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☆ Central banks' inflation fall-guy lives Down Under
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Antony Currie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

MELBOURNE, Feb 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - If any central bank governor was to feel the heat from the past year’s multiple interest-rate increases, the smart money might have been on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Jerome Powell. Fast forward and Philip Lowe, governor at the Reserve Bank of Australia, looks most exposed. It would be unfair for Lowe to be the fall guy for central banks’ general inflation failure. The head of the central bank made his comments in front of the Senate Economics Legislation Committee. When questioned about his future at the bank, Lowe said he intended to serve out his seven-year term as governor, which ends in September.

☆ More people will make thousands by selling stakes in their homes to Wall Street firms, according to one company that already sees elevated interest from homeowners
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

But high mortgage rates are making it difficult for homeowners to take advantage of this wealth. Home equity investments are a way to raise cash without taking out a new loan. However, higher mortgage rates have made it more difficult for Americans to take advantage of this wealth. He said the company foresees "strong demand" for the home equity investments in the coming months. According to a Redfin analysis of government data, 85% of US homeowners tote a mortgage rate far below today's level of 6%.

☆ Mortgage refinance demand jumps 18% as interest rates drop for the fifth straight week
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Diana Olick | In Dianaolick | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Mortgage rates continued to fall last week, and both current homeowners and potential homebuyers reacted swiftly. With rates at the lowest level since early September, refinance demand surged 18% week to week but was still 75% lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 33.9% of total applications from 31.2% the previous week. Mortgage applications to purchase a home rose 3% for the week and were 37% lower than the same week one year ago. Kan added that the average loan size on a purchase application increased to $428,500 — the largest average since May 2022.

☆ In 2022, UWM became the top US mortgage lender and its CEO bought an NBA team. Against the odds, it expects to grow more.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

United Wholesale Mortgage became the country's largest originator in 2022. Mortgage rates soared at their fastest rate in decades, halting refinances and slowing home purchases to a crawl. In a way, UWM's strategy is much more old-fashioned than other mortgage players, including Rocket Mortgage. "The idea that you can go on a computer, click a button, and there's your mortgage, that's foolish," he said. To Rocket Mortgage, that's a fundamental misunderstanding of its business.

☆ Fertiliser producer Fertiglobe refinances $900-mln loan
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DUBAI, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi-listed fertiliser maker Fertiglobe (FERTIGLOBE.AD), which counts state oil company ADNOC and OCI (OCI.AS) as major shareholders, has refinanced a $900-million bridge loan, originally due in 2024. Fertiglobe has also increased the size of its Revolving Credit Facility (RCF) to $600 million, from $300 million, at a reduced margin of 140 bps from 175 bps previously. The maturity of the RCF has been extended to 2027, from 2026. It raised $795 million from an initial public offering on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange last year. Reporting by Rachna Uppal; Editing by Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A 26-year-old explains how he came to own almost 1,300 rental units in 7 years — and shares the type of loans he used, and the strategy that allowed him to scale fast
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

As of October 10, he was 26 years old and owned almost 1,300 rental units, according to public property records reviewed by Insider. "One thing I've learned is banks are actually pretty flexible on what they're able to do, especially on commercial," Anderson said. Anderson's next purchase, for two reasons, would be something over five units so that it would be considered a commercial property. The bank loan covered the remainder, he said. These allowed him to increase the rent or net income and request a commercial cash-out refinance at its appreciated value of about $1.6 million.

The Department of Veterans Affairs doesn't set a minimum credit score for VA loans, but lenders typically do. VA loan borrowers need to meet minimum service requirements set by the VA, as well as minimum credit requirements set by their lender. VA lenders that accept low credit scoresAs you prepare to apply for a mortgage, look for lenders that have low minimum credit score requirements or are willing to work with borrowers who have rocky credit histories. If you currently have no credit score, you may be able to use non-traditional credit with certain lenders to prove your creditworthiness. Lowering your credit card balances will also decrease your credit utilization ratio, which can increase your credit score.

☆ I used a HELOC to become an Airbnb millionaire. It was risky, but the strategy paid off big time — here's how I set up this secondary income stream.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Bryce Decora | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

This was the beginning of a world of real estate that would change our lives foreverDeCora's Bellevue Airbnb. If the real estate market started trending downward at this time, this story may not have had such a happy endingExtending your debt to the max in real estate is the equivalent of an all-in poker move. Our three-house real estate portfolio is worth around $2.5 million and we only have $1.35 million in mortgage and HELOC debt. Once you get over the scary leap, you'll see real estate as a simple way to building a massive empire. Bryce DeCora is a former engineer turned real estate investor and a father of two.

☆ Demand for new homes down 86% since last year
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Diana Olick | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailDemand for new homes down 86% since last yearCNBC's Diana Olick, joins 'The Exchange' to discuss housing prices rising as new home sales numbers decrease, the tanking demand for refinances and the increase in all-cash buyers as mortgage rates rise.

☆ Mortgage rates rise again, creeping closer to 7%
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Mortgage rates have more than doubled since the beginning of this year as the Federal Reserve pushed ahead with its unprecedented campaign of hiking interest rates in order to tame soaring inflation. Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds. As investors see or anticipate rate hikes, they make moves which send yields higher and mortgage rates rise. This week, the 10-year US Treasury hit a high not seen since 2008, an indication that mortgage rates could rise even further. Affordability remains a challengeHigher mortgage rates are making it even harder for prospective buyers to afford a home.

Insider's Featured Student Loan Refinance Companies SoFi Student Loan RefinancingSplash Financial Student Loan RefinancingEarnest Student Loan Refinancing Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. Pros Check mark icon A check mark. Low fixed rates Check mark icon A check mark. Multiple repayment terms Check mark icon A check mark. Some of the best graduate fixed rates available Check mark icon A check mark.

☆ Meet a government worker who regrets refinancing her student debt because she didn't know it would block her from federal loan forgiveness: 'I never would have done that'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Tanya Burnett, a federal government worker, refinanced her student debt into private loans in 2016. She wasn't aware at the time that doing so would block her from Biden's recent federal loan forgiveness. In 2016, Burnett started paperwork to qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, which forgives student debt for government and nonprofit workers after ten years of qualifying payments. It also meant taking her federal loans to a private lender. She's certainly not the only one who refinanced, and now, cannot take advantage of Biden's one-time blanket debt relief.

☆ This married couple make $118,000 in revenue a month as Airbnb hosts. Here are the tools they use to manage their 6 properties and how they got started.
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-25 | by ( Narina Exelby | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Six years on, our Airbnb properties brought in $118,000 in bookings last month. In March 2020, after only three months on Airbnb, we were set to cash-flow over $7,000 after expenses. In September 2020, we bought our third property: a four-bedroom cabin in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, near the Smoky Mountains. With income from the Nashville properties, we invested $35,000 in a cosmetic rehab of the Gatlinburg cabin — new floors, light fixtures, toilets, mirrors, stairs, paint, and landscaping. When we opened in November 2020, the place booked up almost immediately; revenue in that first month was $14,158.85.

☆ Here's how I used a HELOC to become an Airbnb millionaire at 30. It was risky, but my strategy paid off.
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-16 | by ( Bryce Decora | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

☆ Refinancing my mortgage for a lower rate wasn't exactly easy, but it was worth it — I'm going to save $42,000 over the life of the loan
▼ + stars: | 2020-04-01 | by ( Lance Cothern | Stephanie Hallett | Read More | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

My wife and I started shopping to refinance our mortgage when fears about COVID-19 were driving mortgage rates lower, just before the Federal Reserve cut interest rates. On March 2, we looked at mortgage rates after seeing the impact COVID-19 had on the markets. The Federal Reserve cut rates but mortgage rates went upOn March 3, the Federal Reserve cut the federal funds rate by 0.5% at an emergency meeting. Rather than taking the lower rate, our loan officer allowed us to get an even larger credit and keep our 3.125% interest rate. To make things even sweeter, our mortgage rate is now 0.625% lower.

Persons: we'd, —, That's, refinances Organizations: Federal Reserve, Service, Federal Locations: Indiana

The surge in mortgage refinancing seems to strongly correlate with the drop in interest rates. "As millennials are realizing the total cost of homeownership, beyond just the mortgage payment, that amount makes a difference," he continues. As illustrated above, the most obvious benefit of refinancing is the opportunity to lower your monthly payment. Beyond lowering your monthly payment, Tyrrell points out how homeowners may also be able to leverage refinancing to help cover some of life's bigger expenses. AdvertisementAdvertisementEditor's note: This post has been updated to include mortgage refinancing data from March 2020.

Persons: Ellie Mae, refinances, Joe Tyrrell, Tyrrell, there's, — there's, You'll Organizations: Service, Federal Reserve, millennials Locations: Wall, Silicon, United States, Tyrrell

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