Mortgage : Home Loans : Refinance : Home Equity Loans

By Stephen Snyder

Staying married is tough. That’s one of the reasons so many people give up.

But staying together after a bankruptcy is really tough. Not only do you have your personal issues to work through, but you’re constantly getting conflicting financial advice that can put you deeper in the hole.

My wife and I made a promise early on in our bankruptcy that the “D” word wasn’t allowed to be uttered in our home.

It must have helped.

Although neither of us has been divorced, we were headed in that direction on a few occasions. There was the time in 1995 that Michele stayed in a hotel overnight without telling me where she was. That was a real wake-up call.

But what would I have done if divorce had ever been an option?

I would have started by reading Mistake 24 on page 47 in Do You Make These 38 Mistakes with Your Credit? Here’s what it says:

“A divorce decree does not change the fact that you are a co-borrower on a loan. What typically happens is a couple divides their debt with no regard for who is legally responsible for the debt. Each person is still responsible regardless of what the judge says.

You should also contact your lenders to determine what other options you have.”

As I said, a divorce decree doesn’t change the fact that you are responsible for any credit held jointly.

When you open joint accounts you and your partner sign a legally bi!
nding ag
reement holding both of you responsible for the account. The divorce decree is another binding agreement between two people who consent to divorce. It does not change previous agreements between you and other creditors.

It doesn’t matter to the creditor who actually made the charges (if it’s a credit card). It doesn’t matter who agreed to pay in the divorce decree. And it certainly doesn’t matter to the creditor that you’re getting a divorce. The creditor will try to collect from both borrowers.

A word to the wise, don’t sign a divorce petition until everything with your jointly held credit is worked out. Promises to fulfill at a later time or by a certain date can be overlooked and expensive to enforce.

What I mean by “worked out” is that all credit held jointly is closed, refinanced into individual names, or paid off to eliminate the debt.

“Worked out” does not mean that your ex-spouse has signed a promissory note or some other legal document promising to pay off debt.

An irresponsible or vengeful ex-spouse can wreak havoc on your credit rating for years after a divorce. It’s legal harassment in its truest form.

Bottom line: the best advice I can give you is…

…do not sign a divorce decree until all credit matters are resolved. Signing the divorce decree should be your trump card and a very good reason to make things happen your way.

What I’ve gleaned from divorced couples I’ve talked with is that they believe signing papers at the lawyer’s office resolves everything. It doesn’t.

You need to truly resolve matters, which, as I wrote above, means get your name removed from everything jointly held before you sign the divorce papers. That could mean refinancing, creating individual accounts, paying off debt, closing accounts, or whatever it takes.

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The last thing you need are late payments appearing on your credit reports after your bankruptcy is discharged. A series of recent late payments can cripple your chances of getting l!
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est rates after bankruptcy and keep the dark cloud of bankruptcy hanging over your head well after it should.

If you plan ahead and pay close attention to credit accounts held jointly, you can ensure that your credit reports and FICO credit scores won’t get damaged any worse. This is something that your divorce attorney will never tell you about. It’s not their area of expertise. They simply don’t know what kind of impact a divorce will have on your credit reports and credit scores. And frankly, they don’t usually care.

When you’re married, it’s often easier to just make all accounts joint accounts. Many of us do it without even thinking. However, if you can both agree to have separate accounts in addition to your joint accounts, it can potentially save months and years of frustration for both of you if you do get divorced–or, for that matter, if there’s an unexpected death, disability or layoff.

Another situation where things can get sticky is when your ex-spouse files bankruptcy and you don’t. The creditors of jointly held accounts that your spouse filed bankruptcy on will come knocking on your door for payment…and eventually may push you into filing bankruptcy (if you haven’t already) regardless if the debts that the spouse filed on were in the divorce decree.

Be aware that your spouse’s negative narratives may appear on your credit reports and damage your credit. I talk about negative narratives on page 55 of Do You Make These 38 Mistakes With Your Credit?

Here are some credit tips to help you through a divorce:

Close joint accounts before you separate or divorce to prevent your former spouse from running up charges and leaving you responsible for the balance. Closing accounts is the lesser of the two evils in this situation. Closing accounts before you separate will make it easier since your spouse is more likely to cooperate with you. Some financial institutions will require the primary account holder to close the account. If that’s not you, then you!
‘re goin
g to need the help of your soon to be ex-spouse.

Establish separate accounts, such as credit cards, gas cards and retail cards. This ensures that both parties are individually responsible for their own accounts, which is valuable in a divorce. The crown jewel out of this is you won’t have to worry about re-establishing credit on your own…because you will already have it.

Arrange new individual lines of credit with the same lenders to replace each joint account and transfer agreed upon balances to those new accounts. You want to avoid paying any new charges your ex-spouse makes.

Some creditors will require you to pay off the account before they put it in an individual name. If you cannot pay off the balance, at least try to close the account to prevent any new charges

.

It may be wise to have an attorney involved if creditors refuse to cooperate with you. The first thing your attorney will need is a copy of the agreement you signed with the creditor. There are several legal service plans that are cost-effective for this sort of thing.

Try settling the account with the creditor directly by paying a smaller amount than what is owed. The threat of bankruptcy could help your plea. Just be sure you get promises in writing from the creditor. Also make sure they will not report or try to collect on the deficiency balance.

Pay the jointly held bills yourself–then go after your spouse for the money owed.

Of course, you should also find a good and trustworthy lawyer (good luck!) to help you. Obviously, I’m not a lawyer. And none of what I just wrote should be misconstrued as legal advice. My focus here your credit rating.

Stephen Snyder is the founder of the After Bankruptcy Foundation a non-profit organization that provides free bankruptcy information and recovery steps. Stephen also writes a free weekly newsletter on bankruptcy recovery.

Stephen Snyder is the founder of the After Bankruptcy Foundation a non-profit organization that provides free bankruptcy information and recovery steps.

http://www.AfterBankruptcy.org

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For additional Mortgage Refinancing information
and resources visit Mortgage Refinancing.
(http://www.refinance-refinance.net)
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By Michael Strauss

There’s no doubt you’ll have heard plenty about debt consolidation loans - our TV screens are full of adverts promising freedom from financial worry, and the internet is positively flooded with solicitations to lock in a low rate with a refinancing package.

If you’re having difficulties keeping up with your bills and credit repayments, or even facing the prospect of recovery action on overdue installments, then the idea of debt consolidation can be very seductive. By combining all your current debts into one single loan, the theory goes, you’ll be benefitting from both a reduction in your monthly repayment amount and a lifting of the stress caused by constantly having to juggle your finances.

But is debt consolidation really as simple as all that? Of course there are benefits to restructuring your financial life in this way, and the adverts aren’t shy of pointing out the positive side, but before embarking on this course of action there are a few negative aspects you’d be well advised to consider. Only then can you make a fully informed decision on whether debt consolidation is right for you.

Firstly, in order to secure a lower monthly repayment you either have to get credit at a lower interest rate, or spread your payments over a longer period. Most consolidation packages rely on a combination of both, but it’s almost certain that the deal will involve a lengthy loan term. This means that you’ll be paying interest on your debt for longer, and the total amount of interest you’ll be charged will in the long run be higher. You may feel that this is a price worth paying for reducing your monthly bills to a more manageable level, and you may indeed feel you have little other choice, but it’s a point to bear in mind.

Another potential problem with consolidation is that, in a sense, you’re giving yourself a fresh start financially. You’re wiping out all those worrying debts and getting your finances back under control. This is of course a good thing - but you’ll be left with all your old credit card accounts with a zero balance, and all the temptations to spend that that may provide. If you’re not careful, you could end up in an even worse situation - having to pay back a large loan while running up new debts at the same time.

This pitfall can of course be avoided by cancelling your card accounts at the same time as you clear the balances, and it is strongly advisable that you do this.

The final problem to bear in mind is that by consolidating you will probably be shifting unsecured debt into a secured loan using your home as collateral. This means that if, in the future, you fall behind with your payments, you could risk losing your home as your creditor calls in the debt through foreclosure. This is a serious drawback, and if most of your current debt is unsecured then you might wish to explore every other possibility before tying it up to your home.

So, is debt consolidation an altogether bad option for sorting out your finances? Not at all. It can be a very effective strategy for dealing with problem debts, but it shouldn’t be entered into blindly, no matter how attractive the advertisements may appear.

About the author: Michael has been writing on personal finance matters for several years, and is currently working for LoanTime.co.uk where you can compare personal loans, secured loans and bad credit loans.

The author has been writing on financial topics for several years and is currently a contributor to www.cardsense.co.uk, which reviews and compares UK credit cards.

http://www.cardsense.co.uk/

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For additional Mortgage Refinancing information
and resources visit Mortgage Refinancing.
(http://www.refinance-refinance.net)
===========================================

By simon markham

Most people are aware of just how valuable Life Insurance can be, particularly when it come to protecting dependents against the financial consequences of the death of a vital family breadwinner.

When looking for plans to provide the required cover, most people tend to focus solely on the monthly cost which may not provide a true indication of the best value over the required term.

Are Guaranteed or Reviewable Premiums Better?

For example term life insurance plans usually offer two types of premium, guaranteed and reviewable. As the name implies guaranteed premiums are just that. The premium is fixed at outset and cannot subsequently be changed by the insurer in the light of poor claims experiences. Reviewable premiums however are subject to a periodic review and therefore the premiums could be increased by the insurer if this class of insurance was subject to more claims than anticipated.

Although guaranteed premium plans tend to cost slightly more initially than reviewable plans they are worth considering particularly for terms in excess of 10 years.

A Lump Sum or Income Policy?

Perhaps the best way to obtain maximum value is to select the right type of plan to match the need. For example most people automatically select lump sum cover when setting up a life insurance policy for family protection. This type of plan is fine if you need to provide lump sums to pay off debts such as mortgages and loans etc. Family protection however is more about providing an income to replace that lost as a result of the death of the life assured. Having a lump sum is fine but where do you invest the lump sum to generate the required income? Will the income received be subject to tax and will the lump sum be sufficient to generate the required income for the required term?

A far better solution is to select a plan which is designed to provide an income to the end of the required term. This type of plan is known as Family Income Benefit (FIB) and has several advantages over lump sum term life assurance. First of all it’s usually quite a bit cheaper than a comparative lump sum plan designed to provide the same income. This is because the risk to the insurer decreases over the term unlike level term insurance. For example, a 20 year level term plan with a sum assured of £100,000 will cost the insurer £100,000 if a valid claim is made up to the end of the 20 year term.

By contrast a Family Income Benefit policy providing an income of £10,000 per annum over a 20 year term could potentially cost the insurer £200,000 if a claim was made shortly after inception. In practice however this is unlikely and therefore the insurers risk will decrease with each claim free year throughout the term. So for example if a valid claim was made during year 10 the insurer would pay the claim to the end of the term i.e. for the next 10 years.

Low Cost and Currently Tax-Free

Another valuable feature of Family Income Benefit plans is that in the event of a claim, the income can be provided on an increasing basis. This feature must be selected at outset and most insurers will usually offer a range of increase options from flat rate percentage increases or links to various indices such as Retail Prices or Average Earnings.

Family Income Benefit provides an almost perfect solution to the problem of providing an income for dependents on the premature death of a family breadwinner not only because it is perhaps the cheapest form of family protection life insurance but also because the income benefit is currently totally tax-free. It therefore totally eliminates the need to search for suitable investment vehicles to provide the required income.

To Summarise:-

•Where possible choose guaranteed premiums
•If you require income, consider Family Income Benefit

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For additional Mortgage Refinancing information
and resources visit Mortgage Refinancing.
(http://www.refinance-refinance.net)
===========================================

By Nancy Smith

A lot of people are quite compulsive where shopping is concerned. In order to maintain a balance between what we earn and can spend, we need to make a budget before buying. We buy things out of impulse not out of necessity, and that is the most common mistake a lot of us make when shopping. More so during the holidays. People need to learn how to control overusing their credit cards and the unnecessary little gifts for everybody.
Problems start when people do not pay bills on time, and even worse, when they do not have enough money to do it. This why you get into debt. And getting out of debt is not as easy as getting in. To get out of it, you will need the help of professional counselors.

Here we have The Consumer Literacy Consortium’s list of consumers’ most common mistakes. The purpose of this list is to educate consumers on their most common buying mistakes in order to develop a healthy purchase habit.

Consumer’s Most Common Mistakes
- Using too many credit cards
- Not having the minimum balance needed in order to avoid checking fees
- Buying new appliances without really needing them
- Never comparing product prices
- Never comparing prices on supermarket shelves
- Not having a life insurance policy for no less than 15 years
- Taking a 30-year mortgage and not a 15-year due to the low monthly payments
- Paying your home improvements before finishing them
- Leasing cars instead of buying them
- Letting their insurance agent make decisions on which deal to take
- Not knowing they can afford

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Disregard of all the measures taken. Nowadays there are thousands of people swamped with debts, and some are on the brink of becoming debtors. People need to know that there are lots of ways of receiving professional help in order to become debt free again.

Debt Settlement is one of the most reliable and fastest ways of achieving financial balance, and becoming once again debt free. Debt is not the problem, the problem lies in our spending habits and the way we look at money.

People only need to learn how to purchase in order to stay away from debt. Avoid making the mistakes that are mentioned on the list above and you will notice the difference in your financial balance.

Check these links to learn more:

http://www.bill-consolidation-and-debt-negotiation.com/consumer-credit-counseling/NJ-New-Jersey/Consumer-Credit-Counseling-NJ-New-Jersey.shtml
http://www.bill-consolidation-and-debt-negotiation.com/consumer-credit-counseling/NY-New-York/Consumer-Credit-Counseling-NY-New-York.shtml

—
Nancy Smith is a contributing writer to http://www.bill-consolidation-and-debt-negotiation.com and is currently writing some special articles to guide business on how to manage debt and avoid bankruptcy.
For Free Information on Spending Habits and Debt Help Consultation, call toll-free 1-877-850-3328

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For additional Mortgage Refinancing information
and resources visit Mortgage Refinancing.
(http://www.refinance-refinance.net)
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By Dale Rogers

The financing vehicles have been in place for several years now for a borrower using some creativity with a seller to make 100% financing possible. However, the real estate market had been so hot in many areas in the U.S. the sellers did not have to even entertain anything resembling creative financing. With a softening market, creative financing is back as a helpful tool to allow sellers to unload their properties as long as an over supply of inventory exists.

Harold and Laura had been renting a home in a suburban area for three years. They had been digging out from under a heavy debt load of medical collections. Laura was leaving work one day and a truck had crossed the line and pinned her in her small car for a half an hour until the jaws-of-life was used to extract her out from her crushed vehicle. With a broken hip, ankle, eye socket and fibula a long recovery ensured and Laura was not able to work for two years. The other driver was at fault, but any financial recovery was years down the road as the other insurance company was playing hardball. In the meantime, with constant harassment for the out standing medical bills and the weight of credit card and installment debt that existed prior to the accident was just overwhelming. Harold had been working two jobs just to meet the basic family needs. Family help was limited and really wasn’t expected. Laura’s therapy had been going on for a year now and real progress was being made. Her employer had kept her job open as a customer service representative ironically at a credit card service center. The benefits were limited and very little of the medical bills and rehab had been covered. Harold and Laura had been seeking some financial advice from a local bankruptcy attorney. It was decided that with their level of income and huge medical bills that filing a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy action might be the best thing to do for mental sanity and cash flow. A Chapter 13-payback plan would be crippling for many years to come. As the bankruptcy attorney explained to Harold and Laura that in his practice example after example comes before him where just bad things happen to good people and that there was no shame in taking care of their financial affairs in this manner. The rationalization process followed.

Two months before filing the bankruptcy, the insurance company was offering a small settlement based on an allegation that Laura may have temporarily been distracted by talking on her cell phone and thus reduced her reaction time. Rather than put up a long protracted fight Harold and Laura, for better or worse settled for an amount that just covered her payoff on her totaled car. They were relieved of that installment. Their attorney for the accident urged them not to settle, but with Laura’s eminent recovery and the stress of the whole ordeal, they grabbed what they could at the time.

Harold and Laura received their notice of the Final Discharge of their Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. All the collections for medical bills, non-secured credit cards and one major medical bill that had resulted in a judgement being awarded for the first responding hospital had all been wiped out. They excluded their family car from the Bankruptcy matrix (which names all the debtors), which still had a $6,850 balance with a $295/month payment remaining. They also excluded a credit card that they had for years and had a low balance and a low monthly payment. This allowed Harold and Laura to maintain two trade lines and their on time rental payment of some $1,250/month outside the Bankruptcy action. Laura had now been back to work at her old job for two weeks. She was fortunate to take advantage of a car pool with a fellow worker who lived a half mile away.

It was like the world had been lifted off their shoulders. Now Harold and Laura had their rent, one car payment and a small credit card and their home utilities. The cell phone service had gone by the way side many months before.

(Article continues below)

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Even through the most brutal times and the lowest of the low, Harold and Laura, as their custom, visited Open Houses after church every Sunday. It was always in the neighborhood and never more than two home visitations. It was Harold and Laura’s way to cope with the dark cloud that had beset them. During this process, they became familiar with a local Realtor who took a very personal interest in their situation. The Realtor, named Betty, knew they were not ready to do anything until some things had been handled. At the most recent Open House visit, Harold and Laura shared that they had put their financial challenges behind them. Laura was feeling great and off all her pain medication. Betty raised the prospect and questioned them if she could figure out a way to get them into a home at a little more than they were paying in rent with little or no money out of pocket, would they have an interest at least in hearing more about it. Harold raised his hands with palms up and a shrug of the shoulders, and shared that it wouldn’t hurt to listen to some possibilities. The accident had caused a detour in the quest to own a home, but it had not killed their dream.

Betty set up a meeting with the Realtor’s in-house mortgage broker to discuss their options. A joint credit report was pulled and as Harold at the time made the most money his middle score was utilized to qualify for a mortgage. His middle credit score was right at 500. The mortgage broker went on to explain that they would qualify for an 85% Loan To Value mortgage. Due to their lack of a cash down payment, it was added, that the only way that they could use this loan option would be with a seller held second of 15% loan to value with the seller also paying up to 6% of the contract selling price. This would then give them a 100% Combined Loan To Value (CLTV). The loan would need to be a Fully Documented loan with verification for employment and income. The mortgage broker felt like he could present Laura’s employment gap due to the accident and use her current income for qualifying purposes. Totaling up the income versus the debts, it was determined that Harold and Laura could buy a home in the $175,000 range IF the seller would offer reasonable terms on the 2nd mortgage. Betty piped in that she had been sitting on a listing for six months and the owner now may have an interest in holding some paper versus renting the property again and deal with the tenant challenges on repairs and upkeep. The home was close to their current residence.

Betty was able to work out the deal with reasonable terms on the second mortgage that would keep the overall monthly payment down at least for the first three years. As the mortgage broker explained, that should be plenty of time to establish a better credit history and qualify for a lower interest rate loan in two years. As an added bonus, the seller agreed to pay all the closing costs and prepaid expenses such as annual hazard insurance and tax escrows plus replacing a leaky roof. Harold and Laura moved into their newly purchased home putting all the travails of the past in the rear view mirror.

Sometimes bad things happen to good people. In this current real estate market, there are creative possibilities. It won’t last forever; the time is at hand for seller help and creative financing.

Dale Rogers
www.sellerhelpsbuyer.com
www.brokencredit.com

Dale Rogers is a forty-year mortgage veteran and from time to time contributes information articles to the Broken Credit Blog. The BCB is a free website created to assist the general public with information about credit repair and responsible mortgage lending. http://www.brokencredit.com

http://www.brokencredit.com

===========================================
For additional Mortgage Refinancing information
and resources visit Mortgage Refinancing.
(http://www.refinance-refinance.net)
===========================================

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Technorati Tags: mortgage refinance, refinance, home refinance, bad credit refinance, bad credit mortgage refinance, loan refinance, home loan mortgage refinance, mortgage refinance information, refinance mortgage, home equity loan, home equity loans, equity loans, debt consolidation, debt consolidation loans, debt consolidation loan, consolidation loans, credit card debt consolidation, credit card consolidation