Archive for July, 2007
7.6.2007 – Home Credit & Finance Bank (“HCFB”), rated Moody’s Ba3/NP/D-, S&P B+/B, and one of the leading banks specializing in consumer banking in Russia, announces its financial results for the three months ended 31st March 2007 in accordance with International Financial and Reporting Standards (IFRS).
Apparel Wholesaler – Merchandize Liquidators
Posted by: | CommentsMerchandize Liquidators is the largest Apparel Wholesaler providing name brands and no name apparel.
As the primary clothing wholesaler, merchandize liquidators product line contain cancelled orders from the Factory, overstock, salvage as well as new clothing… This is a great opportunity for you if your looking to get into the clothing business wether you have a clothing store or sell clothing on eBay. Merchandize Liquidators carries brand name clothing & accessories such as Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Levi’s. Nautica, Calvin Klein and more.
Merchandize Liquidators sells by the lot & truckload only. Merchandize Liquidators supplies name brand merchandise to some of the biggest eBay sellers today.You might want to consider joining those big eBay sellers and use Merchandize Liquidators as a source for your products. The Clothing & Accessories catagory on eBay is a profitable one and you might consider trying to sell products in this niche. Although there are many Apparel wholesalers, Merchandize Liquidators is the largest and is trusted by many.
Merchandize Liquidators is a liquidation company which contracted to closeouts all the overstock merchandise from many department stores in the U.S. The department store consolidate all their overstock and costumer return items such as clothing, jewelry, electronics, furniture or any goods that where left on the shelf or in storage in their reclamation centers. There the goods are separated by categories ( soft goods, hard goods, tools electronics, clothing…) put on pallets and all the pallets being sent by containers to Merchandize Liquidators, there the pallets are sold in bulks for pennies on the wholesale dollar to store owners distributors worldwide
With a growing demand for overstock Items Merchandize liquidators began dividing its liquidation and sold its overstock pallets of merchandise separate from the customer return. The reason was that clients where getting damage merchandise in the customer return goods while the overstock merchandise was just like new. On 2004 Merchandize Liquidators was already separating on the soft goods the clothing from the domestics and wholesale bedding from the clothing. By the beginning of 2005 the clients where able to choose from the more categories such as wholesale lingerie, domestics, accessories, handbags, men’s clothing, women’s clothing, children’s clothing, electronics, furniture, jewelry, shoes and toys.
Visit the largest Apparel Wholesaler
Mortgage forms confuse borrowers
Posted by: | CommentsMortgage forms confuse borrowers
By Brenda Spiering LendingTree.com
Confused by your mortgage forms? You’re not alone. A recent study of mortgage disclosure forms for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concluded that many borrowers don’t understand key items in the forms provided by lenders and have “significant misunderstandings about the terms of their recently obtained loans.”
Lenders are required by federal law to provide consumers with “truth-in-lending” and “good-faith-estimate” disclosures that outline the various costs and terms of their mortgages. The problem is these forms, designed over 30 years ago, can be confusing to borrowers and don’t explain in simple enough language key mortgage costs and terms.
In fact, the study found that nearly nine out of 10 borrowers had difficulty identifying the amount of upfront charges associated with a loan and nearly two-thirds did not recognize that they would be charged a pre-payment penalty if they refinanced the loan with another lender during the first two years.
The seriousness of this problem has been made apparent by the recent meltdown in the sub-prime mortgage market. Many homeowners who signed on for unconventional mortgages without understanding the risks involved are now finding themselves in a position where they can’t meet their increased monthly payments and are facing foreclosure. The FTC study found that better disclosures could improve customer understanding of mortgage products and hopefully prevent a repeat of today’s scenario in the future.
The study’s researchers tested over 800 recent mortgage customers. Half were given a simplified prototype mortgage cost disclosure form and the other half today’s standard forms. The result was a significant increase in understanding among those given the prototype: Eighty percent of those provided with the new form were able to answer 70 percent or more of the questions about their mortgages correctly, compared to only 29 percent of those given the current forms.
The key findings of the study, as listed in the FTC’s “Executive Summary,” were:
- Current mortgage cost disclosures failed to convey key mortgage costs to many consumers.
- Both prime and subprime borrowers failed to understand key loan terms when viewing the current disclosures, and both benefited from improved disclosures.
- Improved disclosures provided the greatest benefit for more complex loans, where both prime and subprime borrowers had the most difficulty understanding loan terms.
In summary, the study shows that better disclosures are needed to help borrowers recognize true mortgage costs and avoid potentially deceptive lending practices. However, don’t expect to see an immediate replacement of our current mortgage forms with the new forms. Until that occurs, be sure to ask your lender to explain anything in your mortgage forms that isn’t clear and don’t sign for a loan until you have a thorough understanding of all of its terms, payments and potential penalties. Otherwise, your mortgage could end up costing you more in the long term than you bargained for.
You can also find helpful information about loans and disclosure forms in the LendingTree Smart Borrower Center.
Mortgage calculators do the math in a snap
Posted by: | CommentsMortgage calculators do the math in a snap
Shopping for a loan or mortgage? You no longer have to be good with a spreadsheet to accurately crunch the numbers.
Online mortgage calculators make it faster and easier than ever to compare loan products and figure out how much you can afford to borrow.
In fact, mortgage calculators can help you get answers to many of your loan-related questions – whether you’re shopping for a home loan, car loan, or any other type of loan. For example, they can help you to:
Calculate your loan payments
A loan payment calculator can help you determine how much your monthly payments will be for any type of loan, including a mortgage, car loan, or personal loan.
Perhaps you’re in the market for a new car. You’d like to borrow $24,000 and pay off the loan in five years. The best rate you’ve found is 7.2 percent. How much would that cost each month? Simply enter the numbers into a loan payment calculator:
Loan amount: $24,000
Interest rate: 7.2%
Term: 5 years
Next, click the “Calculate” button and instantly you’ll see your monthly payment would be $477.50. A bit more than you can afford? One option might be to take an extra couple of years to pay off the car. Simply change the term from five to seven years, hit “Recalculate,” and you’ll see your new payment amount would be $364.58. Plus, you can view your payment amortization table and find out exactly how much you are paying in interest.
Determine what price home you can afford
The LendingTree home affordability calculator is a great tool to use when you’re looking for a new home. Your first step when buying a home is determining how much you can comfortably afford to spend. The home affordability calculator makes this easy. Just enter your (or your and your partner’s combined) monthly income, the amount you’ve saved for a down payment, and the monthly payments on your other debts (including credit cards or other loans). When calculating your monthly debt payments, be sure to add together all your monthly loan payments including the minimum monthly payment on any credit cards you have (not what you actually pay to these credit cards each month).
To get a better idea of what you can truly afford, input your estimated property taxes and insurance costs. Your real estate agent should be able to help you estimate these costs for the neighborhood you’re interested in. Finally, enter the going interest rate for mortgages and your preferred term.
For example:
Monthly income: $5,650
Down payment: $20,000
Monthly debt payments: $364.58
Insurance (annual): $500
Property taxes (annual): $2,200
Mortgage interest rate: 6%
Term: 30 years
Hit “Calculate” and you’ll see:
Mortgage loan amount: $240,917.14
Price of home you can afford: $260,917.14
Monthly mortgage payment: $1,444.42
Armed with this information, you can shop around to get pre-approved on a mortgage of $240,000.
Compare loan options
Shopping for a mortgage means comparing more than just interest rates. You also have to weigh the benefits of different types of loans.
For example, let’s say that two lenders offer you that $240,000 mortgage — one with a fixed rate of 6.5 percent, and another with an adjustable rate starting at 6 percent and changing every year. The lower rate on the ARM may seem like the better deal but what if rates were to go up by, say, 0.75 percent next year? And what if the upfront costs on the fixed-rate mortgage are $700 lower? If you’re confused about which to choose, simply enter the information in a loan comparison calculator. Assuming you plan to hold onto the loan for 10 years:
Click “Calculate” and get the following results:
Loan 1 (fixed) Loan 2 (ARM)
Monthly payment: $1,516.96 $1,438.92
Maximum monthly payment: $1516.96 $2,469.00
Total cost for 10 years: $189,036 $189,308
The calculator reveals that the two loans are quite comparable — despite the higher upfront fees, the ARM provides a lower monthly payment initially. The total cost for both loans is almost identical over 10 years, provided that the interest rate on the ARM remains constant after the first increase.
However, if you plug in the lifetime interest rate cap on the adjustable rate mortgage, you’ll see how high your monthly payments could potentially be. In this example the monthly payments on loan 2 could rise to $2,469. The lifetime cap on an ARM is often expressed as an increment of the initial loan rate. Therefore, the lifetime cap in the above example is calculated by adding a 6% lifetime cap to the 6% initial interest rate.
* No calculator can predict whether rates will rise or drop. Only you can decide whether you’d be more comfortable with the long-term security of a fixed-rate loan.
Find out if you can save by refinancing
Got a mortgage and wonder whether you’d be better off to refinance? Simply use a refinancing calculator. [http://www.lendingtree.com/smartborrower/Refinance-calculators/Refinancing-calculator.aspx] It will also tell you how long it will take for you to recoup the upfront fees involved.
LendingTree offers numerous similar online tools, such as:
• Cash-out refinancing vs. home equity loan calculator
• Rent or buy calculator
• Discount points calculator
• Adjustable rate mortgage payment calculator
• Loan consolidation calculator
• Home equity calculator
• Line of credit calculator
What you need to keep your home loan on track
Posted by: | CommentsWhat you need to keep your home loan on track
There is a lot involved in getting a mortgage approved. Discover what you need to consider to keep your home loan on-target.
You’ve found the perfect house, shopped for a mortgage and chosen a lender. The rest is easy, right? Not always. Before your home loan closes, you will need to make sure all of the paperwork and legal requirements are in order to ensure your loan stays on track. Here’s what you should consider:
The down payment
Your lender will want to know if your down payment is “seasoned” — that is, if it comes from your own savings, as opposed to being a gift from family or friends. Borrowers who use their own funds tend to be lower risk and so often receive better rates. The lender will typically ask for bank statements from the last 60 days. Any funds that have been in your account for two months are considered seasoned. If you have made a large deposit recently, however, the lender will ask you about its source. If you sold investments for your down payment, be prepared to produce the statements from those transactions. If the money was a gift, the family member may be required to supply a letter confirming that the money is not a loan.
Your reserve assets
Lenders consider you a lower risk if you have liquid assets (cash or investments) that you can draw on should the need arise. Ideally, you should be able to cover at least two or three months of mortgage, tax and insurance payments from these reserves. You will most likely need to make copies of your recent bank statements and be prepared to show them to the lender.
Other debts
One of the important measures lenders use to determine your ability to carry a loan is your debt-to-income ratio. As a rule of thumb, your debt payments — including your mortgage, property taxes, insurance, vehicle loans and credit cards — should not be more than 36 percent of your income before taxes. Lenders also like the total of your housing expenses alone to not exceed 28 percent. To keep your loan on track, be sure to disclose all loans and other financial obligations to your mortgage lender, including alimony and child support payments. If your lender discovers that you have not been fully honest in your application, you risk having your loan declined, even after pre-approval.
The appraisal
Your lender will arrange for your new house to be appraised in order to determine what percentage of the home’s value you are borrowing. This is called your loan-to-value ratio. Occasionally, the appraisal comes in lower than your agreed upon purchase price, and this may affect your ability to obtain the amount of financing you need. For example, you might offer $300,000 for a home, intending to put down 10 percent and obtain a mortgage for 90 percent of that amount, or $270,000. But if the home’s appraised value turns out to be $290,000 ($10,000 less than your purchase price), you may have to make up the difference between the appraised value and the purchase price by increasing the down payment.
The title search
A title search involves looking through legal records to make sure the person selling the house actually owns it, and to see whether there are liens or unpaid taxes on the property. Your lender will hire someone to do this and the process is usually very straightforward, however, if the title search reveals a problem, your mortgage is unlikely to be approved until the issue is resolved. For more on title insurance and why it’s important, read Title insurance basics.
Insurance
Lenders require that any mortgaged property be insured against fire and other hazards. This protects both the lender and the homeowner in the event of a disaster. Ask your lender about the coverage you need and then shop around to find a policy that meets all these requirements and your personal needs. In some areas, for example, you may be required to have flood insurance.
By understanding all of these steps in the mortgage process and your role in them, you can help keep your mortgage on track and avoid any unnecessary delays.
How to keep your debt under control
Posted by: | CommentsHow to keep your debt under control
Debt can be a good thing when its carefully managed. Follow our tips and stay in the drivers seat.
Borrowing money can be an essential part of achieving your dreams, but it’s important to borrow wisely and keep your debt under control. Without discipline, it’s easy to get in over your head and end up with a bad credit rating. One of the best ways to prevent this is to understand the difference between good debt and bad debt.
Avoid bad debt
Debt is like cholesterol – there’s a good kind and a bad kind. A prime mistake people often make is incurring too much bad debt. Things to avoid include:
- Carrying too much debt on credit cards
For most people, credit cards are a daily fact of life. But it’s important to manage your use of plastic. Many people will borrow against credit cards (don’t forget, a credit card is often just a higher-interest loan) in order to buy new clothing, electronics, entertainment and other nice-to-have items. But this is a bad-debt gamble.The longer it takes you to pay off a credit-card loan, the more interest you’ll pay. If you’re only able to afford making minimum payments each month, you could end up spending hundreds, if not thousands, in interest on relatively small purchases.
Also, make sure when you apply for a credit card that you understand how the interest on your account is going to be charged. You may find that interest is charged on cash withdrawals, for example, from the date of withdrawal rather than the date the statement is due. And watch out — many cards with low introductory rates only have them for a limited time, after which their rate skyrockets.
- Zero-money-down loans
It’s easy to be tempted by ads that promise items for sale at “no money down, no interest for one year.” But if you can’t pay off the loan by the due date — normally 12 to 18 months – the interest rate usually balloons, often to over 20 percent.In the worst-case scenario, along with owing the original amount, you may even find yourself liable for retroactive interest on all the monthly payments you’ve delayed. All of a sudden, you could be faced with a big bill for hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Be sure to read the fine print when considering such deals. And be disciplined. Avoid spending sprees that rely on zero-money-down loans unless you’re absolutely sure you’ll be able to pay off the loan when it comes due.
Manage good debt
Good debt is like an investment: Incurring it usually reaps a reward. It includes such things as:
- Mortgages
A mortgage lets you to purchase a home that can enable you to build equity. Not only is it a tangible asset that you can use, but it also has the potential to increase in value. - Home equity loans
A home equity loan can enable you to borrow money at a lower interest rate than an unsecured loan. It’s therefore a good way to obtain capital for such things as home improvements, which can increase the value of your home. But remember, the loan is secured against the value of your home. You must be careful to meet your monthly payments or the lender could take possession of your home. - Student loans
A student loan fosters professional advancement and usually leads to a higher salary and more job satisfaction.
You can maximize the value of good debt through careful management:
- Watch interest rates and try to lock in a low rate on a mortgage.
- Consolidate high-interest loans into one lower monthly payment.
- Use any unexpected financial windfall to try to eliminate bad debt.
The key is to actively work your debt. Be its master, rather than its slave. Keeping debt under control may seem like a lot of work, but the money you save will be well worth the effort.
Credit bureaus can sell personal data
Posted by: | CommentsCredit bureaus can sell personal data
Borrowers who inquire about a loan may be inundated with unsolicited loan offers.
Did you know that whenever a lender obtains a copy of your credit report, that your name, telephone number and other information might be sold to other lenders as part of a “trigger lead” program?
Not many borrowers know about trigger leads, but these programs are familiar to lenders and mortgage brokers, who can purchase these leads for as little as 35 cents apiece.
What is a trigger lead?
When you authorize a lender to “pull” (i.e., obtain) your credit report as part of a specific inquiry about a loan, the information in your report automatically becomes part of the credit bureau’s trigger lead program.
This pool of information is searched against criteria or “attributes” selected by lenders and mortgage brokers who want to buy trigger leads. Searchable attributes include your age, gender, state of residence, annual income, monthly mortgage payment, credit score and so on. If your information matched the selected attributes, your name, telephone number and home address would be sold as a trigger lead.
For example, suppose a mortgage broker wanted to target prospective home-loan borrowers who lived in California, owed at least $300,000 on a current mortgage and had credit scores of at least 550. If you inquired about a home loan and your data matched those selected criteria, your name and contact information could be sold to that broker. The broker then could use that information to contact you and attempt to obtain your business.
Trigger leads may be sold 24 hours after your credit report was pulled. A so-called “soft pull,” e.g., a credit report inquiry that you didn’t initiate with a specific lender, typically wouldn’t become a trigger lead.
Pros and cons of trigger leads
Some people like the idea of being contacted by multiple lenders who are eager for their business so they can comparison shop among a wide range of options. The credit bureaus don’t limit the number of times a trigger lead can be sold, so one credit inquiry potentially could result in dozens of contacts.
If you’re comfortable with this open-door approach, you still should exercise caution and be sure to deal with reputable professionals. The ability to purchase trigger leads doesn’t necessarily mean an individual or company is reputable or trustworthy.
Other people don’t like the idea of having their personal data sold in this way. These individuals may be concerned about privacy or identity theft or may not wish to receive unsolicited telephone calls or mailings. (Trigger leads normally are scrubbed against the national do-not-call list.)
How to opt out of trigger leads
If you don’t want your information to be sold, there are two ways to opt-out of trigger lead programs. One way is to complete and submit an online form at www.optoutprescreen.com. This method stops trigger leads for five years. The other way is to complete a separate form at the same Web site and then print, sign and mail a letter generated by that form to confirm your opt-out request. This method stops trigger leads permanently.
Both of the opt-out methods take five days to become effective, so if you don’t want your information to be sold, you need to opt-out at least five days before you make a specific inquiry. If your information is already in the trigger lead pool, you may continue to receive telephone calls and mailings for some time after you elect to opt out.