Just a few years ago, borrowers commonly withdrew money from their home equity lines of credit to pay for costly home remodeling projects. Since home values were going up so quickly, many assumed that the granite countertop and spa bathtub would pay for themselves with an increase in equity. Looks like those days are long gone. Home [...] [...more]
Dozens of major banks have frozen home equity lines of credit. Due to the large number of frozen HELOCs, some financial advisers are recommending that homeowners tap their equity before it becomes too late. Not everyone agrees, however. Some more conservative advisers suggest that homeowners wait it out and avoid taking out money prematurely. Conde Nast’s Portfolio.com [...] [...more]
Before the bubble burst, Citicorp spent a whopping billion dollars on it’s “live richly” advertising campaign - encouraging homeowners to tap their equity via HELOCs. The New York Times reports: “The advertising campaign, which cost some $1 billion from 2001 to 2006, urged people to lighten up about money and helped persuade hundreds of thousands of Citi [...] [...more]
As students are preparing for September courses, now is a good time to remind families that the home equity line is not the best source of college tuition funds. BusinessWeek reports that many borrowers are using their home equity loans to pay for school - even if it’s just out of convenience: “A forthcoming survey by student-lending [...] [...more]
Fewer home equity line ads were sent out during the beginning of 2008, most likely due to the declining HELOC market. Market Watch reports: “New data from Mintel Comperemedia shows mortgage and home equity lenders still plagued by faltering home sales, credit woes and consumer anxiety. The direct marketing-tracking firm reports that these lenders have reduced direct [...] [...more]
According to some, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan may have foreseen the current housing crisis - including the current issues with home equity lines of credit. Bloomburg reports: “For homeowners, froth came in the form of home equity. As it was seen as easy “money on the house,” this bubble-inflated bonanza was mostly cashed out. Now [...] [...more]
This week Forbes.com published a list of cities with the fastest declining home equity. They report: “To find the cities which have lost the most home equity in the last year, we used data from Moody’s Economy.com and compared the average amount of home equity in June of 2007 to June 2008 for the 200 biggest [...] [...more]
Even the wealthy have been affected by home equity line of credit freezes this year. Despite a good job and a solid income, many have faced HELOC reductions due to the declining value of property. The Wall Street Journal explains: “Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley added some of its well-heeled clients to the long list of customers [...] [...more]
Thousands of Morgan Stanley HELOC customers received notice that their lines had been reduced or frozen this week, according to sources on the inside. Bloomburg.com explains: “Most of the clients had properties that have lost value, according to the person, who declined to be identified because the information isn’t public. The New York-based investment bank will review [...] [...more]
Before filling out that home equity line application, consider getting rid of your private mortgage insurance (PMI). If you put less than 20% down on your home, chances are the bank charges you PMI every month - fees that could exceed a thousand dollars a year. Most borrowers are able to get rid of PMI during [...] [...more]
