Sub-prime lending is a type of credit given to homeowners who do not meet the criteria for regular (“prime”) loans. A typical sub-prime borrower has a poor or limited credit history and a FICO score of less than 620. These factors make them a risky investment for regular lenders, which keeps them from taking out loans. To compensate for the risk, sub-prime lenders impose higher costs on their contracts. For credit cards, this is usually a higher fee for over-the-limit spending or late fees. Sub-prime mortgages usually have higher interest rates and stricter terms.
Contrary to popular belief, sub-prime lending is a perfectly legal business. But like many new industries, it has been tainted by lenders who don’t play by industry standards. From 2003 to 2007, shady companies have turned up offering terms ranging from unfair to downright illegal. This, along with the economic slowdown, has contributed a great deal to the real estate crisis that forced many homeowners into foreclosure.
Are all sub-prime loans bad?
No. There are actually some sub-prime companies who give you good value for your money. If you find a good lender and stay current, sub-prime lending can have its benefits.For example, many people use sub-prime loans as a means of credit repair. Basically, it gives you a chance to rebuild your credit history and improve your scores. By keeping up a good record on sub-prime loans, you can eventually refinance to better terms and get back on your feet.
How do I know when a loan is sub-prime?
The first thing you should look at is the cost of the loan. Sub-prime loans have a higher overall cost (including interest, origination and closing fees) compared to prime loans. Although the basic formula is the same for both types, the pricing for sub-prime loans is more noticeably risk-based. A low credit score, small down payment, and other negative factors can greatly increase the cost of a sub-prime loan.
Another common feature is the prepayment penalty. Prepayment is when you pay more than the minimum monthly amount, or pay off the loan ahead of schedule. The penalty is to make up for lost interest on the lender’s part. Because you’re getting off early, the lender stops earning regular interest—and naturally, they charge you for it.
Many sub-prime mortgages follow the 2/28 structure. This means that you pay a fixed interest rate for the first two years, after which the loan switches to an adjustable rate where your payments are determined by market indicators. Often, the introductory rate is higher than the current index and the margin is applied once the loan shifts. For example, a lender can give you an intro rate of 8% while the index is currently at 4%, with a margin set at 6%. Assuming the index stays the same; your rate can jump to 10% when your two years is over.
What can I do if I’m in a sub-prime loan?
Fortunately, there are laws in place to protect borrowers in any loan, prime or sub-prime. For instance, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) requires all lenders to give you a good faith estimate of the total cost of the loan before closing any deals. This prevents any third party, such as mortgage brokers, from making any kickbacks at your expense.
All mortgages are also covered by the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). This law gives you the right to know the full lending terms and loan costs in any credit transaction, including credit cards. The TILA allows you to opt out of a transaction within a reasonable time if you don’t agree with some of the terms.
If a sub-prime mortgage has put you in financial difficulty, another thing you can do is apply for Loan Modification or in this case Sub Prime Loan Modification refers to an agreement between you and your lender to change the terms of your loan on account of your financial situation. This way you can modify your loan terms to a more affordable level. The Sub Prime Mortgage Loan Modification is a lengthy and time consuming process. However a competent loan modification attorney can expertly handle your case and expedite the loan modification process. A loan modification attorney will expertly present your case and use the above mentioned lending laws as leverage to get you more reasonable rates. If you’re already in foreclosure, this will also stop the process while you work out better terms with your lender.
Archive for July, 2010
Sub Prime Loan Modification
Wednesday, July 28th, 2010Why Travel Insurance is a Must
Wednesday, July 28th, 2010Travel insurance is necessary for your vacation packages and without it all your travel dreams cannot come true. Travel insurance is essential for a traveler as it covers your medical and financial expenses and losses incurred on your domestic or international travel. It’s usually arranged at the time of booking the trip and covers the exact duration of the trip.
Many travel agents offer insurance, as part of their travel packages but it will be worth for you if you arrange it on your own through an online source. You can search for a good insurance policy and choose between single and multi trip insurances. If you plan to travel once in a year, then travel insurance of single trip policy will be suitable. But if you have plans to travel frequently then you can consider taking multi trip insurance policy. Continuous insurance can be bought from travel agents, travel suppliers like tour operators, cruise lines and companies offering travel insurance.
A multi trip insurance policy is commonly referred as annual insurance travel policy and can save big money in the long run. While arranging for insurance policies for travel, be clear with what the insurance coverage is provided along with the inclusions and exclusions. Always remember to look at other things also if you look for a compromise between your travel insurance coverage and the premium to be paid. Never assume that a policy with cheap premium will not offer good insurance coverage. This may work in reverse also. A policy taken at a higher price need not cover all aspects of insurance coverage required by you.
As a traveler you face lot of problems and risks while traveling like loss of property and money, trip cancellation, natural calamities, accidents, occasionally death and terrorist attacks. You cannot prevent these risks or stop your travel plan but you can reduce the risk involved by taking travel insurance policies.
The concept of travel insurance is very simple. You pay a travel insurance premium to the company and they in turn covers for your loss of valuables, accidents and unforeseen things. The premium you pay for travel insurance covers risks faced on travel like:
There are lots of possibilities for trip cancellation due to unavoidable circumstances and last minute cancellation will fetch you very less amount as refund. Your travel insurance covers such losses and provides the cancellation cost but the reason for cancellation must be part of the agreement you have signed with the company.
If you lose your baggage then the insurance company pays for the baggage cost but again based on the rules of your insurance contract. A travel insurance policy sometimes covers your medical expenses if incurred while traveling. But if you have got health insurance separately then you don’t have to spend again for health insurance during travel.
Generally travel insurance covers other things like accidental death, medical evacuation etc.
An important golden rule of all insurance policies is to go through the agreement carefully because most of the time you apply for insurance policies during emergencies.
Travel insurance is offered with various options for different types of travelers like student, business, adventure, international and leisure travelers. Travel insurance is also offered for participating in sports involving high risk and traveling to certain countries which have a high risk.
What Is Property Insurance?
Wednesday, July 28th, 2010They say when it rains it pours. Accidents happen when you least expected it. A fire breaks out and you lose precious inventory. A hurricane sends a tree smashing down into your office; your business gets robbed. For you to be able to claim for these mishaps, you need property insurance.
Property insurance protects your business against any physical damage to, or loss of your assets. Assets also include the area in which the business runs and the property furnished there. In disasters like, fire, theft, explosion or vandalism, having property insurance help you recover your loss – whether it’s to repair damaged property or replace what you’ve lost. Every business owner must have property insurance to protect his assets. Although business property insurance isn’t required by law, it’s a very wise investment to limit your obligation in the event of a natural disaster or other calamity. Without it, it may cripple your business financially. Most business property insurance are tailored fit to the business and can cover a variety of losses, including damage from fires, electrical surges, or even theft by an employee.
Business owners can purchase additional types of coverage depending on their need. For example, a business in the mid west or in the east coast may want to purchase coverage for snow, sleet damage or ice. On the other hand, businesses in the west coast may consider an earthquake-insurance policy for them.
Property insurance can be insured in 2 ways namely: open perils and named perils. Open perils covers all the causes of loss not specifically excluded in the policy. Common types include damage resulting to earthquakes, floods, nuclear incidents, acts of terrorism and war. Named perils on the other hand, require the actual cause of loss to be listed in the policy for you to be able to claim insurance. These are the examples of named perils: damage causing events like fire, lightning, explosion and theft.
In addition, there are 2 lines of property insurance: commercial and personal lines. Commercial lines covers the following: automobiles, business owners (property and liability combined for smaller commercial customers), capital assets, crime and fidelity, electronic commerce, employment-related practices liability, equipment breakdown (known as boiler and machinery), farm, financial institutions, general liability, inland marine, management protection, market segments, medical-professional liability, package policies, property, umbrella, and workers compensation. On the other hand, personal lines cover the following: automobile, dwelling property, homeowners (property and liability combined), inland marine (diverse personal goods), personal liability (including personal umbrella).
Tenants can also buy property insurance. Commercial and industrial tenants also purchase insurance so that in the event that their inventories are damaged, they can replace them. Since businesses can have large amounts of capital tied up in inventory and equipment, such damage could be disastrous without insurance to cover them. Residential renters can also benefit from property insurance, even many are uninsured. Renters are sometimes overwhelmed to learn how much it will cost to replace their possessions after a flood or fire without insurance to cover their loss.
While many businesses purchase their property insurance policy through a business owner’s policy (BOP), these bundles property and liability insurance into just one policy. However, since the amount of coverage available in a BOP is generally lower than in a standard property insurance policy, companies usually require a lot of coverage that stick with a separate policy. Business interruption insurance and extra-expense insurance are 2 types of optional coverage in a property insurance policy that protects your business after a loss occurs. Business interruption insurance provides payments for expenses such as salaries, taxes and debts, as well as any loss of profit due to the interruption of business. Extra expense insurance, on the other hand, pays the costs of temporarily relocating a business when a covered peril occurs. For example, if a fire destroys a shoe store, extra-expense insurance will pay for the business to resume operations and cover such expenses as buying or leasing equipment, buying new merchandise and informing customers about changes that have occurred.
Knowing you have to back up in times of emergencies or disaster situations is important for any property owner, whether it’s business or personal property. Everyone has the right to be insured.