Chart showing Homeowners Saved money from Reduced Mortgage Payments – hud.gov/scorecard

Digital News Report - The Housing market has been at the most affordable prices in the last 10 years. In addition to this interest rates are at historic lows which have also helped give Obama’s scorecard good marks for housing affordability.

While the housing market isn’t completely recovered, HUD Assistant Secretary Raphael Bostic said that it is doing better than they had predicted it would a year ago.

According to the July Housing Scorecard, there have been over 7.2 million homeowners that were able to refinance their mortgage to a lower interest rate since April of 2009. This equates to over $12.9 billion of savings that homeowners will benefit from because they refinanced to a lower mortgage interest rate.

Struggling homeowners have avoided foreclosure by getting restructured mortgages since April of 2009. There was over twice as many loan modification than the 1.24 million people that had completed home foreclosure proceedings.

The government run Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) had converted over 50,000 trial modifications to permanent modifications. The average permanent modifications are around 50,000 home loan modifications being completed.

The HAMP program is also implementing the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative Program (HAFA) and the Second Lien Modification Program (2MP). These new programs will help other struggling homeowners that don’t meet the requirements to participate in the government’s HAMP mortgage loan modification program. The HAMP program reported less than 2 percent of homeowners that have gone to foreclosure sale and less than 10 percent that have entered in the foreclosure process.

Tax credits for first home buyers ended in April, which caused a drop in housing sales during the month of May. Even though home prices are more affordable, HUD says that the housing market is still fragile and more time will be needed to see recovery.

To read the complete Housing Market Scorecard you can visit www.hud.gov/scorecard.

By: Victoria Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report - There was some changes to how much financing and how much of a down payment homeowners put toward the purchase of their first time home and if they were a repeat buyer. According to the Realtor.org website financing changed in different directions when comparing 2005 home loan financing percentages with the 2009 statistics.

They found that in 2005 the average repeat home buyer had financed 79 percent of the value of the home purchase. But in 2009, the repeat buyer financed a larger percentage of 85 percent of the value of the home.

The first time home buyer in 2005 financed 98 percent of the value of the home. In 2009, the first time purchaser financed 96 percent of the home value and put a larger down payment down.

When compared to all of the home buyers home loans were 91 percent of the home value in 2006, 2007, and 2008. In 2009 the overall home buyer financed 92 percent of the home value in 2009. In 2005, the overall home buyer survey showed that they financed 87 percent of the home value.

Even though lending has tightened homeowners have financed more of the value of their home and have less equity of their own, except in the case of the first time home-buyer.

By: Victoria Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – New credit cards from Citi, Capital One and Discover make it easier to transfer high interest rate card balances to one easy payment.

Capital One® Platinum Prestige Credit Card

The Capital One Platinum Prestige card offers borrowers the ability to transfer “higher-rate balances” to their card with no annual fee and a zero percent introductory rate. The introductory rate will last through July 2011.

The company says they can process transfers within 48 hours. You will also get zero percent interest on your purchases through July 2011.

Besides low or not interest, the card offers 24-hour travel & emergency assistance and travel accident insurance. You can also get a replacement cars and cash advances. You will need excellent credit for this card.

Citi® Platinum Select® MasterCard®

The Citi Platinum Select Mastercard offers a 0% APR for 18 months after transfer. After that the rate will be 11.99%-19.99%. Basically, if you pay your balance off within a year you don’t get charged interest.

There is no annual fee and you need a good credit score to get the card. The card also offers discounts on gift cards, travel, and merchandise.

Discover® More® Card

Discover is offering a card with a zero percent introductory offer on balance transfers for 15 months. Discover also offers no annual-fee and 5 percent cash back on travel, gas, groceries, restaurants, and some home improvement stores. Besides that they offer up to one-percent cash-back on all other purchases.

By: Tina Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – There are several options for borrowers who have multiple loans with debt on several credit cards. The poor economy and high unemployment has made debt consolidation more difficult, but there are still options available.

The main goal is to lower your interest and principal payments and to consolidate all of the bills into one low monthly payment. You want to pay less and pay off your debt quicker.

One option is to consolidate your debt into a loan offered by your bank or credit union. Just because one bank turns you down doesn’t mean all of them will turn you down. Check with your bank or credit union first. If you have been doing business with them they may be more likely to offer you a loan.

Another option is to transfer the money into another credit card. Some banks will offer a zero percent interest rate for a limited time and wave transfer fees. You may want to talk to a financial advisor before you transfer student loans.

Debt Management Plans

Borrowers may use a Debt Management Plan (DMP) to lower their payments. A counselor may work with your lenders to negotiate lower payments or lower interest. The biggest company offering this service is the Consumer Credit Counseling Service.

There are benefits and dangers with debt management plans. You may be able to eliminate some of your debt, but your credit score may be negatively affected.

By: Tina Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – There are various credit card options for customers who have poor or bad credit scores. Credit cards have become an integral part of life and are needed to rent a car or stay in a hotel. With today’s credit environment, it can be difficult to get a credit card without any credit history.

UPside Visa® Prepaid Card

The UPside Visa® Prepaid Card is designed for customers with excellent to bad credit and for students and other people without any credit record. The issuer says customers can save $220 compared with other prepaid cards.

With a total load of $500 or more there will only be a 99 cent monthly fee. You can load cash into the card at 50,000 retailers and there is free direct deposit from employers. This is considered a debit card.

Orchard Bank Visa® Cards

If you are looking to establish credit or turn a bad credit score into a good one, the Orchard bank Visa may be a good choice. Orchard reports your payments to the 3 major credit bureaus on a monthly basis.

There may be an annual fee for the first year. After the first year there is a fee from $35-$79 per year. They accept applicants with fair or bad credit records. They will also accept applicants with no credit history.

They offer an initial rate of 7.9 percent to 28.90 percent.

By: Tina Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – Refinance rates are moving higher this week. The average mortgage refinance rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 4.7351 percent Friday. Compare that to 4.6128 percent last Friday. That is a 12-basis point increase and a 17-basis point increase over Monday. The average for the week was 4.641 percent.

Refinance rates are usually different from purchase mortgage rates. For instance, Bank of America is charging 5.157 percent to refinance a home but only 4.933 percent for a new purchase loan.

The average 15-year refinance mortgage rate was 4.1018 percent on Friday. The average for the week was 3.923 percent because of a dip in rates on Wednesday. Last Friday the rate was 4.0380 percent.

The only rate to decrease was the 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages (ARM). The average rate was 3.460 percent Friday. Compare that to 3.5192 percent last Friday. The rate increase 3 points from Thursday but is still down 6 basis points from last Friday. Bank of America (BofA) was advertising a rate of 3.554 percent on Friday. That is nearly unchanged from the Friday before but is one basis point higher from Thursday.

Chase had a 30-year refinance rate of 4.826 percent. They were also advertising a 15-year refinance rate of 4.329 percent. Their 7/1 ARM was 3.669 percent and their 5/1 ARM was 3.485 percent.

By: Tina Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – The Obama Loan Modification Program was designed to help all homeowners on the verge of losing their home. The program has gone through several modifications including a concerted effort to save homes in hard-hit states like California, Florida, Michigan, Florida and Arizona.

Many homeowners in Northern California, including the Bay Area, have found themselves in limbo. The banks are backlogged and are unable to keep up with the foreclosures. This could be good news for homeowners facing home loss.

The Obama Administration has set aside $1.5 billion to use “innovative” efforts to save homes. Banks including Citimortgage, Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo are participating in the program.

Loan Modification Qualifications

The program is free to the homeowner and it is free to have a consultant determine whether you qualify. Here are some simplified qualifications:

1) Homeowners must be in financial trouble

2) Loans must have originated before January 1, 2009

3) Principal, interest, property taxes and homeowner insurance must exceed 31 percent of the gross family income.

4) Homeowners must reside in the home (duplexes, triplexes and quads qualify but owner must reside in one of the units).

There are other rules that apply and homeowners are encouraged to seek help from a certified counselor.

The government is also providing free “homeowner events” throughout the United States. Government officials will be on hand in Atlanta Georgia this next weekend. Next month there will be events in California, Arizona, New York and other states.

By: Tina Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – You may find car insurance rates are higher than you think you should be paying. It may be time to save money on car insurance. How can you lower your auto premiums? Here are some ways that you can lower your car insurance policy costs.

There are several different ways that you can save on your car insurance.

1. Shop around for the best car insurance quote. With online car insurance quotes it can be easy to get multiple auto policy quotations all from the comfort of your own home. You should get at minimum three car insurance quotes. These are all free car insurance quotes so you can get as many insurance policy estimates as you want. Chances are you will find inexpensive car insurance and save money.

2. If you are a homeowner you can save money by combing your auto insurance and homeowners insurance with the same company. By doing this, many insurance companies offer discounts on both policies saving you money.

3. If you own an old car worth less than $1,000 you can save money by dropping collision and comprehension coverage on these cars. It’s a risk of losing your vehicle and not getting a replacement but the saving in insurance can offset the cost of replacement.

4. If you are looking to buy a new car, it pays to shop around for car insurance before buying it. Different vehicle models carry different insurance rate premiums because there are different costs associated with each car. The cost of the car, the cost to repair it are factors. So are the driving safety and also how often they are targeted for theft can also factor into the cost of the auto insurance. You also may get an extra discount by having an anti-theft device installed in the vehicle.

5. You might find some car insurance companies will discount your car insurance based on the number of miles that you drive. You might have the insurance company follow your smog checks which report mileage, or you might initially have an inspection of your car before insurance begins. You need to be honest about the number of miles that you drive because this could affect your coverage.

6. Having a good credit score can lower your insurance premium compared to those that have a bad credit score.

7. Ask for a higher deductible on your car insurance quote if you are looking to save money on your premium. A higher deductible will be the amount of money that you pay before the insurance provider will pay on the claim.

8. Ask what other discounts that the auto insurance company offers. They often will have good driver discounts for those that have not got into an accident or traffic tickets in the last few years. They can give discounts for good students that get good grades. They have multiple driver discounts. Each company will offer different discounts so ask them what is available.

Summary

Cheap car insurance can be good insurance, but you should also consider the customer service that the company provides, especially when you go to file a claim. You want to know that you will be covered if the time comes that you need it. You can ask around with other family and friends what they recommend. You can search online for complaints about an insurance company. You can call the Better Business Bureau to see if the company you are considering has a poor rating or if they have received a large number of complaints. In the end sometimes paying a couple extra dollars might be the best car insurance policy, but you should take your time to compare car insurance quotes carefully before making the decision.

By: Victoria Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – The housing market around the nation has been hit hard by decreasing home values. To make matters worst, the economy has suffered as well because many have either saw their income decrease or have lost their jobs. Because of the housing crisis and the steep increase of housing foreclosures home prices spiraled to even lower values. The government loan modification program was started in an attempt to slow down and stop the number of homeowners from losing their homes to foreclosure.

The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) was created by President Obama and Congress to help struggling homeowners refinance their existing mortgages into lower payments. By doing this homeowners can get lower interest rates, get earned principal forgiveness, and extended terms. All these strategies can be used to help homeowners afford their mortgage payments.

Home Loan Modification Requirements

No Cost to Participate in the Modification Program

The government home loan modification program is free and there are also HUD approved counselors that are free to consult. The loan servicers are “required” to work with the borrower unless it was prohibited in the original loan documentation. Once you start applying for the home loan modification, the lender will set up a trial modification. You will more than likely also need to complete paperwork during this time frame as well. Once you have met all the paperwork requirements and have made your payments on time, your loan will become a permanent modification.

By: Victoria Brown

Digital News Report

Digital News Report – Because of the high unemployment rate in the United States there have been more borrowers worried about their finances. There are several choices a person can do to consolidate their credit card debt, personal loans, and their student loans.

Consolidation Loan

There are different reasons people will get a debt consolidation loan. One reason is to lower their monthly payments. Another is to simplify your payments into on easy installment loan. You only would pay one bill each month instead of writing checks to many companies.

You can sometime find debt consolidation loans being offered at banks and credit unions. You should see if the bank or credit union you have offers this kind of financing. If not you can shop online for a company that provides debt consolidation loans. If you have bad credit you might have to look around for a company that is willing to finance a debt consolidation loan for you.

Credit Card Balance Transfers

Another way to consolidate debt would be to do a balance transfer with a credit card. Sometimes credit card companies such as Bank of America, Discover, or Chase will offer special introductory rates for balance transfers. These promotional offers usually are at zero percent APR interest for up to 12 months time. Other balance transfer offers can offer a fixed rate until the balance is paid off. This will lock in your interest rate and you won’t have to worry about the interest rate going up after an introductory time period.

Government Consolidation Loans

The US government might be able to help through their Federal Direct Consolidation Loans program. This program is aimed to help people that are having difficulty paying their student loan payments. In extreme cases a person could be able to defer payment of their student loans.

Debt Management Plans

A debt management plan (DMP) differs from a debt consolidation loan because there isn’t a new loan to pay off the old loans. Instead a Debt Management Company will negotiate with the existing creditors or collection agency to work out a repayment plan. You make one monthly payment to the debt management plan and the company will then send payments to each company that money is owed to. You still need to make sure that payments are getting to your credit card each month, but you won’t have to make several payments. They also can sometime reduce the interest on the credit cards and waive fees to help you tackle the debt.

By: Victoria Brown