Category archives for: Loans

Defining a safe mortgage: has it gone too far?

A little-known regulation sparked by the 2008 housing meltdown has the potential to fundamentally change the landscape of the housing and mortgage markets, further tightening the stranglehold on credit availability and deepening the housing market downturn. Known as the qualified residential mortgage (QRM), this draft rule currently being debated by regulators could require prospective homebuyers [...]

Big banks bow out of reverse mortgage market

Seniors will have fewer avenues to secure steady retirement income, now that the two largest lenders in the reverse-mortgage business have decided to discontinue offering the product. Wells Fargo, the nation’s top reverse-mortgage lender, announced earlier this month that it will stop originating the loans, citing inflexible government regulations and concerns that home prices could [...]

How to pay off your mortgage early

Paying off the mortgage early is in. Refinancing to take money out of our homes is out. In this foreclosure crisis, more people are seeking the security and psychological benefits that come with owning a home free and clear. If you want to pay off your mortgage early, you’ll find plenty of experts recommending ways to [...]

The Student Loan Ranger’s Mailbag Express: forgiveness and repayment

The Student Loan Ranger would like to give a special shout out to all you new graduates! As you know, we dedicate a blog post each month to questions we have received in order to shed some light on the educational debt decisions our readers face. This month, we are going to look at some [...]

Despite mortgage crisis, home ownership remains cherished American dream

Last week’s confirmation that the gross domestic product grew only 1.8 percent in the first quarter came when economists were already busily revising their growth forecasts downward for the rest of this year. A double-dip recession remains unlikely, but this is the weakest recovery since the Great Depression and the first one not being led [...]