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I have a steal on rent. Right now I am paying $400 per month. I knew the landlord so he cut me a good deal. However, most people in this neighborhood pay more like $600-$800 per person per month. In a 4 bedroom house that is easily $2400-$3200 per month. Mortgage payments might be less than that.

People around the country are making similar discoveries. People are finding that buying a house or condo costs less per month than renting. It is important to note that this is on a cash flow basis only, buying is almost always a better decision in the long run for net worth and investing.

If you were wondering how this works, I am glad you are here. That is exactly what I was planning to tell you.

So, lets say you pick an average neighborhood in Denver, Colorado, my hometown.  Lets say average rents are $600-$800, as described above.  Now lets say you can buy a house for $200,000.  At current rates, if you put 20% down, your monthly payment might be as low as $1,050 per month.  If you live with a roommate at only $500 per month, you are making money.

Let’s look at this through another lens.  If you live about 15 minutes down the road, you can find a great downtown apartment for $1200 per month.  Condos in the same neighborhood start below $200,000.  At the same rates, you can see the $200 cash flow savings per month.

If you are starting to think entrepreneurial, I am in a neighborhood near a campus with many renters.  You can buy a $200,000 house with 4 bedrooms and charge $600 per room per month.  After your mortgage payment, you are making $1200 per month in profit.  Given there are other costs of owning the home, you get the idea of how this works.

Someone I know used that logic when he bought a house.  He lived in it with three other roommates for a couple of years.  They were each paying him $500 plus their share of utilities.  Based on the price of nearby houses, he was not making a lot, but his rent was free.  He has since moved out and rents the extra room for $500, ensuring a monthly profit of at least $500.  At the end, he is also building equity in the house on the renter’s dime.

So, if you are looking to move sometime in the near future, it might be a good idea to look at buying too.  You could save money, or make money, in the long run.

I just got off the phone with Experian.  I just checked my annual credit report from Experian and found two things that are not accurate.  Here is a rundown on the items and the process to remove the items.

The first problem I found was in my address.  This is not my real address, but here is what I found.  Say I live at 2345 Washington Street.  The report said 2340 Washington Street.  That is an easy fix.  I went through the automated system, which asked for my credit report number and the last four digits of my social.  I worked through the easy automated menu and told them which address is wrong.  The system said that Experian would contact the bank that made the error and remove the item within 30 days.  That does not impact my score, but it is wrong.

The second issue is a bit more complicated.  I opened a line of credit at one of my banks, and they opened two of my accounts.  I did not authorize two accounts, so two accounts should not be on my credit report.  It looks bad to open and close accounts quickly from the bank perspective.  I approached the bank about it and they were very apologetic and closed the account.  The person that helped me said the bank can’t take it off my credit report, but I should be able to get it off if I dispute it with the credit agency, so I did.

To fix that there was no menu option to correct it.  I had to talk to a real live person.  The wait was long, but the real live person was polite and helpful.  I explained the situation and gave her my e-mail.  Experian will contact the bank and fix the problem within 60 days.  They will e-mail when it is done.

Overall it was a fairly painless procedure.  I spent about 20 minutes on the phone all together but was working while on hold.  Kudos to Experian for their customer service level.  If you don’t know what is on your credit report, it is probably a good time to look.

I am, as always, happy to answer questions in the comments.

The Narrow Bridge eBook is now going through initial editing stages.  It will go through several edits before it is released.  It should be available in the next couple of months.  I hope you are all excited with antici… pation!

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The number of mortgages in foreclosure, or mortgage possessions, seem to have hit their peak.  While foreclosures are still a problem, they are slowly turning around and fewer homes are being taken over by banks.

The perception of foreclosures is still high.  That is because several states are still experiencing high foreclosure rates.  Florida and California, for example, are still experiencing a large impact from foreclosures.  Nevada is in the worst shape in the United States.

On the other hand, most states have begun to recover.  This map, which references March, 2009 data, shows that most states have leveled out or turned around.  Things are starting to look up.

This has a large impact to the overall economy.  The recent recession was triggered by a spike in foreclosures, which led to bank failures, which also impacted investors and funds that bought into mortgage backed securities, which led to a sell off and stock market decline, which led to consumer spending fears, which led to the economy getting worse.  I could go on, it is a big cycle of bad events.  You get the idea.

Today, however, things are getting better.  The stock market is up.  Investing is on the rise.  Spending is up. (But not by Narrow Bridge readers, right?)  Companies are doing better.  Profits are returning.  Foreclosures are no longer on the rise.

This has been seen internationally as well.  In the UK, for example, first quarter 2009 possessions were down 42% from the same time the prior year.  It seems that the world is not going to end after all.

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I jumped on the bandwagon.  I joined Swagbucks.  A series of posts by Fabulously Broke inspired my jump into the search rewards program.  A week in, I thought I would share my thoughts.

So far, it seems that the program works as advertised.  I use the Swagbucks search engine, which is a Google/Ask.com mash-up, and I am awarded randomly with Swagbucks.  You can also get Swagbucks using Swagcodes from “code hunts” on the site, Twitter, Facebook, or MySpace.

For your Swagbucks, you can get almost anything.  The Swag Store has a long list of gift cards, collectibles, music, entertainment, or even a $5 cash through your PayPal account.  I am saving for the Amazon.com gift card, because I love movies, books, and games.

My only complaint: finding the Swag codes on code hunts is a pain in the ass.  Other than that, I switched my default search in Firefox to Swagbucks and get a few bucks a day.

If you have any questions about the site, I am happy to answer in the comments. If you do decide to sign up, please use my referral link so I can get a few bonus Swagbucks.  You can also learn more about how Swagbucks work through my personalized Swagbucks site.

Stephanie at Poorer Than You put up a guest post I wrote this morning.  Please head over and check out How Can I, A Broke Recent Graduate, Start Investing.

If you have ever done any sort of loan search, specifically student loans, you have probably come across the phrase “consolidation loan.”  If you have multiple credit cards, you have probably seen offers to consolidate on one card.  These loans are often a good idea, but you should know how the work and what they do before you jump in.

Consolidation loans are essentially a new loan that pays off multiple old loans.  Rather than having, for example, two student loans with different lenders for $5,000 each, you could have one $10,000 loan.  That means one payment instead of two.  That means one company to deal with instead of two.  You can do a consolidation loan at either lender you are with originally, or you can pick a new one if you can get better terms.

There is always a however, though.  If you have two Federal student loans at 6.8% and your consolidation offer is for 7%, you should keep the loans where they are.  If the interest rates are the exact same, you should probably stay where you are.  Consolidation loans have the same set of origination fees as any new loan.  Unless interest rates are going to be lower for a long enough time to save you money over the fees, it is probably best to endure the headache of multiple lenders.  Alternatively, if you have the cash, you could just pay one (or both) of the loans off early and make no payments and pay no interest.

The same is true for credit cards.  Balance transfer offers often come with fees.  There may be a temporary no interest period, but the interest rate eventually goes up.  Unless you are transferring the balance to a card with a lower interest rate, you should not do it.

To summarize the pros of debt consolidation:

• Fewer payments
• Fewer lenders
• Less hassle

And the cons:

• New fees
• Possible higher interest rates
• Your new lender might be an asshole

If you are moving around debt balances, you should be careful, educated, and calculated.  Treat your loans like you treat your cash.  You are not going to move your bank accounts to a company that charges fees and pays you less interest.  You are not going to pick some sketchy guy on the street to trust your money with.  Loans should be the same, they have a long lasting impact on you and your credit.  Be smart and consolidate, if it is the right thing to do.

I am curious what the readers think about something I am debating.  I have a student loan at 6.8%.  I am also thinking about buying a condo or house at some point.  I will not buy for over a year, possibly two or three.  However, it is something I want to do at some point to start building more assets.  I can work to be debt free faster or save faster.

So, the question of the day:  Should I pay off my student loan aggressively or should I put extra money into a down payment savings account?  Please give you thoughts in the comments.

Narrow Bridge Adventures has a new sponsor.  Thanks to National Payday for helping us cover the costs of running the site and keeping Narrow Bridge going.  National Payday is a premier online cash advance provider that has been in operation for almost a decade.

You might notice the new “Sponsor” slots on the right side of the page.  These companies help keep Narrow Bridge going.  If you are interested in a 125 x 125 ad, or anything else, please contact me through the contact form.

Narrow Bridge was included in last week’s Carnival of Pecuniary Delights hosted by Wise Bread.  If you are looking for interesting reading, I suggest any of the personal finance blog carnivals.  This one is better, though, because I am in it.