Stop Signing Stuff…

with out reading it, please. We’ve become a society of agreements, disclaimers, arbitration clauses and waivers. From gym memberships to cell phone agreements and everything in between we’re bombarded with legalese. We’re told to sign here, initial here, sign here and initial here and we don’t stop to read what we are agreeing to. I can understand if you don’t want to read the fine print of your local video store rental agreement; but there is no excuse for not reading the documents regarding your mortgage.

I believe that 90% of all of the bad mortgages would not exist if people just took the time to read what they were signing. Stop listening to the people that tell you "Just sign it; its just what we talked about" and take a moment to read. If you don’t understand it – that’s OK. Call and ask, look it up. This is your home, not your gym, you need to see what you are signing.

Be on the careful look out for these items when you are signing your loan:

• Adjustable Rate Rider
• Prepayment Penalty Rider
• Negative Amortization feature
• Yield Spread Premium or YSP/SRP

If you see these things in your documentation make sure you understand what they are saying and what the consequences are for you and your home.