You’ve found the perfect house. Interest rates are still low. There’s just one thing standing between you and your dream home: a down payment.
Don’t abandon your homeownership dreams just yet. Here are nine ways to come up with cash for a new home.
1. Pay off your credit cards
Paying bills will help in your hunt for down payment money. When you carry a credit- card balance, the ever-accumulating interest charges mean more of your money goes to the card company each month. Keep that cash for yourself by cutting your debt load.
With the “avalanche” method, you prioritize your debts and pay the most on the one with the highest interest rate. Once that’s paid, shift your focus to the next highest rate and so on. You’ll get the most money-sucking credit-card bills out of the way more quickly, freeing up more of your income to go toward building your savings.
2. Ladder CDs to boost savings
Once you have a few extra bucks, put it to work making more money for you. Certificates of deposit are low-risk and relatively accessible. But when interest rates are low, the return isn’t always what a saver hopes. You can maximize the earning power of CDs by…
By Kay Bell | Seattle Times
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