Should I contribute to a 529 plan or use that 50$ a month to pay off the principal on my mortgage?
350612
The interest that you pay on your mortgage is tax deductible.  I would pay the mortgage off last.  If you have any credit card debt pay that off first.  Then if you are not maxing out retirement savings, put the $50 a month into a Roth IRA for yourself.  If you still have some extra money than dump it into a 529 ( http://www.529s.com )
44320
Assuming you can pay it off in a lump sum, what would the cost be?  I.E.  Is that money just sitting, or is it invested and what is the return on that investment?\n\nIf you are talking about taking money from a savings account to pay it off, a savings account that is somewhat set asside for retire use, maybe the real question should be, is it time to move?\n\nIf it is, due to retirement, fixing up the house should be top priority, and investigating what you can get to replace it.\n\nIf you do decide to move, the mortgage will be paid off once you sell, and so paying it off is rather irrelevant if you have a quick sale.\n\nIf you are staying forever, really depends on your interest rate, and what you are getting in a return with your invested funds (assuming they are invested).  I know a friend had a rate of 2.75% FEMA loan and he thought he would be more secure paying it off.  He was getting 5.14 on his invested (SECURE) savings account.  Of course HE should not pay it off, because he was making more money by paying on the mortgage.  It all depends on your situation.  Let's assume your investment is a wash with your interest payments.  Having liquid capital is always better than having to go out and get a loan when money is needed.  First, the loan may take a lot of time, 2nd the loan may cost you fees, and 3rd, waiting for the loan could cost you the opportunity that you needed the money for.  The old saying, CASH is KING seems to come to mind here.\n\nOn the other hand, if you are paying 7.14%, while your invested funds are earning you only 2.14--you are losing money without a doubt.  And if you have a 2nd mortgage at even higher rates, need I repeat?\n\nMaybe, you are saying you are going to be able to draw on retirement funds (penalty/tax free) in the very near future.  If this is the case, and again the funds are not outproducing the interest costs, clearly, pay off the mortgage.\n\nHope this helps...
498567
Yearly take-home pay ~ $54.4K\nMonthly take-home ~ $4.5 K\nExpenses ~ $2 K <people never get this right so I double it>\nMonthly savings of $2.5 K.\n\nIf you can automatically have $ go from work directly into saving vehicles do so ... this will stop temptations.  You should pocket 40% for expenses & living <getting your date> ... and 60% savings.\n\n1.  Before you do anything else <except pay off all debt> ... Build up to $20K in Emergency Savings first <$2K * 12 = $24>.  I then tell myself I have no money when I deplete the account to $15 K. Then I change allocations, and make sure I always have this highly liquid stash. <T-Bills, CD's, Saving/Checking accounts ... safe & liquid>\n\n2.  Savings - After the safety account is established goals reached, then you need savings that are more risky but still liquid <make sure there are no penalties to get $$$>.  You can invest the money into bonds, mutual funds, or stocks ... what ever you are educated in and feel confident in.  This account is taxable so be mindful of that when you make investment decisions.  \n\n3.  Retirement - 401(k), SEP, ROTH, IRA ... See what you're company has for retirement.  If they match, then contribute what they match.  If no retirement is offered, then go to a broker and get their help.  You should be investing 10-20% of your savings here.\n\n4.  Housing - With only $1K in expenses I'm guessing you don't own a home.  I would look into buying a home <Loft, condo, town home> It's money well spent, and you can get great loans today <tomorrow the good loans will be gone>
51705
Paying off a mortgage is the equivalent of "investing" at your mortgage interest rate, so it will save you money in the long run and is generally a good idea if you have no other use for the money (such as paying off credit card debt or expenses).\n\nIf you need to access the money you paid in, you can generally get a home equity line of credit (HELOC) on your home for free.  You can then reborrow the money you put into your house at that interest rate (which normally fluctuates).  You can check out current rates at http://www.bankrate.com.
127550
You should payoff your mortgage if you have the money anyway.  The tax credit isn't worth the interest payments on a 30-yr mortgage.
301123
That is a good rate, but be sure to read the fine print...they can often increase the interest rate if you are late, don't pay a certain amount each month, or after a certain period of time.  It is better to pay it off each month if you can...then you are paying 0% interest...can;t get better than that!
952302
if you are paying back 357,50 per calendar month you are paying 47190 in all which is 14690 interest. This is 45.2% over 11 years or 4.1090 per annum. Your interest on the first month is 110, second month 109 etc etc (I am leaving off the pennies.)\n\nIf you pay 2500 EXTRA ie 2867.50 on the 12 th month of every year your payments will finish on month 68 witn a payment of 232.34, having paid 3882.136 interest.
855522
If you can afford to take the time to do it, build the house. That way it's what you want. You'll build up equity sooner that way and receive much more personal satisfaction.
235584
40% is good especially for having done it yourself. If I were you, I'd close all the accounts and take this deal. It sounds really good if it's at a level you can afford.
265362
I think it partly depends on what your purpose is.  If I remember correctly, a 529 account is for future school uses.  Otherwise, you need to know how convenient do you want your money to be able to get access to it.  If you work in a place that has a credit union and you want to be able to walk up and deposit/withdraw any time, then that is what you should get.  High yield accounts online may or may not be more accessible.  Personally, I have several accounts for different purposes.  That should be your determining factor.
360376
It really depends on the overall picture. The blended rate on 2 loans could be close to the one loan option, but with the 1 loan option you will probably pay Mortgage Insurance.\n\nThe rates on the 20% 2nd loans have really gone through the roof, so the 1 loan options are starting to look better again.\n\nAs far as closing costs, it really depends on the type of loan and the lender you are using.  The Bank that I work at charges very little on fees and we have no junk fees that I see other lenders use.  But being that their are 2 loans there are more costs than just one loan.\n\nYou should have your lender go over the difference in total monthly payments and difference in closing costs for the 2 options and see which one looks better.\n\nWith 2 loans, chances are you will want to refi or combine the 2 together within a few years if you have built up equity.  With one loan, if you are paying Mortgage Insurance, after 2 years if your value has increased, you may be able to eliminate the Mortgage Insurance and your payment goes down.  Not the case with 2 loans.\n\nS, look at the overall payments and costs and ask yourself if you plan on being in the same house or same mortgages for more than 2 years.
666715
First, it is not always optimal for you to pay off your mortgage. It is one of the few non-recourse loans available to you, and that lets you keep the upside while giving the bank the downside (they get the house, but nothing else if things go bad). \n\nAlthough I do not recommend negative amortizing loans, I would recommend that you change your goal of "paying off your mortgage before retiring" to "maximize my after tax wealth." Depending on your real estate market, and the interest rate on your loan (after tax interest rate of course), etc, it may be optimal to take the equity out, invest it in a way such that you can still draw from it to pay the increased mortgage payments... (i.e. do not use the extracted equity to buy a new Porsche).\n\nAdditionally, make sure that BEFORE you do teh 403b (unless they match in which case do the minimum required to get the match asap!), take advantage of the ROTH IRA. It has many advantages over a traditional IRA (untaxed at retirement, no required distributions at retirement), and the only disadvantage I can think of is the fact that you don't get the tax deduction today (although even this one is not entirely true depending on your income level). However, if you assume that tax rates will be higher at retirement (we all want to retire rich, right?) then the ROTH dominates teh traditional. Also, income tax rates are at historically low levels today, I'm assuming that our trade deficits and national debt levels will require increased taxes in the future... the ROTH is indifferent and protects you from such a development :)\n\nForget Universal Life. Start with Term, if you have a reason for life insurance at all. The rule of thumb would say that disability insurance makes more sense for younger workers than life insurance... Another rule of thumb: trust very few insurance salesmen, and those that you do trust almost always tell you that you need more than actual.\n\nBest of luck, hopefully this bit on personal finance helps.\nAs they say, it's just my $0.02!
284156
You were supposed to open a 529 when she was a baby.\n\nIf you have more children. I suggest you to open a 529 today.\n\nShe has to get a summer job a soon as possible and save her entire paycheck.\n\nShe can work part time after school too as soon as possible and save her entire paycheck.\n\nIncrease your credit score to above 700 (If you don't know how, drop me a line)\n\nI need you to answer a few questions:\nWhere do you live (State)?\nHow many years is she going to college?\nIs she in the top 10% of her class?\nWhat is your current credit score?\nHow much do you make each year?
769473
it really depends on what ur personal circumstances are... go to a couple of banks and they'll chat u though it...so many factors play in.. like:\n do u wana pay it off as early as possible.. \nhow much u wana borrow.. \nwhat percentage of the value u want..\n.how uch you wana pay a month...\ndo you want payment breaks....
924620
You can pay your balance or part of a balance higher than the  minimum payment anytime before the due date. Some lenders will allow up to 3-payments without penalizing you for it. \n\n\nWith a $500.00 Credit Line you need to be ware that you cannot use more than 50% of the credit limit., keep your utilization low, this mean only use $250.00. and try to pay the balance in full every month.
542458
It depends how much you can afford to take out.  If you're married and have some financial support for your spouse that helps.  If you can live with less than 30k, try and contribute as much as possible until you hit the limit where the company stops matching.  As long as they match, that's basically free money and you should try and take advantage of it.
1184659
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/mortgage-calculator.asp\n\nIn order to pay off a mortgage sooner, you need to make additional principal payments.  The amount to pay toward principal can be any amount.  It is not necessary to pay the principal amount for the following month.\n\nTry going to the above website mortgage calculator.  There are a lot of different options.