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Blog posts by: Jennifer Hopkins

24 ways to expand opportunity
By Jennifer Hopkins Our friends at CFED have just released “With the Stroke of a Pen: Two dozen low-cost, politically viable state policy ideas to increase financial security and opportunity in tough fiscal times.” The report reminds that, even in tough fiscal times, state policymakers can choose to help households that are on the edge of financial security. CFED's proposals include many that are cost-neutral and that expand economic opportunity and help people build bright futures. “With the...
23 weeks 2 days ago | more
Hard times shouldn't mean a hard line from lenders
By Jennifer Hopkins A borrower told me today that he loved me. I first heard from this gentleman in the fall. He lives in a resident-owned community in central New Hampshire, and has a Cooperative Home Loan for his mortgage. His wife recently passed away, and the recession took a lot of his retirement income. He was struggling, so called to ask us if there was any way to reduce his loan payments. He had made every payment on time since his loan started. In fact, he had made double payments for...
28 weeks 21 hours ago | more
Which mortgage form is more user-friendly?
By Jennifer Hopkins Give the government a piece of your mind … please There’s a move in Washington DC to simplify mortgage loans. The new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is boiling down five pages of complicated mortgage forms. The new forms attempt to solve the problems of interest rates going up unexpectedly and unfavorable loan terms being buried in the fine print. The hope is that everyone taking out a mortgage loan will understand exactly what to expect, and what their choices are....
51 weeks 5 days ago | more