But now, renters who are facing evictions due to their landlord’s inability to pay a mortgage, have some rights. If you are renting, what you don’t know can hurt you so pay attention to the following tips if you  should ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of eviction due to foreclosure. In May 2009, President Obama signed into law a national standard for tenants facing foreclosure. Here are some details of that law:

• If you have a valid lease, you can not be forced to leave the property when it is in foreclosure until the lease officially expires. The only exception is if the property is purchased and the new owner plans to move into the property before the lease expires. In this case, the lease will be terminated on the sale dates and the tenants must receive 90 days notice of the intention to move in by the new owners.

• If you lease is to expire in less than 90 days after the property is sold, you still have the full 90 day time period to leave the property.

• If you are renting without a lease, there will still need to be a 90 day notice given to you as the tenant.

• If the state you live in has a law that require notice time longer than 90 days or other amounts of protection for tenant of rentals, it essentially overrides the federal law. Take the time to understand the individual laws in your state and how they apply to your situation. For more information, contact the tenant organization in your area if one is available.

• If you reside in Section 8 or other subsidized housing programs, the new law still applies to you. Do not allow anyone to try and tell you different. You can contact local tenant organizations or an attorney in your area for further advice.

• As a tenant, you still have an obligation to pay the rent in full until you vacate the property. If ownership changes before you leave, be sure you are paying rent directly to the new owner. Not paying rent, regardless of foreclosure circumstances, opens the door for you to be legally evicted.

• Make sure the new owner, even if it is a bank, keeps up with regular maintenance and repairs per your lease agreement. If there is nothing being done, keep making phone calls and written contact to insist on the property maintenance.

• When you plan to move out, make sure you receive your security deposit back, if applicable.

Your Rights When Your Rental Is In Foreclosure was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

It seems that homeowners who live in the houses where they pay a mortgage are working hard and budgeting their monies to make the monthly mortgage payments. On the other hand, the same can not be said of those people who take risks by investing in properties and commercial real estate.

Paying a mortgage is for many a top priority in the order of debt. It may even be possible to pay a mortgage off early, especially in light of the fact that many people are learning better money management.

Here are some tips to help you keep up with your monthly mortgage obligation and even make the effort to pay it off earlier that expected.

Early is Good But Only if You Can

There is no point in adding extra money to your monthly payments on your mortgage each month if it is going to put you in the hole in other areas of your life. If there are times when you have a little flexibility, any extra money will go towards the principle which will help you to pay off your mortgage faster and reduce the amount of interest you have to pay back.

Prioritize Other Debt

While mortgages are a priority, other bills should be too – namely credit card debt. Interest rates on the cards will no doubt be much higher than the rates on your mortgage. Use extra cash to pay down credit card bills and don’t even think about adding extra to your mortgage until your credit card balances are eliminated. If you have a high amount of credit card debt, consider trying to Apply for credit card with a lower interest rate, sometimes a Small business credit card will have lower interest rates, so check those out too.

Consider Tax Implications

Mortgage holders get tax deductions for the interest they pay on mortgages. By paying off a mortgage early, you will no longer be able to use that deduction to your advantage.

Do the Math

There are plenty of online calculators to help you figure out the extra amount of money you can add to the mortgage payment each month if you set a specific goal for an early payoff.

Conservative Homeowners Are Not the Main Factor in Foreclosure Problems was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

There are several things to think about before signing a commitment with a realtor. Going with the wrong person or company can end up costing you more money that you ever anticipated. Selecting a realtor will require a little work on your part. It may be necessary to essentially interview several before making a final decision.

Here are some things to look for in a realtor:

Reputation – If you live in a smaller community, it may be a little more cut and dry to evaluate a company on personal reputation. You may have family, friends, or business associates that can recommend someone that is good. You may also have the advantage of knowing who to avoid.

Exposure – If you live in a larger area that may have access to many realty companies, you may have to base your choice on advertising. There may be certain companies that are all over the television, radio, or billboards but it doesn’t mean they are the best. Pick two that are very high profile and two from the phone book and compare them before making a decision. Those companies who can afford large scale advertising may be able to bring more attention to your home quickly with the right resources.

Operation – Evaluate how much commission the realtor will take after the sale. Typically, the realtor is looking for 6-7% of the sale but it may be worth your while to negotiate one or two points lower in order to get more money back in your own pocket. If you must also find a realtor to help get you in a new home, find out if the realtor will give up some more of their commission if you agree to use them to buy a home as well as sell one.

Track Record – Do not be afraid to ask for their statistics. Find out how many homes they have sold that is similar to yours. Ask if they specialize in a certain price range that is similar to yours. Inquire about the amount of homes the realtor currently has under contract at the time.

References – You should also not be afraid to ask for referral names and then make sure you check a few of them out. Check out the realtor’s membership with the local and national realtor associations.

Overall, you want to have a great working relationship with your realtor and personality does matter. Signing a contract will commit you to working with that person or company many times until the house is sold. Read all contracts thoroughly before signing anything and make sure there is a stipulation that allows you to cancel in the event you are not happy with their efforts after a certain period of time. Do not get suckered in to a long term contract and opt for a 3-6 month initial time period. If the realtor will not allow such negotiations, you may want to reconsider your commitment. While it is okay to get some advice on selling your home and setting the price, ultimately the decision should be yours and your realtor should not force you into anything.

5 Things to Look for in a Realtor was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

For several months a lot of the major mortgage lenders stopped providing some of the worst offenders in the sub-prime mortgage loan market. Very few companies were offering option payment loans, 50 year mortgages, and interest only loans with a massive balloon payment at the end of the term. It seemed that the mortgage market had returned to sound statistics and reasoning as to whether or not to originate a loan, but as the real estate market decline very few people were buying homes and thus very few people were taking out mortgages. The volume of mortgages that the real estate industry has seen has shrunk dramatically, leading some mortgage companies to desperate measures to originate new loans.

Many of the mortgage companies which were hit the hardest by the collapse of the sub-prime lending market are now offering the same types of loans which got them into that mess in the first place because they’re so desperate to generate any type of new mortgages they can. Countrywide Home Loans is sending out mailers with offers for a $511,000 jumbo mortgage to refinance or remortgage your home. According to the LA Times, aI I number of other mortgage companies are sending out flyers for option payment loans, which are loans in which the customer is not even required to pay off the interest each year! If you’re in brittian, consider a buy to let mortgage.

Just because these loans are becoming available again does not mean you have any business taking them out. You might get initially a low payment for the first few months, but after that the rate will adjust upward and you’ll be paying much more in the long run. Stick to a conventional 15 or 30 year fixed mortgage, pay your payments each month, and you won’t have any surprises along the way.

Lenders Still Making the Same Mistakes Which Caused the Sub-Prime Mortgage Mess was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

1. Are your credit accounts current? If your accounts are not current now, then you are not making enough money to make your mortgage. Get those balances current before applying for a credit card.
   
2. Have all of your balances been paid on time within the last 12 months? Paying on time for 12 straight months will make you an “A-Paper” borrower, something lenders consider just as important as your score. If you are an “A-Paper” borrower, you will get bumped up to the better end of loans you credit score will qualify you for. Therefore, go 12 months with timely payments to give you that extra boost regardless of your score.
3. Do you have a lot of negatives on your credit report? Negatives are usually late payments, balances over their limits, and items charged off for collections. You can “dispute” these items on your credit report and have them removed, which will make you look more attractive in the application process and raise your score at the same time. (Plus it only takes 30 days to do.)
4. How many times have you applied for credit in the last three to six months? Too many credit inquiries lowers your score and says you are trying to get yourself into a heap of debt. Try to make it through three to six months without applying for new credit before applying for a home loan.
5. How much money do you have to pay towards other credit on a monthly basis? A creditor will figure your mortgage at approximately 50% of what you make. This number varies depending on the lender. Your credit report totals all of your payments right up front. If you are paying more then 50% towards credit cards and other loans, then you will most likely be rejected for a mortgage. Ask your creditors to lower your interest rates so that the total monthly payments on your credit report will go down. Also, try to pay down as much of your credit balances as possible so that you can get a higher pre-approved mortgage amount.
6. How much longer will you be paying your car loan? If you have a car loan, and you only have one year’s worth of payments left, mortgage lenders will usually not take that debt into account when calculating your potential mortgage amount. Therefore, if you have more then one year of payments left, pay it down to one year in order to get a higher mortgage.

Remember, knowledge is power. A pre-approval letter is knowledge and it gives you bargaining power when it comes to home loans. By cleaning your credit before applying for a mortgage, you can bargain for the best loans and make the toughest home offers. Do these things before applying for a loan, and soon you will own the home of your dreams.

What Mortgage Lenders Look For was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

Forbes used three different metrics to determine what they believe are the best cities in the nation to live in. They used the National Association of Home Builder’s “Housing Opportunity Index” which determines how affordable homes are to a typical income earner. They also factored in a cost of living index which was developed by the Council on Community and Economic Resaerch and finally factored in “Sperling’s Best Places” that identifies arts and entertainment options. Sperling’s list looked at music venues, museums, sports teams and the like.

The city that came out on top was Minneapolis, MN. Forbes stated that one of the main reasons was that 61% of the homes sold were affordable to a median incom earner. They also highlighted the cities cultural institutions such as the Guthrie theater. After Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, St. Lious, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Columbus, House, Dallas, and Atlanta made the list. Interestingly enough, 7 out of the 10 cities on the list wre located in the Midwest. The one thing common amongst all these cities was that housing was relatively affordable to a typical income earner.

In the end, this data probably won’t do much for us in an individual level unless we are considering moving in the near future, but it’s still interesting to look at. If you’re considering moving to new area of the country, it’s always a good idea to ensure that the location will be affordable to live in and has a relatively decent entertainment scene to make use of.

You can view the full results of the study at Forbes.com

The Most Affordable Places to Live (And Still Have a Great Lifestyle) was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

You Don’t Have a Down Payment – When purchasing a home, you should be able to put some amount of cash toward the purchase right away. This will give you a substantially better interest rate and if you make at least a 20% down payment, you will be able avoid having to pay private mortgage insurance which will easily save you $100 each month. Don’t buy a home unless you can afford at least a 10% down payment.

You Have a Tight Budget As It Is – You might be able to afford a mortgage payment, but just barely. If this is the case, you should probably wait to buy a home. If the slightest emergency happens, you’ll find yourself behind on your house payment and facing foreclosure. Give yourself plenty of wiggle room and have a nice emergency fund built up as well to take care of any hiccups that come along the way.

You Can’t Get a Decent Loan – If the only mortgage that you can get is an interest only, adjustable rate, or other sub-prime loan, you should wait and work to improve your credit until you are bankable for a traditional mortgage. You might also check into seeing whether or not you can be manually underwritten for a mortgage to get a traditional mortgage if you do not qualify for a loan based on your credit score.

You Don’t Have a Real Need – If you’re a single person and don’t have a lot of stuff, you probably don’t have a lot of need for a home right now. It’s sometimes a lot for one person to handle when you consider the utility bills, the cable bill, the mortgage, the up-keep and regular maintenance. If you don’t have an itching desire to purchase a home, it might be a better option just to live in a nice apartment.

 You’re Moving in Less Than Five Years – If you plan on moving anytime in the next few years, you probably shouldn’t be buying a home. When you consider all of the closing costs and fees associated with purchasing a home up front, it probably just makes sense to rent a home for the next few years instead of buying one and then trying to sell it.

Purchasing a home can be a great blessing if you purchase it at a time when you can actually afford it and have a legitimate need for a home, but it can also be a great curse if you buy one when you don’t realistically have the money to pay for it!

Five Signs That You Shouldn’t Be Buying a House was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

Check and Correct Errors on Your Credit Report – Most studies show that 1 out of every 3 Americans have mistakes on their credit reports that are significant enough to cause us to not qualify for the best interest rates available to us. Head on over to AnnualCreditReport.com and check your three credit reports for free to make sure everything on them is accurate and correct! If there are any errors, dispute them and get them corrected.

Reduce Your Consumer Debt – If you have credit cards or other consumer debt, pay down on them! This will lower your debt utilization ratio and improve your overall credit score.

Don’t Open New Accounts – Six months before you apply for a mortgage, don’t sign up for any new credit cards or other accounts. Credit inquiries and opening new accounts will lower your credit score by anywhere from 10 to 50 points.

Pay Your Bills On Time – It seems simple, yet many people don’t keep good track of their finances and make a payment late every once and a while. Even a few late payments will significantly lower your credit score and prevent you from qualifying for an optimal mortgage. Make sure to pay each payment early or on time each and every month!

Don’t Close Paid Off Accounts – A common misconception about credit scores is that if you pay off an account and close it, your credit score will go up. People think that if they have large credit lines with no balance that the bank will think they could potentially just go out and borrow a bunch of money and be in a much worse situation. It would make sense that having a bunch of credit available to you would damage your score, but quite the opposite is true. If you have a large amount of credit available to you, but don’t use it, you will have a much lower debt utilization ratio and have a higher score.

Don’t think that you’re stuck with whatever mobile home loans the bank will offer you now. Take active steps to improve your credit score so that you can get a better loan from the bank.

Looking to Buy a Home? 5 Tips to Improve Your Credit Score to Get a Better Mortgage was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

As part of our advertising strategy, American Consumer News has the option to advertise some of E-Loan’s products. We recently receive a message from them which stated the following, “In order to stay ahead of the current mortgage cycle and enable E-LOAN to maintain its leadership position in the industry, E-LOAN will begin scaling back some operations/programs to reduce its cost structure.” The program they were mentioning in the e-mail was its internet affiliate advertising program.

E-Loan made no statement as to what other divisions and programs they would be scaling back. E-Loan will likely also be laying off a number of employees as they stated there will be a “resizing of E-LOAN’s work force and reduction in cost.” The cost cutting measures seems to be of quite a significant size and a company-wide activity. These actions indicate a clear lack of capital, and in order to be able to remain profitable, E-Loan will significantly need to cut-back on their business expenses.

It’s no surprise that more of the major banks are being hit by financial problems because of the sub-prime loan debacle. Almost all of the major nation-wide banks are hurting because they over-extended credit to people who in all honesty could not afford to pay them back. E*Trade, Bank of America and E-Loan are the first banks to reveal how public their financial problems are, but there is no doubt that more banks will come forward and make drastic changes in order to remain profitable.

Late breaking rumors even indicate that there may be massive lay-offs at Citibank in the near future. Upwards of 45,000 people could be laid off, possibly even today. We’ll be sure to keep you informed about any major announcements the company makes.

Featured Link: Using a secured loan can save a homeowner hundreds in interest when compared to an unsecured loan, due to the fact that secured loans are secured against a property means that lenders are willing to reduce the APR on a loan due to the reduced risk.

Falling Like Dominoes: E-Loan Next Major Bank to Get Hit By Sub-Prime Mortgage Woes was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

The US House recently voted to enact the “Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending” act which would do a number of things to make sure that consumers know what they’re getting into when they take out a mortgage and ensure that they can only take out loans that they can reasonably afford to pay back.

The bi-partisan legislation passed on a 291-127 vote and would establish a federal licensing and registration system for mortgage lenders. In addition it would establish a new department in HUD called the office of “Housing Counseling” which would assist consumers in avoiding a foreclosure. The legislation would also make it illegal for banks to give loans to consumers that there’s no reasonable way for the consumer to repay and prevent lenders from pushing predatory loans on to consumers. The legislation will now move onto the senate and then the desk of the president.

Banks and other mortgage lenders have been fighting tooth and nail to prevent this legislation from being passed. They have absolutely refused to work with congress in coming up with some sort of reasonable compromise and have nothing to say on the legislation but “No Way, No How!” Major banks’ lobbies spent several weeks trying to derail the legislation while it was in committee and are now trying to prevent it from passing in the US Senate.

These large financial institutions have shown that they have not policed themselves properly. Banks which lend mortgages to people believe they have no responsibility to sell you the product that makes the most financial sense, but rather the one that makes them the most money. They have put people into mortgages which they simply cannot afford to repay by qualifying them on low teaser rates rather than what they would actually be repaying over the long haul.

Banks hate this legislation because they do not want to have what’s called as “fiduciary responsibility” to their customers, meaning that they would have to give them the product which is the best deal for the consumer, not the banks pocketbook. They’re also opposed to the bill because it would make it so that people had to qualify based on the actual payment, not the teaser rate. Mortgage companies are unhappy with the legislation because it would require them to spell out in plain English what the true cost of the mortgage is on a monthly basis as well as the costs and fees of the loan to the consumer.

By working against this legislation, banks are showing that they have little concern as to what’s in the best interest of the consumer and are rather only concerned about increasing the number of mortgages they originate and their short term quarterly profits.

Major Banks At it Again, Fighting Against “Truth in Mortgage Lending” Legislation Which Would Decrease Foreclosures! was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

Raise Your Deductible – The premium that you pay is inversely proportional to the size of deductible that you have. If you have a higher deductible, you’ll pay a lower rate. Usually you’ll want to go with a higher rate because insurance companies tend to cancel you if you make a lot of small claims. Get a high-deductible and use the savings to pay for the little things that come up here and there.

Compare Prices Between Companies – It’s worth your time to go sit down with an independent insurance agent. They will be able to look through dozens of different insurance companies at once and be able to tell you which company will be able to provide you the best deal on your homeowner’s insurance. You will want to read a review of the company before signing on, because the quality of service each company offers can vary dramatically.

Quit Smoking – A very common cause of house fires is a lit cigarette. It might fall out of the person’s mouth if they fall asleep, or if they throw it into a trash can full of flammable materials. Often your insurer will give you a discount for quitting smoking!

Get a Security System – Installing a home security system will statistically decrease the likelihood that your home will be robbed. Since your premium is directly associated with the amount of risk you represent to the insurance company, you can almost always get a lower rate when you decrease the risk to insure you by installing a home security system.

Raise Your Credit Score – Insurance companies use your credit score as part of the calculation which determines how much your premium should be. If you have a higher credit score, you statistically represent less risk to them and will likely be able to save some money on your premium.

Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms – Getting smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors (if you use natural gas), are a great way to give your family and early warning sign if there’s a fire or a gas leak. Many companies will lower your rate if you have a good amount of detectors in your home.

Homeowner’s insurance is certainly not the most exciting topic of discussion, but who doesn’t want to save a few dollars each month? Follow these tips and you’ll be able to cut back significantly on the check you write to your insurance company each month.

Cash In: How to Lower the Cost of Homeowner’s Insurance 6 Different Ways was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

For the last five years or so, many of the nation’s major banks and financial institutions have been originating all sorts of non-traditional mortgages such as interest only loans, adjustable rate mortgages, mortgages with balloons, fifty year mortgages, and a whole slew of other financial products that no consumer should ever buy. Unsurprisingly, many consumers could not continue to afford their mortgages as they adjusted upward and the home-buying market is very weak right now, leading to all sorts of delinquencies and foreclosures and now it’s starting to catch up with Bank of America and E*Trade.

All sorts of rumors are flying about a potential bankruptcy over at E*Trade. Said rumors actually dropped their stock price by 60% after the news hit. After news of a potential buyout or takeover hit, it rebounded slightly. Unfortunately there are 60,000 individuals who will be out of luck if E*Trade were to file bankruptcy. These people have more than $100,000 invested into FDIC insured accounts through E*Trade and would be out of a lot of money if the company were to go bankrupt. If you fit into this category, drop your savings inside of E*Trade to less than $100,000, that way you won’t lose your money if the bank goes under.

The exotic mortgages that Bank of America were giving out are starting to catch up with them as well. The financial institution had to provide $600 million dollars to avoid having the share-price of their money market funds dip below $1.00. Traditionally money markets are designed to keep at exactly a price of $1.00 per share, and it’s considered very bad if the price ever drops below that. Bank of America had used money from their investors in money market funds and invested that money by loaning it out to people in all sorts of exotic mortgages. When the real estate market collapsed in on itself, the price was dangerously close to “breaking the buck.” BOA did the smart thing to replenish its money market fund, because if the share price had dropped below $1.00, most investors most likely would have taken their money elsewhere.

Banks made a major mistake by offering mortgages to people who cannot afford to pay them back. One of the major financial magazine’s covers this week features a number of major bank presidents and the headline, “What Were They Smoking?” in regards to the sub-prime mortgage mess. Chances are we will see other banks hit hard times because of woes in the real estate market. Make sure that your money is at a solid and performing bank and that you do not have more than $100,000 at any particular financial institution.

E*Trade and Bank of America Get What’s Coming to Them for Offering Exotic Mortgages was created by and is property of American Consumer News.