Money and finance

What can ruin your credit score

There is a logic to the way the lenders choose who can borrow for a mortgage. Since 2014, mortgage loans have had standard guidelines that require that any mortgage borrower be able to prove that they can repay their loan. Lenders document income, but also debt. How you have been handling debt will affect your

By |2024-02-11T10:16:11-05:00February 14th, 2024|Categories: buying process, Money and finance, Mortgage matters|Tags: , , , , |

Taking Care of Your Credit Rating

Don’t take your good credit rating for granted. Good-to-excellent credit takes attention. It takes knowledge. It takes perseverance. It takes action. Monitoring and actively protecting one’s credit should be a regular part of their everyday life. One cannot assume that their credit is fine. They need to proactively protect and constantly observe and monitor their

By |2024-02-06T20:27:40-05:00February 7th, 2024|Categories: Money and finance|Tags: , , , |

Why the transfer fee is a net gain for Massachusetts

The Boston Globe article about the transfer fee, last week, was pretty confusing. I think the R--®s like it that way. I wrote about similar transfer fee proposals just three weeks ago. Since then, I gave testimony to a committee at the State House in support of a transfer fee. Last week, a transfer fee

By |2023-10-24T12:37:10-04:00October 25th, 2023|Categories: affordable housing, Money and finance|Tags: , , |

Tenants are increasingly rent burdened

Corporations who manage large portfolios of rental property want us to believe that supply and demand will keep the rental market affordable. Even in an affluent state, like Massachusetts, this is not true. Rents rise far faster than income. Renters choose between spending more than a third of their income or moving. “The reality is

By |2022-11-06T09:52:42-05:00November 9th, 2022|Categories: Money and finance|Tags: , , , , , |

Property Tax, Interest Rates, and Your Monthly Payment

What can cause your pre-approved mortgage to fail, last minute, in 2022? Property tax and interest rates. If you are borrowing the full amount of your pre-approved mortgage, you need to check the total monthly cost of a property before you make an offer. Your lender pre-approved you based on a typical property tax and

By |2022-06-07T09:37:11-04:00June 8th, 2022|Categories: Money and finance, Mortgage matters|Tags: , , , , |

Do you know what it will cost you to borrow at a higher interest rate?

As if this market isn’t hard enough on buyers, now you are getting hard-sell tactics about the rising interest rates. Buyers who are getting a mortgage to purchase need to pay attention to the interest rate that they are pre-approved at. Their buying power may go down, as interest rates rise. All mortgages are calculated

By |2022-05-01T10:09:37-04:00May 4th, 2022|Categories: Money and finance|Tags: , , |

Two Incomes and Your Mortgage: Covid Edition

Women who leave the workforce From March to June 2020, children were going to school via Zoom in most towns and cities in Massachusetts. Someone had to supervise children doing remote learning. Someone needed to be home, if the children were home. That someone was their mother, more often than not. Women who worked essential

By |2022-01-03T19:30:34-05:00January 5th, 2022|Categories: Happy Home Ownership, Money and finance|Tags: , , , , , , |

Are you Making a Mistake by Refinancing?

Given the historic lows for interest rates, it’s a good time for homeowners to review their mortgage information.  It’s easy to get excited by low rates, but everyone should evaluate a new loan based on their current financial situation as well as their long-term goals. Do the math to make a better decision on refinancing

By |2024-02-07T13:37:48-05:00October 21st, 2020|Categories: Money and finance, Mortgage matters|Tags: , , , , , |

Credit scores

If you are thinking of buying a house or condo, your credit score matters. A low score can Cause you to be unable to get a conventional mortgage. Drive up the price of your mortgage, because you are a higher-risk borrower. Sudden changes in your credit score, after you apply, can cause your mortgage to