Month: February 2023
5 Ways to Put the Brakes on Expensive Auto Maintenance
Whether youâre hitting the open road this summer or looking to maximize the life of your vehicle, here are five ways to keep your car and wallet running smoothly. Comparison shop Finding a local garage or car repair shop you can count on is about as important as finding a doctor you can trust. Do
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The Best Free Antivirus Software Programs
How to evaluate mutual funds to boost your returns
I’m a bit of a nut about Christmas; I even have a daughter named Noelle. So this time of year can be a bit of downer for me. The tree gets disassembled, the Bing Crosby CDs get packed away, and the holiday cards stop coming. Regarding that last one, however, the void in my mailbox will soon be filled by a different type of tiding — in the form of annual statements from my investment accounts.
OK, so they’re not as jolly as cards with pictures of friends and relatives. But using your year-end statements to give your portfolio a thorough checkup can pay off, especially if you discover ways to increase your chances at higher returns. To see the potential benefit, check out this table, which shows how much $10,000 could amount to, given different rates of return and time periods. As you can see, earning another two percentage points a year can add thousands of dollars to your net worth.
Annual Return | 5 years | 10 years | 15 years | 20 years |
6% | $13,382 | $17,908 | $23,966 | $32,071 |
8% | $14,693 | $21,589 | $31,722 | $46,696 |
10% | $16,105 | $25,937 | $41,772 | $67,275 |
Alas, you can’t just snap your fingers and pump up your returns. Most investments involve taking on risk, which many people think of as volatility — the ups and downs you’ll experience — but I prefer to think of it as uncertainty, as in you generally don’t know exactly how an investment will perform, which can make things like retirement planning a bit of a challenge.
Monterey County, California VA Home Loan Information
Table of Contents What is the VA Loan Limit? How to Apply for a VA Home Loan? What is the Median Home Price? What are the VA Appraisal Fees? Do I need Flood Insurance? How do I learn about Property Taxes? What is the Population? What are the major cities? About Monterey County Veteran Information […]
The post Monterey County, California VA Home Loan Information appeared first on VA Home Loan Centers.
Dinner ideas — cooking “flexipe” style to save money
I’ve been cooking for years. Although, if you ask my husband, I’ve been screwing up fried eggs for just as long. (His secret: Fry them on low to avoid cooking the egg too quickly.) So I am no genius in the kitchen, but I am getting better.
Flexible Cooking
I used to follow recipes exactly, afraid to deviate at all. (Didn’t have all the ingredients? Find another recipe!) But then I discovered a recipe in a cookbook that had the same basic ingredients (meat, pasta, diced tomatoes), but the recipe authors gave suggestions on how to use different spices (chili powder or Italian seasoning) and cheeses (mozzarella vs. sharp cheddar) to totally change the taste of the dish.
Since then, I have been trying my hand at doing a little kitchen experimentation. And I came up with “Flexipes” or flexible recipes. (Uh, at least I thought I coined the phrase. I guess not.) Flexipes are recipes that allow you the flexibility to create delicious, delicious dishes while using up what you have in your pantry.
APR vs Interest Rate On A Loan: Explore The Differences
What you pay to borrow money goes beyond your interest rate. By knowing what APR on a mortgage means, you can get a better understanding of the total cost of your mortgage.
The post APR vs Interest Rate On A Loan: Explore The Differences first appeared on Total Mortgage.
An Education in College Savings
September is not only time to go back to school, itâs National College Savings Month making it the perfect time to think ahead and take steps toward saving for the kidsâ college education. After all, tuition, which has increased faster than the rate of inflation for decades now, is among one the biggest expenses families
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Freddie Mac profits wane with cooling housing demand
Freddie Mac’s net income last year fell almost a quarter compared to 2021’s earnings as the government-sponsored enterprise reckoned with the market’s slowdown and a forecast of diminishing home valuations. The GSE reported Wednesday $9.3 billion in net income and $9 billion in comprehensive income in 2022, both representing 23% dips from the year prior. … [Read more…]
Mortgage Rates Surging Back Toward 7%
On November 9th, 2022, the average lender was quoting 30yr fixed rates well over 7%. On day later, that figure dropped to 6.625%. It was one of the best individual days for rates on record and it was driven by an economic report that showed an unexpectedly large drop in inflation. Inflation and several other key sectors of the economy had pushed the Federal Reserve to hike rates at the fastest pace in decades. When it looked like the data might provide some relief, rates quickly moderated. Strangely (or so it seemed at the time), the Fed was highly reluctant to read too much into several months of generally more palatable data. They said it was too soon to draw any conclusions other than “it’s a start.” With that, markets hesitated to push longer term rates any lower until the data made an even stronger case of that. Unfortunately, the data since then has made a case for rates to turn around and head right back up toward previous highs. February has been particularly brutal in that regard and today was just the latest example. In fact, today’s reports aren’t typically regarded as top tier motivations for rate movement, but the market is so defensive to begin with that it doesn’t take much of a bump to create a snowball of momentum. The average 30yr fixed quote for a top tier scenario was around 6.75% on Friday and was up to 6.87% by Tuesday afternoon. More than a few lenders are already back to 7%.