Time to Refinance? I’ve started to think seriously about refinancing my own loan again. In the past, I’ll admit, I was a “serial refinancer”—for a stretch of four-plus years I was refinancing anytime the rates dropped, picking up an extra 0.25%-0.50%. I finally kicked the habit last...

For the most part, today’s story is not about mortgages. If your sole reason for opening this email was to read about mortgages, jump to the last paragraph. I recently returned from a 10-day hiking trip to Israel during which I hiked some of the great, amazingly well-marked hiking...

Caesar: [To the Soothsayer] The ides of March are come. Soothsayer: Ay, Caesar; but not gone. In the play Julius Caesar, Caesar is warned to “Beware the Ides of March,” as a sign of impending doom. Caesar’s playful quip above was meant to repudiate the warning of his impending...

Today’s post is a brief photographic departure from the norm.  Rather than use one of my photos, I am using a photo of me.  This photo was taken in March of 2012 (in case you are reading this in 2025).  The previous headshot wasn’t particularly old, I think it dated to 2009, but...

It’s the first Friday of the third month of 2012 — where on your planned route are you? Are you in the home where you want to be? If you are reading this on your commute (please, no distracted driving!), are you happy with your job? When you look in the mirror, do you like who you...

Following the Trend Do you follow mortgage interest rates with any regularity or do you wait for the media (take your pick: TV, newspapers, Internet social media) or some kind of direct mail, such as this email, to tell you when rates are low? If you do keep an eye on rates, then you’ve...

Planning For the Moment We are often so caught up in the moment that planning ahead eludes us. Somewhere in the chasm between living each day like it’s our last (does anyone do this or is it just a trite aphorism?) and “making plans” (balancing forbearance and forward-looking thriftiness),...