Friday Finance Findings for June 18th

Can you believe how low mortgage rates are these days? I was looking yesterday and was shocked to see rates well under 5% in some cases. That’s crazy. I remember last year when we got a 5.25% rate we thought that was pretty good considering our last mortgage was close to 7%, but what can you do? In our case, nothing, but those of you looking to buy a new home or refinance what you currently have are in a great position. Of course, you want to make sure you buy a house for the right reasons and don’t jump into it just because rates are low, but the low rates certainly help.

If you’re in a position like me and already have a home and refinancing isn’t much of an option there’s still a way you can help trim interest off that loan. According to this week’s poll regarding extra mortgage payments, it looks like over half of you are already making those extra payments so you can cut down on the interest owed and shave years off your loan. That’s great news! If you haven’t voted already, take a moment to do so. Otherwise, here are this week’s links.

Will You Get a $250 Medicare Donut Hole Check? – A donut hole? That sounds delicious! Unfortunately, the government isn’t mailing out donuts or even coupons for donuts. This has to do with Medicare, but this could be helpful if you have older parents.

Looking for Job Opportunities Overseas? Rent An Expat – The job market here may not be the best, so more people are looking overseas. But how do you even get started thinking about working in another country? Try renting an expat.

Capital One Aspire World MasterCard Review – If you’re looking for a good credit card you may want to consider the new Capital One Aspire card.

Get Your Car Ready for a Roadtrip – Nothing ruins a vacation more than breaking down along the way. Make sure your car is ready for that summer road trip. Or do like we do and just rent a car for the trip!

Schwab Reduces ETF Fees Again – Schwab does it again and reduces ETF fees even further. If you’ve been considering more ETFs in your portfolio it might be worthwhile to give Schwab a look.

How to Prepare Your House for a Baby – We just went through this last year and now it’s time to do it again in a few months. Having a baby is a big deal, and making sure your house is ready for the change will sure help.

Are You Celebrating the Sex and the City Movie? – No. Are you? I personally can’t stand the show and/or movies, and it looks like Lazy Man is on the same page.

The Dead End of Home Ownership – All this mortgage talk lately probably has people thinking about the dream of owning a home, but sometimes we need a reminder that everything isn’t as great as it seems on the surface. There are a lot of downfalls to owning a home and Steve brings to light a few of them.

Tools to Buy, Tools to Borrow – Every man wants a garage full of tools, but is that really practical? Not at all. It might be nice for impressing your friends, but there are a lot of tools you’re better off renting or borrowing rather than buy. Here’s a good list to get you started.

Turning a Layoff into a Business Opportunity – When you lose your job you can do one of two things: get mad and be negative about it or understand that things happen and try to make something positive out of it. Those who take the positive approach are more likely to turn a layoff into a business opportunity.

Understanding When it’s Right to Invest or Save – Is there ever a right time to begin saving or investing, or is any time the right time?  Jeff Rose, explains what it means to begin saving when the time is right.

What is a Credit Freeze? – You may have heard this term before, but what does it actually mean to have your credit frozen? Is it a good thing? Learn all about it.

Related posts:

1. Friday Finance Findings for February 18th
2. Friday Finance Findings for March 18th
3. Friday Finance Findings for June 4th
4. Friday Finance Findings for June 11th
5. Friday Finance Findings for June 10th