Quotes of the Day

It's the accelerate alternatives that save you the big bucks. When you pay weekly (52 payments per year) or biweekly (26 payments per year) instead of monthly (12 payments per year), the interest savings are minimal. With accelerated weekly (52 payments per year) and biweekly (26 payments per year), you're paying the equivalent of an extra month's payment every year. [2017] - Sean Cooper

Modern Portfolio Theory says that the volatility/risk of a portfolio may differ dramatically from the volatility/risk of the portfolio's components. In other words, you can have two assets with both high standard deviations and high potential returns, but when combined they give you a portfolio with modest standard deviation but the same high potential return. The key to whipping up such pleasant combinations is to find two or more holdings that do not move in synch: One tends to go up while the other goes down (although both holding, in the long run, will see an upward trajectory). The lower the correlation, the better. [2013] - Russell Wild

Some bankers include your credit potential in their TDS (total debt service) calculations. This means that if you have a credit card or PLC (personal line of credit) with a significant unused balance, a banker may calculate what the payment would be if you maxed the credit card or PLC, thus reducing your ability to obtain a mortgage. If your banker insists on doing this, go somewhere else because other lenders may not be required to underwrite that way. [2009] - Don R. Campbell

After thoroughly researching comparable rents in the area, does it look like the rental income will support a Gross Rent Multiplier (GRM) of around 10 (or up to 12)? The GRM Formula: Asking/purchase price = $150,000; Monthly rent = $1,100; $150,000 divided by ($1,100 x 12) = 11.36 (CRM) [2013] - Julie Broad

Whatever the size of your down payment, it should never be borrowed. It should come from your own savings, accumulated over time. [2013] - Dan S. Barnabic