Paying off your mortgage faster may not be your goal when you first buy a house, but after a few years your financial situation may change. If you have more income than you did when you first bought the house, you might consider paying off your mortgage early.
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It's important for consumers to understand they have important rights if contacted by a debt collector about a delinquent or defaulted account. "Millions of consumers per year may find themselves behind on payments and are contacted by a creditor or debt collector," ACA International CEO Pat Morris said. "While no one ever wants to get a call or letter telling them they owe money, consumers need to know they are protected by very important federal and state laws."
America's economy relies on the repayment of consumer credit such as loans, credit cards, and bills for services rendered to keep costs down and ensure the availability of affordable credit. Federal, state, and local governments in the public sector also rely on the repayment of billions of taxpayer owed dollars in delinquencies including student loans, uncollected court fees, unpaid taxes, library fines, and traffic tickets. The following are helpful tips for U.S. consumers who may be contacted about a rightfully owed debt:
Recently, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and NeighborWorks® America highlighted the ongoing foreclosure rescue scam crisis during a press conference to identify top consumer complaints in New York.
During this National Consumer Protection Week event, representatives offered guidance on avoiding financial scams, including loan modification scams.
The Federal Trade Commission’s Office organized the press event, which highlighted the most egregious frauds plaguing New York residents and featured scam avoidance tips from the Better Business Bureau Serving Metropolitan New York, United States Postal Inspection Service, New York Attorney General’s Office, New York State Department of Financial Services, New York City Department of Consumer Affairs and AARP.
The Loan Modification Scam Alert Campaign educates homeowners about the warning signs that indicate that the person or company offering assistance may be a scam. The top three warning signs of a scam are any person or company that:
• Asks for fees in advance of fully providing services
• Guarantees that they’ll stop a foreclosure or get your loan modified.
• Tells you to stop paying your mortgage company and to pay them instead
While Baby Boomers are generally in better financial shape than their younger counterparts, many of their needs are more urgent due to their relatively short time horizon until retirement. Here are some steps for Baby Boomers to take now:
By Suffolk County Bankruptcy Lawyer, the Law Offices of Allison B. Crain & Associates
Regional Spotlight—New York ranks third in the nation in the number of homeowners delinquent on their mortgages or in foreclosure, the Mortgage Bankers Association recently reported. In 2013, the number of foreclosures reached a three-year high in the state. Experts speculate that the number of high foreclosures is partially due to a still-sluggish local economy. While the unemployment rate is lower than it has been since the end of the Great Recession, many jobs are lower-paying and the unemployment rate is still higher than it was before 2008.
Delays in processing foreclosures
The importance of money is impressed upon most Americans as soon as we’re old enough to buy candy. But the importance of money management is an entirely different story, says self-made millionaire Mike Finley.
“Think about all that we do to prepare children for the world; we fill them up with things we think are most important for doing well as adults and spend tens of thousands of dollars for higher education, but they never take a class on how to manage personal finances,” says Finley, author of “Financial Happine$$,” which discusses his journey to financial literacy and applying the principles that allowed him to retire from the Army a wealthy man. “Our culture celebrates privacy and self determination, which is why, I think, we don’t want to tell students how they should spend their money, but I think young people are hungry for guidance.”
Seventy-six percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, according to a recent CashNetUSA survey. That percentage varies with other studies; however, the percentage never dips below at least 50 percent of Americans who have very little in savings, says Finley, whose voluntary night class on financial literacy at the University of Northern Iowa is always packed beyond capacity. Finley identifies your best allies and the voices that do not have your best interests at heart when it comes to money management:
Foreclosure is a frightening event for struggling homeowners. Should homeowners fail to make their regular mortgage payments, the mortgage lender is able to begin the foreclosure process on the property. However, because New Jersey is a judicial foreclosure state, mortgage lenders must go through state courts for any repossessions. The rules and procedures for this process are listed under The New Jersey Fair Foreclosure Act. The most important of which is the New Jersey Notice of Intent to Foreclose.
After countless hours spent holiday shopping, you finally finished. Now, you're faced with the credit card payments as you roll into the new year. While it may have been difficult to keep your finances - particularly your credit cards - top of mind amid the dash from store to store, those payments aren't going anywhere. Managing your credit can seem like a daunting task—but it doesn't have to be. Even if you've blown your budget and maxed out your cards, you can still take control of your credit and become financially fit.
Here are five things you should do right now to help get your credit back on track and sustain your financial reputation all year long:
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) offers the following tips to protect yourself against becoming a victim of mortgage fraud.
Be an informed consumer! Be wary of anyone who approaches you with an offer to make "easy money" in real estate. Remember: if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Protect yourself and your family from becoming victims of or accomplices to mortgage fraud. This means:
New rules will provide homeowners and consumers shopping for a home mortgage with new rights and greater protection from harmful practices. These rules should eliminate or sharply reduce the runarounds and painful surprises that hurt so many homeowners during and after the financial crisis.
