Finance Matters: How Numbers Affect Your Life
Everyday we face different trials and challenges and reality bites because numbers greatly affect our lives from simply paying our bills online, helping in solving our kid’s mathematics homework up to the tedious process of mortgage computation. One of the major decisions people make is getting a mortgage or home equity loan. Finding the right home equity loan or mortgage is not easy so it is critical to take into consideration several important things before, during and after getting a loan. Mortgage is not a commodity and not merely based on the rate but getting an honest and sound advice as well as responsive support in the entire process of your loan.
It is okay shopping online to buy books or sports equipment, you can also pay your bills but it is not a safe place to engage in loan transactions because there are many unreputable and unreliable websites. But you don’t have to totally exclude the internet when it comes to your searches most especially finding rates, calculation of potential loans and getting a sound and expert advice. There are many mortgage lenders not only advertising on newspapers but also online and the several reasons why there are lenders providing higher rates include higher cost structures, more reliable and more service. Technically, you are not building up any equity or ownership in your home with interest-only loans, so avoid dealing with these types of loans unless you are planning to move within a short period of time. It is highly beneficial for you to find out exactly the amount of the loan, including any upfront cost and hidden fees because these can be negotiated, and take advantage using free mortgage calculators online to help you get an estimate. Good mortgage companies include all the fees and interest rate and these fees may include application fee, loan processing fee, appraisal fee, title search, title insurance, documentation, underwriting, credit evaluation, points and escrow fee. There are fees that can be negotiated and they are considered “junk fees” such as amortization schedule fee, appraisal review fee, financing statement fee, document preparation fee, photo inspection fee, warehousing fee, computer fee, credit review fee, administrative fee, overly high notary fees and courier fee.
Remember that the mortgage industry is unregulated and they are not the same as banks, so they are not playing the same rules, and there are many people being promised one thing and just end up with a different version at the closing table. You don’t ave to accept any changes in the last minute. You can terminate your loan right there and then. The possible reasons for doing this is if the loan representative encourages you to borrow more than what you need, overstate or understate your income, encourage you to agree to payments you cannot afford, you’re asked to sign blank documents, and no clear communication.