3/2/2023 0 Comments Checkbook pro mortgage![]() You can make a budget for a specific time frame (monthly or annual are the most common). Take how much you expect to earn next month and use the expenditure percentages from step three to estimate what you can spend. You can now set up next month’s budget.For instance, maybe your typical $500 grocery bill jumps to $700 in November and December, or you pay your homeowners insurance premium at the beginning of each year. Estimate how much you’ll spend in different categories each month over the next year.Use last year’s pay stubs as a reference point and adjust as needed (perhaps you recently got a raise or finalized a new business deal). Estimate how much you’ll earn each month over the next year.Variable/discretionary ordinary living expenses (such as food, clothing, household expenses, medical payments, and other items for which your monthly spending tends to fluctuate).Fixed costs (such as housing payments, utility bills, charitable contributions, insurance premiums, and loan payments).Separate your spending categories into main buckets. ![]() (This is an especially useful exercise if you have uneven income.) For instance, let’s say you spent $500 in January on groceries, which was 12% of your household earnings. Note how much you spent in each category every month, as well as what percentage of your monthly income that spending represented. Categorize all of your expenses over the past year.Add up your take-home pay over the past year.Most institutions let you export your transactions as a CSV file that you can open in Google Sheets, Excel, or Numbers. A year’s worth can give you a good sense of how much you tend to spend over a given period of time. Collect all of your bank and credit card statements over the past year.(Ever get hit with a large bill, such as for an auto repair or emergency dental treatment? Those kinds of things can throw your budget off track.) Spreadsheet-based budgets (and some other budgeting tools) prompt you to create a myriad of categories and assign a dollar amount to each one, which is not only overwhelming but also likely to fail. It tracks your spending, revolving bills, savings goals, and earnings history to estimate how much you have left to spend in a given month in any category you want. We recommend Simplifi for most people because it’s a happy medium between the two. ![]() Conversely, zero-balance apps encourage a more hands-on approach, forcing you to account for every dollar you bring in (X amount for savings, Y amount for rent, and so on), but they tend to be idiosyncratic and costly. Tracking apps offer a 30,000-foot view of your finances, display your transactions in real time, and require very little effort to set up. The bottom line is that I obtained a terrific interest rate, I’ll recoup my closing costs in just a couple of months of reduced mortgage payments, and the entire process went without a hitch.There are two basic types of budget apps: trackers ( à la Mint) and zero-balancers. ![]() Robert is always above board regarding closing fees and patient in answering questions. As a lawyer, I’m very picky about reviewing documents and wary of “gotcha” closing fees or commitments. Robert even gave up some of his Maui vacation time to make sure he locked in the best possible terms for me. He and his staff are always available by email and phone, and Robert can be paged if he’s not immediately reachable. Robert knows all the ropes and provides very clear instructions on what documents are required. In the wake of the 2008-09 financial meltdown, banks have become very picky about who they lend to, so there’s no avoiding a mountain of paperwork to obtain or refinance a mortgage. Equally important, Robert made the entire application process nearly painless. Robert not only obtained a fantastic interest rate for me, but also arranged a huge closing cost credit that nearly wiped out our closing costs. As with previous refinancings, I used the services of Robert Askin and his team (Ronta Belle and Carolyn O’Neill) at PRO Mortgage Corp. I just took advantage of historically low mortgage interest rates to refinance my home mortgage. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |