Dear Real Estate Adviser,
I am giving my house back to the bank. Can they go after my savings? What about other assets? I am near retirement age.
— Kitty
Dear Kitty,
Depending on the state where you live, the bank could conceivably come after your savings through a deficiency judgment. However, these days there’s a better-than-average (more…)
Dear Debt Adviser,
What information or advice can you give us in regard to an upside-down home loan? We purchased our home in Fresno, Calif., just a few months before the beginning of the housing price burst in 2007 and put a 20 percent down payment on $600,000. Our home is now devalued to $400,000, and we are upside down by $60,000. Are there any programs or relief for these situations?
(more…)
Dear Dr. Don,
We received a decent bonus this year and are trying to figure out the most effective way to use it. We recently purchased a house and the homeowners association requires that we landscape the yard by May 1 of this year. It is a fairly large yard and will require the whole bonus amount just for the basics.
Also, due to car troubles, we have nearly maxed out our main credit card and have taken (more…)