Seniors Get HUD Counseling to Ward off the Wolves

By Spumeti Vanrock

From a dollars and sense perspective, built up home equity is the results of years of making payments and from the natural appreciation of the home market.

If there are no other financial means, the borrower can use the home equity as a source of funds to solve financial problems. In fact, the reverse mortgage was originally created with this intention.

The reverse mortgage is not the perfect financial answer for every financial problem for the borrower.

As a possible conflict of interest, it is marketed by people just like me, who make money only when they get a senior borrower a reverse mortgage; they don't make money by talking the senior out of it.

Being a loan officer, I hold most of my colleagues in esteem. I know the majority will tell the truth and give an honest assessment supported by all available knowledge.

That being said a certain minority resides in this business (as with any business), made up of unethical individuals willing to ignore anything associated with the golden rule to get what they want.

I formerly worked in the copier business, and my company (which shall remain nameless) had a saying for the sales people: Whatever it takes. They really meant it too. Do whatever you have to do to make a sale.

In the reverse mortgage business, some people feel that way too, but stay confident. The loan officer is not your only point of contact to help you make an informed decision.

Federal law requires serious parties to have a counseling session with a neutral counselor of reverse mortgages, approved by HUD, before continuing with the transaction.

This is a major stopgap for those being talked into a reverse mortgage who could otherwise solve the financial obstacle in some other cheaper manner. If the counselor is worth his salt he should be able to spot a bad deal and give the would-be borrower better advice.

Someone is always lying is wait to trick or take advantage of seniors, and this is one way to greatly avoid that possibility.

About the Author:

Get comprehensive guide to the California reverse mortgage make it over to this website. For all the skinny, go the California reverse mortgage fact sheet.

How To Get Bad Credit Student Loans

By Dave Davidson

If you are seeking to further your education by attending college, most likely you can't afford the tuition costs on your own. You might need some assistance to make ends meet and realize your dream of attending college. But what if you have bad credit or even no credit history at all?

Do you have to wait to establish your credit or improve it before you can hope to qualify for a loan? No, you don't. Fortunately, there are bad credit student loans available for people with bad credit or no credit who are interested in continuing their education.

There are loans available based on need and there are also loans issued even if there is not a financial need. Most of these loans are backed or issued by the government. If you can prove a financial need, you may be able to qualify for a Federal Stafford loan or Perkins loan. The Stafford loan issued based on financial need is a subsidized loan. With this loan, the government pays the interest on the loan while you are in school and for the first six months after you graduate from college.

Another loan type that's offered by the federal government is Perkins loans. This loan is extremely cheap over time and is intended to be used only by individuals that have extreme need. In order to qualify, a person must show that they have need, but credit history isn't part of the approval process.

You are not expected to repay any of the money you receive. Some people may qualify for a Federal Pell Grant, but not in the amount to cover all of their tuition and college expenses so they may take out a loan in addition to the grant.

If you don't qualify for loans that are issued to those with financial need, there are still options for bad credit student loans. There is another kind of Stafford loan that is unsubsidized. This means that once the loan is issued, it begins accruing interest and you are responsible for repaying that interest in full.

With this type of loan, the government doesn't pay the interest for you, so you will have to start making payments right after you take out the loan. However, interest rates are quite low on these loans so most people can handle the payments without too much trouble.

About the Author:

Dave educates students on finding a good bad credit student loan and also how to avoid getting the wrong bad credit student loans.

Personal Finance Troubles? Consider Debt Negotiation

By Dillon Azungen

Are you drowning in debt and considering debt negotiation? Debt negotiation has a bad connotation but does it affect your credit that badly? There are pros and cons to debt negotiation and there are alternatives. Here are some things to consider which will help you decide if debt negotiation is right for you.

First, you need to educate yourself on debt negotiation since there is a lot of misinformation out there. Debt negotiation is also known as debt arbitration or debt settlement. A third party negotiates with creditors and lenders on a payment plan and decreased interest. The creditors will put further credit to you on hold so you won't be able to use your credit cards until after your debt is repaid. After that, it is up to the creditor to decide if you should regain credit approval and if so, how high of a limit.

Lenders will usually only lower your rates and give you a break on fees if there is a reason. If they can be shown you're personal finances are not in a position to make the agreed upon payments then they will usually negotiate. They would prefer to negotiate rather than turn your account over to a collection agency.

Some people think that your credit report is unaffected by debt negotiation. This is not the case however. Your negotiation is reported and shows as such on a report. This is why debt negotiation should be used only if you can't otherwise pay off your bills. If you're finding yourself paying your lenders late and incurring fees then this will hurt your credit rating more than negotiation. And if you end up declaring bankruptcy then this can be even worse.

Before debt negotiation you should first find help with your budgeting and learn about other options by seeking a credit counseling service. A credit counselor can give you the information you need to help reduce your payments and get your finances back on track. They will tell you what will affect your credit rating, what will not and recommend what steps you should take. They can also help you with credit consolidation.

To find a credit counseling service search the internet or the yellow pages. Be careful since there are some that are not as helpful or legitimate as others. There are some that are supported by the government which are legitimate and should be researched first. A legitimate service will usually have a free consultation face-to-face and will be upfront about their services and fees. Don't sign anything until you are comfortable with their terms.

Don't think that since debt negotiation will tarnish your credit report that you should give up and let your account go to collection agencies. Ignoring the problem will make things much worse.

About the Author:

Dillon Azungen regularly makes online reports on themes similar to how to negotiate amongst creditors and how to negotiate a settlement with creditors. His writings on how to negotiate debt settlement yourself and how to negotiate a settlement within creditors are found on his website .

Take Over Payments, No Qualifying For Loans To Buy Properties

By Tomasheus Privetsky

If you learn how to buy houses by taking over payments subject to existing financing, you'll add a highly profitable skill to your arsenal of real estate investing weapons.

There are certain loans that you can easily take over payments on. According to the American Bankers Associations report one trillion dollars worth of fresh mortgages were built by refinancing old loans in one year. Moreover, these loans had extremely low fixed interest rates ranging between 6 to 8%.

This indicates that there remains about a trillion dollars worth of real estate investment that is booked under homes owned by people around you. It would be of great profit if you were able to take over payments of these unpaid real estate loans from someone elses name to your own. You can do this by buying the real estate properties having such low interest rate mortgages attached to them.

There are quite a few things that you need to consider when it comes to taking over payments of already existing low interest rate real estate loans versus getting a brand new loan on investment houses. Lenders of these real estate loans are much rougher with real estate investors in comparison to homeowners. The most basic evidence proving this higher interest rate payment for the former compared to the latter.

Once you succeed in taking over payments, be assured of the low rate of interest at which you will be paying unlike other real estate investors. Thus, your loan repayment expenditure decreases considerably increasing your monthly cash flow. In the future if you decide to sell the property with proprietor financing and maintain the original loan as well. You will be able to make a better deal on the interest and payments than the ones you assemble from your procurer.

Most of the money that you spend as loan payment expense will be for interest rate payment purpose. Only a fraction of this will be allotted to the principal reduction. Since the interest rate on the existing loan is lower, your interest payment will also be lower on the total real estate.

If you consider taking an investor property loan, the down payment required is much more than for homeowners. Homeowners offer around 5% while real estate investors are asked to put down around 20% while procuring the loans.

Other than these terms, homeowners can get away with stating two months of payment in reserves whereas real estate investors have to show at least six months of the same. Therefore if you take over payments from a homeowner you no longer have to make one fifth of the down payment. You can purchase more real estate with the money that you save in this way.

There are many more pros of taking over payments. You shall be benefiting from the amount that has already been repaid by the previous owner! They might have paid the loan for two, three, or even five years- and that means you have to pay only a fraction of the loan. You could both pay off the remaining loan and build up equity in a few years time.

Last but not least, when you take over payments on someone else's loan, you completely avoid tedious mortgage loan qualifying process. The owner of the house has done all the paperwork and has furnished the necessary proof of his creditworthiness to the lender at the time when the loan was originally obtained. You're simply stepping in to benefit from the results of lengthy loan qualification process the owner had to endure.

This method of taking over payments is one of the most profitable means of sponsoring your real estate investment.

About the Author:

take over payments subject to existing mortgages is a powerful shortcut to building a large real estate investing empire.

When You Become a Victim of Identity Theft

By Landon McGehee

Immediately upon becoming aware that your identity has likely been stolen, it's easy to begin to panic. This is the wrong reaction and should be repressed. Calm yourself down and consider your options. You'll need a clear head to minimize the damage done to your finances and credit. Here are the steps to take, one at a time, to stop the theft from getting out of hand:

First, contact your local police department to report the crime. Give them all the information you can. They will likely refer you to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to continue your report. File with both of those agencies as well. This allows the police on a local level to look into the matter while coordinating with the federal authorities. The FBI and FTC will likely want your local police's case number, which you should have received when you first reported to them.

In addition, reporting to the FTC (or their Consumer Alert website) will alert the three credit bureaus and put a Fraud Alert on your reports, which means that no new credit cards or other lines of credit can be obtained on your account for three months. Fraud Alerts are non-specific, however, and merely note to creditors that something illegal has happened involving your credit-whether that illegal activity otherwise involved you or not is left up to question. This is not a total blockade either and still allows a thief to use your existing credit.

Often the FTC requests that you change the passwords and access information for your accounts, but leave them open so they can monitor for thieves. While this seems like a good idea and it will help them catch the thief, it also leaves your accounts open to more fraud that you may or may not get reimbursed for. Most people opt to close their accounts and open new ones instead. It is your choice to do so and you are not required to cooperate with the FTC's investigation.

Now that you've gotten your financial life started back towards normal, it's time to get the rest of your identity secured as well. Contact the Department of Motor Vehicles for your state and request a new driver's license number, explaining the situation. Usually they will be happy to do this without any questions if you can present your original license and other proofs of your identity. Contact the Social Security Administration for the same purpose, to change your Social Security Number. This is trickier and often takes much more time, but it can also be done and is a good step towards renewing your broken life.

Now be prepared for a real battle to restore your identity, finances and life. Often, victims of identity theft find themselves battling for years over issues on their credit reports, bank accounts, and more.

Since identity theft continues to go on the rise as thieves utilize new technologies, the World Wide Web, and other techniques to find new victims, government and law enforcement have little chance of stopping the phenomenon. Repairing the effects of identity theft is difficult as well. It's up to individuals to take charge of their private information, be it their personal information or their bad credit history - and keep it safe from thieves, so that they will pass you by looking for easier targets. This includes family and friends as often, victims of identity theft find out that it's those closest to them that are doing the crime.

So take charge of your life and, if you find yourself a victim of identity theft, don't panic.

About the Author:

It is time to remove the clouds of doubt on the topic of reparing bad credit. You're only a click away - http://www.everlife.com/improvingcreditscore.php.