To Refi or Not To Refi?
Welcome to the Cutting Room Floor, a newsletter where I round up all my personal finance articles, put out exclusive content and interviews, and flag my favorite job listings from around LinkedIn.
Usually when the Federal Reserve tweaks interest rates, the public doesn't pay a whole lot of attention. It seems like a pretty wonky business, trying to balance data points like GDP and jobs and inflation.
Well, it might be time to start paying attention.
That's because these moves have a big effect on very real everyday things, like your ability to afford a house.
If you are a homeowner with a mortgage rate above 7%, for instance -- they even approached 8% late last year -- it might interest you to know that rates have sunk into the 6s. If the Fed continues to cut, now that inflation is under control, they should decline further.
If you refinance your home loan, that means lower payments for you -- potentially, hundreds of dollars a month.
Of course, getting a new mortgage comes with its own issues -- time, documentation, closing costs. Think of it as a financial colonoscopy.
So when is it worth it to refi, and when is it not?
I get into this issue in my new column for Reuters , with my friend Daryl Fairweather, PhD , chief economist of Redfin . (Cheat sheet: When you can get a rate differential of over 1%, that's when you need to start thinking about it.)
Check it out, and if you end up saving a ton of money, you can Venmo me.
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What Journalists and PR Reps Need To Know About Each Other ... Part Two!
Last week we had some fun asking public relations folks about their relationships with journalists, and what we all need to know about each other.
We're on different sides of the communications coin, but we don't always understand each other, or even try to.
So consider me your counselor for the day, and listen to a few more thoughts about where the other side is coming from.
"It’s easy to become frustrated when a journalist hasn’t responded to your pitch or has dropped off after initial contact. But when you consider how many are juggling limited resources and a mountain of stories, PR folks need to cut them some slack—newsrooms are stretched incredibly thin.
"Having been a journalist at ESPN, CNN, Fox Sports, and multiple TV stations across the country, writing for magazines, online news sources, MANY of those journalists are my friend or former colleague. The upside? I have a wealth of contacts and a solid understanding of what makes a good story, having won a few Emmys and other awards for my writing. So, I feel fortunate to be able to leverage that when I can.
"The downside? I might be a little too critical, as a former journalist. I like to think I know good journalism, but sometimes find myself getting caught up in my own editorial critiques, rolling my eyes at stories that I think miss the mark."
-Michelle Bonner
"I really don't hear that many complaints about journalists! Mostly PR people just want to know how they can pitch better and build and maintain better relationships, honestly.
"I'm sure there are those that get annoyed when they don't hear back, but we try to educate them that newsrooms are shrinking, journalists' jobs continue to get more robust, and we just cannot answer every single email every single day--so how can they provide journalists with the most efficient methods of delivering information possible."
-Nicole Schuman
"I love journalism. How could I not? The reality is there’s no way I could do my job without them. But if you’ve been in this game long enough, you’ll know some of these reporters or editors over time.
"Furthermore, you must develop an authentic relationship with them, not just always pitching to them but seeing what they’re up to and working on. Also, a lot of times, they know about topics that are currently going on. This is a great way to build that bridge.
"In my experience, if you do it right, eventually, they’ll come to you asking for data or information for them. That’s my spiel."
-Jennifer Abreu
"As a journo-turned-PR, I try to be hyper-sensitive and avoid the things that used to set my teeth on edge as a journo: Irrelevant pitches; frequent phone calls that disrupt my workflow (I still have one particular PR firm's number memorized from seeing it on my work phone's caller ID); using the wrong spelling of my name even though it was in my email and signature. Even after politely asking certain PRs to rectify these behaviors, they still acted nothing but buddy-buddy with me.
"The shoe dropped when I decided to make the move to PR. The same firms that for years clamored for my attention would barely return my emails when I asked about working for them, jerking me around after multiple interviews. Some of my former journalism colleagues have since given me the similar cold shoulder, ignoring my emails.
"Not acknowledging me, even in a 'Sorry, this isn't a good fit but nice to hear from you' sort of way. I guess I write this to point out that respect is a two-way street. PRs, take time to remember a journalist's sub-beats. Journalists, if you get the same tired pitch on behalf of a fund manager extolling active strategies vs. passive, let them know. This will give the PR firm something to give back to their client to adjust their approach accordingly (or in case of internal PRs, to their boss).
"And remember, certain news beats are a small pond. That journalist whom you jerked around may one day be the in-house head of comms at a firm that your PR agency would love to count as a client."
?-Anne Szustek Talbot
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Fun numerical tidbits from my overflowing inbox
领英推荐
49%: Percentage of caregivers who say that their responsibilities are having a "severe" or "major" impact on their own ability to prepare for retirement, according to new research from Voya Financial . To anyone who has been put in this position, that figure is not surprising in the least. Among the many hits caregivers take: Their ability to handle unexpected expenses (52%), mental well-being (52%) and healthcare costs (51%). Among the people dealing with this family situation, who have been brave enough to talk about it: "Wolf of Wall Street" star PJ Byrne, who I wrote about here.
$21.75 million: Total amount holdout NFL star Haason Reddick would stand to lose if he continues to sit for the entire season, according to this article. That includes $14.25 million in base salary, $4.5 million in fines, and $3 million on bonus forfeiture. In other words, more than his entire salary! And for what? No wonder he was dropped by his agency. In addition he has torched his reputation, and is unlikely to get a long-term deal now. Plus he is already on the back half of his career, and missing a full year at that age would do him no favors (ask Le'Veon Bell). We'll see if his new agent Drew Rosenhaus can fix this mess, but this will go down in football annals as one of the dumbest holdouts in the history of the sport.
55%: Percentage of those who lent money, who had a bad experience afterward, according to a new survey from Bankrate . Of those, 42% say they lost money, 24% say their relationship was harmed, 9% had their credit score damaged -- and 4% even got into a physical altercation! It seems Millennials are getting burned most of all, with almost two-thirds saying that lending money went sour. As Polonius famously advised in Hamlet -- neither a borrower nor a lender be!
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"They're Desperate For Work -- And Being Brutally Open About It," Ann-Marie Alcántara , The Wall Street Journal
"Finding the Best 529 College Savings Plan Is Easier Than You Think," Beth Pinsker CFP? , MarketWatch
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PR Specialist, Amazon Prime
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As always, feel free to get in touch via Twitter (here), or email ([email protected]), or by DM on LinkedIn -- to suggest story ideas, or ask money questions, or hire me as a freelancer, or sponsor this newsletter, or broadcast your job opening.
Until next time!
-CT
Editorial Leader | Award-Winning Journalist | Speaker | Author
4 个月Great newsletter, as usual, Chris Taylor, and I appreciate the shout-out!
Personal finance writer | editor | planner
4 个月Thanks for the mention!