7 Easy Ways To Slash Your Auto Insurance Costs – Auto
7 Easy Ways To Slash Your Auto Insurance Costs
Neil Stelling
The law requires you buy auto insurance. So if you must get cover, how can you reduce costs Heres 7 easy ways to get the best possible auto insurance deal.
* Multiple Quotes
Get multiple quotes - use the internet and call a few brokers. Its easy to gather some good comparison quotes.
Remember to get different types of quotes e.g one from a direct-sell insurance company; another from an offline broker who keeps a database of quotes; and a couple from the internet.
Cheapest might not mean best. Will they pay out if you make a claim How financially secure How reputable Check around with family and friends, and look for online reviews.
* Different type of car
Insurance costs vary depending on car type. Obviously, that $100k sports model costs more to insure than your average runabout. If youre planning to buy a new car, check insurance costs before you buy. I once set my heart on a beautiful, high performance, highly tuned Pontiac.
Luckily I checked the auto insurance before I bought it, because I couldnt get insurance. Every broker, every insurance company flat turned me down because I lived in a high car-crime area. So I had to forget the car of my dreams until I moved up-town.
* Age and Value of Car
Maybe youre buying a used car Maybe your car saw better days a few years ago, and now values much lower So why pay for high-priced auto insurance In particular, do you still need fully comprehensive coverage
A good rule of thumb multiplies insurance premium by 10, and compares that figure with your car value. So if youre quoted $1000 premium and your car is worth less than $10,000 you may want to think if comprehensive represents good value. If you drop collision and/or comprehensive coverage, you should get big savings.
* Higher deductibles excess charges
Most auto insurance companies use deductibles to keep policy cost down. Deductibles, or excess charges, show what you pay before your auto insurance policy kicks in. Try requesting quotes with different levels of deductibles, and see how your quotes vary.
Most internet quote forms contain a box where you can specify preferred level of deductibles. Ask your broker his recommended level. For example, going from $250 to $500 deductible can slash your insurance costs by 20% or more. Go to $1000 and you save a lot of money. But you must pay the deductible if you need to make a claim !
* Multiple Insurances
I guess this might come under the Get Multiple Quotes heading, but its still worth mentioning separately. You usually get an insurance break if you buy multiple policies with the same insurer.
This might mean multiple vehicles, or homeowner and auto insurance. Either way its worth asking about multi-policy discounts.
* Low Mileage
More and more people work at home. No more commuting. Fewer business trips. Low mileage on your car. Maybe you do travel to work, but car pool
Either way, look for low mileage discounts.
* Good Driving Record
A good driving record always reduces your auto insurance costs. Keep a clean drivers license. Dont speed, dont drive dangerously, and youll save money apart from other benefits !
* Bonus Tip
Okay, I said 7 Ways..., but heres some extra tips. Fit anti-theft devices to your car. Go on an advanced driver training course. Use daytime running lights. If youre a college student away from home, consider adding to parents policy.
This short article covers the things you must consider when shopping for auto insurance. Follow these tips and youll slash your auto insurance costs.
© DigiLectual Inc. 2004
http://www.autoinsurance--quotes.com/
Discover valuable information and tips to help slash your auto insurance costs.
Go ==> http://www.autoinsurance--quotes.com/
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About The Author
Neil Stelling is Marketing Manager of New York based, DigiLectual Inc.
"How To Get Fit And Slash Your Health Insurance Costs" – Diet
"How To Get Fit And Slash Your Health Insurance Costs"
Neil Stelling
Okay, before we start, let me explain the purpose of this article. I want you to get so healthy, youll never need to make a health insurance claim. Youll save money by increased fitness. Youll save money with a long no-claims insurance history. And youll look and feel much better.
Theres three sides to your maximum health and fitness. Diet, and Exercise. But thats only two ! Let me split Exercise into Aerobic exercise and Aneorobic exercise.
Get all three right. Get the right balance. And youll get as fit and healthy as your body and genetics will allow.
Whole forests of paper have been filled with advice on each of these fitness factors. Just go into your local bookstore, and see shelves of diet advice. Shelves of exercise advice.
Funny how so much contradicts itself, especially for diet e.g right next to each other on the shelf, youll find a book advocating low carbs & low fat; another saying high fat is okay if you keep the carbs low. Yet another focuses on high protein, and says carbs dont matter...
* Diet
Let me give you this simple diet advice. Stick to low fat, low carbs and high protein. Many medical and weight loss studies over the last 10-20 years prove this approach. Many other diet myths come from way back in time, and look just plain wrong when analyzed with modern methods.
* Aerobic Exercise
Couch potatoes dont realize how easily they can start feeling fit and healthy. Just walk somewhere 3-4 times per week, for around 20 minutes each time.
Ideally, do some more demanding aerobic exercise. I do a lot of cycling, because its great low-impact exercise. And I get to see beautiful scenery while I ride.
Running provides even more intensive aerobic exercise, but careful of your joints. Maybe you prefer hiking, to see the local countryside Or take up a sport like rowing or tennis. You also get to meet new friends by taking up exercise as a sport.
* Anaerobic Exercise
Many people work on their diet. Many people take aerobic exercise. But many people ignore anaerobic exercise, or weight training.
What makes weight training so important
As you get older, muscle mass decreases. Muscle burns fat. So as you lose muscle, it gets harder to keep the fat off. Equally important, weight training can reshape your body.
No matter how much aerobic exercise you do, youll still be a pear shape a smaller pear shape if you started out a pear shape.
Using weights you can flatten your stomach, tone your thighs, bulk up your chest and shoulders, and reshape your body any way you want.
Weight training is incredibly beneficial to your general skeleton strength and conditioning. Older women can reduce the effects of osteoporosis, and older men can maintain their strength and agility.
This short article can do nothing more than provide an introduction to the three keys to your health. Follow these and you shouldnt need to make a health insurance claim.
Slash your health insurance costs with a long no-claims bonus. Slash your health insurance costs with any insurer who rates your fitness.
Discover important health insurance facts and advice. Find out more about low carb foods, and how to lose weight quickly and easily. Go to ==> http://www.healthinsurance--quotes.com/ and ==> http://www.low-low-carb-foods.com/
About The Author
Neil Stelling BSc, MBA
© DigiLectual Inc. 2004
http://www.healthinsurance--quotes.com/
neil@healthinsurance--quotes.com
Private Mortgage Insurance PMI – Mortgage
Private Mortgage Insurance PMI
Martin Lukac
If your down payment on a home is less than 20 percent of the appraised value or sale price, you must obtain private mortgage insurance, known as PMI, with your lender. This will enable you to obtain a mortgage with a lower down payment because your lender is now protected against any default on the loan.
PMI charges vary depending on the size of the down payment and the loan, but they typically amount to about one-half of one percent of the loan, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. Mortgage insurance premiums are not tax deductible.
Example
Lets say you put down 10 percent or $10,000 on a $100,000 house. The lender multiplies the 90 percent loan, or $90,000, by .005 percent. The result is an annual PMI of $450, which is divided into monthly payments of $37.50.
Most homebuyers need PMI because 20 percent of the sale price on a home is a lot of money; for instance, thats $20,000 on a $100,000 home. Homebuyers must maintain the PMI premiums until they cross that one-fifth-of-principal threshold, a process that can take years in longer-term mortgages.
Tip
Keep track of your payments on the principal of the mortgage. When you reach 80 percent equity, notify the lender that it is time to discontinue the PMI premiums. A new law that takes effect in the summer of 1999 will require lenders to tell the buyer at closing how many years and months it will take for them to pay 20 percent of the principal to cancel PMI.
Note: The law does allow lenders to continue requiring PMI all the way down to 50 percent equity for so-called high-risk borrowers. Traditionally, those loans that are considered riskier include reduced documentation loans, in which customers provide less proof of income and other information during the approval process. Loans for people with spotty credit histories and higher debt-to-income ratios also fall into this category. Additionally, some FHA loans require payment of PMI throughout the entire life of the loan.
Ways to avoid PMI
In todays market, there are some new ways to avoid mortgage insurance even when you dont have the standard 20 percent down payment.
Pay more interest: Some lenders will waive the mortgage insurance requirement if the buyer accepts a higher interest rate on the mortgage loan. The rate increases generally range from .75 percent to 1 percent, depending on the down payment. The advantage is that mortgage interest is tax deductible.
Using an "80-10-10" loan: This program involves two loans and a 10 percent down payment. The 90 percent loan is financed with a first mortgage equal to 80 percent of the sale price, and a second mortgage for the remaining 10 percent of the sale price. The second mortgage has a higher interest rate but since it applies to only 10 percent of the total loan, the monthly payments on the two mortgages are still lower than paying one mortgage with mortgage insurance. Plus, again, there is the advantage of mortgage interest being tax deductible.
Example: If we compare the purchase of a $100,000 home under the "80-10-10" plan with a standard fixed mortgage including PMI, we find that the former is $17.45 cheaper each month.
Heres how it works. Under the "80-10-10" plan, the 10 percent down payment on a $100,000 house is $10,000. The first mortgage is $80,000 at 7.50 percent, which comes to a monthly payment of $559. The second mortgage for $10,000 has a 9.50 percent interest rate, making a monthly payment of $84. Total monthly payments of the two loans: $643.
With a $10,000 down payment, one mortgage of $90,000 at 7.50 percent has a monthly payment of $629, plus PMI of $31.45, making a total payment of $660.45.
About The Author
Martin Lukac, represents, #1 Loans USA, a finance web-company specializing in real estate/mortgage market. We specialize in daily updates, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more.
info@1LoansUSA.com