Do you ever wonder why money does not appear in your life and stays there no matter how much you wish or how hard you work?

Why is it that some people miraculously have thousands of dollars in their accounts while you can barely scrape enough together to pay your bills this month?

Money Beliefs

It turns out that your deep-seated beliefs surrounding money can significantly impact whether it will be present in your life or not. Two common threads of money beliefs relate to money worship and money avoidance. To begin with, people tend to worship or avoid money matters because it is part of their story that defines them.

But before we get into the different beliefs that can keep your pockets empty, let us dig a little deeper into how our beliefs can materialize into our money habits.

• First, it is essential to note that our beliefs are different from our wants and desires.

• Second, you may want that high-paying managerial position with its golden salary, but you never will if you don’t believe that you are worthy enough to get a job like that.

• When we enter this world, we are like empty vessels ready to draw in the beliefs our family or society surrounds us with daily. For example, if you constantly watch your parents struggle for money and curse the taxman, you may grow to believe that money is hard to make and that no matter what you do, you will always stay broke.

• Unfortunately, if your beliefs do not align with your wants and desires, you will never get past the money issues that hold you down in the form of lower-income and higher debt. So how can you change your money beliefs? To start, you must learn to recognize your personal beliefs and, with serious intent, start rewriting them.

Here are some common beliefs that people have. Let us see if you can identify with any of them.

If I work hard, I will make more

Have you ever heard the phrase “work smarter, not harder?” Yet, while some people grind day in and day out at their jobs, they still find that it is never enough to keep their finances in the black when their paycheck arrives.

While it’s true that good working habits can provide a stable income, there are times when your path reaches the peak of its financial payout.

For instance, maybe you think that your only chance of getting a raise is to wait for it to be offered to you. Instead, consider taking the initiative to thoughtfully ask your boss about how you can get a raise or tell them why you deserve a raise. At the very least, you may learn whether a raise is even possible.

I don’t make enough to save money

Enough money is relative. People who avoid saving money often have difficulty setting financial goals and achieving them. Years of potentially saved time will drift away if you are always waiting to earn enough money, and you will have little to show.

A small amount of $25 per month can lead to a savings of $300 by the end of the year. Of course, that is more than nothing. But if you put it into a tax-free savings account or mutual fund, you can slowly grow your savings.

If I can afford it, taking on debt is OK

Just because you can pay for something does not mean you should. Often, when people look at buying things like a new car or a house, they consider how much of a monthly bill they can afford and then choose the maximum amount.

Instead, consider what you need rather than what you can afford. For example, do you need to buy a brand-new car, or could you still buy a used one? Are you buying a house rather than an apartment because all your friends have houses?

https://medium.com/swlh/this-money-belief-is-what-keeps-many-people-in-debt-34601d27636e

Little expenditures don’t add up

For many of us, this is why we are stuck in the cycle of living paycheck to paycheck. Spending money on the little things, such as eating out for lunch or buying coffee every day, can add up quickly.

A $5-a-day coffee habit can add up to a $150 bill at the end of the month. Would you seriously pay that if it was presented as that much, to begin with?

Probably not! Start tracking your spending habits closely to see what you spend your money on in a day/week/month and cut out anything that is not serving you or your savings goals.

Money is the root of all evil

Some of us are ingrained with the belief that we are better people because we do not need money to be happy or that people must do bad things to make any real money.

The truth is that some good people are good at making money, too. And guess what? They do good things with their money, like donating to charity because they can afford it.

Staying broke will not put you in a situation to be able to help anyone. Decide who you want to be, with or without money, and start to think about who you can benefit from by making more money. If you don’t do it for yourself, do it for them.

I don’t deserve to make good money

People often take on a lot of societal beliefs about education and status when it comes to making money. For example, maybe you think that you will never be able to get a high-paying job because you do not have a master’s degree in something.

Or maybe you have imposter syndrome and believe that you will never be good at what you went to school for. These beliefs can cause people to devalue their work and set low pay standards, preventing them from earning more money.

How do I change my money beliefs?

Begin by identifying your patterns of thinking around money. Then, consider where these thoughts come from and how changing these thoughts could improve your financial situation. By redesigning your belief systems around money, you can start to build habits or seek opportunities that lead to earning more money.

Image credit: [Nicoletaionescu].

Mortgage scams are on the rise. Every year, unsuspecting people lose their homes or money to mortgage scams. Few things are more heartbreaking than losing your life savings or dream home to a con artist who pretends to help you. The good news is that there are ways to educate yourself and dodge sketchy offers.

If you want to know how to identify a scam and protect yourself, check out these 10 tips to avoid mortgage loan scams.

What Are Mortgage Loan Scams?

While loan mortgage scams come in all shapes and sizes, here are some popular loan scam types to avoid:

Loan Modification or Refinance Scams

With this scam, a fraudulent agent contacts you and encourages you to stop making payments and cease contact with your regular lender. They promise to modify your current loan for a better rate if you send them payment upfront.

These scammers also charge you high fees upfront for services that are free or that you could easily access yourself.

Foreclosure Rescue Scams 

Scammers capitalize on people’s genuine fear that they will lose their homes.

Scammers can also quickly scan public records to find homeowners to target. Then someone contacts you to warn you that the bank will foreclose on your home soon. They promise to fix your credit or save you from foreclosure if you act fast and – you guessed it – send them payments to prevent impending homelessness.   

Instead, they will steal your money, your equity, or even your home.

Bankruptcy Foreclosure Scams

These scams threaten foreclosure unless you pay up. They might also tell you to file for bankruptcy to avoid making payments. Not only is this coercive advice, but it is a fast way to lose your home.

Equity Stripping Scams

Home equity means the difference between the mortgage you still owe and how much your house is worth.

Fraudsters use fear to convince you that the bank is about to foreclose. On the other hand, maybe you genuinely face foreclosure. In either scenario, scammers persuade you to sell your house to them. They buy it at a loss and rent it back to you for higher rates, stripping away any equity you might have earned.  

Predatory Mortgage Lending

This type of fraud applies to any lender that coerces or deceives you into accepting a high-interest rate that makes it challenging to earn equity or ever pay off your home.

How Common Are Mortgage Loan Scams?

If you can get a loan, the chances are that you have encountered or avoided a loan scam already.

According to the U. S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, over 13,000 people fell victim to online real estate fraud in 2020 that cost more than $213 million in total. In addition, many people who do not report their losses out of shame or fear lose aggregate millions each year to loan fraud, wire fraud, and other real estate scams.  

Within the past year, the U. S. Federal Trade Commission also reviewed 11,000 reports that involved debt management scams that included mortgage relief and foreclosure scams.

How Do Mortgage Loan Scams work?

Buying a home presents a vulnerable time for many homeowners. There is a lot of money involved and a lot of fine print to read.

Scammers thrust themselves into the buying or refinancing process by hacking sites or stealing payments and closing costs. In addition, fake loan officers, appraisers, mortgage brokers, or even attorneys can attempt to access lender or homeowner cash and equity fraudulently.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines this loan fraud type as mortgage fraud for profit. Keeping your financial information secure and interacting directly with your official lender are important ways to protect yourself from mortgage scams.

Here are the ten simple tips to avoid these mortgage loan scams.

1.    Knowledge Is Power

Mortgages represent a common debt that most homeowners experience. Unfortunately, with mortgage scams on the rise in 2021, these rip-offs can look like fake mortgage relief programs, real relief programs that scammers falsely claim to represent, deceptive wire transfer demands, or bogus home foreclosure warnings.

Scammers target vulnerable people. They take advantage of their victim’s trust, ignorance, or desperation. Many scammers are very good at getting close to people and convincing them that their offer is legitimate.

A good rule of thumb to remember is that scammers typically (but not always) initiate contact with their intended victims. For example, mortgage loan scammers can target you through phone calls, social media, promotional flyers, or pop-up ads.

With a bit of effort, you can learn to identify loan scams that involve phishing attempts, fantastic offers, threats, or payment instructions that require you to go off-site. They may also use unusual methods such as wire transfers or gift cards. Most people can save everything if they check out legitimate offers with their lender first.

The best protection against scammers is to educate yourself.

2.    If It’s Too Good To Be True (Or If You Feel Threatened)

Think critically when you receive an offer. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Examples include getting an amazing deal right away over the phone or within minutes online. A caller might also tell you that your poor credit history or missed payments do not matter since they will “make it work.” 

Suppose the caller threatens foreclosure or exerts any other type of emotional or psychological blackmail, back away. Be firm. If they pressure you to send money in a way that circumvents the lender’s official channels, shut the conversation down. Legitimate lenders typically will not threaten you this way. 

If you are behind on your payments or your mortgage is underwater, it is better to deal with your lender directly. They have an interest in helping you understand your options. A scammer does not care about you. They will milk your information for everything that they can get. Once you are onto them, they will ghost you, refuse to answer calls, and disappear with your money.

It is essential to remember that every scam looks like a scam. However, it might not look like a scam at first.

Some scams spoof legitimate websites or use similar language to a legitimate program. Check with your lender by calling the number on any statements or contacting them via their official website.

Since only your lender can offer you options that can genuinely reduce costs, it is always safest to reach out to them directly.

3.    Don’t Respond to Offers

If you receive an email offer that you’re not sure is legitimate, do not answer it. Do not click on any links in the message. Instead, check the email address carefully. Even if it looks legitimate or appears to come from a respected institution, check for spelling errors or minor variations in the email address.

Do not send any payment info, even if the sender asks you to confirm this information to verify that you are a real person.

In general, if someone, not your regular lender, contacts you about a refinance, modification, or foreclosure offer, it is best to take it with a grain of salt. Click on the link to learn more.

4.    Protect Your Information

Secure all your accounts with strong passwords that you do not give to anyone. Regularly update and protect your computer with a firewall and antivirus system. 

5.    Don’t Pay Advance Fees

By now, you probably know not to give out any information such as account numbers or social security numbers. But what if the mortgage representative tells you to wire transfer your “trial payment” as part of a loan “advance fee”? 

Loan collectors collect “advance fees” taken from a loan applicant before the loan is finalized. If you are trying to get a homeowners’ loan and the agent asks you to pay an advance fee before securing the loan, consider this a red flag. You will likely lose your money and will not receive the promised loan. 

Most mortgage laws discourage lenders from taking advance compensation since this tactic is straight out of a scammer’s playbook.

The bottom line: Do not make any advance payments. 

Scammers cannot fleece you if you do not give them anything.

6.    Don’t Sign Blank Documents

If you have discussed one of these offers to the point that the broker sends you documents, there is a good chance that fraudulent documents will have blank sections. 

Never sign any document that has blank fields. It is like signing a blank check. Someone can put anything in the blank field. Once you have signed, you are on the hook for whatever anyone enters in the empty field.

Legitimate documents should not have blank fields. That is because valid lenders are required to disclose all aspects included in any contract or agreement that you sign.

If you see blank spaces in a document that someone asks you to sign, that is a big red flag that they are not upfront with you about what is involved.

7.    Pay Your Lender Directly

Never send your payments by wire transfer. Instead, call the title company before you send any payment that is different from how you usually pay them.

 Any request for payment that seems out of the ordinary or does not go directly to your lender is suspect.  

It’s unfortunately common that people have sent monthly payments via a mortgage broker middleman, confident that the broker passed their payment on to the lender. Unfortunately, when they discovered that their payments had never arrived, their lender had foreclosed on them due to non-payment. 

By paying your lender directly with a verified method, you will ensure that this never happens to you.

8.    Never Transfer Your Property Title

Your property title is gold. It is the only thing that gives you the deed of ownership to your house. If you hand it over to a scammer, they have all the power and information to steal both your identity and your home.

9.    Read the Fine Print

One of the worst things you can do is skip the fine print. If you are sent an offer, read every section. That way, you will know exactly what you’re signing. Better yet, ask your lender or an attorney to look it over before you sign anything.

If you ask for time to read the document or have an expert review it, you might flush out the scammer. However, the chances are that the scammer will try to pressure you into signing it right away. If you stand firm, they are likely to run for the hills.

10.    Check with Your Lender

If you are struggling to make payments, curious about any refinancing options, or concerned about a foreclosure report, get in touch with your lender immediately.

Do not use any contact information over the phone, sent via email, or contained in social media messages, mail flyers, unofficial sites, or pop-up ads.

The Bottom Line

Mortgage loan scams exist everywhere.

Fraudsters can disguise these scams as quick ways to get home loans, reduce mortgage payments, or offer incredible refinancing options.

By practicing critical thinking, learning to identify potential scams, dealing directly with your lender, and preserving your financial information, you can protect yourself and avoid mortgage loan scams in the future.

Image credit: [KAROLINA GRABOWSKA]

In a world where having the newest and nicest of everything to post on your Instagram feed seems to reign supreme, it is hard to imagine how to become a minimalist. It sounds nice on paper, but how do you DO it? 

Does a minimalist lifestyle save you time and money? The answer is yes. But many who have successfully adopted minimalism would say that doing it right is not easy. 

You may think of minimalism as cleaning out a couple of drawers and donating clothes. Or trying a zero spend month to save money and buy with more intention. But those things scratch the surface of minimalism and how it can save you time, money, and so much more. 

• If you have ever been curious about minimalism but are unsure that you could do it, this is for you!
• We are going to talk about all the ways that minimalism saves you precious time and money and show you how doable it is in your life. 

Less spending

This might seem overly simple, but it is such a profound part of adopting a minimalist approach to your life that it deserves to be mentioned. If you cut down on the number of things you are buying, you will spend less money. It is simple math. 

Many people begin a minimalist approach because they need to save money. Maybe you have noticed that your credit card bills are stacking up. Or perhaps the pile of clothes with the tags still on them is getting too big, and you have got more toys than your children could ever play with. 

It is easy to go down a slippery slope of spending because the world pretty much tells you that you need everything or else you are not keeping up.

There are ads everywhere— your TV and your social media feeds. You are constantly being sold to, both indirectly and directly, almost every minute of every day. It takes a lot of self-control to sift through the noise around you and decide what you need.

When you commit to becoming a minimalist, you shift your priorities around spending money entirely. I am sure you will find that you have a lot more money in your bank account at the end of each month, and you will begin to wonder where that money was genuinely going before.

Invest in quality pieces

When you focus on spending less money, the overall focus of what you are spending your money on will shift. It’s a common misconception with minimalism that you simply decrease the number of things you have, but minimalism often looks like buying more when you first get started. 

Minimalists still spend; they spend smart. As a part of this lifestyle shift, you will find yourself more driven to high-quality pieces that will last. Although these items may cost you more to start with, you will not have to repurchase a new version of the same thing every year – see more below from Making of a Millionaire. 

https://themakingofamillionaire.com/importance-of-time-in-minimalism-a14d0b8ecb34

This concept is especially common with clothing. A great example of this is something you may have heard of in recent years called a capsule wardrobe. 

Creating a capsule wardrobe means investing in a few high-quality, mix-and-match pieces of clothing that you can wear in many ways. The goal is to find clothes that fit your body and style without being overly trendy so that you can wear them year after year. 

This capsule wardrobe mentality can be applied to much of your life outside of clothing. 

The same rules apply to children’s toys, kitchen appliances and dishes, decorations in your home, and more. Buy one or a few lovely pieces and use them forever rather than replacing them constantly. 

Save on housing and storage costs

If you decide to take the minimalist lifestyle to heart and end up clearing out a lot of space in your home, you could even look to downsize your home. Doing so will save your rent or mortgage expenses quite a bit, as well as utilities and other bills. 

Although it goes against much of what mainstream society will lead you to believe, there is a ton of freedom in downsizing your home. You will likely have not only a lower mortgage or rent payment, but also your taxes, utilities, and overall home expenses will go down. 

Of course, downsizing is not going to work for everyone. If you are a growing family or your current living space is as small as you could comfortably maintain, this may not be an option. 

If this is the case, I’m sure you can still find ways to save in this category. For example, you may live in a small home or don’t have a basement or attic, so you have a storage unit for the overflow. 

By decluttering and living more minimally, you may no longer need the storage unit, which would be money in your pocket every month!

Make money by cleaning out

One of the most rewarding parts of adopting a more minimalist approach to your life is the decluttering process. Going through your home and getting rid of all the things you do not need can feel so freeing. 

Depending on what you must get rid of, you have the choice to donate, throw away or even sell your unwanted items to make some extra money. You may do a little bit of all three to get rid of everything you have. 

https://www.thespruce.com/decluttering-your-entire-home-2648002

If you have high-end items, sought after, or generally still in good condition, you can probably sell them for a profit. Doing so might take a little bit of patience and organization, but you can easily make some extra cash and help your items find a new home.

There are a few different ways to sell your stuff, including consignment shops, yard sales, online platforms like Poshmark or Mercari. Each of these methods works better for different items, so do your research.

Look at what you have after you have decluttered and chosen a platform or method that works best for the type of things you are looking to get rid of. You would be surprised at how much money you can make just by clearing out your closet.

Get (or stay) out of debt

Most adults in the US have debt. Whether it’s student loans, a car payment, credit cards, mortgage payments, or some combination of all of these, you probably have some debt. If you do not, that is AMAZING, but that is hard to find these days! 

One huge benefit of living a minimalist lifestyle and spending overall less money on things is that you will be able to use the money you spent on stupid stuff to pay off debt. This is not a very glamorous fact, but it will help you so much in the long run. 

By living minimally, you can take the money that would have fed your Amazon shopping addiction and instead make extra payments on outstanding debt. This will help you pay it off faster and get you to financial freedom even quicker. 

If, for some reason, you have lived frugally or already paid off any debt you have, switching to living minimally will still help you too! Staying out of debt is just as admirable as getting out of it. If you buy less stuff, the extra money you have lying around can be saved. 

Whether you were spending an extra $25 or $500 on junk every month, you will free yourself up to put that money to work for you in a savings, investment, or retirement account of your choice. This is yet another way minimalism helps you set yourself up for the future. 

More time for what matters

One of the biggest benefits of adopting a minimalist lifestyle is the perspective shift. When you are stuck on the hamster wheel of purchasing the next trendy bag or the cute shoes everyone is wearing, you spend a lot of time and energy on keeping up.

Minimalism will help you learn that keeping up is not as important as you may have thought. When you are in an endless cycle of buying things to keep up or impress people, it often leaves you feeling empty rather than fulfilled. 

When you change your perspective and focus on living minimally to pursue your happiness, you have all that time back that you spent trying to impress other people. 

The time you previously spent shopping online at night or walking the mall looking for a cute outfit is replaced with intentional time to do things that truly serve you. You can spend more time with your family, take a class on something that interests you, try out new hobbies, etc. 

Having more time for what matters and using it to make memories, improve yourself, and take care of yourself is time that you can genuinely never get back. 

Image credit: [Harsgcharg]