Tips of the week:
1. While you think of investing, consider the external factors as well as your own choices. So, be careful!
Investing, especially in stocks, is not always a cakewalk. Some risks are inherent in investing. Before investing, you need to take into consideration your financial objectives as well as the external factors associated with investing.
2. Christmas isn't an emergency. So, you cannot give an excuse of lack of planning in order to use your credit cards.
Christmas is a big event of joy and festivities, but it can't be dubbed as an emergency event. In order to make this occasion really a big one, you should not use your credit cards recklessly. You must design a proper plan for the occasion of Christmas.
3. It is possible to get on with your life with zero debt. Believe it or not!
It is a myth that you can't live with zero debt. In fact, with no debt at all, you can live peacefully and in a financially stress-free way.
4. Controlling your finances is important. But you need to set small goals for it. You cannot do everything at once!
You can't become rich in a day. You can strengthen and boost your finances gradually and in a slow manner. For doing that, you have to however follow some best financial practices.
5. It can be good to work part time for income boost but it is always a better option to work for yourself. So, start up your own small business!
The basic idea is to make provision for regular and at least decent income for yourself and your family. With no income or irregular income, it becomes tough to grow financially.
Queries of the week:
1. Will it be a good option to ignore APR while shopping for mortgage?
No. It will not be the right option to ignore annual percentage rate (APR) while shopping for mortgage. APR is a much broader indicator of the costs of borrowing than the mortgage rate of interest. APR is more effective to compare mortgage loans.
2. What are some economical gifts that you can give your kids during this Christmas?
It depends on your budget as well as the tastes and preferences of your kids.
3. What should you avoid purchasing in the holidays?
You should abstain from purchasing very expensive gifts and decorating items. You need to ensure that during the holidays, you spend according to your budget.
4. How can you get gift cards for less during this festive season?
For that you need to take your time while shopping. Don't purchase the items that you see first. Instead, do adequate research and find out the gift cards that are within your budget.
5. Is it possible to earn or save money via Internet? If yes, then how?
Various online jobs are available nowadays. Depending upon your area of expertise, you can pick an online job.
Active rain posts of the week:
1. 4 Steps to speed up the mortgage loan closing process
Sometimes, there is huge time gap between formal acceptance of a loan offer and the final closing of the loan. This gap is sometimes extended because of some mistakes. You can however speed up the closing of a mortgage loan by following some smart strategies. For that, first of all, you need to hire an experienced real estate agent and get pre-approved for the loan. You should financially prepare yourself well in advance and you should also keep all the documents ready.
2. APR : An effective indicator of the costs of a loan
One crude way to compare mortgage loans is to look at the mortgage rate of interest. But, this is a narrow way to compare mortgage loans. The broader and more effective way to compare mortgage loans is to calculate the annual percentage rates (APR). APR is a better reflector of the true costs of a mortgage loan as it includes various other costs such as private mortgage insurance (PMI), document preparation fee, underwriting fee, loan processing fee, discount points, origination points, prepaid interest along with the mortgage rate of interest.