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[ad_1] The post What is a Mortgage Prequalification Letter? appeared first on Millennial Money. Picture this: It’s Saturday, you’re out shopping for a house, and all of a sudden, you stumble upon your dream home. You have to have it.  But are you ready to make an offer?  If you want a shot at closing on the house of your dreams, you’ll need to have a prequalification letter from a mortgage lender. This post explores what a prequalification letter is and how to get one.  Prequalification Letters: Everything You Need to Know Before we jump into our step-by-step instructions for getting a prequalification letter, it’s important that you know what prequalification is and whether or not you actually need it. What is prequalification? Prequalification is an initial screening done by a lender to determine that your basic financial information checks out. It’s a preliminary estimate that you’re someone a mortgage lender would consider lending to.  Suppose you’re interested in a new condo for $300,000 and have approximately 20% of the price saved as a down payment. During the prequalification screening, a lender will review your income, debt, and existing assets to calculate if you qualify for a mortgage loan of around $250,000. If you pass the test, the lender will issue a prequalification letter, which you can then present to your real estate agent (or the seller’s). Realtors prefer buyers have a prequalification letter because it indicates the buyer is actually qualified to be shopping at a given price point. This is especially important in a competitive market, where several serious buyers might be interested in a single property. Prequalification typically doesn’t cost anything, and the entire process only takes a few minutes to complete. You may even hear back from the lender that same day. Another important aspect of a prequalification letter is that it typically indicates the interest rate you might qualify for on your mortgage. Again, it’s not an official loan offer—just a basic indicator that you’re clear to move on to the next phase of the borrowing process, which is preapproval.  Are prequalification letters mandatory? You don’t have to get prequalified for a mortgage, but it’s recommended. It’s like getting VIP access to a concert or club. The bank is saying “you’re cool,” and letting you bypass the line.  It also shows your realtor and the seller that you’re a serious buyer, which can increase your chances of getting your offer approved.   How to Get a Prequalification Letter Here’s a simple six-step guide to show you how to get a prequalification letter and what happens afterward. Find a lender Gather your basic financial documents Go through the application process Wait for a response Get preapproved Underwriting 1. Find a lender  The first step is finding a lender. Chances are your realtor has someone they can recommend, so you may want to start by asking for a recommendation.  You don’t have to go overboard researching the lender. As long as the firm is well-established and recommended by your peers, you’re safe. Learn More: Best Mortgage Lenders of 2021 2. Gather your basic financial documents  Next, you have to provide some basic details like your income, debt, and assets. You may need to submit last year’s tax returns, pay stubs, or bank statements.  You’ll want to gather these documents early in the home-buying process anyway. There are a ton of documents you’ll need to submit as you move along, so the more organized you are upfront, the smoother things will go. Another thing to keep in mind: the prequalification is only a preliminary estimate. Your lender is probably not going to take the time to manually verify the authenticity of each document you submit until you move on to preapproval.  With that said, make sure you’re as honest and accurate as possible with the data you provide. If there’s an error in your income or savings amounts, for example, this could significantly hinder your loan application.  3. Go through the application process Lenders today let applicants apply either in person, online, or over the phone. Check with your lender ask about their process, then proceed with the option that makes sense for you.  4. Wait for a response  After you complete the prequalification process, wait for a response from the lender. It should come back the same day, and some lenders may even offer rapid-response prequalification. 5. Get preapproved  If you’re ready to move forward with making an offer, the next step is mortgage preapproval, which involves a more rigorous inspection of your finances.  Instead of just plugging in numbers, the bank will request a credit report (which requires a hard credit inquiry) and thoroughly investigate the information you disclosed during prequalification.  Here’s where it helps to have a good credit score and a low debt-to-income ratio. Also, keep in mind that some lenders charge an application fee at this stage, while others waive it or just apply the fee as a credit toward closing costs. Learn More: What Do You Need to Get a Mortgage 6. Underwriting If you receive preapproval, congrats! You’re almost there. The final step is getting your application approved by a mortgage underwriter. Learn More: How to Get Approved for a Home Loan What to Know Before You Get a Mortgage How to Shop for a Mortgage Key Factors Lenders Review During Prequalification  Here’s a breakdown of what a lender looks at when determining the home loan terms for which you prequalify. Credit score  One of the biggest factors a lender considers when issuing a prequalification letter is your credit score.  Your credit score is a current snapshot of your borrowing history, and it’s based on your overall credit history stretching back to the first bank account you ever opened. Credit scores can vary depending on which credit bureau issues the score. Each bureau (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) has its own method of evaluating a borrower’s creditworthiness. Scores can range from 300 to 629 (bad), 630 to 689 (fair), 690 to 719

[ad_1] This girl brings so much sunshine and smiles to our life! We spent a few hours recently renewing our CPR certification for foster care. I’ve been finding lots of marked down bananas recently, so we freeze them and then make green smoothies with them (frozen banana, milk, greens, and peanut butter). So good! She’s such a little mama to Baby D. One of my single mom friends had appendicitis and I found out that she was at the hospital all by herself, so I dropped everything to spend the day at the hospital with her when she had her surgery. Single moms are incredible… and they often are not good at asking for help, but they can often feel really alone. If you know a single mom in your life, how can you show up and let her know she is loved and not alone today? I wrote this on Instagram recently: I sat next to her at a Christmas brunch a year and a half ago. We laughed about our kids and funny motherhood stories. She updated me on her current cancer treatments. I shared where we were at in our foster care journey. We said goodbye at the end of the brunch… and I had no idea that would be the last time I would ever see her on this earth (she passed away shortly after that brunch). I’ve thought a lot about what I would have said had I known it would be my last time to ever talk with her. And it’s made me change the way I’ve approached life from here on out. In fact, I often think now: If this were my last conversation with this person, what would I want to make sure that I told them? And then I try to actually speak those words regularly to tell them I love them, to tell them how much I appreciate them, to tell them how their life is impacting mine. It costs zero dollars; but it just might completely change someone’s world for us to speak life and love out loud to them! She’s so proud of the fact that she’s learning how to walk in her new shoes (it took her a number of tries and falls, but she finally got it!) This is a perfect picture of what a lot of my evenings look like right now. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world! I’m in this weird season of having both teenagers and a toddler. (Plus a pre-teen and a baby!) We’re still remembering how to navigate diapers, nursing, teething, naps, baby-led weaning, and learning to walk and talk while also forging into the whole new world of a teen who is driving all over now, just got a new job, and is talking about college prep, ACT prep, college scholarships, and dual credit. The mail came and in it was a flier “for your new baby” (Baby D), a copy of The Little Engine That Could (from the Dolly Parton Imagination Library), and more college brochures. I just had to laugh! This is our life — toggling from car seats and poopy diapers to job applications and late night talks about college, friends, boys, and the future. It’s exhausting and exhilarating all at once. And when I see these two together and the sweet relationship they have despite a 15+ year age difference, my heart is so full! Guess who got to come for a visit?? Our sweet little Champ. Oh how we love this boy! (If you’re new here, we fostered him for 8 months last year and then he reunified with his mama.) These two always get SO excited to see one another. We brought both of them home from the hospital within 4 weeks of each other, so they have a sort of twin-like relationship and it’s the cutest! They worked on organizing the kitchen drawers for me. “I love having teenagers!” I said this to a young mom recently who told me how she gets so discouraged with people telling her, “Just enjoy these years when they are young because it’s not going to be fun when they are teens.” She sighed and said to me, “I wish people would stop declaring such negativity over my kids’ futures!” I couldn’t “Amen” her statement fast enough! And I loved getting to share with her how much I love having teens. Sure, we have hard moments and days. Sure, there are hormones and disagreements. But overall, I just love having teenagers! I love our deep discussions and our silly inside jokes. I love watching them spread their wings and stick their necks out. I love learning from their perspectives and having them teach me how to use electronics and play video games (I’m working on learning to play Rocket League right now and I’m terrible at it, but I’m having a blast trying to figure it out!) One of the best parts of having teens is that our home has a constant influx of other teens coming over to hang out. I want to claim all of them as my own — and I love hearing their boisterous laughter filling our home, can’t get enough of our late-night discussions, and my heart is so happy watching friendships develop and deepen as they consume way too much junk food together. (What’s with all teens seeming to love Spicy Doritos, Takis, Sour Candy, and Oreos?? I see the combos of food they will have laid out and be plowing through and I just cringe at thinking of how I would feel to have all of that combined in my own stomach!) Young moms: don’t let anyone tell you that the teen years are going to be this awful, horrific time! Yes, you will need Jesus like never before, but instead of dreading it, I encourage you to look forward to it! Practice staying up late, get used to lots of opening up your hands and letting

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[ad_1] The post Workhorse Stock Climbs on Plan to Challenge USPS Loss appeared first on Millennial Money. Shares of electric vehicle (EV) startup Workhorse Group (NASDAQ: WKHS) were decimated earlier this year after the United States Postal Service awarded a massive contract worth billions of dollars to Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK). Workhorse shares lost nearly half of their value in February, as investors had high hopes that the company would clinch the deal to provide electric delivery vehicles. In the months since, Workhorse has been requesting additional information around the decision in order to mount a legal challenge. The company is now reportedly preparing to move forward. The stock rallied as much as 13% on Wednesday, but pared some of those gains down and was up just 5% as of 1 p.m. EDT. Turning to the courts Reuters reports that Workhorse is about to formally file a legal challenge contesting the decision. The contract that was awarded to Oshkosh is estimated to be worth around $6 billion, with Oshkosh providing 50,000 to 165,000 vehicles to the USPS over the course of 10 years. Not all of those delivery vans will be EVs, with some being traditional internal combustion vehicles. The deal is part of the Biden administration’s efforts to modernize the federal government’s vehicle fleet while incorporating more EVs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change. The contract includes an initial investment of $482 million for Oshkosh to develop and design a Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV). That money will help fund the capital expenditures necessary to retool manufacturing facilities. The USPS operates a national fleet of over 230,000 vehicles across several vehicle classes. The agency hopes to deploy NGDVs as soon as 2023. Workhorse provided investors with an update in March, saying it had requested additional information around the bidding process while meeting with USPS representatives to discuss confidential details.  “Yesterday’s meeting with the USPS marked the first step in what we expect may be a prolonged process to explore our options and possibly pursue further action related to our NGDV bid,” Workhorse CEO Duane Hughes said in a statement at the time. “We will continue to follow the proper due course procedures as defined by the USPS and will also look to other options available to us.” Pick Like A Pro Where to invest $500 right now Lots of new investors take chances on long shots instead of buying shares of great companies. I prefer businesses like Amazon, Netflix, and Apple — they’re all on my best stocks for beginners list. There’s a company that “called” these businesses long before they hit it big. They first recommended Netflix in 2004 at $1.85 per share, Amazon in 2002 at $15.31 per share, and Apple back in the iPod Shuffle era at $4.97 per share. Take a look where they are now. That company: The Motley Fool. For people ready to make investing part of their strategy for financial freedom, take a look at The Motley Fool’s flagship investing service, Stock Advisor. They just announced their top 10 “best buys now” across the entire stock market. Whether you’re starting with $100, $500, or more, you should check out the full details. Email Address Continue Also opt-in to receive Millennial Money! It’s our newsletter devoted to helping you achieve financial freedom. That means you’ll receive new stock ideas, our favorite side hustles, and much more every single week! By submitting your email address, you consent to us keeping you informed about updates to our website and about other products and services that we think might interest you. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please read our Privacy Statement and Terms & Conditions. Click here to learn more .tmfsa-text-widget .ecap-widget { padding: 0 !important; border-left: 0 !important; } The contract would be a game-changer for Workhorse Workhorse went public over a decade ago, well before the recent boom of EV startups going public by merging with special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs).  Expectations that Workhorse would secure the USPS deal started ratcheting up in 2020, including among Wall Street analysts. Roth Capital Partners predicted last October that the company would win the contract, arguing that the company was the “best fit.” In December, the USPS had delayed making a decision due to the COVID-19 pandemic before eventually announcing that Oshkosh won the award.  Successfully overturning the decision through the courts would represent a massive windfall for Workhorse. The company reported approximately $520,000 in revenue for the first quarter after delivering six trucks, but net losses ballooned to $120.5 million.  Total revenue for all of 2020 was $1.4 million. The company reported a net profit of nearly $70 million last year but the black ink was primarily attributable to owning a 10% stake in Lordstown Motors (NASDAQ: RIDE), which merged with a SPAC and saw its shares soar in 2020. Learn More: Check out some of our favorite electric car stocks. The post Workhorse Stock Climbs on Plan to Challenge USPS Loss appeared first on Millennial Money. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Are you looking for ways to make some extra cash on the side? Sign up with Survey Junkie to take surveys and earn points that can be redeemed towards cash or gift cards! Once you reach 1,000 points, you can cash in for $10 in the form of PayPal funds, direct bank transfer, or a gift card of your choice! This survey company seems to get really good reviews! A lot of the reviews talk about the low minimum payout threshold of $10 and how quick and easy it is to get to your first payout. Have any of you ever tried Survey Junkie? I’d love to hear about your experience! Go here to sign up with Survey Junkie. Looking for more opportunities to make money from home? See my list of recommended survey companies here. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] El Salvador seeks World Bank help for bitcoin implementation [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] He also did not rule out possibility of jewellers selling non-hallmarked jewellery in 256 districts by arranging some “dummy receipts”. Consumer affairs minister Piyush Goyal had met jewellery industry representatives on Tuesday evening, a day before the mandatory hallmarking was to be implemented. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] The post Alphabet Subsidiary Waymo Raises Another $2.5 Billion appeared first on Millennial Money. Following its first external capital raise last year, Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG; NASDAQ: GOOGL) autonomous vehicle (AV) division Waymo has just completed its second funding round from external investors. The company has scored another $2.5 billion from a handful of institutional investors to help fund the development of self-driving cars. Here’s what Alphabet investors need to know. Waymo Bringing in Billions Of course, Alphabet itself participated in the investment round as Waymo’s parent company, but other investors include venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, automotive retailer AutoNation (NYSE: AN), Fidelity Investments, Perry Creek Capital, Silver Lake, T. Rowe Price (NASDAQ: TROW), Temasek Holdings, and Tiger Global Management. Some of those investors had participated in the previous round in 2020, which was upsized to $3 billion. Waymo says it plans to use the money to continue developing Waymo Driver, its flagship autonomous driving technology, as well as hiring additional talent. Waymo Driver has already accumulated tens of millions of miles of autonomous driving on public roads, in addition to simulating tens of billions of miles. The company has started to deploy Waymo Via, its offering that supports large Class 8 semi trucks for freight companies like J. B. Hunt. That service is already making deliveries for customers like UPS (NYSE: UPS) and AutoNation. The news comes just a couple months after John Krafcik stepped down as Waymo CEO, handing the reins over to co-CEOs Tekedra Mawakana and Dmitri Dolgov. Krafcik has been criticized for hyping autonomous driving and setting unrealistic expectations during his time as Waymo CEO.  “As we build, deploy, and commercialize the Waymo Driver, it’s gratifying to see so much interest in being part of our journey to transform mobility, making it safer, more accessible, and more sustainable along the way,” Mawakana and Dolgov wrote in a blog post. “We’ll use this latest round of investment to continue advancing the Waymo Driver, as well as continuing to grow our team.” The company also lost senior finance executive Sherry House last month. House was poached by Lucid Motors to become the electric vehicle (EV) startup’s CFO ahead of its merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Churchill Capital IV (NYSE: CCIV). She had previously been instrumental in leading funding initiatives for Waymo. It’s unclear what valuation Waymo was able to fetch in the latest funding round, as is the breakdown of how much each investor contributed. The Financial Times reported last year that the 2020 investment round was conducted at a $30 billion valuation, and it’s possible that Waymo secured an even higher valuation. Companies in the EV and AV space, such as Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), have seen valuations soar over the past year as investors price in lofty growth expectations. Still, autonomous driving remains elusive as the technology is incredibly difficult to develop, while federal regulators also continue to keep a close eye on the sector. Pick Like A Pro Where to invest $500 right now Before you buy Amazon, or Netflix, or Apple, consider this… The team at Motley Fool first recommended each of those stocks more than a dozen years ago! They discovered Netflix for $1.85 per share, back in the days of DVDs by mail. And recommended Amazon at $15.31 in 2002, before most people were comfortable using credit cards online. And even hit Apple at $4.97 per share, about a month before the release of the very first iPhone. Check out where those stocks are today. The bottom line: a $500 investment in all three of these stocks would be worth more than $200,000 today! And here’s why that’s important: The Motley Fool’s flagship investing service Stock Advisor just announced their top 10 “best buys now” across the entire stock market. Whether you’re starting with $100, $500, or more, you’ll want to get the full details! Email Address Continue Also opt-in to receive Millennial Money! It’s our newsletter devoted to helping you achieve financial freedom. That means you’ll receive new stock ideas, our favorite side hustles, and much more every single week! By submitting your email address, you consent to us keeping you informed about updates to our website and about other products and services that we think might interest you. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please read our Privacy Statement and Terms & Conditions. Click here to learn more .tmfsa-text-widget .ecap-widget { padding: 0 !important; border-left: 0 !important; } The post Alphabet Subsidiary Waymo Raises Another $2.5 Billion appeared first on Millennial Money. [ad_2] Source link

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