CLLP Articles

Now that the Occupy movement has been booted from public parks and places, they’re looking for prime real estate to set up their camps from which to base their activities from.

And it looks like foreclosed homes are the new chosen places for these folks to do that.

I wrote an entry detailing how one particular man was supported by the Occupy movement to move back into his foreclosed home. It appears this was not an isolated incident, and was simply part of a grander gesture by the movement.

If you look at it from the wider point of view, you’ll see that the movement is not only finding new places to base themselves in but are also doing two things: focusing the collective efforts of the movement into one specific issue and directly hurting the banks and financial institutions that they always wanted to target since long ago.

And this could be the defining moment where the Occupy movement ceases to be a collection of rag-tag rebels without a cause and becomes a campaign that focuses all its grievances into one single cause.

Let’s just hope it doesn’t evolve into a protest-slash-revolution movement like the Arab Spring.

If you are one of the select individuals who are in a financial position to be able to purchase a house, consider yourself lucky. More often than not, individuals are faced with the decision of having to decide between their dream of purchasing their very own home, as opposed to the reality they may be facing of having to rent a house for a few years.

While previously there was a stigma surrounding the rental housing market, these days it is a common occurrence for individuals from all walks of life to end up renting for a few years. Some of the reasons given for individual’s choice to rent range from needing to build up their financial background, not making enough money to afford a large rent, the lack of quality houses in a specific area, and the attraction of not having to perform home maintenance as you would have to do if you owned your house, among other reasons.

As with any big choice you make in your life, there are certain things to keep in mind when deciding on renting a property. One of the biggest factors to keep in mind is the type of the landlord you will be renting from. If you are renting within an apartment complex, you will have a Property Manager as opposed to an actual “Landlord”. The Property Manager will be responsible for any type of maintenance requests and general questions, as well as being the person responsible for collecting your rent.

In the event you are renting from an individual, it is advisable to do some research prior to signing a lease. Believe it or not, there are many landlords out there in the housing market which have less than honest intentions when it comes to renting houses to individuals. It is not unheard of for a landlord to attempt to rent a house which is already in foreclosure, pocket the rent money every month, and not pay anything towards the mortgage as the house may already be bank owned.

When you find a house for rent, listed by a private individual, perform some quick internet research in order to find out whether the house is listed in foreclosure, or pre-foreclosure proceedings. To do this, all you would need to do is search for “Homes for sale in Longmont”, for example, and it would list any houses which are available under foreclosure programs. You obviously do not want to rent a foreclosed upon home.

Some other factors to keep in mind when renting from an individual are your privacy rights. I don’t know how you feel about it, but I know personally I would not want a landlord who is constantly popping over to see how things are, ask if you have any questions, or anything of the sort. You will most likely desire a landlord whom makes themselves available by phone in the event of any questions, as well as maybe come over once a month to collect the rent.

Renting a house is a great option for those not ready for the responsibility of owning their own house ,and by doing some simple research for Colorado real estate for rental, you can be on your way to renting a great property!

People used to retire at 55 because their minds and their bodies couldn’t cope up with the work demanded of them. Now people retire at 55 because they and their employers think retirees can’t contribute anything useful anymore.

That train of thought is so 20^th century.

It really does not matter if you’re 55 or 75. Advances in medicine, lifestyle, health awareness and the outright willingness to continue working make the seniors of today a useful national asset. What matters now is that a potential retiree is able and willing to perform the tasks expected. A person that possesses these qualities can thus be as valuable as (or even more valuable than) their younger peers.

Retirement can even serve to dull the wits and senses of perfectly capable individuals. Remember how much you have to catch up to in the office when you get away from it all for a week or two? That is exactly what retirement does: dull your abilities and make you stupid.

This is not just a topic for philosophical or political debate. Soon-to-be-retirees need to start planning how they can market themselves to their employees; that they are still perfectly capable of doing their jobs even if the years are catching up to them. Employers also need to be able to assess the true capabilities of their senior employees and not just depend on antiquated standards for retirement.

More and more parents are helping their children get on the property ladder by helping them raise the high deposits required in order to obtain a mortgage. In order to obtain a decent mortgage deal these days a deposit of at least 25 per cent is usually required.

The mortgage lenders consider first time buyers, especially those under the age of 30 as they are most likely to be become unemployed, to be a high risk. They therefore require quite large deposits in order to provide mortgage facilities at favourable rates.

An increasing number of parents look to help their children to get onto the property ladder, especially as they realise how important it is for them to do so. In addition many can’t stand to watch them leave home and move into rented accommodation only to then see them struggle to pay the ever increasing rents. To raise the money required many parents have to remortgage their home or take out some other loan secured against it. Some even use it as an opportunity to downsize and release funds that way.

Rents are increasing because there is a high demand for rental property as many people are nervous about buying a home in the current economic climate, and those who do want to buy are unable to so due to being unable to obtain a mortgage. The rising rents has seen more property investors increasing the size of their property portfolios. This has also led to an increased demand for buy to let mortgages, as property investors both old and new require finance for their purchases.

There has also been a rise in let to buy mortgages as many people have been put off selling their homes when looking to move property due to their drop in value. As an alternative people are looking to rent their property when moving rather than selling. Many then have the intention of selling the property later when property prices improve. A let to buy mortgage is very similar to a buy to let mortgage, only it refers to a mortgage on a rental property that was previously the home of the landlord.

Retiring isn’t as easy or as painless as it used to be – especially since everybody’s finances seem be going on roller-coaster rides these past few years.

So if you’re deciding to retire sometime soon or are worried about how to go about the whole ordeal, here are a couple of practical tips to help you plan your retirement:

Increase your savings when you can. The extra money will help you deal with financial emergencies without having to affect your existing sources of retirement income, so save as much money as you can afford to prior to retiring.

Diversify your retirement assets. Relying entirely on income from a single source – like real estate or a pension – will leave you vulnerable should that market experience a lengthy downturn. Spread your money out in multiple assets and you’ll be less vulnerable to “hiccups” in the economy.

Keep a sharp eye on your investments. Be especially mindful of poor performance and suspicious anomalies. Many things can go wrong, from simple accounting errors to full-blown fraud, so always monitor your investments even before you retire.

Keep your cool. Suddenly liquidating your all your assets when stocks first go down is not a good idea. Neither is recklessly snapping up foreclosure properties just because they are half their normal market value.

Do your homework first! Look at everything from an objective point of view before deciding to invest or pull out, and you’ll have a clearer picture of what will happen in the future.

A bargain sometimes costs more than its face value – especially when it comes to property buys.

The weak U.S. real estate market has enticed local and foreign investors alike to plop their money in distressed houses, but legal hassles and longer closing times can catch these investors off guard. Even factors like local schools, crime rates and other distressed properties can make things even more complicated.

Even buying a property that is not going to be the primary residence will get you paying higher property taxes.

So what’s the average Joe and Jane to do? Take things slow, for starters.

Being “detached” from the whole investing frenzy and taking a long, hard look at everything about a property will help you make a smarter decision. This also helps you scope out whether the price of that house you’re eyeing has bottomed out already or is set to go down even further.

It also helps to get a reputable broker that’s intimately familiar with the area you’re looking to buy into. This is especially helpful if you’re planning to buy properties in areas you are not completely knowledgeable about.

Just be careful not to get a deadbeat agent or one who thinks you’re “just small fry.” Interviewing the agent – especially on local knowledge – will help you do just that.

Debt Adviser, the pseudonym of a writer on redding.com, has recently received a question from “Doris” – the wife of a soon-to-be-retiree. Doris was concerned about what to do with the $52,000 her husband will get in his retirement plan.

Debt Adviser first congratulates Doris for coming up with these concerns before her husband retires, as bad decisions are generally harder to deal with if there is no day job to cover the losses.

He then cautions Doris about taking the money out from the plan to pay part of the mortgage, as they will incur tax penalties for the withdrawal and could risk pushing themselves up by one tax bracket. That is unless the money is rolled into another retirement account, wherein there will be no tax penalties involved.

The more important danger, however, involves replacing the lost retirement funds. Debt Adviser cautions that it will be difficult to replace depleted funds without a regular job. He then encourages Doris to create a spending plan by first anticipating essential expenses and then evaluating available financial options with the remaining money.

Debt Adviser also recommends that Doris and her husband think about going for home equity loans, as this will allow them to erase their mortgage and divert the money elsewhere. “A good financial planner can tie all this and more together for you,” Debt Adviser says to wrap up the column.

Andrew Housser, co-founder and CEO of personal finance site Bills.com, shares nine commonly held but false beliefs about using credit cards:

1. I cannot get good credit without a credit card. Modest credit card use can help build credit score, but securing and repaying various loans (auto loan, student loan etc.) will work just as effectively.

2. It’s OK to carry credit card debt. Big debts and large fees often start from small, overlooked items. A good rule of thumb is to purchase only what can be paid in full every month.

3. As long as I pay the minimum payment, I’ll eliminate my debt. The longer a debt stays on a credit card account, the more interest charges it will accrue.

4. Creditors cannot repossess items I buy with an unsecured credit card, so there are no repercussions to defaulting. Serious credit score damage and constant harassment by debt collectors will do just as much – if not more – financial and psychological damage than repossession. .

5. I should close credit card accounts I’m not using. Positive payment histories on older cards can help improve credit score better than payments on newer cards. Unused credit also helps as well.

6. It’s OK to go over my credit limit as long as I pay it back before the due date. Extra charges, increased interest rates and lowered credit score result from going over the credit limit.

7. My credit card debt will die with me, so it doesn’t matter what I charge. Those debts will be charged to the inheritance left behind as well as any joint accounts with a spouse.

8. I wouldn’t receive credit card offers if I couldn’t afford them. Lenders are more concerned with the fees, balances and interest charges they will get – not the financial condition of the card user.

9. If I get to a point where I can’t pay my credit card bills, bankruptcy is my only option. Debt consolidation home equity loans, debt management programs and debt settlement are other options on the table.