Posts Tagged home ownership
You don’t really Want a Mortgage; How to get rid of your Mortgage?
Posted by Top Home Loans in General Banking, Mortgage Advice on September 2, 2010
Most people, when they envision home ownership, they see a house, a mortgage, and bills. However, most people don’t think about not having a mortgage, and since they can’t see this, they can’t see them self without a mortgage.
This makes it very difficult for people to escape the concept of the mortgage. Some borrowers will refinance intentionally to prolong their mortgage. They won’t do this consciously; however, their subconscious needs the mortgage in place for things to make sense. If they don’t have the mortgage, then things don’t feel right.
The other effect is that people don’t know what to do with their money. Once they have their mortgage paid off, they see the extra money as decisions, and they would rather avoid decisions instead of having to make new decisions. They would rather just keep it on the mortgage, and continue to make their regular mortgage payments.
The trick is to have a plan and goals for the day that you have your mortgage paid off. This will give you something to look forward to instead of having something to fear.
How do you pay off your mortgage?
Paying off your mortgage seems like a huge challenge, but it can be overcome. The key is to set small manageable goals. The idea is to put more toward your mortgage payment per month. You would want to maximize the amount going towards your regular mortgage payments while minimizing your monthly expenses. This means cutting back on liabilities and focusing on your assets. You can start by reducing expenses that you don’t need and applying those savings towards your mortgage. The more you pay, the faster your mortgage will be paid in full.
The next way to pay down your mortgage faster is by increasing the household income. For many, it may be difficult to get a second job or there may not be any secondary employment opportunities; however, by working at home, on your free time, this can contribute towards paying down your mortgage. It may not seem like much, but every little bit counts when it comes to your mortgage.
Also, considering short-term rates and variable rates can usually lower your interest rates. Lower mortgage rates mean that more money is going to principle and less money to interest. Try to put as much money towards your mortgage at all times.
You don’t need a mortgage, and you would be better off without a mortgage. If you take the time to setup a strategy to pay off your mortgage faster, then your whole life will improve. You will find that paying off your mortgage is a lot easier than you think.
How did you pay off your mortgage? How long did it take you? Leave your response in the comments below.
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Welcome back!
Being Approved is not always a Good Thing
Posted by Top Home Loans in Economy, Mortgage Advice on August 26, 2010
It is said that it is everyone’s dream to own their own home; a place to call their own. However, could home ownership become a nightmare instead of a dream?
Michelle was in love with the dream of owning her own house, so she started, at a young age, taking the steps to home ownership. The first step she took was to get a career and save some money for the down payment. When she was finally prepared to buy a house, she phoned the bank to get a mortgage pre-approval.
The mortgage specialist she spoke with was very nice and personable. The processed seemed to be very easy, and she was able to get all the answers to all the questions that she had. She was advised to make her offer conditional upon financing when she found a house. Michelle had got a pre-approval easily and was ready to go house shopping.
She found a Realtor and went house shopping for a number of weekends. She made an offer in on a home and her offer was accepted by the seller. She was so happy, that she rushed home and called her bank right away.
The mortgage specialist requested a risk of documents that she would need to proceed in order to proceed with the mortgage application. Michelle was able to collect all the documents with ease, and before she knew it, her mortgage was approved.
Everything was ready to go for Michelle.
Once Michelle moved into the property, she ran into many problems. The first problem was that the house needed thousands of dollars of repairs. Michelle didn’t have this kind of money, so she had to borrow it to repair her house. Michelle was finding the mortgage payments difficult to manage as well.
Michelle didn’t have furniture, so she had to buy things for her new house. The fees for this new property were starting to add up. She also found out that she had a tax bill worth several thousand that was outstanding. This needed to be paid right away.
Michelle was forced to charge all these expenses to her credit cards. Before Michelle knew it, she didn’t have enough food to eat. Michelle was living from pay to pay without a surplus.
Michelle, eventually ended up selling the house and going back to renting. Michelle lost over $50,000 on the transaction.
Think about your decision quite a bit before you make the decision. Don’t let others make the decision for you.
Did you lose money on your mortgage? How did you keep your head up? Leave your response in the comments below.
Save your Mortgage from the Bank. Simply Mortgages can Help!
Happy HST Day! Today HST is in Effect
Posted by Top Home Loans in General Banking, General Business, Mortgage News on July 1, 2010
Happy Canada Day! For our friends in Ontario and British Columbia, today you will enjoy a higher tax on many goods and services. The first noticeable impact you will notice is gas and energy prices. Today, you will notice that gas prices have increased almost ten cents! This isn’t just at the gas pumps, but it will also apply to your homes heating and energy prices.
Not only does this apply to day to day purchases, but it also applies to many small and large transactions including your new home purchase. Expect to pay much more fees when closing your property and maintaining your home. The costs of home ownership have gone up a few percentage points today. This means that home affordability has gone down.
Unfortunately, these taxes are not optional, and the only way to avoid these new taxes is by limiting your consumption. The less you consume, the less tax you will be paying.
The good news is that low to middle income earners will receive a HST rebate check in the mail or by direct deposit. For those high income earners, you are out of luck.
With austerity coming into Canada, do not expect this to be the last new tax to show up on your door step. The government does need to pay their bills.
What do you think of HST? Will you limit your consumption with the new tax?