Protect Your Identity By Using Online Rate Tables

In these times of financial uncertainty, a healthy credit history and score is necessary to buy a home. As such, your personal information may be sought after by identity thieves. According to Informa Research Services, by shopping for mortgage rates online, not only can you ensure you get the best rate available, but you can also help control who obtains your personal information.

A number of websites can get you a certain number of mortgage rate quotes within a short amount of time (e.g. “Get quotes from four different lenders in just five minutes!”). However, upon submitting your personal information, it may be distributed to a number of banks or mortgage companies, none of whom were personally selected to receive your information or contact you about your loan inquiry.

However, with many online mortgage rate comparison tables, you only need to enter very basic screening information (such as property value, credit rating, and desired loan type) to give you an idea of the rates for which you may qualify. If you choose to proceed with the loan approval process, by using online mortgage rate tables to shop for rates, you are in charge of determining who receives your information and who does not. It is up to you whether you want two or twenty lenders to receive your personal information.

By shopping online for the best mortgage rates, you can feel confident that your personal information is safe and that the rate you get is low.

Fed Leaves Rate Unchanged, But Consumers Can Make Personal Finance Changes to Get Ahead

Earlier this week, the Fed announced that they would keep the Fed Funds Rate unchanged and possibly increase the size of programs in place to help ease the economy out of this recession. Even though the Fed has decided to keep the target Federal Funds rate unchanged, Informa Research Services advises that consumers make select adjustments to their personal finances to help improve their financial situation.

Refinancing an existing mortgage loan may be a good idea for some consumers. According to Informa Research Services’ Interest Rate Review, 30 year mortgage rates have remained low with the national average down to 5.09% from 6.40% just six months ago. Refinancing a $250,000 30 year fixed mortgage loan from 6.40% to 5.09% can save a homeowner over $200 a month. This money can be put toward lowering debt or fortifying savings. Homeowners should check online to see what low rates are available in their area!

While deposit rates continue to stay low, promotional rates and offers are a great way for consumers to earn high rates and cash bonuses. Many of these offers involve a high annual percentage yield (APY) for a limited period of time or a cash bonus when certain criteria are met. Checking with your local branch and looking at online rate comparison tables are typically the best ways to locate such promotional offers. Be sure to read all details before opening an account.

Consumers should remember that while they cannot control the economy or government actions, there are often actions consumers can take to ensure their money is protected. Being proactive with their finances and keeping an eye on rates are a couple of ways to ensure they make the most of any economic situation.

This Might Be the Right Time for First-Time Homebuyers

For renters who have been diligently saving money and continually fortifying their savings, right now may be a great time to look into purchasing a home. Government-insured FHA mortgage loans made up 37.8% of purchases in March, putting these loans, commonly used by first-time buyers, at near record levels. A year ago, FHA loans made up 10.1% of all purchase loans. With deflated home values, low rates, and $8,000 in tax credits up for grabs, Informa Research Services offers reasons years of spending conservatively and waiting patiently may pay off very soon

Tax credit to benefit first-time homebuyers
To help first-time homebuyers, many financial institutions are starting to offer interest-free advances of the $8,000 tax credit for use toward the down payment on a home purchase. While it is currently unclear how standard this may become, it looks to be quite popular with many community banks. Consumers should check with their local financial institution to see if they have any similar offers.

Sales slump can give buyers a bump
With median sales prices of homes in most major metropolitan areas declining over the past two years, this is a great time for consumers to take advantage of the slumping economy. According to the National Association of Realtors, the national median sales price of U.S. homes has dipped 12.4% over the past year, and in many areas, the decline in home sales prices has been more pronounced (Source: National Association of REALTORS®).

FHA loans may be best fit for some first time buyers
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) established FHA loans to help Americans own property by providing mortgage insurance on certain loans. This allows lenders to lower the required down payment and provide funding at an attractive rate. These characteristics of FHA home loans can be very beneficial for first-time homebuyers who may not qualify for other loans.

For instance, many FHA loans require only a 3.5% down payment; however, this means the loan amount may be slightly higher than with a regular loan that would require a higher down payment, in some cases up to 20% down. Thus, it is important for homebuyers to find the best rate available on their loan. Consumers should check convenient rate tables online to quickly find the best offered rate.

Surf’s Up: Hang Ten on Your Savings!

Despite the Maverick’s Surf Competition being cancelled due to lack of sizable waves this year, spring and summer are just around the corner, which means favorable beach and surf conditions for the rest of us! As different as they seem, catching a gnarly wave isn’t far removed from catching a righteous interest rate; at its core, it just takes proper preparation and patience.

Prepare for the Ride
In surfing, this may include waxing your board and donning your warmest wetsuit or favorite rash guard. In the sport of savings, this would include looking at your finances for any residual income you can use to start your savings.

Paddle Out
In order to catch a wave, you have to paddle out to where the waves are breaking. To begin to look where to open your savings account at, you will need to research where the most competitive rates are (i.e. at your current financial institution or online). Convenient rate comparison tables are available to make your online research easier.

Wait for Your Wave
Like catching a wave, catching the best interest rate sometimes involves patience. Check national averages and compare them to the offered interest rates. Shop around to ensure you are getting the best deal and the product that fits your needs!

Hang Ten (Percent)
To maximize your savings, making sure you have a line item in your budget for a percentage to put away for savings. Even though each person’s budget will be different, a good general rule of thumb is to save at least 10% of your income if you are employed. One way to guarantee this percentage makes its way into your savings account and not your wallet is to schedule automatic transfers or direct deposits.

By incorporating these tips into your savings habits, you will be able to ride the wave of smart savings to some extra cash!

Recycling vs. Interest Earnings: What Makes More Green Cents?

Is the money you would earn recycling higher than that on a savings account? With the national average annual percentage yield lingering at a dire 0.34%, if you let $10,000 sit in an interest checking account, it would make the same amount as if you recycled 2 cans or bottles a day. Furthermore, if you put that same amount into a money market account earning the national average of 0.68% yearly, you would earn $68 a year, or $0.19 a day (Source: Informa Research Services Interest Rate Review). In other words, you could find 4 recyclables and earn the same amount as your interest would pay you.

But no matter how big the environmental payoff is with recycling, people don’t make their fortune off recycling cans and bottles. If you do your research with online rate tables, and find a savings product that can earn you a competitive interest rate, recycling cans and bottles won’t seem to be so lucrative anymore.

For instance, take the $10,000 from the previous examples and deposit it into a 12-month CD at the national average of 1.68%. This will earn you about $0.46 a day, or just under 10 recyclables. In addition, if you found a 12-month CD to match the national high of 3.46% APY, this would require you to collect 20 cans and bottles daily.

The effectiveness of your savings effort will depend on the amount you have available to invest. For example, even if you managed to find an account that yielded something close to the national high around 6%, if you had only $1,000, you could still make more by recycling just 4 cans daily.

While there’s not set threshold at which interest earnings from a financial institution will always be more profitable than recycling, the best way to figure out which would work best for you is to do the math. There are many interest earning calculators available online that can help you figure out what would work best for you. Regardless of whether or not recycling turns out to be your cash cow, it’s always important to do. Just think of it as bonus interest earnings, both for your account and your karma.