Recommended Payment

Question: What is the recommended down payment for a first time home buyer ? Trying to get all the benefits of first time home buyer clauses and such

Answer: I don't know where Joe gets his information, but there are plenty of FTHB programs that don't require the buyer to be low income. Most programs are based on local income figures. For instance: In Oregon, the income qualifications in Portland are much different than in Lakeview, a small rural community. I would recommend you talk to a local lender (internet lenders will not know about local programs) about what is available to you in your area.

Question: What's the recommended down payment to purchase a house? I'm saving up so I can buy a condo.

Answer: To all those people that tell you 20% or more, the are full of crap. Even if you put down 50%, you may not be able to afford the monthly payments. What is the MOST important thing is to be able to afford the monthly payments. I highly recommend not spending more then 28% of your gross monthly income for a TOTAL mortgage payment - no matter how much you put down. In fact, if all the money you have saved is for a house, I would put the least amount down. You should have at least 3 months gross income in the bank - for "just in case". 6 months is better with 3 for just in case and 3 for longer term savings. AND this doesn't include maxing out your 401k plan.

Question: We are attempting to buy a new home, is recommended to make down payment or none? Has been suggested to make 5-20% down, but want to save the money so we can landscape the yard and the extra essentials possibly needed with a new home.

Answer: Generally speaking, you get a lower interest rate if you put more money down. Of course, the more you pay up front and the less you borrow, the lower your monthly payments will be. I generally like to pay 20 percent down on a home but it's easy to understand that many people can't do this. Talk to your banker and find out if you pay an interest penalty or additional points if your down payment is reduced. If there is no penalty, you might as well go with the lower down payment.

Question: Can I trust 3rd party economic stimulus payment efile-ing companies recommended by IRS?

Answer: You don't file separately for the stimulus payment - you just file your normal return, and that is the application for the stimulus also. Where are you seeing these stimulus payment efiling companies? If companies have sprung up to help people who wouldn't normally file, file a return for the stimulus, DON'T if you have to pay them. If you need help, check https://locator.aarp.org/vmis/sites/tax_aide_locator.jsp for a TCE site near you if you need help - trained volunteers will help you with what you need to do at no charge. You can also check at your local library - they probably have a packet of info on how to file just for the stimulus payment if you qualify but don't normally file - this same packet went out in the mail last week to many low-income social security recipients.

Question: Recommended automated payment notification system for a website? Hi All, I am creating a website which will involve customers, let’s say, purchase widgets to be sent by post or posted online to my website. Once the customer has confirmed the payment amount on my site, they should be directed to an online third party payment website to undertake the payment process. The customer will then complete the payment within the third party payment website. What I am looking for is a third party payment management system (like Paypal) for instance, which, at the end of the customer payment process, automatically notifies me when the customer has made payment and can integrate with my system to let me know this - in a secure, timely and reliable manner. Once this payment acknowledgement is all done, my system will then automatically send/post the widgets online. My questions are: 1 - Apart from the Paypal 'Instant Payment Notification' process - are there any other payment notification processes you know of provided by other online payment management companies that can do this? (Any links to their sites would be most appreciated) 2 - If you use Paypal's IPN process, have you come across any problems with this or do you strongly recommend it??

Answer: Hi! 1) on some product related web sites i use this: http://www.papatiger.com/quick-shopping-cart.asp 2) for software and e-books i use PayPal - but they charge me 4% transaction fee which is very high. Regards

Question: When buying your 1st home, do you need/recommend a down payment? My fiance and I are having a discussion about buying our first home. I told him we should think about having at least a five percent down payment. He said he doesn't think it's necessary. He said he hears commercials on the radio everyday that talk about buying your first home and how you don't need a down payment. I think he's talking about those commercials that are those guys that are trying to rip you off and make a lot of money off the interest since you aren't having a down payment. Anyone have any suggestions or know where I could learn more about buying our first home and if it's recommended to have a down payment. (I think it'd be a very bad idea not to have one. How can I convince him, too?)

Answer: I am not a one of those that think you should place a lot of money if any down on a home. All interest is tax deductable over the course of the loan no matter how large or how small, the interest is. Your credit score will determine if you are qualified to purchase a home with little or no money down. The higher your credit score the less you have to put down and if you are at the level of having to put no money down all and good. The only way that you can find out if you are qualified for a loan is to find a mortgage "Broker" take one month of each of your pay stubs, 6 months bank statements from each bank account. W-2 form for 2 year and fed income tax for 2 years for each of you,as well as 6 months statements from any 401k program the both of you might have from your employers. Take your drivers lic and social cards or at least a copy of each. Now you will have lots of paper work to complete, but he will assist you. Not to worry you will get through it in fine fashion. This mortgage "Broker" will get a credit report for the both of you , after which he will be able to tell you what type mortgage you are gualified for. He will be able to tell you if you are qualified for a 100% loan or not. He will also be able to tell you how much home you can afford based on the amount of money you guys earn each month and the amount you guys pay out eacch month. The important thing for you to concern yourself if to get into a home with little or no money. The interest rate is important, but don't let it be a deterrent from you purchasing a home. Because your brother or friend got one rate does not mean you are going to get the same rate. Each person's credit is different and each person's credit score is different so don't expect the same loan. Just remember all the interest you pay on your loan is tax deductable. Once you have been pre-approved by your "Broker" he will fined a real estate person he has worked with and has a professional realtionship with to assist you in finding you a home. Once you have found a home, the real estate person will then get you a purchase contract, an appraisal for the property, have your mortgage "Broker" open an escrow or closing agent for you. He will give all the paper work to your mortgage broker who will take another 10-14 business days to complete your mortgage. When you go to your closing be prepared to sign lots of documents and other items that are required by the federal, state and local governments. Now that I have told you how to go about getting a home for the both of you, do you plan to get married before you purchase the home or after. My advice is to purchase the house after the marriage. I have seen so many purchase a house before marriage. After they purchase the house something happen and a breakup occurs. There are lots of legal things in the air, especially the house and who gets it. One say they paid the most on the mortgage and want to give the other a few $1000,00 for them to move. I know that you didn't ask but I wanted to pass on some experience and knowledge I have gained over the years. I suggest you check with your tax advisor on your tax situation and other tax questions you might have. I hope this has been of some use to you, good luck. "FIGHT ON"

Question: I want to retail small items to US, Australia, and Europe. What payment do you recommend for me to use? I want to retail small items to US, Australia, and Europe. What payment do you recommend for me to use, Visa, Smart Card, Moneybookers, or whatever? Usually the price of an item is below 400RMB.

Answer: Visa is the world's largest credit and debit card processing company. Visa is universally recognized and trusted. Moneybookers is a local yokel British company with a shady reputation involving money laundering. A "smart card" refers to any card with an embedded ID chip, so it is obviously not a payment processing vendor. Most companies engaged in online retailing in America accept some or all of the following: AmEx, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Paypal. If you are selling in China, then you need the ability to process Union Pay. In Japan you'll need JCB.

Question: What do you recommend me to use to receive payment for a SOHO in China? I am in China and I wanna build an online shop to sell products to western countries. What do you recommend me to use to receive payment? Maybe consumers pay by credit card.

Answer: paypal

Question: IRS website will not give you any information until your payment is scheduled.? From IRS Website: We recommend checking the Payment Schedule prior to using this application since your payment information will not be available on this tool until the time that your payment is scheduled.

Answer: My last two digits are 00, you would think they should have had those processed already,but no.

Question: What minimum percentage of a car's price would you recommend for a down payment? I realize this depends on one's finances, and you'd always want to avoid financing as much as you can, but I'm wondering if anyone thinks there's a good rule of thumb to be financially sensible. "Zero down" offers just seem crazy to me. Do you think a 20 percent down payment is sound? How much should I save up? Thanks!

Answer: I've been in finance for over four years now. Here's what your looking for. The first step is to decide how much money you can afford each month. Then decide how long you will have the car or how long the car will last. (Ex. a new car should have a zero balance in five years. Otherwise you will most likely owe more than the car is worth, which is bad.) So if you know you can spend $300 a month on a new car ($300 mo. x 5 yrs) that's $18,000 worth of payments. So if the car costs $24,000 you need to make a down payment of $6,000. The goal is to put down as little as possible. Because you would rather have that money in the bank. It's the amount of the monthly payments that are most important. Oh ya, don't forget include the interest in your calculations! Enjoy your new car!

Question: I need payment protection for my first mortgage. Can you recommend a company? We are first time buyers. I need Death and Critical Illness cover for me and my husband, and sickness and redundancy cover for just my husband. My mortgage adviser gave us a quote for £50.00 a month. I think that is really high. Can i get this cheaper myself? And can you recommend a company?

Answer: Unless one has insurability problems, mortgage insurance is not the best option. Mortgage protection is actually a decreasing benefit term policy, typically priced several times higher than one could purchase a level term (fixed premium for a fixed death benefit) coverage. See a local agent to compare prices. Of course, if your life insurance need may go beyond simply guarantying your mortgage payment, you need to plan for it as part of a comprehensive financial plan. This probably being the case, you need to consult with a qualified financial advisor or planner. Generally speaking, unless your life insurance need is very specific, NEVER buy life insurance from an insurance agent. They are salespersons, not financial professionals.

Question: If I have been late with 1 mortgage payment can I still refinance? I am so struggling with my mortgage payments Does anyone know of a good refinance company ?, and could they recommend anyone?

Answer: When you do refinance the new mortgage company will ask you to explain the reason for the late payment (I just went through a refinance -- went through Lending Tree to find a company to handle the refinance). If the reason is decent (like a big medical bill, or something like that) they will overlook that one late payment.

Question: Do you know a web hosting company that accepts paypal as a form of payment? I'm looking for a web hosting company, in the uk or elsewhere, that accepts paypal as a form of payment (I currently don't own a debit or credit card). I'd like to make a one-off payment to cover all web hosting costs for a year, instead of paying monthly bills. Also essential: Linux server with perl installed, cgi-enabled, and the possibility to access my user account by SSH console. Can you recommend any companies that fulfill the above?

Answer: Try Yahoo Small Business

Question: Can a hospital charge you after a procedure is done, if they said before that it was only a co-payment due? I had a outpatient surgery in May that my doctor had recommended but I told him that I could only do it if my insurance covered it. He had the billing nurse call my insurance and they told me that it would only cost a $50 co-payment. Since then I have changed jobs and therefore changed insurance companies. Now I have a bill for $144 saying that my insurance only covered a portion. I don't know if they are charging me now because by the time it processed I was no longer under that insurance? Are they allowed to do this after the fact? Do I have any rights to get rid of the bill? nevermind! I called them and it was taken care of thanks for your help so far!!

Answer: Hospitals are run by greedy corporations and they can be worse than the IRS when trying to recover what they determine is due them. Go back to your doctor and explain the situation they will probably help you. Your insurance should be the ones to help but they too are just greedy corporations.

Question: I am interested in a house but don't have the down payment can you recommend any assistance for me? i live in Iowa and people keep saying that there is money to be had but i cant seem to find it?? i am only looking for down payment assistance once we have the down payment our bank will finance

Answer: If you are in a position with no downpayment available, you aren't in a position to purchase a house, whether or not a lender will write a mortgage. With no spare cash on hand, what will you do if a furnace or similar fails ? You need to wait until you've managed to save up a downpayment, PLUS additional to cover closing costs and future emergencies.

Question: Does anyone know of a reputable Payment Gateway (Processor) based in the UK? I'm based in Canada and trying to set up a payment gateway for my client based in the UK. None of the Canadian or US processors will set up my client because they don't support the pound or euro. Can anyone help me and recommend a good Gateway?

Answer: I tend to use Protx http://www.protx.com/

Question: Is the prospective payment system actually unhealthy for some categories of patients ? "prospective payment is a system (Medicare uses it, and where Medicare goes, other insurance systems quickly follow) in which a hospital is paid X number of dollars to treat Y diagnosis. If they get it done quickly and cheaply, they show a profit. If there are complications, and most of the time these days people have multiple co-morbidities, then they can lose lots of money in a hurry." Suppose I am in the profile of patient who will easily contract pneumonia and ARDS if admitted to hospital for major surgery. For one reason or another an ultrasound is run on me and I am diagnosed with a circulatory disorder.(Supposedly one of my arteries has ballooned out and the suggestion is it may easily burst). My doctor recommends surgery saying I would normally be considered too old, but I am very strong. My prognosis of the hospital system is that it's very unhealthy for me. There will quite likely be complications. According to the quote above, it looks like the hospital will panic. No-one seems to be factoring in, the risk of iatrogenic complications. The pneumonia and ARDS are essentially iatrogenic. Am puzzled because this unhealthy hospital system would need some way of rapidly shutting me down if I develop complications. So I was encouraged to have the operation but I wasn't told that the hospital system has a way of rapidly shutting me down if I develop complications. Given the decision to operate, I don't see why pneumonia and ARDS are considered as complications. Treatment for these should be part of the service. There seems to be some Machiavellian plotting going on behind the scenes. One group is arguing that treatment for predictable complications pneumonia and ARDS should be part of the service, and another group is arguing against this. Worst case scenario is I'll be euthansed as some sort of test case, to set a precedent for future standards of service.

Answer: It may seem the the PPS system may motivate health care providers to "cut corners" by not performing certain tests and procedures. The less the hospital actually does to you, the more money they get to keep. Yet, we must remember that we are still held to the same standards of care and protocols that were in place prior to the PPS system. In the case you mention above, the doctor is considering surgery because you are an otherwise healthy person and are being considered for this surgery because of the vascular anomaly that was found. The irresponsible system would say "well, he doesn't meet the criteria for age, so we are under no obligation to perform the surgery." Rather than viewing PPS as an "unhealthy" system, I view it as a much needed reality check to prevent uneccesary procedures. Prolonged use of the fee-for-service system is what got us in the mess that we are in now (escalated cost of health care). The PPS system made health care professionals take look at what they were doing and hold them accountable for the procedures they performed. Out of it comes much research investigating the validity of the treatments and tests that were being performed. Prior to this, many things were performed haphazardly. I view the PPS system as a way of making the provider more responsible for what they are doing. What benefits the patient is that charges above and beyond the PPS are not directed toward the patient. Again, it is the hospital's responsibility for charges above and beyond.

Question: What is the best payment gateway for my online shop? I've been looking at World Pay and NoChex. Are either of these any good? Are there any others you would recommend? Thanks

Answer: We've used Paypal for some time and found it works well. The only issue we've had with them is their limit of £650 for a transaction if the buyer doesn't have a Paypal account. We looked at other providers and the only one that we found worth considering was Netbanx. They charge a flat fee each month. Both Paypal and Netbanx allow you access to your funds more quickly than World Pay and NoChex.

Question: payment protection insurance? I've brought a new car and want to add payment protection onto the monthly outgoings. The dealership is charging too much. Can anyone recommend a loan payment protect insurance provider?

Answer: look on the internet. good thing to add with this econamy/key got stuck. my friend just lost his job over a year,and traded in a mint condition truck for a camry,had less tha 500 mile,and in 2 months he was laid off. good luck to all

Question: Can you sell a car with a payment plan if the bank owns the title? I own a 2007 vehicle and want to sell it to save money. The financing company still has a lien on the vehicle. A coworker has expressed interest in the car but wants the option to pay in installments. Is it possible to sell a vehicle this way without being the current title owner or is this out of the question? What are the risks? Who is liable for the vehicle in this time. How would this deal be structured? Can you recommend a contract template to use?

Answer: I noticed the 2 questions that you posted... are you thinking of totaling your car so the Gap insurance will take you of the whole financial obligation? If that is the case, is fraud and punishable by law.