Ilyce

How long does bankruptcy stay on your credit report? Depending on what kind of bankruptcy you filed, a bankruptcy can stay on your credit report for 7 or 10 years. The longer it has been since your bankruptcy, the less your bankruptcy will affect your credit score. To see if your bankruptcy is still on your credit report, you can pull a free copy of your credit report. If it's been more than 10 years and the bankruptcy is still on your credit report, you can file a dispute and prove that it's been more than 7 or 10 years since your bankruptcy was discharged.

Ilyce Glink show notes. We're offering a new discount for our HOW TO PROFIT FROM FORECLOSURE event. Use discount code: summer to get 30% off the Early Bird Ticket Price. The IRS launches a YouTube channel.

Today on the Ilyce Glink Show, Ilyce took lots of questions from callers, and discussed gift taxes and annual limits on giving without incurring a tax and how to transfer a 401k to a new employer's account, and how to deal with lost interest from the 401k transfer. She also took more questions about the Making Home Affordable Plan and loan modifications, including whether or not you should hire an attorney to help with a loan modification.

A debt management plan can help someone whose credit history and credit score have likely already suffered either because their debt-to-credit limits are out of whack or because they have started to pay some of their bills late. As personal finance advice goes, a debt management program can help you improve your credit history and credit score by helping to encourage you to pay their bills on time and in full. However, some debt management programs are really scams and they will take your money instead of helping you pay your bills. Look for a reputable credit counseling service provider.

Buying or Renting a Vacation Home. What's the Better Choice? Vacation homes can be a great way to enjoy your summer vacation, but should you rent or buy these homes? If you buy, you get all the investment benefits on owning a home, but you still have to take care of it. You may end up spending more time tending to your vacation home, than vacationing. Renting a vacation home may be the right way to go, if you're not prepared to pay for the right to have the vacation home for the short period you might want to stay there.

Seller disclosure is required in most states, meaning a seller has to reveal any defects or problems with the house to a buyer. However, the seller disclosure laws and requirements vary greatly from state to state. If a buyer discovers problems with the home that they think were not revealed through seller disclosure, they should evaluate the money, time and effort it will take to fix the problem. Often it's a simple fix to the house, but the seller disclosure lawsuit can leave you with a lot of legal fees.

Get earnest money or down payment back after a short sale falls through. If you have the right to the return of your earnest money or down payment under a contract, the listing broker should have no problem sending your earnest money or down payment back. But you need to make sure you have complied with the terms of your contract to get your earnest money back. It may not be enough to just get the word of the listing broker.

If you put down earnest money or a down payment on a home and you have a seller disclosure issue, you better make sure you have a way to get out of the contract. If the seller disclosure form failed to disclose mold in a home, and you signed a contract to buy the home, you should have the right to also inspect the home to make sure you want to move forward in the deal. If as a buyer, you don't understand issues like contracts, earnest money, seller disclosure and home inspections, you might want to reconsider buying a house or hiring a real estate attorney and a home inspector before signing a contract to buy a home.

Home improvements on a budget are on a rise. With the housing crisis and the downward pressure on home prices, more people may opt to stay put and renovate their homes. But these home renovations and repairs will be smaller and give home owners more bang for the buck. Closet organizers are one way to improve a home and make a home more livable. The home improvement doesn't have to cost too much. The home repair needs to suit your needs and a closet organizer can unclutter a space you use daily and make your life easier. It doesn't have to cost too much. It can be on a budget and you might be able to do it yourself. Best of all, if you are planning to sell your home in the near future, a small home improvement project and a well organized closet with a well installed closet organizer can help your home look better and sell faster in this real estate market.

Seller disclosure laws have developed to assist buyers in their home buying quest and to keep seller's honest. Seller disclosure laws require a seller to disclose to the buyers all know material defects in the home. A seller is not required to disclose everything about a home, just material problems known to the seller. If you are buying a home in foreclosure, your seller -- the bank -- may not give you any disclosure and it will be up to you to make sure you perform a good home inspection to protect yourself. Seller disclosure laws do not replace a home inspection and a good home inspector. The best real estate advice you can get is to read the seller disclosure form carefully and perform a thorough home inspection of the home.