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Friday, December 26, 2008

Yin Yang of Reverse Mortgage Closing Costs

By Mudbrow Vanrock

Some areas of my business are tougher than others. Tackling the question and reasoning behind the costs of getting a reverse mortgage is one of them.

The truth is HUD backed insured mortgages have higher closing costs than forward mortgages. I always make a point of telling this to my customers as soon as I can.

Reverse mortgages, which are insured by HUD, have high closing costs for multiple reasons... It starts with the lender charging costs based on the home's value. Forward mortgages charge costs on the actual loan amount, which is going to be less than value.

Also, the lender charges a fee for originating the loan called (no surprise) an origination fee. this can be 1% higher than forward mortgages. Finally, FHA's mortgage insurance premium is 2% of valuation, up to $417,000.

You don't need to pull out the calculator to get the basic gist... Costs are not so customer relations friendly.

One could argue the origination fee is not really higher than a typical mortgage, because forward mortgages simply build the fee into the rate. That's another subject for another day.

When it comes down to it, the FHA mortgage insurance is the culprit when determining why reverse closing costs are as high as they are. The thing is without this pricey mortgage insurance premium most seniors would be stuck with a second rate reverse mortgage and many with none at all.

To illustrate this point a 70 year old client with a 200 thousand $ mortgage, getting a HUD backed reverse mortgage, is entitled to receive somewhere in the neighborhood of $130,000.

There was once a number of outlets for non-FHA insured reverse mortgages. They exist only as ultra niche scenarios now. The reason is they simply couldn't compete with the FHA reverse. In our example a reverse mortgage customer, using a private product, would receive $100,000 at best.

The HUD backed product is far more potent than the other products because the insurance covers lender losses. With their bets hedged reverse mortgage lenders could simply lend more money.

The insurance covers the lender in the event that one day more is owed on the home than the home is worth. This is the lender's biggest fear.

Yes, people are going to moan and groan about the cost to get a reverse mortgage. They will do so until doomsday, but remember, these costs are the mechanism that solves financial problems for so many seniors.

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3 Tips for Locating a Consumer Credit Counseling Service

By Steve Collins

Selecting a consumer credit counseling service seems like a fairly straightforward task. However, with the field growing by leaps and bounds, it is in your best interest to take some time and follow a few tips to make sure that the consumer credit counseling service you choose is reputable and offers the best services.

One recent and regrettable trend in the industry has been a steady rise in the numbers of consumer complaints lodged with various reporting agencies and watchdog groups that keep an eye on the consumer credit counseling service industry. Sadly, whenever an industry sees real growth year after year, the temptation of easy money invites disreputable players who, provide poor service and even actively work to cheat customers. It is particularly upsetting when the business caters to people who are already facing grave financial problems.

One of the best tips when searching for a credit counseling agency is to pass over any consumer credit counseling service that has not been in business at least 8-10 years. An extensive track record in the consumer credit counseling service industry usually indicates a business that is run professionally and that provides good services for the fees they charge.

A second tip is to verify the professional accreditation of each consumer credit counseling service you're considering. Look for agencies that have been formally accredited by either (or both) the Council on Accreditation (COA) or the International Standards Organization (ISO). Note: always make sure that the consumer credit counseling service you choose has a current accreditation with these organizations! Some will have been accredited in the past, but may be operating now on a expired certificate.

Finally, due diligence requires verifying with the Better Business Bureau and your State's Attorney General's Office for complaints against the agency. You might be astonished by what you uncover with these simple checks. Many disreputable credit counseling agencies remain in business, even after many complaints have been lodged against them. Take the time to check each one out thoroughly before choosing one and paying them for their services.

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3 Tips for Finding a Consumer Credit Counseling Service

By Steve Collins

Selecting a consumer credit counseling service seems like a fairly straightforward task. However, with the field growing by leaps and bounds, it is in your best interest to take some time and follow a few tips to make sure that the consumer credit counseling service you choose is reputable and offers the best services.

One recent and regrettable trend in the industry has been a steady rise in the numbers of consumer complaints lodged with various reporting agencies and watchdog groups that keep an eye on the consumer credit counseling service industry. Sadly, whenever an industry sees real growth year after year, the temptation of easy money invites disreputable players who, provide poor service and even actively work to cheat customers. It is particularly upsetting when the business caters to people who are already facing grave financial problems.

One of the best tips when looking for a credit counseling agency is to pass over any consumer credit counseling service that has not been in business at least 8-10 years. An extensive track record in the consumer credit counseling service industry typically indicates a business that is run professionally and that provides good services for the fees they charge.

A second tip is to verify the professional accreditation of each consumer credit counseling service you're considering. Look for agencies that have been formally accredited by either (or both) the Council on Accreditation (COA) or the International Standards Organization (ISO). Note: always make sure that the consumer credit counseling service you choose has a current accreditation with these organizations! Some will have been accredited in the past, but may be operating now on a expired certificate.

Finally, due diligence requires verifying with the Better Business Bureau and your State's Attorney General's Office for complaints against the agency. You might be astonished by what you uncover with these simple checks. Many disreputable credit counseling agencies remain in business, even after many complaints have been lodged against them. Take the time to check each one out thoroughly before choosing one and paying them for their services.

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Credit Cards: Information For When You Travel

By Michael Benifez

In today's world, it is common for most people to have at least one credit card. It allows for ease and speed, when shopping in a store or online. Merchants will more than likely accept many types of credit cards, allowing you to get what you need.

It does not matter where you happen to be shopping, most stores accept some sort of credit card. It makes for ease of the transactions to be processed. You do not have to worry about not having enough cash, because a credit card will go through as long as you have not breeched your monthly limit. This is a great way for the store to retain customer business and to encourage consumer spending.

You will find that online shopping is made much easier by using a credit card. You can rest assured knowing that it is very easy to use your credit card securely when making an online purchase. You do not have to worry about writing a check or purchasing a money order, your merchandise will ship more quickly when using a credit card.

When traveling throughout the world, a majority of locations will accept credit cards. This can give you peace of mind as a traveler, when you do not have to carry large amounts of cash that can be lost or stolen. It is a good idea when traveling to alert your credit card company, so that they are kept apprised of the apr rates\ and purchases you will be making in another state or country.

You can travel with confidence knowing that the credit card you carry will be accepted all over the world. You are protected and can purchase freely with confidence when you have a credit card. You will be able to make the purchases you need with no problems.

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The Basics Of Stock Option Trading

By Walter Fox

The investing world of stocks and markets can be extremely confusing to some new to the industry. Usually someone will only master the art by means of experience and by having a good mentor. In particular, options trading systems grow more complicated than the standard buying and selling you might be accustomed to.

Keeping in mind that options trading has an added complexity, it is the intent of this article to explain the concept to you. After reading this article, you should be abile to decide if they want to pursue this further.

First of all, stock option trading has two subcategories that enable it to work the way it does. Similar to just buying and selling stock, option tracing has a little more details. Options trading systems consist of call options and put options.

Buying a call option gives you the ability to purchase one hundred stocks at a predetermined price, known as the strike price. However, keep in mind that you do not have to exercise the option if it is not in your favour.

After buying options, you would monitor the price of the stock and hopefully see it rise. Your option would be valid until a specific date. Up until the expiry date you could purchase the stocks at the predetermined strike price.

Next, we will look at put options. Put options give you the right to sell one hundred stocks at a predetermined price. This concept may seem a little backwards since it is the opposite of what you might know about standard trading.

Usually, people will buy put options when they think the price of the stock will go down. This allows them to sell at a predetermined price even if the stock value goes below that price. Put options are a good way to mitigate the risk of your stocks going down in value.

So, consider your options (no pun intended) when you look at the difference between things like futures and options trading. If you know how to do it correctly, options trading systems can be well worth the money and effort put into it.

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Trading And Stock Option

By Walter Fox

Stock Option trades is a privilege sold by one party to another that gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation to buy or sell a stock at an agreed upon price within a certain period or on a specific date. Now a day Stock option Trades is the busiest market for selling and buying the commodities. We can also get more knowledge about the how to learn to trade options.

Stock and option trades offers to learn to trade options in the stock market education and trading systems, expert trade alerts, stock market education on Trading Stock Option. It is one of the fastest growing companies in the world serving individual investors or corporate people to getting the stock alert from the money mangers through pioneering trade.

Offering innovative approaches to the stock market trading through its refined trading system is one of the things that Stock and Option Trades offers. Some of the other things that are offered are Market Educational Newsletter and an Interactive Blog, Trade Alerts, and Trade Updates. These quality services have been used to produce dependable winners. They have also used them to learn how to produce unbelievable trading outcomes.

Many universities and individual experienced trade people use many different types of teaching and learning methods. Many marketing research companies provide courses that teach the stock option trading system. Advanced stock option trading courses can be taught through power options.

A benefit of stock options is making profits in any market. Making a profit when the prices are going up and even when the prices going down. This involves using the options to your advantage in a volatile market, with an up-and-down roller coaster market. The average person is good at rapidly turning a small amount of money into vast rewards, without the worry about the market trends.

There have been many changes to the way that the average investor can get involved with their own stocks. The information that companies provide have become so easy to obtain, this makes the exploring and educating yourself about what stocks to trade has become as easy as signing onto the computer.

The buying and selling of the same type of option contract creates an option spread trading strategy. A call spread is buying and selling calls and a put strategy is going long and short on two contracts. The market rising on this stock is what is needed for this trading position to be profitable going forward.

There are many online option trading companies that are making information available. This information is about the existing market strategies and makes it possible the get all the market information that we feel comfortable with. By being able to get this kind of information online allows us to get a single platform for multiple exchanges and makes it convenient to look at whenever we can all in one place. Vertical, Horizontal, free lines and trend are just come of the studies that are offered.

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Stop Identity Theft Cold by Using LifeLock

By Harvey Warmuth

These days you really need to understand that there is a good possibility that you might be affected by the crime of identity theft. With incidences of identity theft increasing daily, so does the chance that you might become a victim.

By using common sense and some basic precautions, you can do your part to make sure that you identity is never stolen. However, there is only so much you can do on your own, so you might want to look into making use of an identity theft protection solution.

When you use LifeLock, fraud alerts are placed on your credit bureau reports, with the main agencies. You are then contacted prior to any new accounts being opened in your name. By doing so, you have the final say over what accounts are opened using your personal information, thus greatly reducing fraudulent use of your information.

LifeLock also continually checks sources, such as the Internet, for suspicious activity regarding your personal data. Identity thieves often trade personal information to make money. Because they monitor the normal places were such activities take place, LifeLock is proactive when it comes to stolen identity protection.

LifeLock's $1 Million Total Service Guarantee is proof that they completely believe in the service that they are providing. This guarantee will put your life back on track if you happen to become a victim of identity theft while using LifeLock's service. It is comforting to have such a guarantee standing behind you, so you can worry less about identity theft.

LifeLock offers plans for individuals and kids. Currently, they do not have a solution that covers your entire family. There are competitors that have such a plan, so if this is of great importance to you, there are other ways to go.

Identity theft protection is very important and LifeLock is one of the best solutions available. With plans beginning at only $9 monthly, there is no better solution available when it comes to protecting your identity.

Make the smart move and begin using LifeLock to keep from becoming the next victim of identity theft. Since the crime of ID theft is on the rise, you need to do all that you can to protect yourself. Using LifeLock is a great way to protect yourself and offers industry leading protection for pennies a day.

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Make Good Use of a Retirement Planning Calculator

By Michael Geoffrey

Calculating your necessities during retirement can be much easier with a retirement planning calculator. It can help you determine how much money you will need each month of your retirement years. Then you will be able to plan accordingly when preparing for retirement. That means that once you reach retirement age you will not be worrying about whether you have enough money to care for your needs and maintain your standard of living.

It is important to begin planning for your retirement early in your career. A Retirement planning calculator can be utilized and if followed can really help one prepare for the future. No one wants to be forced to stay in the workforce and put off their retirement because of poor planning. A retirement planning calculator can help.

Where can you find this useful tool? You can find them online possibly on your bank's website or other financial institutions. You can also visit your bank or as the human resources representative at your place of employment to see if they can provide one for you.

People can visit the sites and work online to insert information into the retirement planning calculator. These tools then provide facts on different scenarios for a great retirement. The retirement planning calculator is a tool, but the potential retiree must supply relevant information in order to make the best use of this great device.

A Retirement Planning Calculator Provides Figures For The Future

So many things change when you retire. Your job will no longer dictate certain aspects of your life. If you chose your current home because of a job opportunity retirement will afford you the opportunity to relocate to a preferred area. These new choices and changes will create new financial decisions and circumstances.

Also during years in the workforce we generally have to consider our family and their needs. It is important to live in an area where your children can get a good education. However, once the children have grown up and have home and families of their own that is no longer something you need to be concerned about. Again, this offers opportunities for you to expand your horizons a bit and base your decisions what is best for you financially and otherwise.

A retirement planning calculator will help you factor in the cost of health insurance during your retirement. If you are in a financial position to take an early retirement but you have not yet reached the age where you are eligible for Medicare you will need to consider how you will pay for the health insurance you need during the interim.

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Platinum Credit Cards

By Gray Rollins

Credit cards are categorized in three different levels; the Standard credit card, the Gold credit card, and the Platinum credit card. Among the three, Platinum credit card is comprised of more benefits and purchasing power, making it as a status symbol in the society. More cardholders would prefer this Platinum credit card because of the benefits and privileges it extends to the customers who are qualified to avail it. High income and clean credit scores are one of the qualifications.

Among the platinum credit cards in the circulation, the American Express Platinum card is simply the best card of all with worldwide acceptance. It offers the greatest benefits a credit card can serve. If your credit score or credit history is good enough, you can even reach the credit limit of up to $100,000. This card may seem to be high in value, but you will eventually earn in return this value because, as long as you maintain a good credit score, you can earn 1.5 reward points for each of your purchases.

MasterCard offers a platinum credit card. This card is accepted almost every where in the U.S. and abroad. The percentage rate, which is very reasonable, will stay at a reasonable amount as long as the payments are made on time.

The platinum Master Card is for those with higher incomes but if you only pay the minimum on your outstanding balance your interest rates can go up by as much as 35%. When choosing this type of credit card the best way to save the interest and fees is by paying off the balance each month.

The Discover More Platinum credit card is a card with high spending limits and no annual fee. The introductory period offers a low APR and as long as you maintain your good credit, the APR does not increase a lot. The rebates you can earn on practically anything you purchase are enhanced with bonuses at certain places you use your card. With online account access, this is a card that can be quite worthwhile if you maintain your credit rating.

Platinum credit card features wider range of benefits and opportunities than the silver or gold credit cards. It extends additional services such as concierge services, travel services, and purchases on high class establishments. Once you met the qualifications of being a high earning individual with high credit score, you can avail this Platinum credit card and experience its benefits and privileges.

Platinum credit cards can also give service to business establishments. With so many options to do using the card, you can utilize the budget of the business and save part of the capital as you avail the installment plans. By using the platinum credit cards for your business purchases, it can also enjoy the benefits associated in the card. Aside from the rewards, bonuses, and other privileges, you can also generate savings of up to 25% on purchases made from companies affiliated with your credit card companies.

Platinum credit shopping cards are also available in any credit card company. This card is not like the regular credit card that can be used for any type of services; this is just meant for shopping. Purchases made through this card will also be reported and posted in your credit history and payments made will also be reflected to the credit score.

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Mini Dow Index Trading Tip

By Doug West

We are often asked why we prefer the Mini-Dow index to say the S&P or Russell minis. While any index will do, we especially like the mini-Dow.

Because of the faster movement of the Dow versus the S&P 500, the mini-Dow more closely follows it's big board parent.

So if it is just a matter of speed, then the mini-Russell would be even better right? Not exactly. The problem with the Russell is the low volume. This will no doubt change in the future. The mini-Dow had too low a volume for our money just a couple years ago, but that has now changed.

One more reason why we prefer the Mini-Dow is that we like no-cost tools, and it is much easier to find a reliable Dow chart. In fact there are many online that work just fine.

No matter which Index you prefer, we feel it is an advantage to watch the big board chart, and not the mini chart. We also prefer the 5 minute time frame.

Many traders watch both, which is what I did years ago before deciding to focus on the big board. Here's why. I found that I would not move on what the mini chart was telling me unless I confirmed it with the big board. A popular confirmation among traders. It finally hit me that if I would not make a trade without confirming it with the big board, then why did I need the mini chart at all?

When I dropped the mini chart and focused on the big board movement, my trading improved. I have sinced confirmed this strategy with Hundreds of my students and other traders. Just recently, one of my students who moved on to using the mini-chart (a paid service I might add), came back to our style and is now focusing on the no-cost big board chart we use. He also confirmed that his trading improved, and he now sees why we focus on the big board.

The mini chart (even in the 5 min time frame) is like trading with a 1 minute chart. There are too many head fake moves that get you in a trade before it has fully developed. The big board averages some of those moves out for you. It keeps you on the sidelines when you should be. Sure, you might not get in as early on some runs, but in the long term it will save you!

It is hard to catch a move from top to bottom or vice-versa. By watching the big board you can fairly easily get a nice chunk out of the middle (or many chunks with our BIG MONEY Small Trades strategies). So watch the Big Board, and give the Mini Dow index a try. You will like it.

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How Prepaid Credit Cards Work

By Gray Rollins

A very common problem that we all face is to keep our credit intact. Besides your being an adult, you can only be eligible to get credit if you are financially viable and sometimes even that is not enough if you are unable to make the due payments in time. It is therefore not a child's play to maintain a perfect credit in order to avail maximum benefits with that credit.

An important role is played by credit card in handling your credit. Credit cards enable you to build your credit and they are also capable of taking it away. Therefore prepaid credit card have become very popular as they even allow you to change the credit score based on your requirements.

A prepaid credit card is good way for you to control your spending without hurting your credit. These types of credit cards are generally backed by major credit card companies so there is no need to worry about whether they're legitimate or not if you go with the right one. Just be sure that you check out the company before you open up the account. A prepaid credit card will help you build your credit back up. You want to be sure that you make an educated decision on the prepaid card you choose to go with so that you can get the most benefits out of it.

Since the card is prepaid, you are in complete control of what goes on with it. You are the one who adds the money to it so you can control the amount that you spend. If you try to spend more then you have on the card, then the transaction will be denied. This makes it impossible for you to go over the credit limit. There will not be any over the limit fees and your credit will stay safe.

While there are many great advantages to having this type of credit card, there are things that you need to take into consideration before you decide to get one. Even though this is a prepaid card, there are still rules and guidelines that you need to abide by such as standard fees. Some companies will charge you a fee when you put money on the card and when you take money off the card. You may also get a fee assessed if you do not keep a certain amount of money on the card.

For anyone who wants to control their spending and improve their credit, prepaid credit card is just the right choice. Just spend some time in studying all the companies available before deciding one for you. You have to know all the hidden facts too. So do ask them how much do they charge you for every transaction. And how you can improve your overall credit score? Do they also charge for putting money on card and taking it off too?

Be sure that you know what your limits are even though this is a prepaid card. The credit card company may have a limit as to how much you need to keep on the card or there may be a limit as to home much cash you can get off the card each day just like a regular card. Read all the guidelines so you can make an educated decision.

If you are facing bad credit days or you are looking for some credit, then go for a prepaid credit card. This will meet all your requirements and will provide you with a lot of avenues to prosper. You will have an easy life, as it will make you free from all your credit problems.

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Credit Repair Form Letter ??" Good to Use or Bad to Use?

By William Blake

If you are getting bothered by debt collectors or if you have discovered that there is an error on your credit report, then you already feel shaky enough as it is. Perhaps you feel off balance and wonder how these mistakes were made. Under this kind of mind set, you don't really want to try and learn a new skill, such as trying to write a credit repair letter. Templates of these kinds of letters are available online. But should you use them?

Things To Avoid

There are thousands and thousands of form letters out there to choose from. There is also sample letter prepared by the government that can be found on the Federal Trade Commission website. Which is a better choice? How can you decide?

When you are trying to choose a form letter to go by there are a few warning signs to look for of letters you do not want to use. For example, if a letter is threatening you do not want to use it. Words like, "if you ignore this letter I'll sue" or "you better stop harassing me" are phrases to be avoided. If a form letter contains statements like these keep looking. You do not want to send this type of letter to a credit bureau or any of your creditors.

You also want to avoid a credit repair letter template that has sentences containing ENTIRTELY CAPITAL LETTERS LIKE THIS. This is not only considered rude, it's also considered the mark of either an amateur or a scam artist. Letters containing a lot of capitalized words or exclamation points are not taken seriously because they look like they are written by a child.

Overwhelmed by Your Choices?

If the form letters intimidate you and you just can't decide it may be best to write you own letter. If you are going to do this remember that you want to keep the letter short. Be direct and respectful. Briefly explain what the letter is and your purpose in writing it. If you have a friend, an accountant or other financial expert that you can talk to, get some advice about how to write the letter.

When you are writing your credit repair letter, pretend you are a lawyer. You want to write like a lawyer and not like someone who is angry, upset or frightened. Keep calm, just state the facts and don't get personal.

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Credit After Bankruptcy

By Matt Douglas

With a bankruptcy mark on your report your score will be lowered considerably. However there is hope, you can remove this mark and by building some positive credit you can create a good score.

There is a lot of inaccurate information that claims a bankruptcy will be on your report for 10 years. This is not true you can remove it without waiting 10 long years. We suggest that you:

1. Dispute the mark with each bureau.

This is done by sending a dispute letter to the bureau; you can do this yourself or hire a service to do it on your behalf. The bureau will then conduct an investigation into the listing. However bureaus do not check public records when they investigate a dispute, thus the listing will not be verified.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act says that a listing that in not verified must be removed from your report. Additionally this act says that you can dispute any item you feel is inaccurate on your report. It is a common concern about the legality of repairing your credit; you will never have any legal consequence for disputing a listing.

We suggest before you dispute the bankruptcy you double check to make sure any negative accounts are reported as "included in bankruptcy." This is because once the bankruptcy is removed from your report you will dispute each listing on the basis that it says "included in bankruptcy" yet there is no bankruptcy on your report. Additionally it is rumored that removing a bankruptcy is easier after 2 years have expired.

2. Once you have removed the initial mark, you can start disputing each negative item.

This can be done because no where on your credit report does it say you have filed a bankruptcy so how can these negative items be included? Upon an investigation the marks should be erased and this will provide you with a clean report.

3. Build positive credit. This will help the most if you have a new revolving line of credit such as a credit card.

When you make your on time monthly payments you will create a positive payment history on your report. Additionally this will help your utilization ratio, this is how the bureaus decide if you are in over you head financially. It is measured by the amount of available credit you have versus how much debt you have. These are the two biggest factors when your score is calculated.

It might not be the most ethical to dispute items you know are accurate on your report. However is it ethical for lender to charge you 30% interest rate for missing a payment, no matter how long you have been a model customer?

In sum you don't just have to live with bad credit. You can remove the items and you can do it today. You can create a high score for yourself by removing the bad items and building positive marks. This will save you; on interest rates, embarrassment from a low score, and give you the purchasing power you deserve.

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