How to Make the Most From Refinancing

For most homeowners, mortgage payments dwarf all other living expenses. When an opportunity comes to reduce those payments, many jump at it. Some homeowners, however, jump a little too quickly. When you’re bombarded by ads from mortgage lenders day after day, it’s easy to understand why.

[ 0 comments ]

How Much Home Can You Afford?

Taking out a mortgage is probably the biggest hassle facing prospective homeowners. The bank asks you all sorts of nosy questions about your income and savings, and after you’ve poured your heart out and shared all your money secrets, they might not even lend you as much as you need. The nerve!

[ 1 comment ]

60-Second Guide to Budgeting

Do you get hot sweats, a cold fever, a nervous stomach, or something worse when you peer into your checking account on Tuesday and find it empty — then realize that payday isn’t until Friday?
You’re suffering from Paycheck-to-Paycheck Syndrome, a malady that can affect anyone who regularly runs short of money in the bank [...]

[ 0 comments ]

60-Second Guide to Managing your Mortgage

For most homeowners, your mortgage payment is by far your biggest monthly expense. So we think it’s completely justifiable to spend 60 seconds reviewing it. In fact, don’t be surprised if this brief exercise does wonders for your budget. Let’s take a look under the hood and see whether we can find you some savings.

[ 0 comments ]

Get it Done: Boost Your Credit Score in Months

You’re so much more than just a number to us. Still, a lot of folks — from your lender to your landlord to your insurer to your employer — define your character by the three-digit score that reflects what’s in your credit file.

[ 0 comments ]

Don’t Cancel That Credit Card!

Unless your idea of “streamlined” finances is having eight credit cards in your wallet (that’s about how many the average card-carrying U.S. citizen hauls around), you’ve probably considered canceling some of credit cards you don’t use often.

[ 0 comments ]

9 Ways to Pay Off Debt

You can throw the reminders in the Cuisinart or chuck them into a garbage can, but that won’t make the debt go away. Debt hovers like a carrion bird over a dying beast, with annual rates of 20% or more compounded monthly, month in and month out.

[ 0 comments ]

60-Second Guide to Perfect Credit

About 1% of the population has perfect credit, meaning a FICO score of 850 on Fair Isaac Corp.’s scale of 300 to 850. How they earned those gold stars is no secret. A quick peek into their credit files reveals that these star pupils haven’t got any fancy tricks up their sleeves.

[ 0 comments ]

Get it Done: Disaster-Proof Your Finances

Keeping a well-organized budget is a lot like flossing your teeth. You know you should do it, and you have the best of intentions, but you just never seem to get it done.

[ 0 comments ]

60-Second Guide to College Savings Strategies

You may have heard that Mint.com has gone into partnership with The Motley Fool to provide you outstanding personal finance information and advice. On the topic of getting out of debt, we at Mint have shared our perspective on getting out of debt, based on these three personal finance principles: spend less than [...]

[ 0 comments ]

« Previous Entries

Next Entries »