Friday 23 May 2008

Applying For A Home Mortgage Plan Online.

Since the advent of the worldwide technology that is the Internet, human life has never been the same. Internet did not only changed the way we do business, or how we communicate with one another, it has also changed the landscape of our lives and how we do things.

The Internet has provided a way to make things better and easier. So how does the Internet manifest itself in our daily lives? Let’s take a look at a very practical example- applying a home mortgage plan. During the days when the Internet was still being conceived, getting a home mortgage plan will take a very long time.

One has to physically visit application centers and meet different kinds of brokers just to know which deal is the best. Now, with the Internet already established, everything has been cramped down into a world which can be accessed with a click of a mouse.

Another good thing about the Internet is that it has broken down the walls of information asymmetry. Back then, many lenders may resort to bringing interest rates up or creating a temporary market shoot up just to earn more money.

They can do this because the people have no other source of information regarding the going rates of home mortgage plans except the lenders themselves. But now, because of the Internet, this information asymmetry has been broken down into pieces. People can access the Internet and find the best deals for a home mortgage plan. Now, that’s convenience and fairness.

A good number of the lenders who have Internet websites usually have a certain “mortgage calculator” which one can use to be able to have an idea as to what kind of loan he can avail. There are also calculators which can give good estimates as to how much one will be paying for a certain period of time throughout the payment period.

One has to make sure to make a good assessment of the different rates that the different lending institutions are offering. This is something that can be done easily with the Internet, since everything is already uploaded and readily made available.

Once the initial research has been done, one can apply for the home mortgage plan of his choice online. This eliminates the need to physically apply for a home mortgage plan at a center.

Going online is the way to go in applying for a home mortgage plan. Just make sure that you did the necessary preliminary research about the company and the rates that they are giving out.

7 Tips to Getting the Best Home Mortgage Arrangement

Choosing the best home mortgage arrangement is like going to a shop to get a pair of custom-tailored jeans. It might fit the other guy perfectly, but it might not be as good for you. The best home mortgage is one that you’ve decided on after you’ve factored in several considerations.

So before going to a lender to arrange the best home mortgage for you, find out first if you have enough power to negotiate. Here are some tips:

1. Consider your income and disposable cash. If you have a consistent source of money and have sizable cash in bulk to take care of the 20% downpayment, that’s a point for you. If you pay a substantial amount now, you can arrange for lower monthly payments.

2. Take care of your debts. The lender will want to check your credit history to see if you are capable of consistent and responsible payments. A good record can help you a get an arrangement that’s more to your liking.

3. Don’t worry too much about rates. Although timing can factor into a good home mortgage deal, it’s best not to obsess about it too much. Concentrate more on how much you can spend for how long minus your debts.

4. Understand the different kinds of mortgages available. Make sure you know the facts before deciding on one. It might look like the best deal at the start, but consider what happens down the line. It might cost you more money.

5. Consider how long you plan to stay in the house. If it’s 10 years or less, you might be better off taking an ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage) than an FRM (Fixed Rate Mortgage). While monthly payments will go up and down with an ARM, the risks are outweighed by the savings.

6. If the lender allows it, try to pay more each year. Adding a month’s worth of payment to your loan that will also cover the principal will result to a shorter period of loan and save you thousands of dollars. If you can arrange for it, instead of paying monthly, pay twice a month.

7. Refinance your mortgage if the interest rates are favorable – meaning, low. Just make sure that it is at least 1% lower. Otherwise, it’s not worth the effort. Refinancing will give you more cash that you can use to pay off the principal. Result? A loan that gets smaller and smaller.

Getting the best home mortgage arrangement will require some research on your part and coupled with consistency and money smarts, you can always find one that’s just right for your needs and wallet.

Wednesday 21 May 2008

An Introduction To Home Loan Interest Rates.

Getting a home loan is one of the very important aspects of modern living, and one of the most important parts of this endeavor are interest rates. However, a lot of people cringe at the very mention of interest because of the common image that is another venue for expending money. But this intimidation in turn results into the little knowledge about interest rates that most people have.

To conquer the fear of something, one should know more about it. Here is a little some useful information about home loan interest rates that could help one get acquainted with home loans in general:

What are the two types of home loan interest rates?

There are two major types of home loan interest rates available for people who are planning to borrow money to buy a house. The first is the fixed rate home loan, in which there is a fixed interest rate as well as monthly dues extended over a fixed period of time, such as 15 years or 30 years. The second type is the adjustable rate home loan, where the interest rates vary up or down according to the fluctuation of the interest rates in the market.

Fixed Rate Home Loan Interest

Fixed-rate home loans are generally the more popular type of interest rate scheme among the two. They are very popular mainly because people are quite adamant about the image of their home payments falling down or rising up because of varying interest rates. People usually get fixed-rate home loans whenever the rates offered for a particular time are quite low, making the mortgages quite affordable for them.

Fixed-rate home loans are generally divided into two types according to the duration of loan 15 or 30 years. Some people believe that 30 years is quite reasonable, while other think that 15 years is more so. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of each type of fixed-rate home loans:

30-year Home Loan

This type of fixed rate loan provides the borrower a chance to loan money for a long time without being bothered by fluctuating payments and interest rates. Many people believe that this type of loan is more affordable because the monthly payment rates are significantly lower that those involved in a 15-year loan since the interest rate is distributed over a wider period of time. The smaller increments of monthly payments allow the borrower to allocate their resources to other investments, which may help them maintain their houses better.

The disadvantage of a 30-year home loan is that it takes very long for borrowers to develop equity since the payments made during the early portions of the loan term just go mostly to the interest instead of the principal.

When computing the overall interest rates, they are significantly higher than that of a shorter-term loan since the term for amortization is much longer. The interest rates for this type of loan are also significantly higher than for the 15-year home loan.

15-year Home Loan

This type of home loan is good for others because they allow the borrowers to develop equity significantly faster because the amortization schedule is shorter. When computing for the overall interest, the borrower would get a significantly lower total than those who are on a longer term. Interest rates for this type of loan are also significantly lower than for the 30-year home loan.

However, some people cannot afford this type of loan because the monthly payments may be very much higher than with the 30-year home loan. Typically, buyers could only acquire houses of smaller value than what they may be able to afford with a loan of a longer term.

Adjustable-rate Home Loans

Despite the idea of fluctuating interest rates, some people prefer adjustable-rate home loans. Those who do generally understand that the interest rates do not really rise or fall like a seesaw. Adjustable-rate home loans actually start with fixed rates for a particular, longer period and then followed by a significantly shorter period of adjustable interest rates.

What is good about adjustable-rate home loans is that the fixed interest rates for the initial period are very much lower than that of fixed-rate home loans. And this fixed-rate portion of the loan is very much longer than the adjustable part. For instance, the fixed-rate term might be 10 years long, while the adjustable rate term would be just a year. Some people actually get to save more in such scenario.

However, people still have to be careful when getting adjustable-rate home loans. Careful study must be made to ensure that interest rates in the adjustable part of the loan do not rise dramatically.

Knowing about the types of interest rates for home loans is an important factor when planning to borrow money to buy a house. To know more about home loan interest rates, it is best to consult with loan experts.

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Opening A Home Mortgage Business

Jackie works as a real estate agent. The job kept this person out on the field often because the apartment, condominium or home had to be presented to the potential customer.

The salary of this person was commission based. This meant there would only be a paycheck if a deal was closed. Things like this did not happen everyday so Jackie decided to request for transfer into another department in the company as a loans officer.

The new job required going into the field once in awhile and a lot of paperwork to finish while being in the office. The pay here was much more stable since the employer paid a base salary as well as commission for every client that was approved.

Jackie was doing well at the new post and the boss also took notice. Less than a year later, this employee was promoted to the position of broker. This meant more money coming in since this individual would now be the middle person in closing deals.

The highest position in any home mortgage company is the broker. This is because the firm where Jackie was employed in not only sold property but also helped customers find ways to pay for the loan.

Feeling that this was the end of the road and there was nowhere else to go, Jackie left the firm after working there for 5 years and decided to open a home mortgage business.

Jackie did not have enough money to rent office space to start the business. The only thing this individual had was the experience of how a home mortgage company operates so this had to be done by working at home.

The first people that Jackie called up were some clients who purchased a piece of property before. Some of these individuals were ready to buy again while those who weren’t gave the names and numbers of friends and family instead.

Using some former contacts in other real estate companies, this person was also able to get some houses, condominiums and apartments, which can be shown, to potential customers. Being the owner of the business, all the money now went to Jackie whenever a deal was made.

It took awhile for someone like Jackie to learn everything before deciding to put up a home mortgage business. People can do the same thing this person did and be more successful than those who have no idea where to begin and learn from the mistakes made. [array]