As a California homeowner, you are responsible for paying property taxes on each and every property you own, but only during the time that you own each property. The amount of your property taxes, as set forth in Proposition 13, is based on the assessed value of each property. For homeowners who purchased property Read More >
What is the Difference Between the Property Tax Rate and An Effective Property Tax Rate?
Posted on: 05.10.16
An Anniversary ALL California Homeowners Should Celebrate
Posted on: 05.03.16
On June 6, 1978, nearly two-thirds of California’s voters voted yes and passed Proposition 13, reducing property tax rates on homes, businesses, and farms by about 57%. That was almost 38 years ago and California homeowners still benefit from it today, but I’ll bet only a handful of homeowners realize it and fewer Read More >
5 Strategies to Lower Your Credit Card Utilization Rate and Improve Your Credit Score
Posted on: 04.12.16
Technology has inspired a great many beneficial inventions and creations. Whether credit scoring is one of them is a debate for another day, but credit scoring is here and it isn’t going away any time soon. That being said, one of the little known 5 key criteria that leads many people to have lower credit scores than Read More >
How Credit Card Utilization Rate Drives Your Credit Score
Posted on: 03.29.16
There was a time when paying your monthly debt payments by their respective due dates (on time) was enough to constitute good credit because your payment history was a great indicator of your willingness to repay your debts and to pay them on time. Your payment history used to account for nearly 100% of your overall Read More >
“Why” You Want to Get Out of Debt May Influence “How”
Posted on: 03.01.16
For the most part, Americans live in a fast food, shake and bake, society, which is to say that we have come to expect and demand instant gratification for anything we want in life. That’s typically how people accumulate credit card debt; instant gratification coupled with not having an emergency reserve. Instant Read More >
How Are Loan Discount Points Deducted on Your Tax Return When You Refinance Your Mortgage?
Posted on: 02.16.16
Whether obtaining a mortgage to purchase a house or refinance an existing mortgage, it can be very tempting to pay loan discount points in an effort to secure the lowest interest rate possible. While I don’t often advise paying discount points because it is rarely in the client’s best interest, especially in refinance Read More >