Entries Tagged as 'Money'

Meet with a Lawyer for Free

I first found Jonathan Dixon when the boyfriend and I were condo hunting last year. We knew we wanted a lawyer to help with all the communications and paperwork but how do you find a good one? All our friends were renting and family were in other towns.

Luckily, Jonathan has a monthly “Ask the Lawyer” night at Ennui Cafe in Rogers Park. He’s there on the first Tuesday of the month from 6:30 to 8:00. We figured we could go and get a personal sense of the guy. He turned out to be exactly what we wanted.

Right off the bat, you’ll be able to tell that he’s a straight-forward fellow. This isn’t someone who is going to go fishing for extra costs or do all that “lawyery” stuff that we’re always afraid that lawyers are going to do to us.

I was surprised that “Ask the Lawyer” wasn’t one of those content-less pitch sessions where the end result is that you’ll have to hire the guy to actually get some answers. He really does provide free legal consultation. Since there is no sign-up sheet though, it is first come-first served.

I’m smart. I read contracts word for word. I research the heck out of stuff I don’t know. So I really wanted someone trustworthy, on my side, and an additional worry or distraction to the already harrowing process of home buying.

Thank goodness for Jonathan. I don’t know if this rate still applies, but we paid him a $500 flat fee to oversee our closing. I’m certain we blew that hourly calculation out of the water. For all the requests and back-and forth we made, he never said a negative word. The boyfriend and I feel that we got a real bargain in his services. He’s certainly our first choice if we ever need legal aid again.

Tags: Chicago, Life, Money, Recommendations by M
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Cautions about ACORN Housing

I know I’ve made ACORN Housing sound pretty incredible so far. While I do believe that they are, there are some downsides to get through. Homebuying is a pretty stressful process. It is especially so for first-timers. I was always afraid that everyone around me was ripping me off. I never felt like I knew enough to actually be comfortably in charge of my own situation.

ACORN was a great help in terms of information and providing one central location for the money transactions, but I found out quickly that they are not a hand-holding organization. You’ll have your counselor’s phone and email address, but the reality is, they just won’t be able to touch base every day. They won’t be there to answer the two dozen questions that pop in your head over breakfast.

The more you, the participant, are willing to do the work and stay on track, the better the program performs. You need to be dedicated to the process because they don’t offer classes and appointments at your leisure. The first Intake session is usually scheduled for a weeknight. The rest of the time, you may need to take time off work to get it done. The boyfriend and I finished in about two months.

It is also tempting to think that your ACORN experience is all you’ll need. While they do try to educate about insurance, property taxes, etc., those things are outside of what they can do for you. Any future home owner should research these costs and figure out his/her own bottom line.

The final item that I feel I should list is a funny one. Still, it is very important. ACORN’s process approves you for too much money. I don’t remember the actual numbers, but I think I could have been approved for up to 60% of my income. They would have let me allocate 60% of my monthly paycheck to my mortgage. Any traditional loan program is going to faint at that possibility. Personally, I think that’s a very dangerous ratio as well. If 60% of a person’s income is going towards his/her home, there’s just not enough of a safe zone for when something goes wrong. It’s important to be smart and keep your head. Buy only what you can afford.

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Tags: Money, Recommendations by M
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ACORN Housing Program Details

The main thing you need to go through ACORN’s homebuyer program is time. You have to commit to an “Intake” orientation/introduction session. Here, they’ll take some forms you’ve already filled out and give you some financial worksheets to bring to your one-on-one session with a counselor. You’ll also pay for your credit check at the Intake so your counselor will have all your numbers ready for the next meeting.

At the counseling session, the adviser will tell you your credit score and what you can obtain from the lenders participating in their program. If it is not what you want, the adviser can also help you formulate a plan and give you a time frame for improvements. That includes setting up a workable budget and creating a savings plan.

Then you have another seminar to attend, and this one is really helpful. They bring in a lawyer, a real estate agent, a mortgage lender, and a home inspector to explain what they do, and what you should look out for. After this, depending on what you actually want to buy (house, condo, etc.), there may be one more educational session to attend.

The actual house hunting part of the deal is all on your own. You’re just doing it knowing an exact amount for which you are pre-approved. Like I said, I love this program and am so glad that the boyfriend found it for us. That’s not to say that everything about the experience was perfect though. There are some negatives to keep in mind. I’ll save those for next time.

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Tags: Money, Recommendations by M
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