Paying your bills on time, or at all, has become a major topic in this slowed down economy. There are many legitimate reasons that a homeowner might be unable to make their mortgage payments—loss of employment, for example, or an increase in medical expenses—but regardless, mortgage payments need to be made on time. Loan default happens in stages, and at each stage there are opportunities to slow down the process, hopefully to give the homeowner a chance to get back on track and avoid foreclosure. The first thing a homeowner should do if they find themselves in danger of missing a payment is to contact their lender, who may have ready options to help.

Although individual states have slightly different statutes, generally the timeline happens as follows. After missing one month’s payment, a homeowner would expect a phone call or letter from their lender, simply as a reminder that the payment is late. After the second month, the lender will usually contact the homeowner to discuss why the payments are being missed, and try to work with them to resolve the issue. When a mortgage payment is 90 days late, the homeowner will receive a “Notice to Accelerate” letter—a warning that if the missing mortgage payments are not made, foreclosure proceedings will begin. The “Notice to Accelerate” gives the homeowner 30 days to bring their payments current; after this time the lender’s attorneys will get involved in the process (and the homeowner will be responsible for the attorney’s fees in addition to the delinquent payment). Finally, the lender’s attorneys will schedule a Public Trustee’s Sale of the property, and this scheduled date will also be considered the date of foreclosure (but not necessarily the date that the premises must be vacated). At this time, the only way to avoid losing the property is to pay the loan in full before the foreclosure date. Certain states may have a “redemption period” after the sale date, allowing the homeowner a final grace period to repurchase the home—if they pay not only the total remainder of the mortgage, but also all costs of the foreclosure process incurred by the lender.

It’s important to remember that nobody wants a foreclosure to occur—the process is expensive and difficult for the lender, and they have no more desire to take over a property than the homeowner does to lose it. The smartest thing a homeowner can do under the threat of foreclosure is to maintain open communication with the lender—return all phone calls and answer all mail, at least; and even better to go speak to the lender in person. If the homeowner can show that reasonable attempts are being made to get the mortgage payments back on schedule—such as cutting luxury spending or seeking alternative means of income—the lender will often grant the borrower a little extra leeway. The homeowner can also speak to a licensed housing counselor, free of charge, through the federal department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

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A substantial percentage of the market, be it empty nesters, retirees or first time homebuyers, choose condominiums and townhouses as their choice of living for the many benefits that these types of homes offer. But there are certain differences you must know about owning a condo versus a traditional single family home. One of the things to consider when moving to a new housing development or condominium is whether or not you’ll also be getting involved with a homeowner’s association. These associations function as a sort of governing body for the development or building, and can offer both benefits and difficulties to the property owners involved. Knowing what to expect from an association—as well as understanding the ways that an association could become dysfunctional—is an important step in making that association work for you and the other members of your new community.

Homeowner’s associations are usually set up in advance by the property developer as not-for-profit corporations, and the developer acts as principal director of the association until they have sold enough of the development to hand over responsibility to the homeowners. Within the development or building, the association is empowered to act as a governing body: they may provide services to members of the community, collect assessment money, and set rules and regulations that all property owners agree to follow. Although there are exceptions, generally the municipal government will recognize the private authority of an association and let it run the community as it desires. In exchange, the local government is able to expand its property tax base, without necessarily having to provide equal service.

The communities that are governed by these associations are often referred to as common-interest developments, or CIDs. As the label suggests, all members of the association have chosen this arrangement in order to establish a neighborhood based on common values and desires. The bylaws of the association will often display these values: an early noise curfew, for example, or strict guidelines on landscaping and recreational areas (swimming pools, tennis courts). Although the vast majority of homeowners involved with an association consider the arrangement positive, there will always be instances of homeowners who find their relationship with their association to be a challenge. Since joining an association and abiding by its rules tends to be a non-negotiable condition of purchase, it’s important to know in advance whether your neighbors share your thoughts about what makes an ideal living situation.

In the United States, homeowners associations represent the interest of several million residents, and groups such as the Community Associations Institute have been established to lobby for legislation more advantageous to the associations. Federal and state law occasionally clashes with the bylaws of an association, and in some cases bylaws become outdated with the advance of technology and regulations about that technology—for example, satellite dishes have often been considered unwelcome property additions in CIDs, but the 1996 Telecommunications Act removed an association’s power to restrict them.

Despite the unique complexities of living within a CID, the benefits they offer, as well as the ability for members to determine the character of their community, can be exactly what certain homeowners are looking for. The important thing is to understand what you want for yourself, and then decide if the home and community around it will satisfy that desire.

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There is a plethora of options for individual consumers to choose the institutions that handle their financial needs. Most Americans use banks—either smaller, locally established institutions or branches of large corporations such as Citigroup or Chase. However, a growing number of Americans are electing to use credit unions—not-for-profit organizations that offer all of the financial services of banks, but are set up and operate under different rules and regulations.

Unlike regular banks, credit unions are cooperative; the account holders are considered the owners of the credit union and all account holders have an equal voice in determining the credit union’s leadership. The elected Board of Directors then establishes policies such as interest rates or lending practices. Often, credit unions exist to help provide reasonable credit for its members in the service of community development. As such, a credit union may strictly limit its account holders to residents of the surrounding neighborhoods, and offer its lending rates as a means of helping those residents purchase property or otherwise improve the community. Other credit unions limit their membership to specific occupational or trade groups, such as labor unions or the parish of a church.

The first credit unions were established in Germany in the mid-1800s; first in an urban setting by Franz Hermann Schulze-Delitsch and then in rural areas by Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen. Many of the organizational ideas first implemented by Raiffeisen are still in use today among credit unions worldwide. The first credit union in the United States was established in 1908, with assistance from the first Canadian credit unions in Quebec, and by 1910 the federal government had passed the Federal Credit Union Act, allowing credit unions to be established anywhere in the United States. Although classified as not-for-profit (and therefore tax-exempt), a credit union does not accept donations the way that other not-for-profit organizations do, and must therefore operate with a surplus in a competitive financial market.

Today, the World Council of Credit Unions estimates that nearly 45% of economically active Americans use credit unions. Although exponentially smaller than the average bank, credit unions thrive when they follow their mandate to service the needs of their account holders, not the maximization of profits (this cultural difference between banks and credit unions is often cited as a reason that credit unions did not suffer as much as banks during the 2008 financial crisis).

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