductible, some fully, some partially: Education-related interest Business interest Investment interest Mortgage interest

Usually people that make a down payment of less than 20% are required to pay private mortgage insurance by their lender. Once you reach 20% equity, PMI is cancelled, and any money accrued in your escrow account towards it will be credited to you.