If you have poor credit - you are not alone. It is estimated that approximately 30 million Americans struggle with bad credit from having excessive credit card debt and not paying their bills on time. Unfortunately, rising medical costs, job layoffs, ridiculous gas prices and escalating home prices are exacerbating the rate at which Americans are falling into the bad credit pit.

Without a doubt, no other process renders you more ashamed and more aware of your bad credit score than the act of purchasing a home. Buying a house with good credit is horrendous enough, for first time homebuyers. For people with bad credit, it is an act of congress but it need not be. Here are four easy ways to buy a house with bad credit.

Keep it in the family. Get a relative who has good credit to purchase the house on your behalf. A family member with a solid credit history, will get a good interest rate thereby making your monthly mortgage payments more affordable. You will also get some exposure to the home buying process without being overwhelmed.

After your relative closes on the house, you must take over the mortgage payments, insurance and taxes. This will ensure that you get the tax benefits of being a home owner right away. Arrange for your relative to sign a "Grant Deed," to add your name to the title of the property. This makes you a co-owner of the house.

At this point, you should focus on rebuilding your credit score to between the 675 to 715 range – the higher, the better but you can make this your initial goal. To improve your score, you must live by these three rules:

Pay your bills on time – always.

Do not open up too many lines of credit. Keep one or two lines of credit.

Do not max out your credit cards.

Once you have achieved a good credit score, your relative can sign another “Grant Deed” to take their name of the property title – making you the full owner of the house.

Self Serve. If you do not have a family member or friend, who can buy the house on your behalf, then you will have to buy the house on your own. The internet has created a competitive mortgage industry so that there are large banks whose entire divisions are dedicated to bad credit home loans.

According to the Fair Issacs Corporation (FICO), if you have a FICO Score of 550, your likely interest today would be 9.289%, while a person with a FICO Score of 700 would get an interest rate of 5.867%. On a $200,000 mortgage, the difference in monthly mortgage payments would be $426.00. This is a lot of money, but do not obsess over it. The lesson from this exercise, is to realize the importance of improving your credit score. Once you raise your credit score, you can refinance the mortgage to get a lower interest rate thereby reducing your mortgage payments.

Rent to Own. You have seen the advertisements in the newspaper. If you are a renter and can afford monthly mortgage payments but do not have the 10% to 20% down payment required to buy a home – this is a great option. “Rent-to-own,” legally referred to as “Lease Option” works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Buyer and seller agree on a sales price (for example $250,000)

Buyer pays seller a non-refundable option fee. This fee is the price that the buyer pay the seller for granting them the option to buy the house.

Buyer and seller agree on interest rate, option term and down payment. For example, the terms of the contract may be 8%, 24 months and a down payment of $2,500. The buyer does not to pay the $2,500 in one lu

A Marketing Strategy That Works!
Undoubtedly permission marketing could be used personalize almost every aspect of internet marketing. Some speculate that the world wide web has more than one billion pages of content! For the average Internet user that means alot of time searching through endless websites and cluttered pages jammed with ads completely irrelevant to their target search. I will explore the In's and Out's of what effective permission marketing can be used to achieve.First, let us examine the numerous advantages to the customer. They are exposed to the most relevant information to their interest. Unlike banner advertising, permission advertising has a greatly increased sale conversion simply because the customer indicated int

enough, for first time homebuyers. For people with bad credit, it is an act of congress but it need not be. Here are four easy ways to buy a house with bad credit.

Keep it in the family. Get a relative who has good credit to purchase the house on your behalf. A family member with a solid credit history, will get a good interest rate thereby making your monthly mortgage payments more affordable. You will also get some exposure to the home buying process without being overwhelmed.

After your relative closes on the house, you must take over the mortgage payments, insurance and taxes. This will ensure that you get the tax benefits of being a home owner right away. Arrange for your relative to sign a "Grant Deed," to add your name to the title of the property. This makes you a co-owner of the house.

At this point, you should focus on rebuilding your credit score to between the 675 to 715 range – the higher, the better but you can make this your initial goal. To improve your score, you must live by these three rules:

Pay your bills on time – always.

Do not open up too many lines of credit. Keep one or two lines of credit.

Do not max out your credit cards.

Once you have achieved a good credit score, your relative can sign another “Grant Deed” to take their name of the property title – making you the full owner of the house.

Self Serve. If you do not have a family member or friend, who can buy the house on your behalf, then you will have to buy the house on your own. The internet has created a competitive mortgage industry so that there are large banks whose entire divisions are dedicated to bad credit home loans.

According to the Fair Issacs Corporation (FICO), if you have a FICO Score of 550, your likely interest today would be 9.289%, while a person with a FICO Score of 700 would get an interest rate of 5.867%. On a $200,000 mortgage, the difference in monthly mortgage payments would be $426.00. This is a lot of money, but do not obsess over it. The lesson from this exercise, is to realize the importance of improving your credit score. Once you raise your credit score, you can refinance the mortgage to get a lower interest rate thereby reducing your mortgage payments.

Rent to Own. You have seen the advertisements in the newspaper. If you are a renter and can afford monthly mortgage payments but do not have the 10% to 20% down payment required to buy a home – this is a great option. “Rent-to-own,” legally referred to as “Lease Option” works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Buyer and seller agree on a sales price (for example $250,000)

Buyer pays seller a non-refundable option fee. This fee is the price that the buyer pay the seller for granting them the option to buy the house.

Buyer and seller agree on interest rate, option term and down payment. For example, the terms of the contract may be 8%, 24 months and a down payment of $2,500. The buyer does not to pay the $2,500 in one lu

Do's And Don'ts For Business Insurance
The need for a business insurance starts the moment one initiates the business idea and plan. That is why it very important to have the detailed idea as to what business insurance is and what are its dos and don'ts. Here are some of the initial tips that may help you to get your proper insurance for your business and might also lower the risks and losses of your business.The Dos: 1) Do find the insurance agent who has the idea of the type of your business.2) Do make sure that your business insurance covers all the basic coverage such as-Property insurance along with the equipment breakdown.-General liability coverage with product liability insurance-

e of the property. This makes you a co-owner of the house.

At this point, you should focus on rebuilding your credit score to between the 675 to 715 range – the higher, the better but you can make this your initial goal. To improve your score, you must live by these three rules:

Pay your bills on time – always.

Do not open up too many lines of credit. Keep one or two lines of credit.

Do not max out your credit cards.

Once you have achieved a good credit score, your relative can sign another “Grant Deed” to take their name of the property title – making you the full owner of the house.

Self Serve. If you do not have a family member or friend, who can buy the house on your behalf, then you will have to buy the house on your own. The internet has created a competitive mortgage industry so that there are large banks whose entire divisions are dedicated to bad credit home loans.

According to the Fair Issacs Corporation (FICO), if you have a FICO Score of 550, your likely interest today would be 9.289%, while a person with a FICO Score of 700 would get an interest rate of 5.867%. On a $200,000 mortgage, the difference in monthly mortgage payments would be $426.00. This is a lot of money, but do not obsess over it. The lesson from this exercise, is to realize the importance of improving your credit score. Once you raise your credit score, you can refinance the mortgage to get a lower interest rate thereby reducing your mortgage payments.

Rent to Own. You have seen the advertisements in the newspaper. If you are a renter and can afford monthly mortgage payments but do not have the 10% to 20% down payment required to buy a home – this is a great option. “Rent-to-own,” legally referred to as “Lease Option” works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Buyer and seller agree on a sales price (for example $250,000)

Buyer pays seller a non-refundable option fee. This fee is the price that the buyer pay the seller for granting them the option to buy the house.

Buyer and seller agree on interest rate, option term and down payment. For example, the terms of the contract may be 8%, 24 months and a down payment of $2,500. The buyer does not to pay the $2,500 in one lu

Stop Foreclosure With Your IRA
Many people who are facing foreclosure or another financial setback wish they could tap some of the funds in their IRA, 401(k), or other retirement account. However, the penalties for doing so can be prohibitive. You will lose a big chunk of the withdrawal to taxes and penalties; not only will you be penalized 10% of the money you withdraw, but you will also have to report the full amount of the withdrawal as taxable income for the year, and pay income taxes on that amount.A much better option is to BORROW the money from your retirement plan, rather than take it as a disbursement. If you are able to borrow the money, 100% of the payments AND interest go back to your plan, with no taxes or penalties paid on the

own. The internet has created a competitive mortgage industry so that there are large banks whose entire divisions are dedicated to bad credit home loans.

According to the Fair Issacs Corporation (FICO), if you have a FICO Score of 550, your likely interest today would be 9.289%, while a person with a FICO Score of 700 would get an interest rate of 5.867%. On a $200,000 mortgage, the difference in monthly mortgage payments would be $426.00. This is a lot of money, but do not obsess over it. The lesson from this exercise, is to realize the importance of improving your credit score. Once you raise your credit score, you can refinance the mortgage to get a lower interest rate thereby reducing your mortgage payments.

Rent to Own. You have seen the advertisements in the newspaper. If you are a renter and can afford monthly mortgage payments but do not have the 10% to 20% down payment required to buy a home – this is a great option. “Rent-to-own,” legally referred to as “Lease Option” works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Buyer and seller agree on a sales price (for example $250,000)

Buyer pays seller a non-refundable option fee. This fee is the price that the buyer pay the seller for granting them the option to buy the house.

Buyer and seller agree on interest rate, option term and down payment. For example, the terms of the contract may be 8%, 24 months and a down payment of $2,500. The buyer does not to pay the $2,500 in one lu

Six Things To Do In A High Risk Market
When the market turns against you, what should you do? Sell everything? We discussed that choice in a recent column. Selling everything draws your “line in the sand” and announces that you have determined there is no future for you in the market.There are other steps you can take when things start moving against you. Here are 6 actions you take today to help protect the money you’ve worked hard to get. In my next article, I will share several more ways you can help protect your stock market and mutual fund investments.1. Decide at what price you will buy the stock or fund if it pulls back. Take a long look at where the stock has been the last few months. Has it gone up without any kind of break?

ts.

Rent to Own. You have seen the advertisements in the newspaper. If you are a renter and can afford monthly mortgage payments but do not have the 10% to 20% down payment required to buy a home – this is a great option. “Rent-to-own,” legally referred to as “Lease Option” works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Buyer and seller agree on a sales price (for example $250,000)

Buyer pays seller a non-refundable option fee. This fee is the price that the buyer pay the seller for granting them the option to buy the house.

Buyer and seller agree on interest rate, option term and down payment. For example, the terms of the contract may be 8%, 24 months and a down payment of $2,500. The buyer does not to pay the $2,500 in one lump sum but rather over the period of 24 months.

Total monthly payments to the seller will be the principle and interest on a $250,000 mortgage loan at 8%, which is $1,834 (assuming 30 year fixed) plus $104.17 ($2,500/24 months) for a total of $1,938.17. At the end of the 24 months, you have the option to purchase the house or pass up the deal.

The biggest advantage to the “Rent to Own” process, is your ability to lock-in a price today for a future home purchase. In other words, if the house is worth $260,000 in 24 months – you immediately have $10,000 equity in the home.

Seller Financing. Get the seller to finance your home purchase. Bypass the hassle of getting a conventional loan and find a motivated seller, who is willing to finance your home. The way to do this, is through a “wraparound mortgage,” legally termed an “Inclusive Trust Deed”. In a wraparound mortgage, you purchase a house by assuming a subordinate mortgage to the original mortgage on the house.

This scenario works as follows:

Buyer finds a home.

Seller is currently carrying a mortgage on the house, in the amount of $200,000 at a 7% interest rate.

Buyer and seller agree on a new sales price, interest rate and down payment (for example $250,000, 8.5%, $25,000).

Buyer puts down $25,000 as down payment and assumes a loan for $250,000 at 8.5%. Buyer makes payments to the seller on monthly basis.

Seller pays original loan mortgager on a monthly basis and pockets difference.

This option negates the arduous process of finding a conventional loan. In addition, you avoid closing costs, which can be quite steep in some states (up to 5% of the sales price).

Any of these four options will lead you down the path of home ownership. Buying a home with bad credit is an attainable goal.