TxFamily.com: February 2016

Monday, February 22, 2016

Pay Yourself First

The principle to pay yourself first has been referred to as the Golden Rule of Personal Finance.
The concept is that one of the first checks you write each month is for your own savings. The rationale is that if there is no money left after a person pays their bills, there is nothing to contribute to savings or investments that month. pay yourself first - check -300.png

By establishing a priority to save, a person realizes that the balance of their monthly income must cover living expenses and other discretionary spending. This is a much different strategy than saving what is left over from monthly expenses and other spending.
Many financial experts have likened an amortizing mortgage to a forced savings account because a portion of each payment is applied to the reduction of the principal amount owed. Some homeowners have taken that concept further with a shorter term mortgage to build equity faster.
In the example below, a $250,000 mortgage at 4% interest is compared with two different terms. The 30 year mortgage would have payments of $1,193.54 each month with the first payment having $360.20 being applied to the principal. Each payment would have an increasingly larger amount applied to the principal.
The 15 year mortgage would have payments of $1,849.22 each month with the first payment having $1,015.89 being applied to the principal. The $665.68 difference in payments goes toward reducing the loan amount and acts like a forced savings.
A homeowner might opt for the longer term and intend to put the difference in the two payments in a bank savings account each month or make an additional principal contribution to pay the mortgage down. However, as any person responsible for paying household bills knows, there will always be something that comes up that could hijack your intentions.
By committing to the shorter term mortgage, a borrower is committing to make the higher payment each month and the benefit is that it will reduce your principal balance faster.

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Wendy Huang, MBA,SRS, GRI, CRS, IRES, e-pro, ASP, ALHS, SFR, RFC, RE/MAX Premier Group, RE/MAX Hall of Fame,

RE/MAX Lifetime Achievement ; Over 20 years' experience!

Helping Over 1000 Families Meet Their Real Estate Needs !!!

Direct: 972-365-7888

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Friday, February 12, 2016

Happy Valentine's Day

Love is a promise, love is a souvenir, once given never forgotten, never let it disappear.
- John Lennon

Wendy Huang, MBA,SRS, GRI, CRS, IRES, e-pro, ASP, ALHS, SFR, RFC, RE/MAX Premier Group, RE/MAX Hall of Fame,

RE/MAX Lifetime Achievement ; Over 20 years' experience!

Helping Over 1000 Families Meet Their Real Estate Needs !!!

Direct: 972-365-7888

Friday, February 5, 2016

Gated community near Preston Hollow area of North Dallas

Fabulous 1BR suite in a nice gated community near Preston Hollow area of North Dallas. Loaded with tons of upgrades & updates. Beautiful upgraded wood floor from entry, living, to BR. Brand new custom color, Upgraded granite counters, stainless appliances, updated cabinets and New bath. Fence covered patio overlooks the pool. Exquisite details & designer finishes thruout. Walk to new Preston Hollow Village. HOA pays all utilities and HVAC repair. Text Wendy @ 972-365-7888 to book an inside tour

Wendy Huang, MBA,SRS, GRI, CRS, IRES, e-pro, ASP, ALHS, SFR, RFC, RE/MAX Premier Group, RE/MAX Hall of Fame,

RE/MAX Lifetime Achievement ; Over 20 years' experience!

Helping Over 1000 Families Meet Their Real Estate Needs !!!

Direct: 972-365-7888

Monday, February 1, 2016

Is Understanding Costing You Money?

People tend to fear what they don’t understand. Homeowners understand fixed rate mortgages and remember the horror stories of people who lost their homes because they could no longer afford them when their adjustable rate mortgages went up.

Interest rates on fixed-rate mortgages have be so low for enough years, that borrowers haven’t even given much consideration to an adjustable rate mortgage. Changes in the way adjustable rate mortgages are now made make them much safer for borrowers who understand not only how they work but know they’ll only be in the home for a limited period of time.
Adjustable rate mortgages can go up or down according to an index that the lender has no control. The amount that can be adjusted is limited by caps for each period and for the life of the loan. While there are different periods for ARMs, the most popular lock the first period for five to seven years and then, can adjust annually after that.
One quick and easy way to determine whether an adjustable may be a viable alternative to a fixed would be to determine the maximum payment adjustments possible to find out when the savings from the early years are exhausted which would be the breakeven point. If the borrower is certain they’ll move prior to that date, the ARM will definitely provide a lower cost of housing.
The breakeven point for a $250,000 mortgage would be 8 years 3 months comparing a 2.9% 5/1 adjustable-rate with 1 and 5 caps to a 3.8% fixed-rate mortgage. In the initial five-year period, the payments on the ARM would be $124.32 lower and the unpaid balance would be $3,522 less than the fixed-rate to make a total savings of $10,981.
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Whether you’re buying or refinancing, get some good advice from a trusted lending professional about the adjustable-rate alternative. If you’re only going to be in the home a short time after the mortgage is made and your tolerance for risk allows you to feel comfortable, the ARM may be the best choice for you. Check out this ARM Comparison to use your own numbers.
Wendy Huang, MBA,SRS, GRI, CRS, IRES, e-pro, ASP, ALHS, SFR, RFC, RE/MAX Premier Group, RE/MAX Hall of Fame,

RE/MAX Lifetime Achievement ; Over 20 years' experience!

Helping Over 1000 Families Meet Their Real Estate Needs !!!

Direct: 972-365-7888