News

[ad_1] The post Mortgage Pre-approval Calculator: How Much House Can You Afford appeared first on Millennial Money. Before you apply for a home loan, use a mortgage pre-approval calculator for an idea of what you can afford. The easiest way to get started is to head over to The Motley Fool’s mortgage payment calculator.  All you have to do is enter some information, such as your down payment amount and home price, to find out what your monthly mortgage payment might be. The Motley Fool’s mortgage pre-approval calculator is just one of the many free online tools you can use to understand your buying profile. Read on for more information about what determines your monthly mortgage payment before calling a loan officer.  Key Factors in a Mortgage Pre-Approval Calculation Here are some of the key factors to consider for your mortgage pre-approval calculation. Purchase price Down payment Mortgage interest rate Mortgage term Annual property tax Annual homeowners insurance Monthly HOA fees 1. Purchase price  One of the most important factors to consider is the home price, which can vary significantly depending on location, property condition, the property’s age, and the seller.  In most areas of the country, houses typically run from $150,000 to $500,000 or more. But don’t start hyperventilating: You don’t have to put the whole sum of money down at the time of purchase. That takes us to the next factor: your down payment. 2. Down payment A home affordability calculator should also contain a field for your down payment, or the amount you plan to pay upfront. As you’ll see, your down payment amount will directly impact the overall mortgage.  The amount required for a down payment depends on the type of loan you’re applying for. In some cases (such as an FHA loan), you can put down as little as 3 percent.  3. Mortgage interest rate You won’t know what mortgage rate you qualify for until you meet with a loan officer and get an official reading. However, it’s a good idea to play around with different figures ahead of time to see what your monthly payment may look like. For example, according to the Fool’s mortgage pre-approval calculator, a home price of $200,000 with a down payment of $20,000 and a 4 percent interest rate over a standard 30-year mortgage will yield an approximate monthly payment of $1,213.93.  However, bringing the mortgage rate down to 3.5 percent lowers the monthly payment to $1,163.68. 4. Mortgage term It’s also important to factor in the loan term you’re signing up for. The longer your loan terms, the less you’ll pay each month — and the more you’ll wind up paying over the life of the loan due to interest.  The trick to optimizing a mortgage is to get the lowest interest rate possible for the longest loan term possible. By extending the amount of time on your loan, you can take the extra few hundreds of dollars per month that you save and put it into higher-growth investments that more than make up for your interest payments. 5. Annual property tax  You should also consider annual property taxes when determining your monthly payments. Taxes change annually and vary from place to place.  6. Annual homeowners insurance  When calculating your home cost, you’ll also want to consider home insurance. Annual home insurance usually runs anywhere from $800 to $1,000.  7. Monthly HOA fees  When determining your total monthly payments, another factor you’ll want to include is potential homeowners association (HOA) fees. HOA fees usually cover things like exterior grounds and facilities maintenance, landscaping, and security. Some HOA fees can cost hundreds of dollars per month. Key Factors That Impact Your Rate Here are some key factors that impact your mortgage rate. Credit score  Mortgage lenders take a hard look at your credit score to determine your ability to pay them back. For the best possible loan, you’ll need a credit score of 740 or higher. Anything lower could require you to pay more every month.  Learn More: How To Improve Your Credit Score Employment history  Lenders also want to see your employment history. That way, they can get a sense of your income over time. So be prepared to supply previous W2 tax forms that indicate your annual gross income history.  Recent banking history  You must also be ready to show some of your recent bank statements. A mortgage is a lot of money, and lenders want to see that you aren’t bottoming out each month.  Frequently Asked Questions Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about mortgage pre-approvals. Should I factor in property management when calculating a mortgage cost? It’s a good idea to factor in property management costs. These monthly expenses can vary, depending on the type of property you buy and the amount of work required to maintain it.  For example, be prepared to cover unexpected repairs such as broken toilets or lights. But you should also factor in at least a few thousand dollars annually for things like landscaping and routine maintenance.  Do you need to show your annual income when applying for a home loan? Not only do you have to show your annual income, but you also have to show your income over time.  Round up your previous years’ tax returns, 1099s, W2s, and other documents to show the lender so they can get a better sense of your earning history and overall financial well-being.  Learn More: 7 Ways to Increase Your Income in 2021 What is mortgage refinancing? A mortgage refinance involves swapping your current mortgage for a different one. This is typically completed a few years after you’re into a mortgage and making monthly payments.  Refinancing your mortgage can potentially save you thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. Can you get a house with credit card debt or student loan debt? When you apply for a mortgage, a lender will take a look at your overall debt-to-income ratio to get a sense of how

[ad_1] Love cashews? This is a great stock up deal! Amazon has this Planters Fancy Whole Cashews with Sea Salt, 33 oz for just $13.41 shipped when you checkout through Subscribe & Save! Note: Once your order ships, you can go into your Amazon account and cancel your subscription if you don’t want recurring orders. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] More destruction feared in La Palma as lava pours from new volcano vent [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Coronavirus Vaccine Registration, Covid-19 India Latest Update, Coronavirus Cases in India Today, October 2 Live News Update: Amid this, India has been witnessing a steady vaccination drive, with over 89.74 crore doses having been administered till Friday evening. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Most digital solutions in the lending industry are designed to solve one problem and built for one audience in mind. This fragmentation makes it difficult for everyone involved in the lending process to communicate with each other effectively. Stavvy has the power to bring these disparate components together.  Stavvy enables digital transformation by helping organizations navigate complex financial and legal transactions easily and safely, which allows organizations to put customer experience at the forefront.  Stavvy was purpose-built for real estate transactions, with a focus on the holistic user experience. Instead of replacing workflows or expecting a change in user behavior to adapt to the platform, Stavvy integrates into the way users are already working and automates the entire process. Stavvy’s solution securely digitizes every aspect of the process – not just replacing pen and paper with electronic documents and signatures, but rethinking the entire workflow. The end result is a best-in-class consumer experience and the creation of a truly digital asset that meets the needs of both up and downstream stakeholders.  This full closing platform supports any sort of closing: a full RON, RIN, in-person or hybrid.  Today, the platform integrates with Encompass by ICE Mortgage Technology, and integrations with other LOS systems are in development. It can intake documents from multiple sources as well as handle signings and annotations. And since Stavvy is designed for the title agent workflow, closing agents can easily integrate the platform into the way they already work.  “Our platform does a better job of facilitating compliance than competing products, and allows for easy communication with the lender and other parties throughout the transaction,” Chief Strategy Officer Shane Hartzler said. “There are also key integrations with LOS providers, document companies and title production software that remove additional steps.” Some of the biggest roadblocks that obstruct most loan originations are trailing documents and spelling or paperwork errors. By using cross-check fillable fields and verifying that all requisite information is included, Stavvy drastically reduces the time spent on pre-and post-close quality control and time wasted updating incorrect documents.  For lenders, Stavvy features full vendor title compliance. Even before a title order is placed, lenders can assess a title agent and make sure they have the required insurance, certification and more. Although Stavvy isn’t an LOS, it is built to integrate with all major LOS platforms.  “The loan origination process today is fragmented, with disparate systems and a mix of paper and digital pieces that can be cumbersome to manage,” added Hartzler. “Our customers typically want to integrate those disparate pieces and realize material efficiencies as a result.” Stavvy is built to serve financial institutions of all sizes, and scale as they grow. Because lenders and title companies are working on the same platform, there’s no learning curve for additional solutions or time spent syncing across different tools.   Shane Hartzler, Chief Strategy Officer, Stavvy Shane Hartzler, the Chief Strategy Officer for Stavvy, helps guide Stavvy’s vision, working with lenders, title professionals and industry stakeholders to evaluate market needs and identify innovation opportunities to support companies making a digital transformation.  The post Stavvy’s solution securely digitizes and automates every aspect of the real estate transaction process appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] As American Express ads from the 1970s onward suggest, it’s the card many of us don’t leave home without, and with good reason—many reasons, in fact. Amex offers some of the highest-earning and most-perk-filled credit cards around, regularly landing it on the annual rankings of the best credit cards in Canada. As well, it’s the only credit-card company that issues its own cards, rather than going through a bank. And while Amex isn’t accepted as widely as Visa and Mastercard, it is taken at virtually all mass retail and food chains, particularly in major Canadian cities. Which card is right for you? Here, we break down the top five American Express credit cards by category to help you decide. Find your next credit card.What kind of credit card are you looking for? Get matched with the best cards for you in under 2 minutes at ratehub.ca. Let’s get started. I want to earn rewardsI want to pay low interest You will be leaving MoneySense. Just close the tab to return. The best American Express credit cards in Canada Card Rewards / Features Annual fee American Express Cobalt (get more details)* 5 pts/$1 on groceries & dining 2 pts/$1 on travel, gas & transit 1 pt/$1 on everything else 1 pt = 1% / up to 1.75% in travel rewards $155.88 SimplyCash Preferred (get more details)* 2% cash back on all purchases $99 SimplyCash (get more details)* 1.25% cash back on all purchases $0 American Express Essential (get more details) Low 12.99% APR $120 American Express The Platinum Card (get more details) 3 pts/$1 on dining 2 pts/$1 on travel 1 pt/$1 on everything else $200 travel credit Airport lounge access Transfer points to airlines 1 pt = 1% / +1.75% in travel rewards $699 American Express Gold Rewards Card (get more details)* 2 pts/$1 on eligible travel, gas, grocery and pharmacy purchases 2 pts/$1 on eligible travel purchases, including flights, hotels, car rentals and cruises 1 pts/$1 on all other purchases $250 Best overall Amex rewards card American Express Cobalt* The impressively high earn rate of the American Express Cobalt credit card makes it a standout option. It offers five times the points on essentially all food spending categories (think: groceries, dining out, coffee runs and so on) and twice as many points on travel (flights, transit, gas and even rideshares). Given how much of most people’s spending goes toward these categories, it’s a pretty great (not to mention effortless) way to net a tidy sum toward future travel. Plus, as a welcome bonus, Amex will reward you with 2,500 points for every month you spend at least $500 on the card within your first year—up to a whopping 30,000 points. These can be redeemed for flights and hotels through Amex’s Flexible Points Travel Program, in which every 1,000 points is equal to $10 (or $0.01 per point). Or you can redeem through the Fixed Points Travel Program, where, if you’re a little flexible and can find your way around a rewards chart, you can potentially get up to 75% more value out of your points on round-trip flights out of Canada.    Annual fee: $155.88 ($12.99 monthly) Welcome offer: Up to 30,000 bonus points (2,500 points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $500 in net purchases on your Card for your first year), plus, earn a bonus of 20,000 points when you spend $3,000 in purchases within your first 3 months of having the card Earn rate: 5 points per $1 spent on food (including groceries, restaurants and food delivery); 2 points per $1 spent on travel, transit and gas; 1 point per $1 spent everywhere else Income requirement: None Additional benefits: Travel and shopping insurance; American Express Invites Get more details about the American Express Cobalt* Best cash-back Amex card SimplyCash Preferred from American Express* If travel is not on your radar these days (for obvious reasons), money to spend however you’d like would be a more useful reward. That’s what you get with the SimplyCash Preferred, with its impressive flat rate of 2% cash back on everything—yep, everything—you buy. No other cash-back credit card out there can compete with that. With SimplyCash Preferred, you’ll earn at least double the cash back on purchases compared to most other cards, which typically offer only a 0.5% to 1% reward. This also makes it one of the best cards to use for online shopping, something we’re doing now more than ever. There is one catch, though: You can only redeem your rewards annually every September, unlike some cash back cards that allow you to redeem more frequently. But your patience will be rewarded—2% back on a whole year’s spending will feel like a nice little windfall. And at $99, the annual fee is below the average of $120. Annual fee: $99 Welcome offer: Earn 10% cash back in your first four months (up to $400 cash back) Earn rate: 2% cash back on all purchases Income requirement: None Additional benefits: Travel and shopping insurance; American Express Invites Get more details about the SimplyCash Preferred from American Express* Best no-fee Amex card SimplyCash from American Express* Some of us just don’t have room in the budget for expenses like annual fees, which is why you may consider American Express’s SimplyCash credit card. But just because you’re not paying a fee for your card doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be rewarded for using it. SimplyCash is one of the highest-earning no-fee credit cards in Canada, offering 1.25% back on every $1 you spend. This is particularly impressive when you consider that most other no-fee rewards cards only offer 0.5% back on the majority of everyday purchases. However, the one drawback is the limited timing when it comes to rewards: You can only redeem once per calendar year in September.  Annual fee: $0 Welcome offer: Earn 4% cash back in the first 6 months (up to $200 cash back) Earn rate: 1.25% cash back on all purchases Income requirement: None

[ad_1] The post 15 Best Ways to Teach English Online appeared first on Millennial Money. There’s never been a better time to earn money as an online English language teacher. With billions of students around the world learning the language, teaching English online is one of the fastest-growing side hustles. In this post, we’ll review the top platforms where you can teach English online in 2021. You’ll also learn some tips for maximizing your earning potential and chances for long-term success in this exciting line of work. The Best Ways to Teach English Online Here’s a list of the top ways to teach English online: VIPKid BlingABC Udemy Hellokid Cambly Ginseng English Magic Ears Qkids GoGoKid italki Zebra English SayABC SkimaTalk DaDaABC YouTube 1. VIPKid  VIPKid connects online teachers with Chinese students who want to learn English. All lessons are conducted on a one-on-one basis, and the online classes take place on VIPKid’s proprietary learning platform. The site asks for a six-month online teaching commitment, but during that time you can work as much or little as you want. It’s pretty flexible.  VIPKid teacher requirements  To teach English online for VIPKid you need at least two years of teaching experience, work authorization for the U.S. or Canada, and a bachelor’s degree. You also need reliable technology, including a quality webcam, headset, and fast internet service.   Average pay You can earn $14 to $22 per hour teaching English online through VIPKid. Your actual earnings will be determined by the quality of the demo lesson that you submit during the interview and onboarding process.  2. BlingABC BlingABC is a China-based K-12 online teaching and learning community with more than 200,000 students. The company is backed by educational giant New Oriental Education & Technology Group, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.  BlingABC offers four curriculum structures that serve different student age groups, from age 3 all the way up through 12th grade. The typical class size is three students, but some group classes can attract as many as thirty students. From an online teaching standpoint, the platform is different from many of the others on this list because it requires you to commit to a fixed semester-long schedule. So this is not an online teaching platform where you can pick and choose your lesson times. However, if you’re looking for a steady online teaching gig, BlingABC should be a top consideration.  BlingABC teacher requirements  To teach English online for BlingABC, you need a bachelor’s degree and a qualified English teaching certificate (such as the TEFL certificate) or a valid teaching license. Prior ESL teaching experience is preferred but not required. You also must have a neutral accent, and you must pass an initial screening and onboarding process. As for the technical requirements, you’ll need a reliable laptop, webcam, headset, and a fast internet connection.   Average pay The average pay for teaching English with BlingABC ranges from $14 to $18 for each forty-minute class. Teachers who have robust experience and who do a great job can earn up to $38 per hour. TIP: BlingABC is one of the higher-earning opportunities on this list. 3. Udemy  Udemy is a course creation and online teaching platform with more than 40 million students. It’s a top choice for savvy instructors because you can set your own rates and design your own course materials. Plus, Udemy can connect you to a massive audience of English language learners. The only real downside to Udemy is that you’ll have to create your own lesson plans and course materials from scratch. But this shouldn’t be too hard if you have some teaching experience.   Udemy teacher requirements Anyone is free to publish course material on Udemy, as long as it meets the company’s quality review guidelines. Average pay You can set your own prices on Udemy, so how much you earn depends entirely on how many students you enroll. If you promote your courses through your own referral link, you can receive 97 percent of your students’ revenue. When students sign up through Udemy’s marketplace, the company takes 37 percent of the revenue. 4. Hellokid Hellokid provides one-on-one English lessons to Chinese students between the ages of 4 and 16. You’ll earn up to $22 per hour working fixed hours from home. The company offers free training resources, career development services, curriculum support, and a robust and interactive platform. Hellokid teacher requirements  Hellokid is open to native and non-native English speakers with certification. The company also asks for online teaching experience. Average pay Hellokid offers $8 to $22 depending on experience and performance. 5. Cambly Cambly is a global English tutoring platform focused on helping students build speaking and listening skills. Students can take courses or practice conversational skills with native English speakers. The site offers one-on-one tutoring, flexible scheduling, and an intuitive app for conducting virtual lessons.   Cambly teacher requirements  Cambly doesn’t have many requirements. For example, you don’t need a bachelor’s degree or English teaching certificate, which most other sites require. You shouldn’t have a problem qualifying if you can demonstrate that you’re a native English speaker and have a great attitude. So if you don’t want to get an official teaching certificate, Cambly could be your best choice.  Average pay Cambly pays teachers weekly through PayPal for each minute spent chatting and engaging with students during that prior week. You can make $0.17 per minute (roughly $10 per hour) teaching adults and $0.20 per minute ($12 per hour) teaching through Cambly Kids. 6. Ginseng English Ginseng English is another site where you can teach English online. The company is seeking flexible, adaptive teachers who can provide engaging lessons. You’ll teach in group settings with students from around the world, using the company’s curriculum.   Ginseng English teacher requirements Ginseng is selective about who comes onboard. The company prefers teachers who have certificates, master’s degrees, and prior experience — but these are not requirements. If you can demonstrate passion and solid teaching ability, the company could be

[ad_1] We all know that one great way to save money is to cook and bake from scratch. It not only (usually) costs less to make your own snacks and baked goods, but they are also typically better for you since they are free from preservatives and other less-than-fantastic ingredients. But how can you find time to cook and bake when you have young kids? This was a question that someone posed to me recently and I wanted to share my best tips that I’ve used over the years — and have started using again now that we have little ones at our house again! 1. Let your kids help. I know it’s a lot more work to have a toddler help you. It’s messier and it takes 4 times as long. Go into cooking with kids with the attitude that this is an adventure and that it’s going to look and be very different than if you are cooking by yourself. Expect it to be messy; that’s part of the learning process! And assume that it will take much longer. It will… but that can also be part of the experience! Our perspective and attitude makes such a difference! If you go into it expecting that it will be quick and simple and mess-free, you are setting yourself up for frustration. Instead, view it as an activity you are doing together with the goal of learning, having fun, and spending quality time together. And guess what? While it will be messy and take a lot more time in the beginning, if you keep at it, soon your kids will be old enough to read recipes and make food all by themselves. It will pay off in big dividends — if you keep at it! 2. Cook/bake when they eat. While your toddler is eating their breakfast sitting in their high chair, quickly whip up a bath of muffins, cut up fruit for dinner, or stick a roast in the crockpot. I find that having a plan for dinner early on in the day is a gift I give myself for later in the day. So why not make it your breakfast habit to just get your toddler set up with their food and then you quickly spend 10-15 minutes prepping stuff for dinner? 3. Turn on a show. I’m a big fan of using shows intentionally. Kierstyn loves watching Rachel and the Treeschoolers on YouTube right now, so I try to have her watch it at a specific time in the day when I can maximize the time that she’s sitting still watching her show. 4. Use quiet time. Daily quiet time or nap time can be a great time to get some cooking done. While I do think that moms need some down time, too, if you dedicate the first 15-20 minutes of nap time/quiet time to cooking and you set the timer and work quickly, you can get a lot done in a short amount of time! By the way, if your little ones are outgrowing nap times, I encourage you to consider continuing to have a daily quiet time. It’s a gift to everyone — because I believe that we all need some quiet in our day and it’s a good reset for the rest of the day! 5. Have special activities. Put together some special tubs with activities that you only pull out once a day for your kids to play with while you are cooking or baking. This gives them something to look forward to and it can kind of feel like getting brand-new toys/activities! When our older three were little, we had Day-of-the-Week tubs with special activities and they got to only get the one for that day out during quiet time. You could also do this for a cooking time — special bins or tubs they only get to play with while you’re cooking. (By the way, you can see a picture of what these look like here. Unfortunately, none of the links on that post work anymore. I guess I’ll have to do a new post on this down the road if we implement it again!) What are you best tips and strategies for finding time to cook/bake when you have young kids? [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Ice hockey-Targeted with racist behaviour, Smereck says change is overdue [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] David Sol, managing director (Index Policy) at FTSE Russell, said: “FTSE Russell is…encouraged by India’s progress towards inclusion in mainstream local currency emerging markets indices such as the FTSE EMGBI.” [ad_2] Source link