Category: Finance Page 4 of 5

Why Mortgage Reserves Matter

On November 16, 2021

Mortgage reserves, also known as cash reserves, are finances available to lenders after paying their deposit and closing their home acquisition. The cash should be in liquid or able to be converted into cash quickly. The purpose of mortgage reserves is to secure several months of mortgage installments in case of any financial constraint. It is generally determined by the number of monthly deposits one can make based on the saved cash. The monthly installments should comprise the principal, interest, property taxes, and mortgage or homeowners’ policy. It also involves any payments for homeowners available, secondary, and leasehold disbursements.

Generally, purchasing a home requires a lot of money. Therefore, apart from saving for your deposit and closing price, you must keep your mortgage reserves for various months. The mortgage lenders must ascertain that one can afford the monthly installments after any financial challenges. Cash reserves also help individuals to become satisfied with their choice of purchasing a home. There are also various costs associated with buying a house. These include maintenance payments and getting extra furniture.

Regardless of the lender’s requirements, the homebuyers should save not less than 3 to 6 months of their mortgage and home payments. As a result, the housing expenditure should not be more than a quarter of the monthly income. One should save proper reserves in bank accounts or from profitable businesses. Lack of savings may lead to serious debt. However, staying without investing is also not a good idea.

Acceptable Assets for a Lender’s Reserve Requirements

In cases where reserves are needed, one has to provide evidence of the owned assets. An account with stocks and bonds, for example, is an easy way of transferring the required cash. The other assets comprise of:

Retirement accounts such as Roth and IRAs
Regular earnings
Trust and saving accounts with a bank or credit union
Committed finances in employee 401k accounts
Vested amount from life insurance
Court settlements, lottery wins, and disaster relief funds
Money market accounts, CDS, and short term treasury bills

It is advisable to budget for mortgage reserves for anyone planning to own a home. Using a mortgage calculator helps to determine the amount that someone needs to save. One should also seek advice from mortgage lenders to make an informed decision and plan accordingly.

Robin Jonathan Deutsch Mb6g5svmcyk Unsplash

What to Know About Buying a Foreclosed Home

By W Darrow Fiedler

On October 12, 2021

In Finance, Investing, Real Estate, Welcome

As a prospective home buyer, you may wish to purchase a foreclosed home due to various reasons. You may want to shop on a budget or extend your real estate business portfolio. Regardless, you have to prepare for the things that lie ahead when buying such a home.

Fortunately, this guide looks the things to know about buying a foreclosed home:

Learn About the Foreclosure Categories

Foreclosures fall into two main categories, which are the judicial and non-judicial types. The judicial type occurs when a lending service files a court case against the borrower. The court will then rule in favor of the lending service and release the property for auction.

The non-judicial type occurs based on a specific property sale clause for failing to make up for payments. It does not require a court order.

Use Legitimate Platforms to Source Foreclosures

While you may have many options for finding suitable foreclosure deals, some are not legitimate. The list of options you can use include:

Use public records that are available in your state or county’s property database. However, this process requires lots of time and research as the records are immense.
Consult with a real estate agency or service. A reputable service often has insight into the best foreclosure properties you can buy.
A local bank website is also an excellent platform. Some banks facilitate foreclosures and then list the properties on their sites for auction.
You can use online platforms such as Auction.com, which lists countless properties across the country.

Your Finances and Preparedness

Before buying a foreclosed home, ensure you have the financial capability and preparedness to handle such a process. Details such as your Social Security Number (SSN), tax returns, and credit scores should be excellent.

Additionally, you also have to determine whether you have adequate funds to buy and develop the property. Ensuring that all these details are intact will smoothen the process of owning a foreclosed home.

Buying a foreclosed home seems like a tough call, but it’s also a lucrative venture when you have the correct information. Additionally, you also have to prepare well for buying such property, including details such as your credit score.

Closing Costs When Buying a Home

By W Darrow Fiedler

On September 15, 2021

In Finance, Investing, Real Estate, Welcome

Many individuals save for a down payment for their future home, but they might not be aware of the fact that this isn’t the only money that they need to have when they close on it. Most homeowners have to pay closing costs as well. Here’s a little bit more information about closing costs and some ways to lessen them.

What’s Included

Closing costs tend to be about 4% of the purchase price of a home. This amount can vary slightly. Closing costs tend to include things like origination fees associated with the loan, title insurance, attorney fees, and closing fees. For many sellers, the amount they have to pay in closing costs can equate to thousands of dollars. Buyers will receive an itemized list of their closing costs before their actual closing date. This will allow them to see how much each item is that they have to pay for. Fortunately, they may be able to get some help paying for their closing costs.

Getting Assistance

There are a few different ways that buyers can lessen the amount of money that they have to bring to the table during their closing. In some instances, sellers may actually pay the closing costs themselves. This is common for sellers whose house has been for sale for a long time. There also are a variety of grants available that may be used to pay for closing costs if certain requirements are met. Buyers might also be able to roll their closing costs into the loan of the home. While they still will have to pay all of the closing costs, they may end up being more affordable for those that are limited on cash as they can pay them over the life of the loan.

Buying a home can come with a lot of expenses before the buyer even gets the keys to the house. Fortunately, there are some ways that buyers can get assistance paying for closing costs. It’s best for buyers to be upfront with their realtor and mortgage broker about how much they can afford to pay upfront. They can use this information to help the buyer find a few different ways to make closing costs a little more affordable for them.

The Most Affordable Cities for New Families

By W Darrow Fiedler

On July 20, 2021

In Finance, Real Estate

If you’re planning on starting a family, you might be thinking about moving somewhere new. One reason to think about moving is affordability.

By moving to a more affordable city, you can give your children a better quality of life. Consider some of these cities if you’re looking to move somewhere affordable for families.

Boulder

For years, Boulder has been growing from people moving out of state to Colorado. The city has been known for being a great place for college graduates in industries like aerospace and engineering.

However, Boulder is also great for families. The median home price is near half a million, but Boulder has been known for offering high salaries to people with the right education.

Boulder also features great school systems, beautiful outdoors, and more. Look more into Boulder if you’re looking to move your family to somewhere new.

Des Moines

You might be in a situation where you don’t have the college education to give you high-paying jobs in places like Boulder. You’ll want to find somewhere cheaper like Des Moines.

Des Moines is known for being one of the cheapest places to live in the United States, hosting median home prices of less than $200,000. The city even has the benefit of combining low home prices with a low rate of crime.

In addition to being cheap, Des Moines has been known for having a great infrastructure that ensures that you can get back and forth to work quickly, ensuring that you have more time to take care of your children. Consider Des Moines if you’re looking for a cheap place to move with your family.

Huntsville

After looking at cities in the north, you might be thinking about cities in the south. For that, you should be looking at Huntsville.

Huntsville is currently the largest city in Alabama, hosting a population of over 400,000 people in its metropolitan area. The city is known for even being cheaper than Des Moines, giving a median home price of less than $180,000.

For those with engineering degrees, they will feel at home in Huntsville with large job recruiters such as NASA and the U.S Army making themselves home in the city. Anyone interested in getting a great job and a cheap home should take a look at Huntsville.

3d Printed Neighborhood Coming To California

3D Printed Neighborhood Is Coming to California

By W Darrow Fiedler

On April 16, 2021

In Finance, Investing, New, News, Real Estate, Uncategorized, Welcome

There is no doubt that technology and industry will continue to evolve in many forms. Many futuristic sectors are currently being developed. Initiatives such as the robotic and the internet of things are becoming more and more of a factor.

Another industry that is emerging very quickly is the 3D Printing industry. 3D printing is emerging in various aspects of society. It has become abundantly clear that 3D printing has become a part of the housing industry as well.

As hard as it is to believe, there is a desert in California set to become a neighborhood constructed entirely via 3D printing.

In this piece, we are going to examine this fantastic occurrence in greater depth.

The location of this potentially historic neighbor good will be the Coachella Valley. Thanks to a partnership between an organization specializing in sustainable real estate development and a construction technology firm, 5 acres of land will become a community of 15 3d-printed houses.

The construction technology firm is named Mighty Buildings. Mighty Buildings considers this project as a realized fulfillment of its vision for the housing industry’s future.

Mighty Buildings is based in Oakland and specializes in creating homes with the use of 3d printers that are pretty sizable.

The material used by the construction company is designed to harden instantaneously. Thus, roofing and insulation can be done in one seamless process.

Mighty Buildings can automate 4/5th of the home construction process while achieving cost savings in manpower. Their approach allows environmental waste to be significantly reduced.

According to the company’s chief sustainability officer, Mighty Buildings can build a 350 square foot home in a day.

The 3D-printed homes will have a modern look. All homes will be 1450 square feet and will consist of three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Also, each home can have another 2 BR/1 BA residence on the premises.

Each home will have a pool in the backyard. Individuals can opt for amenities such as hot tubs and fire pits.

Prices for the primary 3 BR/2 BA 3d-printed home start at $595,000. If one opts for a two-home setup with enhancements, the price is $950,000.