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What Types Of Closing Costs Are Associated With FHA-Insured Loans?
While this video simplifies things to help you remember, except for the addition of an FHA mortgage insurance premium, FHA closing costs are similar to those of a conventional loan.
As of 2013, the FHA requires a single, upfront mortgage insurance premium equal t...
What Is A Short Sale?
When a lender releases an existing mortgage for a payoff that is less or 'short' of the total amount due, the transaction is called a 'short sale.' Lenders sometimes accept short sales as an alternative to repossession and foreclosure, which can be expensive. Likewi...
Deed In Lieu
Deed In Lieu' is a common short-hand term for this situation: a borrower can't make loan payments, and hands over their deed to the property instead, so that the lender does not have to take the home. The full phrase is 'deed in lieu of foreclosure' -- they're surre...
Understanding Foreclosure
A foreclosure is essentially a legally-forced change in possession, where a lender seizes collateralized property - such as a home - when a borrower is unable to pay the loan. While laws vary by state, borrowers typically have a 'period of redemption' to pay loan, i...
Foreclosure Defense
In a foreclosure, a lender takes legal possession of collateralized property from a borrower who has not met the financial conditions of the loan. Foreclosure defense is the term for legal strategies to stall or stop foreclosure. Foreclosure defense strategie...
Power of Attorney
What is a power of attorney and how does it work? To keep a board game running while one player takes a break, that player could say to another 'roll the dice and move for me.' They are granting the second player power to act fully within the game rules. This...
Common Types of Power of Attorney
Imagine a board game player telling a friend 'roll for me, but don't sell anything'. Would the friend continue to roll when the player returned? Probably not. In game terms, they were granting a limited, temporary power to act on their behalf. These two concepts - r...
What is A Bankruptcy Petition?
Filing for bankruptcy starts with disclosing all financial information. This is done on a form called a 'bankruptcy petition', provided by the US Bankruptcy Court. The bankruptcy case starts when the bankruptcy petition form is filed. Both individuals and businesses...
How To File Bankruptcy
US law allows courts to declare individuals and businesses bankrupt, allowing them to settle debts without full payment. Filing bankruptcy is a legal action asking the court to make this declaration; deciding to file should account for: --Debts that are owed --Asset...
Divorce Basics
When a couple marries, they gain the legal right to do certain things together, such as own property or owe debts. Divorce is the legal termination of marriage; the legal status, responsibilities and arrangements of the married couple are cancelled. Divorcin...