HRCCU Blog

PMI: it sounds like another one of those three letter acronyms that you might have heard in passing that you never really gave much thought. But if you’re mortgage shopping, it’s extremely important that you understand exactly what PMI is and why you should give serious consideration to avoiding it. You don’t want to commit to a mortgage loan without having comprehensive knowledge of all of the possible costs and fees associated with it, and understanding PMI is a big part of seeing the whole picture. Let’s talk about PMI and what you can do to avoid it.

Searching for the auto loan with the best rate requires doing some research both on your own personal finances and on what financial institutions offer that fit in with your situation. This can seem like an especially tall task if you’ve never searched for an auto loan before. Before you dive into the process of finding your ideal auto loan, check out a few of the tips and pointers that outlined below, so that you can go into the loan process feeling confident and informed.

Taking out a home equity loan can be a promising prospect, particularly when you’re looking for an influx of money for more expensive endeavors - be it large home remodeling/renovations, paying off high-interest debts or finding money for college tuition. Despite the appeal, when it comes to taking out a second mortgage on your home it’s important to know the smartest and safest way to do so. Otherwise, you leave yourself open to a bad deal, an interest rate that’s unreasonable for you or a financial situation that can become untenable. Here are three tips to follow when you’re considering a home equity loan.

Buying a new car is an exciting prospect. There’s nothing quite like searching for a new vehicle, reading up on all the different features, and finding the vehicle that fits your needs and wants perfectly. Getting a car loan, on the other hand, can be an arduous process, and sometimes the excitement of actually getting the car can leave you susceptible to making a bad decision. You don’t want to end up looking at your car loan payment every month with a mixture of confusion and irritation, and that’s why we’re here to help you avoid the mistakes that will put you in that position. Here are a few common car loan mistakes people make and how to avoid them.

Buying a home is a huge life decision and can be especially nerve-wracking when you’re buying for the first time. Just like anything that you do for the first time, there’s a learning curve that you have to climb before you can get a good sense of the best strategies for home buying. That’s why we’re writing this guide. We want to give you a head start as a first-time home buyer with a few valuable tips that can help to steer you in the right direction. Let’s take a look at three essential tips for first-time home buyers.

Getting approved for a mortgage loan can seem confusing, especially to first-time homebuyers. But with the right preparation and planning, the mortgage application process can get easier, setting potential borrowers up for quicker approval. Here’s Five Steps to Mortgage Approval.

Finding the right balance when it comes to money can be difficult, especially when you don’t have a lot of knowledge on how to properly manage your finances. This has been particularly relevant for millennials, many of whom are burdened with big student loan payments, and have lived through both the burst of the dot com bubble and the recession in 2009.

Conventional wisdom is that you should start saving as soon as you can. While the sentiment of establishing savings early on is a good one, the reality is that it’s not always easy: whether it be your financial expenses or confusion about how you can start really saving some money, building a healthy amount of savings can feel like something in a far-off future instead of something you can start doing in the present. That doesn’t have to be the case. Even if you feel like you can’t save, you might be surprised to find that you have more to contribute to a savings account than you would believe. While it might require some penny-pinching and lifestyle changes, starting somewhere is better than not starting at all.

Because of a new tax law, some people are seeing smaller tax returns in 2019. So if you're one of the lucky people who did get a return this year, why not put it to good use? Here's how to make the most of your refund.