This Holiday Season, Think Twice Before Saving 15 Percent At The Register
With Halloween behind us, retailers are in the Holiday Spirit. Businesses know that consumers spent a median $556 on holiday gifts last year and they want this year to be just as strong.
That’s why it’s barely November and, already, Black Friday ads clog our mailboxes and the airwaves. Retailers want our dollars and they’re offering great deals to early shoppers.
There’s one discount a smart shopper should think twice, however — the ever-present ”Open A Charge Card Today And Save 15%” promotion. In the short-term, deals like this will save money.
Over the long-term, however, opening a charge card could cost you much, much more — especially if you plan to refinance your home or buy a new one.
Applying for a charge card can lower your credit score up to 85 points.
According to the myFICO.com website, as a category, “New Credit” accounts for 10% of your 850 possible credit points, comprising the following credit traits :
- Your number of recently opened accounts
- Your number of recent credit inquiries
- Time elapsed since your recent credit inquiries
- Your proportion of new accounts to all accounts
Each trait is a negative in the FICO-scoring credit algorithm which means that, with each in-store charge card application, your credit score is likely to fall. How far your score will fall depends on the rest of your credit profile.
Meanwhile, low FICO scores correlate to higher loan fees.
Using a real-life example, assuming 20% equity in a home, for either purchase or refinance, look how loan fees for a $200,000 conforming mortgage change by FICO score :
- 740 FICO : There will be no added loan costs
- 720 FICO : You’ll have a 0.250% increase in loan costs, or $500
- 700 FICO : You’ll have a 0.750% increase in loan costs, or $1,500
- 680 FICO : You’ll have a 1.500% increase in loan costs, or $3,000
- 660 FICO : You’ll have a 2.500% increase in loan costs, or $5,000
You can see first-hand how expensive low credit score can be — much more costly than the 15% saved at the mall. That’s why people planning to refinance to today’s low rates and soon-to-be homeowners, shouldn’t rush to save 15% at the register.
For people in want of a mortgage, high FICO scores are worth protecting.
Beautiful on the Outside
They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, but many homebuyers do just that: judge a home by its external appearance. If you’re gearing up to sell your home this spring, you need to make sure your home’s exterior and landscaping stops buyers in their tracks and gets them to come in for a walk-through. Here are some easy and effective ways to accomplish that.
* Clean up the yard. Take a weekend and start mowing, trimming, weeding, raking and doing everything you can to make the yard neat as a pin. Trim back grass and other ground coverings away from the bases of trees, shrubs and flower beds for a professionally landscaped look.
* Start planting. If your front yard is sparse, invest in some small, inexpensive trees and bushes from your local home store or nursery. Likewise, plant flats of various spring flowers to add “pop” to your landscape.
* Nix the gnome. It’s time to stow all your cherished lawn ornaments in the garage. That said, you can keep one or two truly engaging landscape features, such as a unique fountain or simple outdoor sculpture, if you and your real estate agent feel they would add a tasteful, designer appeal to the landscaping.
* Get a wash and trim. While painting your home might be out of budget, get the exterior power washed and paint all the trim. Additionally, paint your door in an engaging color that accentuates your exterior color scheme and invites the prospective buyer to knock.
* Make an entrance. Add some design features to your entryway to further draw attention to your front door. If there is enough space, aim to create symmetry in your design elements. For example, two small, flowering trees in decorative pots on either side of your door add a welcoming touch. Just make sure your color choices match or compliment your door color.
* Roll out a clean carpet. Lastly, clean up your concrete and stone driveways and walkways. Besides the standard sweep-up, remove any built-up dirt and grime. If you have stones separated by moss, grass or other ground cover, give the greenery a good trim to help redefine the stones. And don’t forget to eradicate any oil stains from concrete driveways. If you’re concerned about chemical run-off, there are a variety of highly effective cleaners that are environmentally friendly and safe for your storm drains.
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If you come in and stage my home, where do you get the furniture? Is that part of my cost?
Home staging is a new thing for many clients. This is a common question and the answer can vary depending on the staging company. However, at Décor Staging we carry our own inventory.
We also utilize the inventory of two national vendors as well as two local private vendors. This ensures that we can meet the need of every home’s style and period. It also ensures that each staging is done without the restriction that a low inventory would create. We also take a look around the home to see if there are any pieces already in the home that can be used before bringing in outside furniture!
So, yes, the furniture does end up being a part of the overall cost, but it’s a minimal part as the furniture is rented.
Contact me at kerry@decorstaging.com or 650-619-9052 and I can share more information with you!
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