Thursdav.Iunp24,1993 - THE CHARLOTTE POST - PaKe7C
Financial
Advice
Your
PERSONAL
FINANCE
By Charles Ross
Couples and Credit
Since more couples
are marrying later in
life, many of today's
newlyweds have a
complex financial
task before them.
They have two
Incomes, various sav
ings and investment
accounts. credit
cards and loan oblig
ations. It might seem
easier to put all cred
it accounts in one
name, but this leaves
one spouse with no
current credit record.
Combining credit
records could be a
disadvantage if a
spouse were to apply
for individual credit
later in hfe. Couples
should maintain at
least one separate
credit account in
each spouse's name.
A couple should
weigh the pros and
cons of Joint
accounts. A Joint
account can make
sense if you're apply
ing for a mortgage or
a large loan where
you can list your
Joint income.
Married women
should always use
their own first names
when applying for
credit.
Alternative Ways to
Home-Buying
You may have a
decent down pay
ment and a good
credit history, but
you still can be
turned down for a
home loan. One pos
sible reason is that
you have Joined the
ranks of entrepre
neurs. commissioned
salespeople and oth
ers who have lost or
changed Jobs during
the recession and
now find it hard to
qualify for a conven
tional loan.
One common alter
native plan, for buy
ing a home is equity
sharing. In an equi
ty-sharing deal, fami
ly, friends or
Investors help with
the down payment In
exchange for co-own
ership in the proper
ty. Another alterna
tive is to rent with
the option to buy.
With some persis
tence and creativity,
a non-conventional
way to home owner
ship can put your
own roof over your
head.
Relaxed Rules for
Home-buyers
The Federal
National Mortgage
Association, general
ly referred to as
"Fannie Mae," has
added a new twist to
its Community Home
Buyer's Program
which could help
many who could
never before qualify
for a loan.
The program allows
borrowers to make a
cash down payment
of as little as 5 per
cent of the purchase
price. Of that
amount. 2 percent'
can be a gift from rel
atives or an unse
cured loan from a
non-profit agency.
such as a church.
This means on a first
home purchase of
$60,000. a buyer
could complete the
transaction with as
little as $1,800 of his
or her personal
money.
Lenders have typi
cally required bor
rowers to have addi
tional funds set aside
for unexpected
expenses. But, under
the Community
Home Buyer's
Program, there is no
requirement for
reserved funds.
For more details on
how you can qualify
ask your local bank if
they are participating
in the Community
Home Buyers
Program.
Hold Those Records
Which tax records
can be safely thrown
out and which need
to be kept? As a rule,
all tax records --
copies of completed
returns, receipts,
canceled checks. W-
2s and 1099s --
should be kept at
least three years
after you file your
return. That's how
long the IRS general
ly has to audit your
return. Many tax pre
parers suggest that
you hold tax records
for at least six years
because the statute
of limitations stretch
es to six years if you
have understated
your income by more
than 25 percent.
Keeping your tax
records six years pro
tects you in case you
have forgotten to
report some Income.
But if you fail to file a
return or fUe a fraud
ulent one, no statute
of limitations applies
and the IRS can
come after you any
time.
Women and Social
Security
Should women be
more concerned than
men about Social
Security? The
answer, for several
reasons, is "yes".
First, women, on
average, live seven
years longer than
men, making them
more dependent on
government retire
ment benefits. Also,
women today are
more heavily penal
ized than men if they
keep working while
receiving Social
Security benefits.
Now is a good time
for both women and
men to check to be
sure that Social
Security has record
ed all your earnings.
Call your local Social
Security office and
request an applica
tion for a Personal
Earnings and Benefit
Estimate Statement.
This document indi
cates how long Social
Security thinks
you've worked, what
you've earned and
what your projected
benefits will be.
If you suspect an
error has been made,
call your local Social
Security office to
clear it up.
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