Paying off the mortgage on your home faster means that you will not only have the satisfaction of owning your own home sooner, you will also have the benefit of paying much less in interest over the years.
The faster you pay off your mortgage, the more money you can save, so here are some tips to accelerate your payment schedule.
Have you ever been on a roller coaster? Not the little one that comes to your state fair every year, but the big one that you spend days preparing yourself for that inevitable ride of your life. Well, comments by Fed chairman Ben Bernanke after last week’s FOMC meeting caused quite the upheaval in financial markets, and put investors on the proverbial roller coaster, as they anticipated the potential effects of any rollback of the Fed’s policy of quantitative easing (QE). Chairman Bernanke said that the Fed may begin reducing its $85 billion monthly purchase of Treasury securities and MBS toward the end of this year. Continue reading
I hate doing my taxes! The only I like about tax season is the chance to see my good friend Donna Gary. I hate prepping all my documentation for my tax person. But, It is my chance every year, to be reminded of the fact, this is what my clients do for me on a daily basis. They give my piles of paperwork, and then I push them together into a pretty pile for the underwriter. Filing your taxes can be a complicated and confusing process. If you are a home owner you may have many home tax deductions and credits to consider.
Since we recently passed the filing date for 2012 taxes, it may be a good time to plan for next year and get your tax tracking systems in place. Check carefully to make sure that you are not making any of these common homeowner tax mistakes – which could cost you money or get you in trouble with the IRS. Continue reading
Many home buyers have found the perfect house, signed on the dotted line and may think they’ve watched enough home improvement shows to know if the home they’re getting is in good shape. Unfortunately, some buyers make the mistake of skipping a home inspection in order to save a little cash.
Even if a home has already stolen your heart and you’re ready to pay for it as-is, you need to bite the bullet and hire a home inspector to let you know what repairs and financial repercussions await you. Continue reading