Do You Qualify for a Loan?

January 19th, 2009

Like most people, you will probably wait until submitting a purchase contract on a home before applying for a mortgage. By then, not only will you know the specific property you want, but also how much you need to borrow. At that point, the lender will require that you fill out a loan application and reveal specific information about your current and past financial situations.

The following checklist is a good place to start for gathering the information you will need:

Original purchase contract (the loan officer will make a copy and return the original to you)

Copy of earnest money (deposit) cancelled check

Employment history details

Last two years’ W-2 forms

Last two years’ income tax returns

Paycheck stubs for past 30 days

Verification of secondary income (for example, investment accounts, bonuses, a part-time job, child support or social security income)

Assets: Account numbers, balances and branch addresses

Checking

Savings

Stocks/bonds (current market values)

Debts: Account numbers and addresses

Auto loan(s)

Boat loan(s)

Student loan(s)

Credit card

Other

Explanation of any credit problems (for example, previously declared bankruptcy, excessive credit card debt)

Divorce or separation documents (if you receive or pay alimony or child support)

Landlord’s name and phone number (if renting)

Disposition of present home (if you already have a home, do you plan to sell it or rent it out?)

Person who will give lender access to lender’s appraiser (name and phone number)

Your check for appraisal, credit report and/or loan application fees (your lender will provide the cost information)

Pre-qualifying vs. Pre-approval If at all possible, it is best to begin the loan approval process before you find the home of your dreams. Otherwise, you may hit a roadblock when you apply for a mortgage and the application is denied. If the seller has other buyers waiting, or needs to sell quickly, you may lose your chance for that particular property.

There are two ways to help avoid this scenario:

1.) Become pre-qualified for a loan: All you need to do is speak to a lender, who-based on asking you some questions about your finances-offers an opinion of the loan amount you are eligible to borrow. The lender doesn’t ask for any supporting paperwork to confirm what you say, and can change his or her mind when you come back to apply for a loan. There’s no charge for pre-qualification.

2.) Become pre-approved for a loan: This process is more complex and sometimes involves a fee. The lender will want information about your employment, income and debts to prove that you are a good risk.

Obviously, a lender’s pre-approval letter carries more weight with a seller than a pre-qualification letter because it is proof of your buying power on paper. Being pre-approved gives you an advantage when you’re among several buyers pursuing a property.

Pay off other loans.

If at all possible, consider paying off any high-interest loans before applying for a mortgage. The more debts-like car loans or credit card balances-that appear on your mortgage application, the smaller the loan amount the lender will be willing to offer.

Don’t pull a Pinocchio!

Never inflate your income or lie about employment dates. Not only is it illegal to falsify documents, it’s also a federal offense! And lenders can usually catch people who lie or greatly exaggerate information on their applications. If you lie, you will most likely get what you were trying to avoid all along, a denial for your loan.

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Debt Consolidation Tips

January 19th, 2009

Here are some useful Debt Consolidation tips. Debt consolidation is a loan used to repay several other loans. Debt consolidation loan takes the group of debts that you owe, and consolidates them into one. In other words it combines several debt obligations into one debt.

If you find you have several monthly payments on a number of different loans you can make things easier for yourself by bringing them all together and taking out one single loan to pay off the total debt. This would mean that you only have one monthly payment. Paying off one large sum of money rather than lots of smaller debts is easier to manage.

You will make one monthly payment where you had been making multiple payments before your Debt Consolidation loan started. You only have to remember to make one repayment each month, rather than trying to juggle and keep track of several different ones.

The aim of a debt consolidation loan is to lower your monthly payments thus taking away some of the pressure on you. You can usually find a debt consolidation loan with a lower interest by securing it on your home. A lower monthly payment can be obtained by increasing the term of the loan.

With a Debt Consolidation Loan you can borrow from £5,000 to £75,000. Debt Consolidation Loans secured on property can be repaid over a period of between 5 years and 25 years .

Debt Consolidation Loan rates are variable, depending on status. Monthly repayments will depend on the amount borrowed and term.

Remember that this Debt Consolidation loan is to pay of the existing debts and that all the regular bills will continue to appear and will need to be constantly cleared too to avoid a similar situation in future. Hence you need to take complete stock of your financial situation whereby you need to have money to pay off monthly bills, mortgage repayment and other unavoidable expenses.

Should you be unable to make your loan repayments, the lender has security collateral in your home, therefore continuous failure to pay back the loan repayments could result in the lender legally taking possession of your house.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

About The Author

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

What is a Student Loan?

August 22nd, 2007

Not everyone is aware of what is a student loan? Student loans, as the name implies, are available to students who require help with living costs while studying.

Student loans are part of the government’s financial support package for degree only students embarking on a course of higher education. For most students, a student loan is their largest single source of income. So unless you have very generous parents, you will need to apply.

Regardless of where you are studying, if you are from England and Wales you will apply to your Local Education Authority using an HE1 form. They will then calculate how much you’re entitled to receiving ? as well as working out whether you need to pay tuition fees.

They will then send you back a form that you need to forward to the Student Loans Company (the government organisation that administers your student loan) who will process your application. This usually takes a month, so make sure you get the paperwork done well in advance of the start of term.

Although it is only a loan, you’ll never be able to borrow money more cheaply, so it’s the most cost-effective way of borrowing money while you’re studying to pay for all those bills. The interest charged is only equal to the rate of inflation.

Unlike support towards tuition fees, you have to repay any loans. The Student Loan is repaid after you graduate (or after you leave the course, should you leave before completing). Repayments are calculated on a sliding scale and are repaid monthly directly to the Student Loan Company.

Should your salary fall below £10,000 payments are suspended until you earn above this figure again whereupon you will recommence payments. Interest on the Student Loan is calculated at a preferential rate which is far lower than any commercial bank loan rates.

Loans have the unfortunate tendency to mount up your debt. If you take the full £4,000 a year for three years that means you’ll be £12,000 in debt by the end of your course ? and if you’re on a longer degree programme, that total could be even higher.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Guide to Unsecured Loans

August 22nd, 2007

        Outlined below is a guide to unsecured loans. It will give you a better understanding of what an unsecured loan is as well as what to consider before applying for one.

As the name implies, an unsecured loan does not require the borrower to put up any security against it. An unsecured loan is a personal loan where the lender has no claim on a homeowner’s property should they fail to repay. Instead, the lender is relying solely on the ability of a borrower to meet their loan borrowing repayments.

People who opt for unsecured loans are usually those who aren’t in a position to offer collateral or those with adverse credit records, county court judgments, mortgage arrears or debt issues.

By their very nature, unsecured loans involve the lender taking more risk ? for which the interest rate is increased. However, while a bad credit history will not necessarily bar you from an unsecured loan the interest rates will reflect the lender’s increased risk.

The risk will be reflected, too, in the lender’s tolerance of late payments. Without any collateral, the lender will be quicker to take legal action to recover missed instalments ? and in such cases, the lender will usually demand repayment of the full amount borrowed plus interest plus legal costs incurred. In such cases, court proceedings could lead to your home being sold to raise the money.

The amount you are able to borrow can start from as little as £500 and go up to £25,000. Because you not securing the money you are borrowing, lenders tend to limit the value of unsecured loans to £25,000. The repayment period will range from anywhere between six months and ten years.

Most lenders give you the option of paying the loan back within between six months and ten years. It’s your decision how much or how little time you need to pay back the loan in full but you should try not to stretch yourself too much as the last thing you want is to default on repayments.

Despite this, try to pay back enough each month so that the loan doesn’t drag on for years and years, as this will mean you are paying back more interest, and therefore the loan will ultimately cost you more. You need to find a balance between what you can afford each month.

An advantage of taking out an unsecured loan is that your application can be processed a lot quicker as there is no collateral to be valued.

A disadvantage is that it is harder to get approval for an unsecured loan. With no security on offer the lender must be more cautious.

An unsecured loan can be used for almost anything - a relaxing holiday, a new car, a wedding, debt consolidation or home improvements. Whatever you need it for there are a few things to consider before applying for an unsecured loan.

With an unsecured loan, you’re not borrowing against the value of your house. You will usually be offered an interest rate based on your circumstances and the amount you want to borrow. This means that the ‘typical’ interest advertised might not be the rate you are offered - your rate will depend on your credit rating.

You should usually borrow as little as possible, and draw up a budget plan to determine how much you need. An unsecured loan might not offer a particularly high amount, so if you’re a homeowner and need to borrow more, you could look into secured loans. It might be tempting to borrow more than you need, but don’t forget you have to pay it back!

Your unsecured loan term should be as short as possible. Use your budget plan to work out how much you can afford in monthly repayments and base your loan term on this.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Benefits of a Personal Secured Loan

August 22nd, 2007

A Personal secured loan can offer many benefits, some of which are listed below:

Personal secured loans are loans that are offered to individuals rather than businesses.

Rates for a personal secured loan will be way lower than for other loan products so it makes good financial sense for many of us over the term of our borrowings. It can, in other words, significantly cut our costs.

Whenever we take out a secured loan we give a guarantee to the lender we choose that we are willing to repay our debt. This isn’t just a question of signing an agreement and promising to do our best. We put our personal property behind our agreement. So, if we stop making repayments on our secured loan, the lender can simply take its money from our secured property. This, as you might imagine, makes us much less of a risk - so that’s why we get such good interest rates!

What you have to ask yourself is how likely this is to happen to you. Chances are it won’t. But, you have a couple of points to consider before taking out these types of personal loans to make sure you protect yourself and your property.

Firstly, you should never borrow so much cash that your repayments in themselves are beyond your personal income. Do this and, to be honest, you’re asking for trouble from the word go. If you’re unsure at how your finances will cope with the loan you need then talk to a secured personal loans specialist to get some advice.

Secondly, you should think about taking out some kind of payment protection insurance policy for your secured loan. Things can happen that stop us making repayments and managing our finances - with this sort of plan behind you you’ll have no problems. It will, under certain circumstances, simply take over your repayments for you for a while.

  • A Personal secured loan is far easier to obtain than unsecured loans. The added security that this type of loan gives the lender means that even those with a less than perfect credit history can get hold of a Personal secured loan with relative ease.
  • A Personal secured loan is often offered with more favourable terms than other types of loans. With Personal secured loans it is also far more likely that you will be able to borrow a larger amount of money and pay it back over a longer period of time.
  • A Personal secured loan can help you to free up equity that would otherwise remain dormant in your property, letting you make use of capital that would otherwise remain unobtainable.
  • The interest rates on Personal secured loans are often considerably lower than those offered on unsecured loans.
  • A Personal secured loan will enable you to get your hands on money that would otherwise take a long time to save up, allowing you the freedom to spend it on whatever you want.
  • A Personal secured loan can be used for any purpose such as; paying off debts, making home improvements, buying a new car, luxury holiday or anything you choose!

There are two main things you should look out for with personal secured loans. First of all you should always deal with a reputable lender that makes the whole loans process as easy as possible for you.

Then you need to take a long and hard look at costs. A loan is, at the end of the day, just a loan. You borrow a certain amount and then pay back more to make it worthwhile to the lender to give you the cash in the first place. The lower your interest rate, therefore, the less ‘extra’ cash you’ll pay back.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Benefits of a Home Improvement Loan

August 22nd, 2007

        Some of the many benefits of a Home Improvement Loan are outlined below. Home Improvement Loans are ideal if you need more space but cannot afford to move house. Lofts can be converted and extensions built. As the number of mortgage applications declines Home Improvement Loans are an increasingly popular option for home owners and growing families.

A Home Improvement Loan is great if you want to raise a large amount; are having problems getting an unsecured loan; or have a bad credit history ? you may be able to get a Home Improvement Loan even when you have been turned down for an unsecured loan.

Moving property is expensive ? solicitors, estate agents, stamp duty, new soft furnishings ? the list seems to go on and on. And most of this is money down the drain. Why move home when you can get a Home Improvement Loan and save money? A Home improvement Loan could be the easiest and cheapest way to make improvements to your home.

With a Home Improvement Loan you can borrow from £5,000 to £75,000 with low monthly repayments. The loan can be repaid over any term between 5 and 25 years, depending on your available income and the amount of equity in the property that is to provide the security for the loan.

With competitive rates and a quick decision a home improvement loan could well be just what you need to enable you to finance your dream improvements.

Some obvious benefits of a Home Improvement Loan are:

An easy and manageable route to generating extra cash. With a remortgage you have the same expenses you do when taking on a mortgage, surveys, valuation, mortgage indemnity and solicitors fees to pay. With a Home Improvement Loan you have none of this, making it easier to arrange.

You can use the cash for any purpose - for example, debt consolidation, home improvements, buying a car or going on holiday.

Using a Home Improvement Loan for Debt Consolidation means that with one single payment each month, you have more control over your monthly budget.

Borrow from £5,000 to £75,000

Repayment period can be anything from 5 - 25 years

Protected payment plans can provide extra peace of mind

You can add value to your property

Save on all moving costs

Get the home of your dreams without moving house

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Benefits of a Home Owner Loan

August 22nd, 2007

There are many benefits for choosing a Home Owner Loan, some of which are listed below:

If you are a homeowner, you have a better chance of borrowing a homeowner loan and securing the amount against your home .A secured loan is so called because you put up your home as collateral or security for the lender. Since this is a form of security for the lender, you as the borrower benefit too by having lower interest rates to deal with.

A home owner loan can be a good alternative for people not wishing to sell their home to get money from it. You can borrow money relating to the equity you have in your home.

A Home Owner Loan can unlock your capital to use today.

The loan can be used for any purpose, and is available to anyone who owns their home.

Home loans can be used for any purpose such as:

Home improvements

New car

Luxury holiday

Pay of store card

Pay off credit card debt

Debt consolidation

Another good reason for a taking a home owner loan would be if you had a poor credit history.

Many lenders look more favourably on people who are home owners as this demonstrates a commitment to repay a large amount of money over a long period.

A Home Owner Loan offers you low cost borrowing with low monthly repayments.

With a Home Owner Loan you can borrow from £5,000 to £75,000 with repayment terms of between 5 and 25 years.

A Home Owner Loan is great if you want to raise a large amount; are having problems getting an unsecured loan; or have a poor credit history ? you may be able to get a Home Owner Loan even when you have been turned down for an unsecured loan.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Benefits of a Business Loan

August 22nd, 2007

There are many benefits in choosing a business loan, some of which are listed below:

What’s the fastest way of raising money for your business idea? A business loan, but what kind of loan should you get and who should you get your loan from. You could ask family and friends for a loan but they might not be as convinced about your winning idea as you are.

Where you go for finance depends on how much you need to raise and how you set up your business. Sole traders and partners are liable for all the debts in a business venture, whereas with limited companies, the directors are liable only for the amount of debt they personally hold in the company.

A business loan is designed for a wide range of UK small, medium and start-up business needs including the purchase, refinance, expansion of a business, development loans or any type of commercial investment. Finance is the lifeblood of a business. Without it you cannot grow.

Business loans are one possible source for business cash. You should be sure that the specific need for the money is applicable and that the loan is suitably structured.

Business loans have a variety of advantages over other forms of finance:

Flexibility: A business loan allows you to preserve your cash and working capital.

Retention of Ownership: You retain the current ownership of your company instead of raising funds by selling an interest in your company to an investor.

Cash Flow Management: Business loans can provide you access to capital with minimal up-front payments and the flexibility to design a loan repayment schedule suitable to your finances.

Budgeting: Business loan schedules are fixed at outset, which means cash management is more predictable.

Tax Advantage: Interest payments on your loan are tax deductible.

Business loans are generally available from £50,000 to £1,000,000 at highly competitive interest rates from leading commercial loan lenders.

Business Loans can offer up to 79% LTV (Loan to Valuation) with variable rates, depending on status and length of term.

Business loans are available for Self-Declaration with CCJ’s & Mortgage Arrears

A business loan can be secured by all types of business property, commercial and residential properties.

Business loans are normally offered on Freehold and long Leasehold.

A Business Loan can be used for:

Acquisition, expansion or renovation of premises

Taking an interest in a professional partnership or business

Injection of capital into a business

Development finance

Debt consolidation

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Benefits of a Bridging Loan

August 22nd, 2007

A bridging loan has many benefits, some of which are listed below.

A bridging loan can be used to cover the financial gap when buying one property before the existing one is sold. They are looked on as short term lending to cover a specific short term need.

A bridging loan as the name implies is a loan used to “bridge” the financial gap between monies required for your new property completion prior to your existing property having been sold.

Bridging loans are short term loans arranged when you need to purchase a house but are unable to arrange the mortgage for some reason, such as there is a delay in selling your existing property.

A bridging loan can also be used to raise capital pending the sale of a property.

Bridging loans can be arranged for any sum between ?25000 to a few million pounds and can be borrowed for periods from a week to up to six months

Because of the nature of bridging loans they can usually be arranged at short notice and within a few days.

A bridging loan is similar to a mortgage where the amount borrowed is secured on your home but the advantage of a mortgage is that it attracts a much lower interest rate. While bridging loans are convenient the interest rates can be very high.

When considering a bridging loan please remember that you may be paying not only for the bridging loan but also for the mortgage on your existing property.

Bridging loans are widely available and can usually be arranged by your existing mortgage provider.

Although bridging loans are convenient, you need to consider the pitfalls too, like the high interest rates.

You may freely reprint this article provided the author’s biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

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August 12th, 2007

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