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5 Strategies for Saving Money When Buying a House

Published

3 years ago

December 18, 2020

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Japan Giving away free Homes in Rural Towns

Buying a house can be an expensive endeavor – particularly if you don’t have a plan. But thankfully, there are plenty of tactics you can use to slash the price and avoid running through all of your cash savings in one fell swoop. Here are a few of our favorites:

Carefully Consider Interest Rates

If you’re going strictly by interest rates, there’s never been a better time to buy a house than now. As a result of the pandemic and other related factors, interest rates have plummeted to near-record lows and paved the way for a new level of affordability. But even with low rates, you need to shop around and see what your options are.

“The interest rate is arguably the most important thing in a home loan, as a lower interest rate can save you thousands (tens of thousands even) of dollars over the course of the mortgage,” Savings.com.au explains. “While getting the lowest home loan interest rate you can is important, it isn’t the be-all-end-all, as it’s very possible a mortgage with a slightly higher interest rate might be more suitable to your needs.”

All factors must be taken into account when selecting a loan. The good news is that every lender is required to give you a standardized form so that you can quickly compare apples to apples.

Consider a Shorter Repayment Schedule

While a 30-year loan comes with a lower monthly payment, you can pay off your balance faster with a 15-year loan. As a result, you end up paying far less in interest.

Let’s say, for example, that you borrow $200,000 from the bank to buy a house. The bank offers you a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage with a rate of 3 percent, or a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 3.2 percent. While the 30-year loan is roughly $700 less per month, you end up paying a total of $139,938 in interest over the life of the loan. With the 15-year loan, you pay just $60,761. That’s nearly $80,000 in savings!

If you can afford to swing the larger payments, you’ll come out way better with shorter loan terms.

Shop Around for Insurance Rates

Shopping for home insurance is one of those tasks that you have to do. It’s not fun, but it’s a requirement (by the lender) and should be taken seriously.

The tricky part about home insurance is that there are so many different providers, products, and terms. If you don’t shop around, you can overpay by a significant margin – potentially costing you thousands of dollars.

If you want to save on insurance, you should get multiple quotes from multiple companies. You also need to ask about different types of policies and deductibles. A higher deductible will save you more money (though you’ll have to make a larger payment to get coverage when something happens).

Choose Location Wisely

Location is the most important factor in the value of a property. A builder could build the same house in Los Angeles and a small town in Mississippi and the first house could be worth $1 million, while the latter house is worth just $200,000. But it’s not just state lines that matter. Locations within an individual city or neighborhood can dramatically influence value.

One way to save money is to expand your search by one mile. If you’re willing to move just one mile further away from the desirable area that you were originally planning, you could see prices drop by 10 to 25 percent. And guess what? You’re still just a few minutes from the action.

Be Smart About Moving Expenses

Moving can be expensive. Whether it’s across the country or across town, you can easily pay thousands of dollars just to have someone load up a few furniture pieces and move them into your new space. As with other items on this list, get multiple quotes and negotiate for the best rates.

Save Big on Your Home Purchase

A home purchase is not something you can afford to take lightly. Whether it’s the first home you’ve ever purchased, or you’ve been through the process more times than you can count, a real estate transaction can have a significant impact on your net worth and must be addressed with purpose and intentionality.

By taking these tips and techniques into account, you can save thousands of dollars and give yourself a little breathing room with your finances.

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6 Reasons to Try Cannabis Edibles

Published

1 year ago

February 21, 2023

Jimmy Lerner

Are you looking for a reason to try cannabis edibles? If you’re wondering if there are benefits to edibles that you can’t get with other forms of cannabis, the answer is yes. Here are some of the best reasons to try cannabis edibles.

Some edibles are boosted

When you smoke cannabis flower, you’re only getting cannabis. That’s not a bad thing, but there are brands that sell edibles that have been boosted with other ingredients. For instance, you’ve probably seen capsules with added herbs to help you sleep – the same is true for edibles.

One of the newer enhanced cannabis edibles are the Bits adaptogen-boosted edibles. These new cannabis edibles contain just 5mg of THC per Bit so you don’t overdo anything. Each flavor is packed with a unique blend of adaptogens like ashwagandha, reishi, elderflower, lemon balm, ginseng, guarana, and rose hip.

Why adaptogens? Adaptogens have been proven to have a positive impact on the central nervous system by decreasing sensitivity to stressors. In other words, adaptogens reduce stress and anxiety and contribute to an overall sense of wellbeing. When you consume cannabis edibles boosted by adaptogens, you’re going to feel more relaxed.

Edibles provide precise and consistent dosing

One of the best reasons to try edibles is for precise and consistent dosing. When edibles are made, the cannabis is thoroughly and evenly mixed in, so each serving has the intended dosage when the final product is made. In addition, premium cannabis brands like Verano lab test each batch to ensure quality and consistency with all of their products, including cannabis edibles.

When you smoke flower, you won’t always get the same amount of THC. It’s nearly impossible to know how much THC or CBD you’re getting from smoking flower. Even when you smoke the same strain in the same amount, the THC and other cannabinoids are distributed unevenly throughout each bud.

If precise and consistent dosing is important to you, then edibles are going to be your favorite cannabis delivery method.

Edibles are tasty

Edibles taste good, so why not try them? It’s just like eating a snack or a treat, but with a purpose. If you’ve avoided trying cannabis tinctures or oil because you don’t like the flavor, that’s understandable. Edibles are different because the taste of cannabis itself can be easily masked.

Brands go out of their way to come up with recipes that taste good because they know some people don’t like the strong flavor of cannabis. Edibles like brownies, cookies, and chocolate bars usually just taste like any other cookie, brownie, or chocolate bar. Premium cannabis brands will also use quality ingredients to produce the best cannabis-infused gummies, hard candies, and baked goods.

Edibles are easy to carry

If you want to carry your cannabis around discreetly, that’s easiest with edibles. They usually come in smaller packages that you can fit into a pocket or bag, and edibles are easy to eat without anyone suspecting you’re consuming cannabis.

When carrying edibles, be smart about where you bring them. Make sure you know where you can and can’t have them. If you’re headed to the airport of a government building, for example, you’ll want to leave your edibles at home.

The effects of edibles last for a long time

Smoking flower is great when you need relief quickly, but when you want the effects to last a long time, edibles are your best option. When you ingest cannabis, it takes longer for the effects to kick in, but those effects will last for a much longer time. You also don’t need to consume as much cannabis to get these long-lasting effects.

Everyone is different, and the timing depends on a multitude of factors like our metabolism and whether you’ve eaten or have an empty stomach. However, in general, it takes between 30 minutes and 4 hours to start feeling the effects of edibles. From there, the effects can last a few hours or even up to twelve hours. This is why many people take edibles before going to bed – getting that full impact while they sleep makes them wake up feeling incredibly rested.

Edibles are a great alternative to smoking

Although smoking cannabis is probably the most popular consumption method, it’s not for everyone. Edibles won’t expose you to the potentially harmful effects of smoking. If you’ve been avoiding trying cannabis because you thought you had to smoke it, edibles are the perfect opportunity for you to try cannabis.

Already familiar with edibles? Try something new

If you’ve been consuming cannabis edibles for a while, maybe it’s time to try something new. If you’ve always been into baked goods, branch out and try some beverages, chocolate bars, or even an adaptogen-boosted cannabis gummy for example. There are plenty of edibles to choose from so you can be sure you’ll find something new that you can enjoy.