Article Presented by:
Frank Oakerson, All Rights Reserved
Applying for a home mortgage goes well beyond filling out a few forms and awaiting approval for a conventional or jumbo loan. There are mistakes you must avoid when applying for a home mortgage and any one of the ten listed can wreak much havoc, even scuttle the loan. Let's take a look at potential mistakes and how you must avoid them to ensure that your mortgage is approved without a hitch.
1. Getting prequalified, but not pre-approved for a home mortgage. No matter whether you are seeking a home that will be conventionally financed or one requiring a jumbo loan, getting prequalified by a realtor is a waste of everyone's time, while getting pre-approved by a Texas mortgage broker is many times better. Prequalification really does nothing, while pre-approval means that you have a loan in hand. Better yet: get pre-approved and have a letter of approval with you when shopping for a home.
2. Letting credit problems continue unabated. Did you know that you could get free copies of your credit report from each of the three major credit-reporting bureaus? That's right, on an annual basis you can get one free report each from Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union and find out what is on your credit report. If there are errors or things that need improvement, you can address these problems ahead of time. For approximately $5 - $7 you can get your credit score too. The higher your score, the lower home mortgage interest rate will be. You could save hundreds of dollars per year with this little bit of extra knowledge.
3. Too much house, too little money. Perhaps you could get approved for a more expensive home, yet after calculating all of the other expenses in life, you learn that you will be stretching making monthly Texas mortgage payments. Don't jeopardize your future; if you cannot repay your conventional or jumbo loan, your home could be repossessed. Instead, purchase a home within your means.
4. No rate lock for your conventional or jumbo loan. As Texas mortgage rates rise, you can be assured of a low, fixed rate if you lock in the rate. Imagine getting a great rate only to see it get kicked up a half of a percentage point before you close, costing you hundreds of dollars extra per year! The higher rate could even cost you your loan.
5. Excessive closing fees. You may be able to afford monthly Texas mortgage payments, but can you afford the closing fees? If you aren't careful, you could pay thousands of dollars in extra fees before your home mortgage closes. Get a good faith estimate to find out the fees in advance of your closing.
6. No residual funds leftover. After buying a home, do you have enough money on hand to pay for maintenance costs? Utility bills? Other unforeseen expenses? With no cash on hand, you could soon see yourself running up big credit card fees to pay for expenses.
7. Not using a professional inspector. In some jurisdictions, using a home inspector isn't required. While tempting to not rely upon the services of a trained professional, you may miss an important structural problem and have little or no recourse at closing. Ultimately, by not using a professional inspector it could be one of the costliest mistakes that you make.
8. Waiting on home insurance. Before you can close on your home, you must have a home insurance policy in place. Don't wait until the last minute to get insurance as you could run into delays that may push back the closing date of your home.
9. Signing documents without reading them. Don't assume that the verbal agreements you made are the same as the written agreement you sign. If a problem arises, the written agreement will trump the verbal agreement, no matter how well intentioned either of the parties may have been.
10. Relying on a set closing date. Life happens and closing dates can shift. If you are renting and seeking to move on the same day that your home mortgage close, you could find yourself homeless if the closing date shifts. Build in a buffer of several days to a week to protect yourself.
There are other deadly mistakes that can occur after you have already moved into your home. Chief amongst them is bad mortgage refinancing where owners leap for a lower rate without calculating the closing costs. You may find yourself eligible for mortgage refinancing but learn too late that with all of the closing costs added in, your savings could be wiped out. Better to make certain that your mortgage refinancing plans are checked by an accountant specializing in mortgage refinancing options before agreeing to a new loan.
If you are looking for additional articles on mortgage and real estate for your web site or your newsletter, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Free-Reprint-Articles for the best selection.
About the Author:
Frank Oakerson is a licensed loan officer #56753 in the state of Texas. I am available to assist you in purchasing your first home, bad credit mortgage, FHA Loan, VA Loan, you name it. At YourMortgage123.com you will find a number of informative articles, mortgage calculators, info on VA loans, mortgage refinancing, stop my foreclosure, and getting pre-approved. Stop by and let me get started on a Texas mortgage for your property today. I have all of the information and tools you need to make your home buying dreams a reality. http://www.yourmortgage123.com
7.14.2006
Buying Guide and Tips To Get More Life Out Of Your Clothes Dryer
Article Presented by:
Emerson Lockwood
Buying a clothes dryer for your home is a fairly simple decision process. Once you have read this report, your buying decision might even be a bit easier.
Four manufacturers produce the clothes dryers that account for 80% of dryer sales in America. Those four primary brands are: GE, Maytag, Kenmore (a Sears brand), and Whirlpool.
There are other generic brand names that are sold in the marketplace, and most of those are subsidiaries of the major manufacturing companies. Maytag makes Amana. Electrolux makes Frigidaire, Westinghouse, and White-Westinghouse appliances. GE makes Hotpoint. And, both KitchenAid and Roper are made by Whirlpool.
There are really only five choices to make when choosing your next clothes dryer:
1. Size of Tub
2. Gas or Electric
3. Thermostat or Moisture Sensor Shutoff
4. Quiet Dry
5. Other Gadgets
SIZE OF TUB
There are three basic size designations in washers and dryers. There is Extra Large Capacity, Super Capacity and Super Capacity Plus, or a variation thereof. The actual volume difference between each of these size designations is really quite small on the grand scheme of things. Usually, we are talking an extra pair or two of blue jeans for each size increase.
When selecting the size capacity of a machine, it might be all right (though not recommended) to mix up your machine purchases, but you do not want to have your dryer size smaller than your washer size. It would be a real pain to fill your washer, wash your clothes, and then not be able to get all of your clothes into the dryer!
If there are one or two people in your household, then the Extra Large Capacity could make sense. But, if you have a house full of children, you should go ahead and spend the extra money to get a larger-sized machine. If your wife has one of the smaller machines, she will certainly have to run more loads in order to wash everyone's laundry.
Generally, if you have four people in your home, you will have to do two extra loads of laundry using the Extra Large Capacity, instead of the Super Capacity Plus machine. More loads of laundry equates to more water usage, more heating fuel usage (electric or gas), and a grumpier wife, since she spends an extra two to three hours a week doing laundry. That $80-$120 you are saving now, may cost you well over that amount over the life of your washer and dryer.
GAS OR ELECTRIC
The person who built your house usually makes the gas or electric decision for you, whether you like it or not. Most homes have either a 240-volt plug or a gas connector in the laundry room. Few, if any, builders put in both options.
If your home is equipped with the 240-volt plug, I highly recommend that you look to see if your plug is a three- or four-prong plug, prior to going to the store. Appliance manufacturers sell the actual dryer cords separate from the dryer. So, the retailer will ask you which plug you need with your machine.
If you want to save the ten dollars or so, you can use the dryer cord that is on the clothes dryer you are replacing. If the dryer cord that is currently on your machine is flimsy or brittle, I would strongly suggest buying the new cord. To do otherwise leaves your home vulnerable to a fire hazard.
If you have the choice between gas and electricity for your clothes dryer, gas machines will generally run another $50 or so. If you have to change your laundry configuration from gas to electric, you may very well spend that much on the electrician alone. Additionally, it is a well-known fact that gas dryers use less energy than electric dryers. So, over the long haul, your gas dryer will be more economical than your electric dryer --- even Consumer Reports recommends that you buy the gas dryer for this very reason.
THERMOSTAT OR MOISTURE SENSOR SHUTOFF
Thermostat controlled dryers are the dryers that only give you an option for timed drying.
More expensive dryers give you the option for timed drying or Moisture Sensor Shutoffs. Each manufacturer describes the Moisture Sensor Shutoff in different ways. Whirlpool calls it AccuDry. Some manufacturers refer to it as Energy Saver. Whatever they call it, the concept is the same. It has a moisture-sensor in the tub, and when the humidity level drops below a certain level, the machine will decide that the clothes are dry, and the dryer will shut off on its own.
Consumer Reports deems this an essential feature on any dryer that you might buy. The reasons are many:
1. Overdrying can damage or shrink fabrics, and moisture sensors will minimize this risk.
2. By shutting itself off when the clothes are done drying, you are no longer forced to waste gas or electricity drying "already dry" fabrics.
3. By running the dryer for a shorter period of time, you can wash more clothes in less time. Your wife will thank you.
QUIET DRY
Some machines have an extra quiet motor. It made a big difference in my home, since our laundry room is less than twenty feet from our living room. With our old, cheap dryer, we would need to turn our television up, if we were running laundry while we were in the living room. Just the very experience of drying clothes was enough to give me a headache. With our new quiet dry machine, we are not even aware that the dryer is running, until the buzzer goes off telling us that it is done. Awesome.
OTHER GADGETS
Clothes dryers cannot really get that technical. The additional options that are available on some machines are: heat level and special fabric settings. Really, they are the same thing, but the fabric settings take a lot of the guesswork out of figuring out what temperature you can run for each your fabric types.
Some machines have a buzzer to let you know when the dryer is finished. This one is nice sometimes, especially if you are trying to do as much laundry as you can in a short time span.
Lights inside the drum are a nice addition, though not always necessary.
TIPS TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF YOUR DRYER
Keeping good airflow in your machine is the one, essential step you can take to get the most life out of your clothes dryer. There are several factors that can affect airflow, and we will cover those factors here.
Any reduction in airflow creates several problems.
1. A clogged dryer is less efficient and uses more gas or electric to dry clothes.
2. It puts additional wear-and-tear on the machine's motor.
3. And, most importantly, it creates a fire hazard.
EXHAUST VENTILATION:
All of the manufacturers and Consumer Reports recommend using either rigid or flexible metal ducting for exhaust ventilation tubing. They strongly recommend against using the plastic or foil exhaust ventilation tubes. The reasons are many.
1. They are notorious collectors of lint, and can get clogged easily.
2. The can be stepped on and crushed, preventing good airflow.
3. They can sag, also preventing proper airflow.
4. They can easily be torn and damaged.
Anytime the ventilation tube gets clogged or blocked, it can force lint to back up into your dryer causing additional blockages.
Even with metal ducting, you should clean out your ventilation tube once a year.
LINT FILTER:
Some appliance manufacturers put the lint filter in the door, while others put it on top of the machine. For ease of cleaning, it is a matter of personal preference.
It is very important that you should clean your lint filter between each use. If you fail to clean it between each load, you run the risk of having the lint fall back into the internal components of the machine.
Any accumulations of lint are always a fire hazard.
Excess lint in your dryer can ignite and catch fire. This could easily destroy your dryer, and very possibly catch your house on fire.
In fact, the Wall Street Journal suggested that dryer lint is the perfect companion for camping or hiking trips, since it is light and easy-to-carry, and it makes excellent kindling for your campfire.
For more fire prevention and safety tips in connection with your clothes dryer, visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission website at: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/5022.html
THE ODD AND UNKNOWN BYPRODUCT OF DRYER SHEETS:
If you use dryer sheets when you dry your clothes, then you need to pay special attention to this tip.
Dryer sheets can reduce static and add a nice scent to your laundry, because they have chemicals in them. What few people realize is that these chemicals are released from the dryer sheet when they are heated, and they fill the hot air inside of your dryer.
As the machine is running, and after the cycle is finished, these chemicals settle on the various components inside your dryer, including the lint filters. After a period of time, these chemicals can create a clear, unseen barrier to your dryer's airflow.
Test this idea. Pull your lint filter from your machine and run it under water. Where the water pools and does not flow through, those chemicals have created an impenetrable barrier to your dryer's airflow.
Every few months, you should wash out your lint filter using soap, water and a sponge, to keep airflow at its optimum.
IN CONCLUSION...
Finding the right clothes dryer, for your own needs, does not have to be a difficult process. With a little knowledge, you can make a good decision. I hope this report has given you the information that you will need to make your decision easier.
Using the additional tips provided in this report, you should be able to keep your utility bills lower and to extend the life of your clothes dryers by another several years. If you take good care of your clothes dryer, your clothes dryer will take really good care of you for many years to come.
About the Author:
Emerson Lockwood specializes in Home Technology, Home Improvement and Home Financing topics. See more of his work at the Super Home Ideas website: http://www.SuperHomeIdeas.com .
You may co-brand and customize this report, and then print it out for your home appliance customers. The only requirement under the co-branding option is that you keep our URL in the advertisement at the end of this report:
This information is provided, courtesy of "Your Company" and http://www.SuperHomeIdeas.com . Written by: Emerson Lockwood.
Emerson Lockwood
Buying a clothes dryer for your home is a fairly simple decision process. Once you have read this report, your buying decision might even be a bit easier.
Four manufacturers produce the clothes dryers that account for 80% of dryer sales in America. Those four primary brands are: GE, Maytag, Kenmore (a Sears brand), and Whirlpool.
There are other generic brand names that are sold in the marketplace, and most of those are subsidiaries of the major manufacturing companies. Maytag makes Amana. Electrolux makes Frigidaire, Westinghouse, and White-Westinghouse appliances. GE makes Hotpoint. And, both KitchenAid and Roper are made by Whirlpool.
There are really only five choices to make when choosing your next clothes dryer:
1. Size of Tub
2. Gas or Electric
3. Thermostat or Moisture Sensor Shutoff
4. Quiet Dry
5. Other Gadgets
SIZE OF TUB
There are three basic size designations in washers and dryers. There is Extra Large Capacity, Super Capacity and Super Capacity Plus, or a variation thereof. The actual volume difference between each of these size designations is really quite small on the grand scheme of things. Usually, we are talking an extra pair or two of blue jeans for each size increase.
When selecting the size capacity of a machine, it might be all right (though not recommended) to mix up your machine purchases, but you do not want to have your dryer size smaller than your washer size. It would be a real pain to fill your washer, wash your clothes, and then not be able to get all of your clothes into the dryer!
If there are one or two people in your household, then the Extra Large Capacity could make sense. But, if you have a house full of children, you should go ahead and spend the extra money to get a larger-sized machine. If your wife has one of the smaller machines, she will certainly have to run more loads in order to wash everyone's laundry.
Generally, if you have four people in your home, you will have to do two extra loads of laundry using the Extra Large Capacity, instead of the Super Capacity Plus machine. More loads of laundry equates to more water usage, more heating fuel usage (electric or gas), and a grumpier wife, since she spends an extra two to three hours a week doing laundry. That $80-$120 you are saving now, may cost you well over that amount over the life of your washer and dryer.
GAS OR ELECTRIC
The person who built your house usually makes the gas or electric decision for you, whether you like it or not. Most homes have either a 240-volt plug or a gas connector in the laundry room. Few, if any, builders put in both options.
If your home is equipped with the 240-volt plug, I highly recommend that you look to see if your plug is a three- or four-prong plug, prior to going to the store. Appliance manufacturers sell the actual dryer cords separate from the dryer. So, the retailer will ask you which plug you need with your machine.
If you want to save the ten dollars or so, you can use the dryer cord that is on the clothes dryer you are replacing. If the dryer cord that is currently on your machine is flimsy or brittle, I would strongly suggest buying the new cord. To do otherwise leaves your home vulnerable to a fire hazard.
If you have the choice between gas and electricity for your clothes dryer, gas machines will generally run another $50 or so. If you have to change your laundry configuration from gas to electric, you may very well spend that much on the electrician alone. Additionally, it is a well-known fact that gas dryers use less energy than electric dryers. So, over the long haul, your gas dryer will be more economical than your electric dryer --- even Consumer Reports recommends that you buy the gas dryer for this very reason.
THERMOSTAT OR MOISTURE SENSOR SHUTOFF
Thermostat controlled dryers are the dryers that only give you an option for timed drying.
More expensive dryers give you the option for timed drying or Moisture Sensor Shutoffs. Each manufacturer describes the Moisture Sensor Shutoff in different ways. Whirlpool calls it AccuDry. Some manufacturers refer to it as Energy Saver. Whatever they call it, the concept is the same. It has a moisture-sensor in the tub, and when the humidity level drops below a certain level, the machine will decide that the clothes are dry, and the dryer will shut off on its own.
Consumer Reports deems this an essential feature on any dryer that you might buy. The reasons are many:
1. Overdrying can damage or shrink fabrics, and moisture sensors will minimize this risk.
2. By shutting itself off when the clothes are done drying, you are no longer forced to waste gas or electricity drying "already dry" fabrics.
3. By running the dryer for a shorter period of time, you can wash more clothes in less time. Your wife will thank you.
QUIET DRY
Some machines have an extra quiet motor. It made a big difference in my home, since our laundry room is less than twenty feet from our living room. With our old, cheap dryer, we would need to turn our television up, if we were running laundry while we were in the living room. Just the very experience of drying clothes was enough to give me a headache. With our new quiet dry machine, we are not even aware that the dryer is running, until the buzzer goes off telling us that it is done. Awesome.
OTHER GADGETS
Clothes dryers cannot really get that technical. The additional options that are available on some machines are: heat level and special fabric settings. Really, they are the same thing, but the fabric settings take a lot of the guesswork out of figuring out what temperature you can run for each your fabric types.
Some machines have a buzzer to let you know when the dryer is finished. This one is nice sometimes, especially if you are trying to do as much laundry as you can in a short time span.
Lights inside the drum are a nice addition, though not always necessary.
TIPS TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF YOUR DRYER
Keeping good airflow in your machine is the one, essential step you can take to get the most life out of your clothes dryer. There are several factors that can affect airflow, and we will cover those factors here.
Any reduction in airflow creates several problems.
1. A clogged dryer is less efficient and uses more gas or electric to dry clothes.
2. It puts additional wear-and-tear on the machine's motor.
3. And, most importantly, it creates a fire hazard.
EXHAUST VENTILATION:
All of the manufacturers and Consumer Reports recommend using either rigid or flexible metal ducting for exhaust ventilation tubing. They strongly recommend against using the plastic or foil exhaust ventilation tubes. The reasons are many.
1. They are notorious collectors of lint, and can get clogged easily.
2. The can be stepped on and crushed, preventing good airflow.
3. They can sag, also preventing proper airflow.
4. They can easily be torn and damaged.
Anytime the ventilation tube gets clogged or blocked, it can force lint to back up into your dryer causing additional blockages.
Even with metal ducting, you should clean out your ventilation tube once a year.
LINT FILTER:
Some appliance manufacturers put the lint filter in the door, while others put it on top of the machine. For ease of cleaning, it is a matter of personal preference.
It is very important that you should clean your lint filter between each use. If you fail to clean it between each load, you run the risk of having the lint fall back into the internal components of the machine.
Any accumulations of lint are always a fire hazard.
Excess lint in your dryer can ignite and catch fire. This could easily destroy your dryer, and very possibly catch your house on fire.
In fact, the Wall Street Journal suggested that dryer lint is the perfect companion for camping or hiking trips, since it is light and easy-to-carry, and it makes excellent kindling for your campfire.
For more fire prevention and safety tips in connection with your clothes dryer, visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission website at: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/5022.html
THE ODD AND UNKNOWN BYPRODUCT OF DRYER SHEETS:
If you use dryer sheets when you dry your clothes, then you need to pay special attention to this tip.
Dryer sheets can reduce static and add a nice scent to your laundry, because they have chemicals in them. What few people realize is that these chemicals are released from the dryer sheet when they are heated, and they fill the hot air inside of your dryer.
As the machine is running, and after the cycle is finished, these chemicals settle on the various components inside your dryer, including the lint filters. After a period of time, these chemicals can create a clear, unseen barrier to your dryer's airflow.
Test this idea. Pull your lint filter from your machine and run it under water. Where the water pools and does not flow through, those chemicals have created an impenetrable barrier to your dryer's airflow.
Every few months, you should wash out your lint filter using soap, water and a sponge, to keep airflow at its optimum.
IN CONCLUSION...
Finding the right clothes dryer, for your own needs, does not have to be a difficult process. With a little knowledge, you can make a good decision. I hope this report has given you the information that you will need to make your decision easier.
Using the additional tips provided in this report, you should be able to keep your utility bills lower and to extend the life of your clothes dryers by another several years. If you take good care of your clothes dryer, your clothes dryer will take really good care of you for many years to come.
About the Author:
Emerson Lockwood specializes in Home Technology, Home Improvement and Home Financing topics. See more of his work at the Super Home Ideas website: http://www.SuperHomeIdeas.com .
You may co-brand and customize this report, and then print it out for your home appliance customers. The only requirement under the co-branding option is that you keep our URL in the advertisement at the end of this report:
This information is provided, courtesy of "Your Company" and http://www.SuperHomeIdeas.com . Written by: Emerson Lockwood.
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