Don’t Make These 5 Mistakes When Applying for a Mortgage

A mortgage represents the most expensive form of credit most people will ever apply for. With house prices well above £200,000 in many locations, taking out a mortgage means taking on a sizeable debt that will take decades to pay off. As such, borrowers have to be very careful about what they do.

The good news about mortgages is that there are plenty of them readily available. The bad news is that it is easy to make costly mistakes. Recognising such mistakes is the first step in avoiding them. The second step is to employ the right strategies that guarantee things work in your favour.

Are you planning to buy a house soon? If so, do not make these five mistakes:

1. Going Directly to a Bank

Banks are the first institutions’ many people think of when it comes time to apply for a mortgage. However, going directly to a bank virtually guarantees not getting the best deal possible. Here’s why: financial institutions only offer a limited number of mortgage deals that are designed purposely with their needs first.

You might go to a bank or building society and discover you only have access to two different mortgage products. What if neither product is right for you? Even worse, how do you know that either of those two deals is really the best you can get? You have no way of knowing because the bank or building society has no incentive to look out for your best interests.

What’s the solution? Avoid banks and use a dependable mortgage brokerage instead. Independent mortgage brokers represent multiple public and private banking institutions as well as third-party lenders. If there is anyone capable of finding you the best mortgage for your circumstances, it is an independent broker.

2. Accepting an Interest-Only Mortgage

Interest-only mortgages may represent a way to get into your dream house without taking on monthly payments you cannot afford, but there’s a catch: paying only interest with your monthly payments means you are not paying down the principal. That is not a problem until you come to the end of the loan at which time a balloon payment is necessary.

If you are taking out a £100,000 mortgage with interest-only payments, are you going to have enough money to pay what you owe on the loan’s maturity date? If not, you are either going to have to take out a new mortgage or sell your house.

3. Obsessing Over Interest Rates

Do not make the mistake of obsessing over interest rates, either. Yes, interest rates are important in determining how much you will pay to borrow. But they are not the only thing to consider. Remember that lenders advertise annual percentage rates (APRs) as opposed to straight interest.

An APR represents the total cost of borrowing over the life of a mortgage. It includes interest, closing costs, application fees, and so forth. It is more important that you concentrate on APR than interest rates alone. Your goal is to get the lowest possible APR on a loan with terms that suit your circumstances.

4. Mortgaging More Than 75%

It has long been understood that home buyers will put down a certain percentage of the purchase price on a home as a deposit. The size of a deposit can vary, but the general rule is to put down 25%. Whatever you do, don’t make the mistake of putting down any less.

A deposit of less than 25% means you are mortgaging more than 75% of the value of the home. Why is this bad? There are several reasons, beginning with the fact that you will end up paying more interest for every pound you borrow. Coming in with a 10% deposit as opposed to 25% means you will be paying a lot more interest.

Mortgaging more than 75% also makes you a higher risk to lenders. That means you will get less favourable rates and terms. Also, note that higher mortgage amounts reduce the number of lenders willing to loan to you. This means you’ll have fewer deals to choose from.

5. Exceeding Your Established Budget

Finally, do yourself a favour and commit to not exceeding your established budget – not even in the slightest. Be prepared that your estate agent might show you houses that are above your budget with the hope of getting you to spend more. Don’t do it.

Exceeding your budget, even by a little bit, could cause serious financial problems down the road. You could stretch yourself so thin that the slightest financial emergency prevents you from making your mortgage payments. Miss a few mortgage payments and you could be in line for repossession.

Also, keep in mind that committing to your budget might mean that you cannot find a house you really like. That’s fine. You are better off waiting until the market improves or you have more money saved. You can never go wrong by not spending money. On the other hand, you can go terribly wrong by spending more than you have.

Now you know what to avoid when it comes time to apply for a mortgage. Good luck in your house search. Hopefully, your estate agent and mortgage broker can work together to get you into the home of your dreams.

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5 Budgeting Tips for Beginners

When first learning how to budget, it can get overwhelming very quickly. How can you divide your income into all of these little categories? What if you don’t have enough money to spread across the budget? How many categories should you have on average?

If you’re a new budgeter with questions like those, then you’ve come to the right place. We have five budgeting tips for beginners that are sure to help you out.

First, Research

Before you begin, do some researching about finances. Learn what other people do to manage their budgets and finances. Learn from their mistakes and make a note of their pointers. Remember, though, that not every tip or method you come across will work for you. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t try them.

Determine Your Average Income

You need to have an income to divide for your budget. The best way to come up with this number is to look at what your household income was for the past few months. If you have a salary that doesn’t change, then your average income will be fairly straightforward.

If your income varies from month to month, add up the previous several months and divide it by however many months you’re going with. It’s best to err on the side of caution and go with a lower number, than work a budget with an unrealistic income.

Decide the Focus of Your Budget

Your budget needs a focus. The focus you decide on is what you’ll put more money towards. If you need to pay off debt, then you’ll make adjustments to your spending so that you can allocate more money to your debt. It could be a vacation budget to take your family on that trip you’ve been waiting for.

Write Out Your Top and Fixed Expenses

Your first expenses to look at should be the ones that you have to pay no matter what. These will include items like your rent or mortgage, loan payments, and vehicle insurance. Ideally, these should be the ones that remain constant month after month.

Next, write out your significant expenses that vary each month. With these expenses, they would be categories like groceries, medical expenses, and utility bills. It’s not that these expenses are less important than the first ones listed. Instead, they are the ones that may change in price depending on the month.

The money left over is what you have to work with for your various expenses that aren’t a high priority (eating out, entertainment, morning coffee runs), or into a savings or investment account.

Have an Emergency Fund Category

Did you know that not many Americans have an emergency fund, or would they be able to handle an unexpected expense thrown their way? An emergency fund should be something that you put money aside in every month that is there to pay for the unexpected.

The more you have in your emergency fund, the less you’ll need to rely on outside help from friends, family, or even personal loans from companies like Credit Ninja. Although they are helpful in those situations, using your own money is a good feeling to have.

Don’t let budgeting intimidate you. Once you get the hang of it after a few months, you’ll soon realize how beneficial they are. You’ll have months in which you’ll blow the budget, and that’s okay. Work at staying on track the following month.

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ShopBack is having a Great ShopBack Sale – Here Are The Deals You’ll Definitely Want To Snag

You know what to do: get your wishlist ready, bookmark your favourite items and mark your calendar for all flash deals timings. This is going to be epic.

What you need to know to make the most of this 6.18 Great ShopBack Sale sale between 14 to 22 June:

  • 100x MEGA Cashback Draw – Yes, we will multiply the cashback amount x 100 times for one lucky winner!
  • 10x Epic Cashback for one lucky winner each day from 14 to 21 June.
  • 50% Cashback Flash Deals – You get your favourite item 50% off. And we are talking about the big ticket, favourite products of 2019!
  • And, over 100 coupons and upsized cashback deals across all shopping categories like electronics, travel, fashion and more.
  • Head over to ShopBack’s 6.18 GSS page for more details.

Planning and preparation is the secret of these 6.18 sales mastery. So get ready. We tell you all you need to know!

Cashback like never before

Think about your last purchase though ShopBack. Do you remember how much cashback you got? Maybe you earned $5, maybe it was $30… Now, imagine that amount multiplied by 10. That’s a great cashback amount. Now, imagine if you earn 100 times the cashback amount from one of your purchases. Wow! That would be a huge prize.

Good news! That is exactly what you stand to earn during this 6.18 sale. One lucky shopper will be awarded 100x the cashback amount from a purchase made during 18 June. And you can also stand to be the lucky winner to see your cashback multiplied by 10 for purchases made each day from 14 to 21 June.

Epic Cashback Cheatsheet on 18 June

Now, most importantly, to earn up to 100x or 10x cashback, you will actually need to shop. And during this period, shopping online comes with as many upsizes as you will need.

What do you need? Perhaps booking a hotel stay for your next trip. Are you looking to buy some sportswear or a new pair of shoes? What about a new dress? There are upsizes for your home essentials, for any electronics you might need and even insurance.

6.18 is the time to do all your mid-year purchases. You can save hundreds of dollars if you buy your stuff now. So get your shopping wishlist ready.

Top 10 key highlights as follows:

  • Shopee 6.18 Global Brands Sale + Up to 12% Upsized Cashback (was <10%)
  • Taobao 6.18 Flash Deals + 3X Cashback on exclusive items via ShopBack
  • Qoo10 4% Upsized Cashback capped at $3 (was <2%)
  • ChopeDeals 12% Epic Cashback (was 5%) 18/6/19 – 18/6/19
  • iHerb 18% Epic Cashback (was 5%)
  • Foodpanda 15% Epic Cashback (was <10%)
  • Agoda 12% Double Cashback (was 6%)
  • Enfagrow 18% Epic Cashback (was 4%)
  • Fareastflora.com 10% Epic Cashback (was <3.5%)
  • HP Up to 18% Epic Cashback (was <6%)

50% Cashback Flash Sales on 18 June

You can buy your favourite products for half the price. ShopBack is running their own Flash deals where you can get popular products at 50% CASHBACK! Nintendo Switch, Dyson Hair Dryer, Xiaomi Roborock Vacuum – you want it, we got it!

Catch all these items below half-price on 18 June, 12 midnight. There are limited quantities so get ready to be one of the first to buy. Note the different timings and make yourself available to nab one or all of these on Tuesday.

The beauty of this sale is that it comes with a chance of winning your favourite items without actually having to buy them. Join the party at their Facebook Live Game Show on 17 June for a chance of earning $2500 worth of products!

There will be a total of 10 trivia questions about ShopBack or brands available on ShopBack in multiple choice format. All you have to do is to answer them correctly! ShopBack will randomly draw ONE lucky winner for each question.

Here’s a complete list of what you can win during the Live:

  • XBOX set worth $619
  • Sennheiser Momentum Buds worth $469
  • Fitbit Charge 2 worth $298
  • Logitech Bundle worth $159
  • Browhaus & Strip Voucher worth $200
  • Beauty Emporium Beauty Set worth $170
  • SK-II Pitera Welcome Set worth $115
  • 2x Mi Home Security Camera worth $110
  • Nathome Multifunctional Electric Caldron + Cup Cooler/ Warmer worth $120
  • Cathay Platinum Movie Suites worth $76

Eyeing any of these items? Catch us LIVE on Facebook on 17 June, 9PM. RSVP and read all the rules here.

There you have all the info you need to ace the 6.18 Great ShopBack Sale. Don’t say bojio!

 

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6 SEO course review in 2019

Everybody knows that most of the people are interested in handling the business and start to make money. Well, making money is not always considered to be an important deal but the way that you are going to follow is always said to be the essential thing. Yes, the discussion about the ways will be helpful for all the seekers that who all are looking for a long time. Nowadays, people are highly focusing on business with the support of various strategies. Generally, the strategies are always coming up with the best stuff that supports the business.

If you are planning to begin the business, then make sure to find the best strategies for your business. With the support of good strategies, you can easily reach among the customers and start to make profits in a quick time. In case, people who all are struggling to find the SEO things for their business to tackle the difficulties when it comes to competition, then make sure to focus on the best SEO courses. So, before going to find the courses, it is always important for you to know about it in deep. According to that, you can follow the right thing.

Learn more about strategies

As we mentioned earlier, the strategies are always playing a crucial role among the business owners. At the same time, this could be the best way where you can utilize it better that whenever required. Apart from strategies, you can also get to know that what are all the main things required for a business to handle. The best thing is where you can go ahead with SEO courses that help to bring more traffic to your business platforms in a short period of time.

If everything is clicked big time, then there could be a chance of experiencing the best level of profits that whenever required. This could be the main reason where most of the business owners are always seeking for good SEO courses. For instance, you can also search for the best course reviews before getting involved in it. Also, you can find some for free and some for pay. At the end of the day, it is all up to your choice in terms of choosing the right one for your business. If everything is managed to handle, then you can witness the growth in your business for sure.

You can also make use of paraphrasing too from free services such as www.paraphrasing-tool.net to help you with your SEO strategy.

Develop your skills

By following the best level of SEO courses, you can even easily start to develop your skills. So, before getting into the business, make sure to find the right courses that suit your skills. According to that, you can start to develop your skills. Once the skills are managed to handle and developed, then you will be going to witness the better result in the end for sure. Also, you can get an opportunity to bring more customers to your business. If the customers are getting into your way, then you will get a chance to witness the profit as well.

Also, when it comes to courses, you can find various sessions to attend and handle. So, based on the sessions, you can start to learn in deep. If these things are managed to handle, then you may witness profits in your business. This is how where you can start to manage the business and begin to earn money with the support of best strategies in a short time. On the other side, you can even get support from experts as per your convenience at any time. Yes, the experts are always ready to help you and lead you to get success in your business that whenever you need. In order to gather more stuff, then you can move ahead with Webmarketing123.com and get to know more in deep.

Choose the best SEO courses

So, whenever you are planning to pick the best course, then make sure to courses that suit your skill. Once found the best course, and then you can go ahead with that to learn. Also, make sure to follow all the sessions without skipping it. If these things are managed to follow, then it would be easy for you to survive in this business dominating the world all the time.    

 

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4 Pro Tips for Designing Your New Home

This is it! You’re about to take the plunge and build your first home from the ground up. But before you break ground, you’ll need to spend some time working on your design. Whether you are a new home buyer or a seasoned veteran, here are 4 tips for designing your new home!

  1. Assemble Your Team First

Before you begin the process, you need to make certain to assemble your design team. This can include your interior designer, contractor, architect, etc. If you are unsure how to find this team, ask around for personal recommendations within your circle. Always make certain to ask homeowners that experienced a project on a scale similar to your own!

If you’ve already found a contractor, make certain to check their input as well: in most scenarios, they already have a trusted professional circle of artisans and tradespeople.

  1. Get Everything in Writing

This may seem obvious, but you need to make sure that each and every specialist is working off a contract. Building houses is a complicated and messy business. You need to arm yourself for any future calamities.

It doesn’t matter if you know the builder, or if they have a trustworthy aura; this is a business relationship. As an employer, you need to protect your employee and yourself from possible delays and mistakes.

Most professional contractors will provide a legal contract. Make certain to have your lawyer thoroughly examine this before you sign it. If your contractor does not provide said document, it is up to you to draw up the paperwork. Make certain that the contract includes specific deliverable dates and costs, and create a contingency plan in case things go wrong.

  1. Design for Details

During the design process, you need to take into account the minute details of the house. It’s easy to be blinded by the grand scale of your project and forget about the smaller things. It’s understandable: designing Dutch thatched roofs will always seem more interesting than your basement insulation materials.

However, these unseen details are important to remember. Although the world will see the grand facade of the house, you will see its smallest details on a daily basis. You will experience and live this detail for decades. This is why it’s crucial to think on a smaller scale.

This scale includes deciding where electrical outlets need to be, ensuring each room has access to ample lighting, and making sure the kitchen is close enough to the water heater. Check with your contractor to ensure everything in the design is up to code. They have undergone multiple types of exams and countless building projects: this allows them to find flaws that are nearly invisible to the untrained eye.

This may seem tedious, but it’s worth it. If you put the leg work in now, you can save yourself a whole lot of grief in the future.

  1. Consider the Future

If you are going to design a house, make certain that you are creating it for every possible version of yourself. This means that you must design for your present self and for your future as well!

Remember, a house is a semi-permanent fixture of your life. The average mortgage loan term is thirty years. As such, you should design your home as something that will be inhabited for that period of time. For example, a spiral staircase may be easily maneuvered now. However, thirty years in the future, it may pose a mobility problem.

Take into account any possible lifestyle changes. Do you have children? If not, do you see them in the future? Are there elderly family members who will be moving in with you? All of these scenarios should be considered and accommodated. By factoring the future into your design, you can create the perfect home that suits you at every stage of your life.

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