What the experts say

Housing: Staying afloat; Cash for your gadgets; Keeping college savings safe

Housing: Staying afloat

If you owe more on your mortgage than your house is worth, you’re not alone, said Karen Blumenthal in The Wall Street Journal. As many as one in six home­owners are now “underwater” on their mortgages—either because they bought during the bubble, put little or nothing down, or pulled out too much home equity. The situation is worrisome, but if you can afford to keep making your mortgage payments, you should be able to ride it out. “If you truly can’t afford your payments, contact your mortgage servicer to see if you can rework your interest rate or work out new payment options.” If your lender won’t budge, contact a counselor at Hope Now (Hopenow.com) for help navigating the process. Need to sell? You may be able to negotiate a “short sale” whereby you sell the house for market value and ask your lender to eat the loss.

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