November 5th, 2009 — Insurance, Real Estate
A few days ago we discussed whether you need to obtain earthquake insurance. Today we cover a topic that more often impacts the midwest, which is flooding.
Like earthquakes, your typical homeowner’s and renter’s insurance does not cover damage from flooding. If you live in an area that is prone to flooding, chances are your mortgage lender already requires you to maintain flood insurance. However, where your house is located has a huge impact on how much flood damage you are likely to sustain.
November 3rd, 2009 — Insurance, Real Estate
If you have purchased homeowner’s insurance and think you are covered against natural disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires, think again. Standard homeowner’s and renter’s insurance policies do not cover these types of events, which means you could be out of pocket if a disaster like this strikes.
Today we will cover earthquake insurance and in future posts we will talk about insurance to protect you against hurricanes and flooding.
October 29th, 2009 — Real Estate
In more evidence that the housing market is recovering, the latest Case-Shiller/S&P Home Price Index shows that prices in most metro areas covered by the survey increased again in August, as compared to a year ago. The Index recorded a 1.2% average price gain in the 20 cities it covers, the fourth straight month that prices have climbed.
As with last month, the Minneapolis and San Francisco metro areas paced the increase, rising 3.2% and 2.8% respectively. Chicago, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Washington D.C. all posted price gains of over 1% for August.
October 27th, 2009 — Home Loans, Mortgages, Real Estate
If you think we’re through with the sub-prime and foreclosure crises in the housing market – prepare yourself. There could be another shoe dropping and that shoe is the looming Option ARM crisis.
Option ARMs are typically 30-year adjustable rate mortgages that initially offer the borrower four monthly payment options: a specified minimum payment, an interest-only payment, a 15-year fully amortizing payment, and a 30-year fully amortizing payment. Option ARMs are also known as “pick-a-payment” or “pay-option” ARMs. Option ARMs are often offered with a very low teaser rate (often as low as 1%) which translates into very low minimum payments for the first year of the ARM.
October 22nd, 2009 — College
If it seems like it’s costing you more and more to send your kids to college, you are not wrong. According to a report issued Tuesday by the College Board in New York, the cost of four-year public colleges jumped 6.5 percent last year.
Facing steep cuts in state aid, public colleges around the country have been forced to slash costs and raise tuition and fees. In some systems, like the University of California, colleges are accepting a higher proportion of out-of-state students who pay full tuition.
At most state schools, in-state residents pay a fraction of what out-of-state students pay. In the University of California network, the tuition paid by out-of-state students covers their educational costs whereas the reduced tuition paid by California residents must be coupled with state aid to make ends meet.
Prices at private colleges also increased rapidly, rising 4.4 percent last year, according to the College Board’s report. This is despite a significant decline in the Consumer Price Index of 2.1 percent from July 2008 to July 2009.