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Rob Spring
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How To Reduce Your Mortgage
How to Reduce Your Mortgage One Additional Mortgage Payment a Year There’s a simple trick to significantly reduce the length of your mortgage and save you thousands of dollars. The trick is to make one extra mortgage payment a year and apply that payment toward your loan’s principal. This is the method being used by “Bi-Weekly Mortgage Reduction Services” and “Bi-Weekly... [Read more]
Creating a Living Trust
Living Trusts Created while you are alive, a revocable living trust lets you control the distribution of your estate. Ownership of your property and assets is transferred into the trust. You can serve as trustee or you can appoint another to serve as trustee. If you serve as trustee, you must appoint a successor to serve as trustee upon your death. Properly drafted and executed, a revocable living... [Read more]
Deductible Homeowner Expenses
Deductible Homeowners Expenses One of the advantages of owning your own home is that the home mortgage interest and real estate taxes paid can be deducted from your federal income tax*. To do so, you’ll need to comply with current tax laws and complete the appropriate federal tax forms and itemized deduction schedules. Home Mortgage Interest For your home mortgage interest to be deductible, it must... [Read more]
Saving Money During the Holidays
Save money during the holidays and buy that dream house in the New Year The holidays can put a dent in your savings especially if you’re planning to buy a home. But there are several ways to cut costs so your finances aren’t in the red by New Year’s Day. Consider the following money saving tips: In lieu of buying presents for every family member, suggest a gift exchange and draw... [Read more]
Eliminating Private Mortgage Insurance
How to Eliminate your PMI: For loans made after July 1999, lenders are required by federal law to automatically cancel Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) when the loan balance falls below 78 percent of your purchase price — not when you achieve 22 percent equity, which will happen much more quickly with rising property values. (Certain “higher risk” loans are excluded.) But you have the... [Read more]
Buying Down Your Interest Rate
Buydown options A buydown is a type of financing where the buyer or seller pays extra points (also called discount points) to reduce the interest rate on a loan. Buydowns make it easier to qualify for a loan because they lower a loan’s interest rate. They can also allow you to buy more house for your money. There are generally two types of buydowns: a permanent buydown and a temporary buydown.... [Read more]
The Cost of Refinancing Your Home
What does it cost to refinance? What are the benefits? Ever heard the old rule of thumb, you should only refinance if your new interest rate is at least two points lower? That may have been true years ago, but with refinancing dropping in cost over the last few years, it’s never the wrong time to think about a new loan! Refinancing has a number of benefits that often make it worth the up-front... [Read more]
Choosing the Refinancing Option for You
Which refinancing option is best for you? There aren’t quite as many loan programs as there are borrowers, but it seems like it sometimes! We’ll work with you to qualify you for the best loan program to fit your needs. But there are some general considerations you can have in mind in advance. Are you refinancing primarily to lower your rate and monthly payments? Then your best option might... [Read more]
Annually Reviewing Your Mortgage Plan
Give your mortgage an annual once over If the last time you looked at your mortgage was when you closed on your loan, it’s time to take it out for an annual once over. New loan programs and opportunities to leverage your home equity can bring you lower mortgage payments and new investment opportunities. Is a fixed rate mortgage the best choice for you? Many of us opt for the certainty of a 20 year... [Read more]
Real Estate Glossary
REAL ESTATE GLOSSARY ABSORPTION RATE Back to top The ratio of the number of properties in an area that have been sold against the number available. Used to show the volatility of a market. ABSTRACTION METHOD Back to top This method of estimating the value of property uses similar properties available in the same market to extract the value of a parcel of land. ACCELERATION CLAUSE Back... [Read more]