Dealing with home warranty claims and problems can be difficult. Find out what your home warranty plan covers before filing a claim. Q: We bought a house two years ago. Our purchase included a one-year home warranty. We have yet to get our one-year home fixes done. Some of our repair requests have been blatantly [...]
If you are on disability, you might qualify for the HAMP program. Also think about if you should downsize to a smaller home. Q: I think my mortgage holder is going to start a foreclosure on me again as they are not cashing my checks and have sent me numerous letters about the "HAMP" program [...]
Refinancing a rental property or an upside down mortgage? Options for refinancing an underwater mortgage. Q: We received an invitation from a loan company to refinance a rental home we own. Our current lender is in partnership with this company. The interest rate on our current loan is 6.25 percent with about 22 years left [...]
When buying a vacation property in Florida for retirement, now may not be the best time to buy a home. Q: We're thinking of buying a property in Florida as a vacation home. Since we won't be able to use it a lot until my wife retires in 3 years, would it be better to [...]
Rebuilding American homeownership - one house at a time. Help this year for small business, the housing market and you as we recover from the Great Recession. And as usual, providing personal finance advice, real estate advice and consumer advice on the Ilyce Glink Show on January 20, 2013 at 11:00am Eastern Time on WSB [...]
If you don't want to refinance your mortgage for free, you may have to accept a higher interest rate. Q: I listen to your radio show frequently and wondered if you can offer advice on refinancing my home. My current lender does not offer any refinancing options for me. I have a credit score in [...]
Meeting an insurance agent and buying an insurance policy for the first time is sort of like going on a blind date. You’re hoping to find someone who makes you happy and fulfills your needs. But while you know a little bit about what you want, you’re not quite sure what you’re actually going to [...]
The homeowner's association has rules and fees, and can foreclose on your home and put a lien on the property if you don't pay. Q: We have not paid our homeowner fees since early 2007 and I have received a Notice of Intent to Foreclose Lien from a local law firm. It states that if [...]
When problems pop up in your new home, first figure out if those issues will be covered under your new home builder warranty. Q: I moved into my new home about two years ago. The house had been built about one year earlier and had never been lived in so I did not think I [...]
Foreclosure is scary. Before the bubble burst and the housing crisis hit, it was taboo to go through foreclosure. Now it’s almost common. And, unfortunately, despite the rosier outlook for the real estate market, too many homeowners are still facing foreclosure. The most important thing for any homeowner in this situation to know is that [...]
