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If you have never had home insurance coverage before then you may feel like you need someone to explain it to you. After all, not every policy is the same. Some are very different but no prior experience in this particular field may result in all the information that specialists will throw at you going straight over your head. It can be difficult to make sense of all of the jargon associated with a home owners insurance policy, but if you know the basic features to look for in a policy then you are equipped to choose the policy that is best for you.

There are several features that you need to look for in the home insurance coverage that is offered by various companies and the list below notes several of them. This is by no means an exhaustive list but should give you an idea to get you started:

1. Exclusions – Exclusions are put in place within your home insurance coverage to limit the situations that you can claim on. For example, you would be able to claim for a stolen stereo system but not a damaged CD. These often follow common sense, but some policies have more exclusions than others so make sure you fully read the terms and conditions so that you are fully aware of what you can and can’t claim for.

2. Valuables cover – Some home owners insurance policies cover building and contents but stop short of insuring valuables such as jewelery. Others insure everything that is actually within the home. You should ask whether valuables are covered in your basic policy or not and, if not, whether you can actually add that element to your policy.

3. Excess/deductible – Most policies will stipulate that you will have to cover the first x amount of dollars on each claim. This is called a deductible or excess. You are usually liable for the first $50 to $250. This is a huge step, especially if you are looking to recoup your losses so shop around for the best value excesses.

4. Off premises cover – Home insurance coverage may or may not extend to personal property being taken out of your home. Technically it is more susceptible to damage if removed from your home, which is why some companies do not provide cover. However, some companies will as part of your policy or as an add on, so watch out for this.

5. Repair and replace – Company policies vary as far as home insurance coverage for damaged items are concerned. Some insist on having an assessor examine and attempt to repair broken items before replacing them. If you would prefer to simply replace items yourself then read the policies very closely before signing anything.

6. Claim limits and procedure – Every home owners insurance policy varies in that the monetary amount you can claim can be as low or as high as they stipulate. It may be better to request the amount of cover that you would like and then choose a policy that complies with that. Also, claims procedures can range from extremely simple to very long and drawn out. Have a look at claims policies for full details but if something sounds complicated, then it usually is!

Illinois foreclosure listings are more than a growing list of potential investment targets; they are an invaluable home buyer’s guide to opportunity. Where many desirable towns and communities across the state have average family home prices beyond the reach of first time and lower income home buyers, the foreclosure listings display the available affordable homes in those locations.

In common with cities nationwide, the growth in foreclosures in Illinois has always been greater among the lower priced property; more so in 2007 as the impact of adjustable rate mortgages extended in the last few years to home owners who did not have deposits or credit standing to qualify for prime 30 year loans has hit hard. Of the monthly rate of new foreclosure filings has reached 6,000 state wide, just over half have been in the Chicagoland area, more than 75% have adjustable rate mortgages. With the overall real estate market in the doldrums homeowners in pre foreclosure have found their opportunities for selling their homes become very limited and falling prices have resulted in the loss of any equity, making refinancing impossible for many.

The housing market is not so obviously in favor of the buyer outside the Chicago metro area. Just 20 miles away the young village community of Woodridge is known to keen golfers and an outstanding school system attracts young families. The average price of a single family home at $328,000 is daunting to first time home buyers, who may be able finance and bear the monthly payment schedule of the discounted value foreclosure home. South Elgin has a train commute link to Chicago, and a growing reputation for sound government, an outstanding environment attracting new residents every year. Libertyville with its strong rural character and historic district is yet another sought after location within commute distance of Chicago, and has affordable homes in polder areas of town; a foreclosure deal will make that extra- affordable!

Springfield, the state capital, has so much to offer its residents and newcomers; for some years it has rated high among the top affordable cities in the nation. It has a steady housing market; while foreclosure savings may not be, on an average, as high as in the other Chicago satellite cities mentioned, your investment is guaranteed to gain in value steadily and immediately.

So use the foreclosure listings as your introduction to a potential first home in a desirable location in this great state. Search the listings without leaving your desk or your home. This winter, this buyer’s market is as good as it gets. The saving from the market in your favor plus the saving from a foreclosure deal adds up to you in your first home sooner than you ever imagined.

No money down real estate investing is a concept that has been around forever. Investing in real estate with no money down is straight forward and really refers to the fact that the lead investor has none of their OWN money down in a deal. This often means there is still a down payment involved but it may have come from another investor or through creative financing.

Doing the research up front is critical when you want to invest in real estate with no money down. You’ll want to know more than a little about purchasing and selling real estate. The real estate investor should be familiar with the laws, rules and regulations which vary by locality and are essential to know.

A key issue is finding a seller that is interested in seller assisted financing. The key to being able to invest in properties without down payments, in fact, is the seller. The hardest part of finding properties that you can purchase without a down payment is finding this seller assisted financing.

Seller assisted financing can come in many forms. A common method is to ask the seller to provide the down payment amount required by the financing source. For example, if the purchase price is $111K and the bank requires a down payment of 10%, you will request the seller provide the down payment amount of $11K. The end result of this successful method is that you effectively purchase the property for the mortgage balance of $100K.

If you are looking for seller-assisted financing, one method is to lease the piece of property from the seller instead of buying it. Instead of sending a monthly payment to the bank, you would instead be sending it to the property owner. The advantage of this is that it lets you circumvent the bank’s normal down payment requirements and you are free to renovate and update the property in order to sell or lease it to another person.

These varying approaches to investing without a down payment can be very profitable. They have permitted many individuals to begin investing in real estate without great amounts of money typically needed for up-front costs like initial closing costs or down payments.

A good means of finding investing information is to look on the internet. Many websites exist that contain valuable, and free, information. To utilize one of these websites to get the information you need, try the search string - real estate investing no money down.

No money down real estate investing is a good way for investors without access to start-up funds to enter the real estate market. The key to real estate investing no money down is doing research up front, such as learning the local regulations. The most difficult research endeavor will be to find a seller who is interested in seller-assisted financing.

INDOORS

Furnace:

- Set up a furnace check-up well before the cold weather starts, not only will it prevent the breakdown blues in the dead of winter, but it’s much easier to get an appointment with your local furnace repairman before he gets busy.

- Generally the filters should be checked every month and every three months for the high-efficiency models.You can save as much as five per cent on heating costs by ensuring your furnace is running as it should.

- If you’re considering changing your furnace, now is a good time to upgrade to a high-efficiency version.

- If you have a gas fireplace, have this cleaned during your furnace inspection.

Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Detectors:

- Test and replace batteries where necessary.

Doors & Windows:

- Make sure they close properly and check for cool air seeping through. You can try lighting an incense stick and placing it near the opening, the smoke trail will indicate whether you have a draft.

- Consider replacing any windows that are beyond repair.

- Hang storm windows or insulate interior windows with heavy drapes or plastic.

- Examine the rubber thresholds at the bottom of your doors, if they are dry and brittle, they may need to be replaced.

Thermostat:

- You can save about 10 per cent on heating bills by turning your thermostat down 10 degrees at night. A programmable timer is a handy way to automatically do this, it also helps when your away from home for an extended time and want to keep the temperature down.

Hot Water Heater:

- Save money and burn less energy by turning the thermostat down to low, during low use times. Some models have insulated blankets that fit over them to save heat.

Insulation:

- Double check the insulation in your attic and add to it if needed. As a rule, if you have less than 12 inches of attic insulation, you could use more.

Prepare an Emergency Kit:

- Get some indoor candles and matches, and put new batteries in your flashlights in the event of a power failure.

- Put the phone numbers for your utility companies near your phone or at the front of your phone book.

- Buy a battery back-up to protect your computer.

- Set up a shelf or bin and fill with bottled water, canned goods, dry food, pet food (don’t forget about Fido), and a first-aid kit.

OUTDOORS

Chimneys:

- Inspect for creosote buildup or other surprises which may have nested over the warmer months. A cap or screen is an easy way to prevent unwanted wildlife from pulling up stakes in your chimney.

- Make sure your fireplace damper is closed when the fireplace is not running to prevent warm air from escaping. Firewood:

- Arrange for a firewood delivery and have it stacked and ready to go.

Hoses:

- Remove hoses from outside faucets and store them away.

Gutters:

- Clean out your gutters and downspouts. You may consider installing leaf guards if you have a lot of trees on your property.

Christmas Lights:

- Some people use this time to hook up Christmas decorations in those hard too reach places. For myself, however; I prefer to wait until it’s bitter cold and snowing to put my lights up.

Exterior Walls:

- Now is the time to caulk any leaks in your window frames, outside walls, water pipes or any other openings.

- Use spray foam to insulate areas too large for caulking.

- Inspect the mortar in brick homes and touch it up if necessary.

Equipment Servicing:

- Relocate your lawnmower and drain the gas.

- Tune-up your snow blowers.

Garden:
- Clean and store your gardening equipment.
- Trim any trees that are hanging close to the house or electrical wires.
- Lift any bulbs or relocate any sensitive plants that may not survive the winter.
- Purchase a bag of salt or sand and have it handy.

Sometimes it’s hard to get motivated to do these types of jobs before we have to, but they can easily be completed over a weekend or two, and you’ll be glad you did. It’s much nicer to complete these chores on a sunny fall day than standing on a ladder in the dead of winter.

Homeowners facing the loss of their homes due to a financial hardship often rely primarily on getting a new line of credit to stop foreclosure. In effect, they are trying to solve a debt problem by taking on more debt, refinancing their mortgage or taking out a personal loan or car title loan to get the funds to pay back the arrears. There are a number of loan products that they may even be able to qualify for, if the foreclosure process has not gone too far, but homeowners should carefully examine their options for foreclosure loans, to make sure they are getting into an affordable payment and not simply postponing the inevitable.

The first obstacle that homeowners facing a financial crisis will have to overcome is a low credit score. Although their credit may be reasonably healthy in the beginning stages of the hardship, once they begin missing mortgage payments, their credit score will drop dramatically and it will be very difficult to obtain any kind of loan, mortgage or otherwise. This will force them to rely on alternate sources of funding, such as private real estate investors, subprime lenders specializing in bailouts, or hard money lenders, that may not offer terms in favor of the homeowners. The qualification guidelines will be drastically more difficult to meet, and costs for these types of mortgages may seem very expensive.

Additionally, the current foreclosure crisis in the real estate market has caused many lenders to go out of business, and many more to tighten their lending guidelines. One hundred percent, stated income, interest only loans are simply no longer available, and homeowners who obtained loans such as these may have very little equity to work with. Hard money lenders, while not hit quite as hard as subprime lenders, are also experiencing decreases in the value of their mortgage holdings, due to the softening market. And decreases in home values are sucking the wealth out of communities, as local homeowners turn into renters, and large corporate banks end up owning vast portions of cities, unable to sell them to a market that no longer exists. These current events will continue to make qualifying for a refinance to prevent foreclosure very difficult.

However, the most difficult qualification to meet for any loan to stop foreclosure will be the equity requirement. With banks that specialize in these kinds of loans, the house will usually have to have 70% loan to value as a minimum. Some start even lower, at 60-65%; this makes a vast number of foreclosure victims immediately unqualified to obtain financing. The bank, because they are aware of a great danger of having to foreclose on the house again, wants to know that they will have their loan paid back through the proceeds of the sheriff sale, and such low loan to value properties have a better chance of meeting this aim. There is also a better chance they will be able to sell the property on the open market for very little but still make a profit, if they have to foreclose on the loan and end up owning the house after foreclosure.

Furthermore, interest rates from foreclosure bailout lenders or hard money lenders can be relatively high. Depending on which lenders are chosen and what their individual guidelines are, payments can be in the range of 11-15% on the low end, and up to 18-20% at the highest point. These loans are designed for homeowners who experienced a temporary financial setback but are now able to afford a higher mortgage payment in exchange for the chance to establish an on-time payment history again and save their home. If the homeowners have not repaired their financial situation and established good spending habits, these qualifications will ensure they can not find a solution to foreclosure by going this route, and other options to prevent foreclosure will have to be considered.

Private investor options are often the most flexible in terms of payments and equity considerations. The homeowners will not have to give up their ownership rights to the home in all circumstances, if they use a land contract option, or they may have the right to purchase back their property after a certain period of time under a leaseback agreement. Also, investors are often more willing to work directly with the foreclosure victims, because they are more concerned with the equity in the house and its potential future profit and monthly cash flow, and they can negotiate with the foreclosing bank for a short sale to generate even more equity. But these considerations also work in the homeowners’ interests, because more equity in the property will require a smaller mortgage, which will be accompanied by lower payments. This can give the foreclosure victims a little bit of extra cash every month that they can use to save for a rainy day or pay off other debts.

Other loan programs, such as payday loans or car title loans, are often the most predatory of all plans a homeowner can take to save their home. In nearly all cases, relying on such loans during a financial hardship is almost a guarantee for future financial problems, and will result in the foreclosure victims becoming even further behind on monthly expenses. Although there is a place and time that these loans can help homeowners out of a tight situation, they should be avoided when there is a serious financial hardship that does not have an end in sight. And they should be considered as a last resort to make a payment, rather than a short term solution that can be relied upon numerous times to keep a property out of foreclosure.

Homeowners have numerous options when looking at loans to save a home from foreclosure, but the qualifications for many of these loans will be difficult (if not impossible) to meet. Due to the drawbacks and difficulties with these loans, using debt to solve a debt problem should be one part of the plan to stop foreclosure, but it should not be the only part. Other options need to be considered in addition to credit, especially working with the lender, selling the home, and filing bankruptcy to avoid foreclosure. The problem of losing a home can be solved in various ways, but every situation requires a unique perspective and several backups in order to be successful. Loans of any kind are just one part of the equation in homeowners helping themselves to understand what can be done to solve their current problem and ensure they have a long term plan to prevent going into foreclosure ever again.

There’s a whole slew of ominous terms being bandied about these days when people talk real estate. With some northern US towns hit so hard by the housing downturn that over 30% of their houses are empty, the increase in anxiety is no great wonder. But homeowners need not panic, there are alternatives to foreclosure.

Getting in over your head financially doesn’t have to mean walking away from your home investment. As a first step, you should always try to work things out with your bank. Contact them as soon as you’re having trouble with your payments. Banks don’t like foreclosures and you may be able to make a deal that will make your payments bearable and allow you to keep your home. There are also some programs though HUD that can help you stay put until the market balances out.

Of course working out a deal isn’t always possible but saving your credit rating is. Once you’ve exhausted your options, you may want to try to negotiate a short sale.

WHAT IS A SHORT SALE?

When your home is worth less than its mortgage ti’s known as an upside down mortgage. When a lender agrees to absorb the difference in a sale, it’s called a short sale. Like a last exit before foreclosure, short selling your home won’t make you any money but when your debt is more than you can handle, negotiating a short-sale may rescue your credit rating and let you avoid the embarrassment of foreclosing.

In order to qualify for a short sale:

1. Your loan must be in default at least two months

2. Your house must be worth at least 63 percent of what you owe and sell for at least 82 percent of the “as-is” appraised value.

3. You must sell the house within three to five months

4. You must convince your lender to assume the cost of the short sale:

THE COST OF SELLING = Real estate commissions + Taxes + Closing costs + Title fees + Liens of record + Balance of all loans on the home including interest and late fees

THE COST OF THE SHORT SALE = Cost of selling - Appraised value

Once these figures are delivered to the bank, the lender can take up to 45 days to balance the cost of the short sale against the cost of a foreclosure. Not every lender will agree to a short sale though, which is why hiring a realtor may be the best way to negotiate this kind of deal. Contact a realtor in your area that’s experienced in negotiating this type of arrangement. They may have more leverage with lenders and be able to guide you through the process. They will also be able to help you find a buyer.

Bank foreclosures get their name because the bank lender with a defaulted loan has, at the end of the foreclosure process, ended up with title to the property. Banks, along with other lenders this year, find themselves as managers of an increasing inventory of REO or Real Estate Owned property. These repossessed properties must be offered for sale as soon as possible in order to avoid a range of problems from security factors to the sheer holding cost of deteriorating assets These properties, which cover the spectrum of real estate assets from commercial to residential, from vacant lots to former speculator and investor assets are now flooding onto a cold sellers market in competition with similar properties, some with owners facing financial pressure to sell, others in pre foreclosure.

Some real estate investors and a few knowledgeable home buyers see the current market as the best opportunity in years to buy well. The home buyer’s intention is to stay put for a while. Buying to hold while housing prices correct themselves is likely to mean staying in your home for anywhere between 3 and 7 years depending on the state, county and metro location. Buying a bank foreclosure is one way the home buyer gets a double benefit from a down market – the benefit of buying now at a discounted price, then building equity in the home faster as he rides out the market bottom and prices rise once more.

So, are bank foreclosures a good deal? Property selected carefully with attention to the very specific factors contributing to that deal, has the potential to yield more space for your investment dollar, or a move up into a more prosperous neighborhood, or simply affordability. Specific factors are the “as is” nature of the property offered by the bank, the likelihood that the property has been in the foreclosure process and then in the bank’s hands for a while, the bank’s pricing policy and attitude to conditional offers. Most bank owned property is offered for sale through agents, the bid and counter offer process can be protracted, and vendor financing, rarely possible, is a completely arms length affair. Having said all that, watch this space; as the year wears on there can be no doubt that bank inventories of repossessed homes will rise to record levels in some foreclosure stricken states; bulk REO auction sales, aggressive marketing, enticements and deeper discounts will be required to move those bank foreclosures off the bankers’ hands. It’s always going to be up to the potential buyer to do the due diligence, researching the condition of the property before making your offer is vital to ensure you get the bargain you intend.