Insurance Loan & Finance

Signing up for a debt management program is easy; it’s a matter of finding a company you feel comfortable with that is difficult. There should be no pressure added from the company you speak with, joining a DMP is your decision and you should feel like you are in a partnership with the company, meaning you both have control over your financial situation. Below you will find information on debt management programs and what they offer.

First off, once you decide on a DMP your partnership will begin as soon as the company receives a client agreement. The counselor you speak with will become your personal counselor and they will send proposals to each of your creditors outlining your new repayment plan. However, not all creditors will process proposals immediately. It may take several weeks before the creditor notifies the counselor that the proposal has been accepted. Some creditors might request a higher payment than what was proposed, which in that case the counselor will notify you immediately.

It’s the first few months that are crucial to ensure success on a Debt Management Program. You will find that some company’s offer counseling throughout the first steps of the process to make certain that the proposals have been accepted and that you are receiving creditor benefits. A great aspect about having a personal counselor is that you should be able to:

* Change your payment method

* Notify them of creditors phone calls

* Report any errors on your statements

* Answers to all of your questions

If you want to earn special benefits like lower interest rates and waived late fees you’ll first need to be consistent with making your payments on time. Most creditors will start granting benefits upon acceptance of your proposals. However, some other creditors may take up to three consecutive payments before offering full benefits. That’s why it is important for you to carefully review your monthly creditor statements such as when benefits are granted to make sure they appear that month. You should also check each month to make sure that you are receiving credit for your payments made through the debt management company you chose to sign up with.

As most companies promise, the collection calls will stop. Yet, it may take up to three consecutive payments from the credit counseling company, before the calls stop completely. If a creditor happens to call, you should inform them that you are working with a credit counseling company to eliminate our debt. If they call again, notify your counselor and they will contact that creditor for you.

One thing that is crucial is to not make any additional charges on your credit cards once you have enrolled in a program. With most companies, if you do incur new charges, you are at risk of jeopardizing your acceptance into the program. Any additional charges could affect your payment schedule and your monthly payment amount because it affects your balance owed.

Usually credit-counseling companies will allow for you to pay several different ways. Some forms of payment are E-pay systems, which offers a convenient and secure way to make your payments. The payment is automatically deducted from your checking or savings account on the scheduled due date. This will ensure that your payment is received on time, every time. Another option available is if you choose to send your payment by cashier’s check or money order. However it is important to send your payments in early enough to allow enough time to get there.

If you decide to sign up for a dept management program you should receive an estimate of the length of time it will take to complete your program. You should also get a breakdown of all the debts you owe, the amount owed to each creditor, the proposed payment to each creditor, and the anticipated number of months needed to pay off the debt. As your program continues, you should be able to contact a counselor to get an updated version of your repayment schedule. This will provide you with goals to shoot for each month as you see your debts decreasing.

So that’s the process of a DMP, but one may still wonder, what’s life like on a DMP. Well, your money isn’t locked up, and you aren’t under house arrest where you can’t go out and have fun still. It’s up to you to decide how much money you need to set aside each month making sure you have enough to cover your costs, as well as cover any other costs you may have. To relieve stress, you should get out and do something you enjoy whether it’s simply going for a hike or hanging out with friends. There is plenty to do while being on a debt management program, which no one will know about unless you choose to tell them so because all your information is kept strictly confidential.

For more information relating to debt management programs and other financial assistance please visit http://www.inchargeorg.org.

Katie Spencer is a contributing writer for a number of international financial journals both online and in print. Katie has been delivering financial education to the public in a variety of areas to include budgeting, credit and debt management, and money saving tips. Recently, Katie has been in partnership with a national educational foundation to deliver financial advice to American consumers via the web. For more information and to read the latest articles published by Katie, please visit http://www.inchargeorg.org

What if you want better cash flow from your rental properties? You can’t just raise the rents arbitrarily. If tenants leave, income goes down, not up. There are other ways, though, including the ones listed below.

1. Install coin-operated washing machines. Even if you don’t have the money to do this yourself, you can find a company that will do it for you, and share the income with you.

2. Rent extra parking space. When I got tired of a renter’s extra car, I just started charging a weekly fee. Then I didn’t mind so much.

3. Raise the rent. Okay, we did dismiss ARBITRARY rent hikes as a cash-flow solution, but check on the rates for similar units. Are you renting at below-market rates?

4. Rent storage sheds. Especially if your apartments are small, your renters may need a place to store their things. Don’t let them spend their money elsewhere. Put a few sheds on the property.

5. Enforce late fees. It is perfectly fair to have a fee for late payment of rent, and guess what? Those who are chronically late usually don’t even mind – they just don’t look at these things the same way as others.

6. Offer improvements for rent increases. If it’s worth $25 more monthly rent to a tenant, install that dishwasher. Even on a credit card you’ll pay less than that per month for it.

7. Install vending machines. If your rental properties are large enough, others will do this for you for free, and give you a share of the income.

8. Rent by the room. A four-bedroom house might make more money if you include all the utilities and rent by the bedroom. This has made a lot of fortunes for investors in college towns. It does mean a lot of management, however.

9. Rent-to-own sale. Usually there’s a non-refundable deposit, and higher than market rents in these deals. When renters change their minds, as they often do, you got the deposit and better cash flow. This is great when poor cash flow makes you want to sell. You either sell or get the better cash flow as you repeat the process.

10. Reduce expenses. Every dollar of expense you cut goes straight to the bottom line. List every expense of your rental properties, and look at them one at a time. How can you reduce them?

Steve Gillman has invested real estate for years. To learn more, and to see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com

We live in a society where people are losing their homes at an alarmingly high rate. There are several reasons for this, but one could certainly be avoided — buying a house that creates a loan that is too large for you to handle. This article will examine how to decide your loan size — whether you are purchasing or refinancing. We’ll look at this issue from the point of view of lenders and from the standpoint of what is actually best for you.

In a conventional, conforming loan — one in which you have good credit and good job history — a lender will look at what he calls “debt-to-income ratio.” Many mortgage brokers refer to it as DR (debt ratio). They also break it into two categories — front end ratio and back end ratio.
A front end debt ratio calculates your gross monthly income against your new house payment. Conventional lenders want this number to be at 28 percent or less. So, if you make $3,500 each month in gross income (before taxes and other withdrawals), just take this number and divide by 28 percent. This new number is $980.00, which is the number the lender will use as your front end ratio. So in the lender’s mind, you can afford a house payment of $980.00 or less.

Remember, though, this is only half of the equation. Now, the lender will look at your overall debt scenario. When calculating your back end debt ratio, the lender takes your new mortgage and all other monthly credit debts — car payments, credit card payments, other loans, cell phones, etc. Items like insurance and utilities are not included. Conventional, conforming lenders want this ratio to be at 36 percent or less.

So, to calculate your back end or overall debt-to-income ratio, take your gross monthly income and divide by 36 percent. Again, let’s assume you make $3,500 monthly. When divided by 36 percent, you get $1,225.00. Now, add up all your monthly minimum payments, plus your new house payment, and this new number needs to be less than $1,225.00. So, if you have very little debt, you can afford to go all the way to the $980.00 for a new mortgage. If you have a couple of cars, several credit cards and a cell phone, you’ll likely have to get much less house.

Now, these ratios are very conservative. In most cases, lenders will allow you to break one or both of these guidelines, based on other factors — things like A+ credit, good liquid assets or a large down payment.
Or, you may need a loan program that is non-conforming. This would involve a lender who increases these ratios as high as 50 percent, meaning your debt can be half of your gross monthly income. Lenders, you see, want to make loans. That’s why they are so rich, because they are doing trillions of dollars in loans each year, and getting back even more in interest payments.

In order to assure yourself of getting a loan that you can afford, you should qualify yourself. It’s important to remember that when calculating debt to income ratios, lenders don’t take many important factors into account. For example, they allow you to use gross income — instead of net income. We pay our bills with our net, not our gross. When deciding what you can qualify for, consider your net income.

In other words, add up all your debts and look at the money you have after taxes, retirement, savings, other investments, etc. Also, account for debts lenders do not, such as insurance, groceries, utilities, the probability that taxes on your home will go up, clothing, and spending money for fun and hobbies. After all, you want having a home to add to your life — not make it more difficult. Lenders leave this part out.

Mark Barnes is the author of the new novel, The League, the first work of fiction, based on fantasy football. He is also an investment real estate and home loan finance expert. Learn more about his suspense thriller at http://www.sportsnovels.com. Get his free mortgage finance course at http://www.winningthemortgagegame.com

The purchase of a new home is one of the most important decisions you will ever make, and finding the best type of financing for you is crucial. Mortgage financing is a very competitive industry and lenders are currently offering extremely low interest rates and a variety of flexible loan programs. Financing your mortgage can be stressful and time consuming. It is important that you educate yourself about the various programs and types of loans before you shop for a new home.

Before signing a contract on a new house, it is a good idea to speak with a mortgage professional in advance. You can learn how much you can borrow and what type of loan you may qualify for. There are many different types or mortgage loans. Speaking with a lender in advance can help you understand which type of mortgage is right for your situation and financial status. You can learn how much you can expect to pay as a down payment and how much you can afford to pay each month towards your mortgage. The amount you ultimately qualify for will depend on your income, savings, debt level, and your credit score. Lenders are more than willing to assist you in determining which type of mortgage is best for you and how much you can afford to pay for a new home.

Mortgage financing does not have to be complicated and difficult. Learning the facts before you begin searching for your new home can save you time and effort. You can often be pre-qualified or even pre-approved for your mortgage when you contact a professional mortgage lender. Lenders are competing for your business and will make the mortgage process seem simple and easy.

Ken Austin is the webmaster at http://www.hazeydee.com and http://creditrelief.kraustin.com