Foreclosure and Debt

Foreclosure and Debt. Swear words your mother would make you bite a bar of soap for saying in the current economic state our country is in. They are not easy situations to find yourself in, to tell anyone about, or to get out of. Suze Orman was on ABC's "The View" this morning discussing financial issues, and while a lot of people don't like her she does make some sense.

Credit card debt is a major problem for so many people, it plays a major role in leading people to foreclosure. So many families in foreclosure that we have helped have had a lot of bad debt, credit cards, medical bills, second mortgages, and the list goes on and on.

Suze Orman's solution to this is to get a credit card with a Credit Union
instead of a "bank". Credit Union's can only charge a maximum of 19%apr
vs. the regular banks which I have seen as high as 30% apr.

How many people have you told that you are in debt? What an embarrassing thing to admit to others, be they your friends or co-workers, family or neighbors! Debt is something that people hide from so many people they have a hard time admitting it to themselves. When was the last time you added up all your bills vs. your income?

Suze Orman suggests letting the secret out of the bag and letting people
know about your debt. It's not a dirty secret, and odds are once you open
up about your problems others will too.

Suggestions on a plan of action:

1. Write all your debt down on paper, a copy of your credit report can help with this.
2. Write a list of all your expenses, don't leave anything out.
3. If your expenses exceed your income make reasonable cuts to your budget.
4. Call your credit card companies and ask them to lower your annual percentage rate.
5. Medical Bills? Call the hospital or collection agency and ask for an itemized bill. If you have some extra money offer them a settlement....but have them send you confirmation in writing before sending the money. You can also do this with bad debt on your credit report, often times the companies would rather get something than nothing.
   
6. Find ways to make extra money, have a yard sale and use the money to make extra payments to pay down your debt.
7. Stick to your plan.

While these are just some quick ideas, once you start the ball rolling to paying off your debt and make a plan for yourself to follow it will be easier to stick to the plan. If you have children you can include them in the conversation on how to keep expenses down, children often think of things adults never think of, their minds work differently and are often less stressed than adult minds. Plus, it helps them to be involved to see that even their own parents have problems and to learn problem solving skills to work on the problem.

Suze Orman suggests www.creditcardconnection.org to find a
local credit union to help with lowering your debt. You can also visit
Suze's website www.suzeorman.com and see her helpful ideas.

Debt doesn't accumulate overnight, and neither will you get rid of it overnight. But it is possible to get yourself out of the whole, as long as you can stop yourself from digging. You are not alone, remind yourself that most of the country is in the same position as you, with some careful planning it is possible to get yourself out.

Be careful of using credit agencies to help yourself get out of debt. We have heard of many companies that take people's money month after month only to never pay any of the bills. This happens with mortgage help services too. DO NOT pay anyone to reduce your mortgage without first asking your mortgage company about the Making Home Affordable Program which helps homeowners in trouble stay in their home.

If you want to buy a house and you have an income that has been consistent for the last 6 months to a year, now is a great time to buy a home. It's an even greater time to buy a rental property. There are more people wanting to rent than there are houses for rent in the Lake County and McHenry County area.

House 4 Rent

Are you looking for a house to rent? Call us at 815-669-4944 today to let us know what you are looking for and we will start our search. The best thing about using a professional real estate agent is that you pay no fees but you reap the rewards of having a Realtor by your side during the entire renting process. We've added a new page to our website to help renters and added some useful tips we've learned from our experience.

We went out to see a house today in Fox Lake for rent and by the time we made it back to the office after seeing other rental properties in Johnsburg, Volo, Wauconda, Antioch, and Lake Villa to fill out the application the other Realtor already had two other applications in. When a house is for rent at a good price it's best to have everything ready.

We encourage our potential renters to carry a copy of their credit report with them with a generic rental application filled out so they can quickly and easily give copies to the potential landlord. You can get a free credit report and most landlords will accept your self pulled credit report with a credit score (that you may have to pay for) if it's printed with in the last three months.

A renter we worked with a couple months back did not have great credit, she had lost her house in Gurnee to foreclosure and has a lot of bad debt.....some landlords wouldn't think twice about denying her because of this. She did something very unique that made the landlord choose her above the other 7, yes seven, applicants that were interested in the house in Grayslake. Call me at 815-669-4944 to ask me what she did. Bad debt is something a landlord can over-look if you have the correct approach.

Rent a Home in Lake or McHenry County

Our agents have been out and about showing rental homes a lot lately. We've had just as many showings of rental property as we have with investment property, and that's awesome to us! As real estate agents we enjoy showing houses, we like looking at them just as much as the people we are showing them to.

We've been finding that good deals on rentals go quickly and there are a lot of people looking. When you find something you like be quick to act on it or it will be gone. It is important to ask the right questions when you go to look at a house, apartment, condo, town home or room for rent. Are there any utilities included in the rent, do I have to carry renters insurance, what do you use the security deposit for, and the list goes on and on. If you don't know to ask, you could get stuck paying more than you can afford, which isn't good for anyone involved.

Visit our website to find out more information about what you should ask, and you can also set up a search for area rentals to be sent to you, as soon as they come online. This free search can put you one quick step ahead from all the other people looking for a home to rent.

Metrovisions Realty is located in the north east corner of McHenry County in the picturesque Village of Johnsburg. Every Johnsburg resident has water rights to launch a boat into the beautiful Chain-of-Lakes and you can visit our website to learn more about the Johnsburg area.

Senior Housing in Fox Lake, Illinois

Affordable and brand new senior housing units have opened in Fox Lake, the first occupants moved in September 1, 2010. The brand new facility houses 100 units of 1 and 2 bedrooms, and in located off of Route 134 and Nippersink Road very close to Route 12. Check out our website for more information, and call us at 815-669-4944. The Thomas Place offers seniors the option of low-income housing.

Are you a Landlord?

The current prices of real estate are wonderful for investors to pick up some extra property and rent the property out for some extra income. A client of ours bought a house for $18,000 in McCullom Lake and put $2,000 into it for paint and carpet. He is now renting it out for $795. We have hundreds of stories just like this from our clients who have bought a rental property.

Not only can we help you find a great deal on a property to buy for some extra income, we can also help you find a good renter to rent it from you. We at Metrovisions Realty prefer to think of our renters as doing landlords a big favor.....paying their mortgage every month, usually giving a little extra money to the owner, and making a big difference in good and bad experiences. When you find a quality renter that pays their rent every month you have found a gem. Finding a gem isn't all that hard....when you know how to look....and we at Metrovisions Realty know how to help landlords choose a quality renter.

When you make the decision to rent a house to someone, you as a landlord have to be careful to cover yourself from possible problems. We have tried and true methods as property managers to give you ideas in ways to protect yourself from the problems that can arise from having a rental property......late rent payments, problem tenants, etc........we have a detailed lease that will help you to work easily to get people moving.

Call us at 815-669-4944 with any questions or to list your house for rent today!

Renting a Home

We've been hearing that it is a renters market, and while that is true, it is also a landlords market. Because of the slow economy there is a decrease in home sales, but that doesn't mean people don't need a place to live. When someone can't buy, they rent.

As a renter it is important to remember that there are a lot of others looking for a place to rent too, so be quick to return all paperwork asked of you in a timely manner. It is also important to cover all your bases and make sure everyone and everything is above board. If you take all your time and effort to move into a house you want to make sure the property isn't about to be taken back to the bank or sold to someone else. A real estate agent is a valuable asset to have when ren-ting a home because they are experienced with looking at homes, as well as the paperwork that goes with it. You can visit our website to see some valuable tips for renters.

At Metrovisions Realty we can help you with all of your real estate needs, and we have a lot of experience in helping people find homes to rent. You can set up a search easily and quickly that will automatically email you the properties that fit your search criteria and let you contact us quickly to set up an appointment to see the property....before someone else rents the property. Until the landlord has the first month's rent and security deposit checks in hand with a signed lease it is not too late for someone else to rent the property.

We help renters from Antioch to Buffalo Grove.....from Waukegan to Woodstock and all the towns in between. If you are looking for a house, apartment, condo, town house, or room for rent we can help you in your search and help you find just what you are looking for in your price range. Just give us a call at 815-669-4944 and let us help you today!

Fox Lake has new low-income senior housing.

Seniors 55 and up have a new low-income housing option as of September 1st in Fox Lake with the Thomas Place Fox Lake. The new building houses 100 apartments both 1 and 2 bedroom and is located at the intersection of Route 134 and Nippersink Blvd. Visit our website to see the full story and find information on living in this beautiful new building.