Compare Mortgage Interest Rates Today – 2011 VA, FHA and Conventional Refinance Applications Set to Increase in January

As more and more Americans are looking to save as much money as possible it comes as absolutely no surprise that many people are looking to compare mortgage interest rates today. When looking for 2011 VA, FHA and conventional refinance mortgage rates it is important to remember that an amazing credit score will make it much easier to lock in the lowest possible rates.

With a credit score that is in excess of 740 and a debt to income ratio that is under 40% there are a large number of American homeowners who will benefit greatly from the current low interest rate environment. Luckily, there are many free resources available online to help Americans compare mortgage interest rates today. By comparing rates homeowners will find that there are many lenders that can offer attractive deals.

Before going into any refinance process is extremely important to understand what type of mortgage will work best for specific financial situation. With the amount of free resources available online it should not be difficult to better understand which options will work best based upon the financial circumstance.

The government has offered many free resources available on the FHA website so it would be well worth it to take advantage of these opportunities. Remember that not all homeowners will have the credit score and financial history to lock in the lowest possible rates but there are options to save even when the highest credit score has not been achieved.

Some of the largest mortgage lenders in the united states include Bank of America, Chase, Citigroup and Wells Fargo. While these are the big for financial institutions in this country it is important to remember that there are many banks at the local and regional level that can help homeowners locked into low mortgage interest rates.

Author: Mike Garner
source: www.subprimeblogger.com

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Rein in your debt appetite before it becomes a burden

By Kumar Shankar Roy Jan 06 2011

Are you a Superman when it comes to handling debt or a do you find yourself at sea? In a relatively easy credit environment, some people see their personal debt spinning out of control.

But without a warning system, how can one be sure that the line has been crossed? Financial Chronicle talks to experts for highlighting key factors one should keep in mind so as to know when to stop taking debt.

Control: Personal finance experts say that the healthiest individuals are in control on their discretionary spending and debt. When you have control over what you charge or borrow, it will mean you are setting aside debts over which you have little short-term control, such as home mortgages and car loans.

“But the big picture should not be forgotten. The ideal way will be to adjust expenses so that you spend less if you are taking more debt,” said Anil Rego, CEO, Right Horizons. When you have a disciplined way of monitoring debt repayments, it’s harder to slide into a situation where you are in mess. Your ability to carry debt depends on your career pro­spects, savings, investments and back-up cash.

Factors: Okay, but how do you measure whether debt is too much? Recognise that your debt should be in proportion to three important financial resources — savings, job and income —after paying off your existing debts.

“Unless you are above 60 years of age, you will be exposed to debt doldrums. Home loans are big in absolute number, but a bank checks everything before giving a loan. It’s the small credit card debt that slowly gets out of hand. As a thumb-rule, don’t take small loans that are more than your rainy-day liquidity resources. It could vary between three to nine months of your monthly expenses, but that is the solid cash that you have,” said Gaurav Mashruwala, a personal finance expert. Cutting debt is a good solution, but the better alternative is to take reasonable amount of debt, he added.

Repayment: All said and done, its important to determine the discretionary income you can allocate to pay off debt. Sit down with a typical month’s worth of income and spending pattern. This will tell you your discretionary income. For instance, Rs 60,000 salary will be reduced to a discretionary income of Rs 25,000 if one spends Rs 35,000 per month on household related reasons.

“For this purpose, do not count current debt payments (except for mortgage and auto) in the expenses. Please keep in mind that you should count amounts that you send to credit card companies or payments for consumer loans. But calculate all necessary living expenses, such as rent, home loan, food, clothing, education and other utilities,” said Sanjay Das, a Kolkata-based financial planner.

If you are married, Das added that it will be good for both to separately evaluate individual expenses.

While it’s not important to monitor discretionary income (after necessary expenses) for more than a couple of months, over time this habit will immediately throw up warning signals whenever the tendency to splurge exceeds reasonable limits.

source: www.mydigitalfc.com

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Give and take at Deutsche Bank

Matt Turner
07 Jan 2011

Fresh from being named the top European investment banking fee earner in 2010, Deutsche Bank has claimed another title – top European payer of investment banking fees for the same period.

The German bank, which topped the European investment banking revenue rankings last year with a 7.1% market share, was also the top investment banking fee payer, according to estimates by data provider Dealogic.

The financial institution paid $408m in fees last year, according to Dealogic estimates, much of which was generated via the bank’s $14bn October rights issue.

The Dealogic data includes fees paid for mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt capital markets work and loans. Where fees are not officially disclosed, Dealogic generates estimates.

The figures also include fees that banks pay their own divisions for any advisory or capital raising work. Deutsche Bank acted as a lead manager on its rights issue alongside 19 other lead managers, ensuring a high percentage of the $408m in fees will have been effectively recycled and paid to the bank's own divisions.

German car company Porsche was the second highest European fee payer after spending $171m for investment banking services, while natural resources giant BHP Billiton was third after spending $166m. UK bank Royal Bank of Scotland and Spain’s BBVA completed the top five, while the UK Government was in 10th place following a number of sizeable syndicated debt deals and the November sale of a high-speed rail line.

As Financial News reported yesterday, the biggest fee-payers to investment banks globally last year were institutions that were bailed out by the US government with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG paying a combined total of more than $2bn for investment banking services.

Fannie Mae, the government-backed mortgage provider, topped the global investment banking fee payer rankings, according to Dealogic.

It spent $884m for investment banking services last year, while fellow government-sponsored entity Freddie Mac ranked second after paying $656m in fees. The two entities have received close to $150bn in aid since they were nationalised by the US government in September 2008.

AIG, the US insurance group that was bailed out by the US government in the same month, was the third biggest fee-payer to investment banks. It spent $582m in fees, most of which was derived from the divestment of its Asian arm AIA through an initial public offering in October last year.

-- write to matthew.turner@dowjones.com

source: www.efinancialnews.com

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