NM "I think that it felt more competitive to purchase a house, because there are so many first-time buyers who want to take advantage of the market, but also so many sellers who owe too much on their properties and were asking prices that weren't affordable. The $7500 tax credit, which is really a zero-interest loan that's repayable over 15 years, was an essential part of my comfort making the purchase, because it gives me cash on hand in case the unexpected happens — leaky roof, failed furnace, etc. — things that would be tough to manage after you've sunk so much of your cash assets into the purchase."
KM "I worry a lot about the security of my job and those of my roommates too — most of us, myself included, work in the service industry. Once you've sunk all your money into a down payment, it is a lot harder to have a safety net should the worst case happen."
JR "Currently I'm holding on for dear life, but I'll get through it. I'm not as concerned about the value of my house — though it is less than what I currently owe (ass-over-teacup, as they say...) — as I am worried for my ability to continue working in Maine."
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Second time around, Schoolyard bully, Bad craziness, More 
- Second time around
If you are thinking of going back to school, you will want to do four things before making that commitment.
- Schoolyard bully
Can you imagine the uproar if homeowners were suddenly unable to refinance their home with a different lender? Or worse, if they could not refinance at all?
- Bad craziness
The news from Wall Street this week is dire.
- Ships at a distance
According to my friend T, women, in particular, come to relationships with credit scores low enough to sink 1000 ships.
- The Loan Groan
Each month, with miserable certitude, the snail-mailboxes of middle-class twenty- and thirtysomethings are stuffed with student-loan bills, from both federal and private lenders. The balance seems to remain stagnant, even as we mail in check after check.
- Lender bending
It should come as little surprise that financial institutions resort to heavy-handed and ethically shady tactics to increase their share of the student-loan business.
- MEFA madness
On July 28, news broke that the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority had fallen on hard times.
- Get over it
Okay, you survived the college-application process; you filled out the miserable FAFSA forms; you sweated out the wait for acceptance letters; and cut your best financial-aid deal.
- Federal anti-drug provision hits RI students hard
Rhode Island has been hit hard by an anti-drug law that bars college students with drug convictions from receiving federal grants and loans, according to US Department of Education statistics.
- Student loan scandal
Are students getting screwed, and will anybody stop it?
- No money, mo problems
There are more than 4000 degree-granting higher-education institutions in the United States.
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Topics:
News Features
, Barack Obama, Business, Real Estate, More
, Barack Obama, Business, Real Estate, Personal Finance, Consumer Credit and Debt, Home Financing, Kim Myers, Nat May, Jed Rathband, Bridget Burns, Less
