Article: In most instances, creditors and lenders want to see a debt-to-income ratio of 36 percent or less. If your debt-to-income ratio is higher than this percentage, you might have difficulty securing a loan until after that percentage drops.  A ratio of 19 percent or less is ideal, and if you can secure this level of financial security, you should have very little problem securing loans or taking on new credit. A ratio between 20 and 36 percent or less will usually be deemed healthy enough to secure a loan from most lenders, but you should begin cutting back once you . If your debt-to-income ratio is between 37 and 42 percent, you are in a state of minor financial crisis and may not be able to get any loans or new lines of credit. At a ratio between 43 and 49 percent, you will likely begin seeing financial difficulties in your everyday life in the near future. If your ratio is 50 percent or higher, you need to seek professional help to quickly reduce your debt. These are terms that are used when you are looking to secure a mortgage loan. Front-end debt ratios only use proposed monthly housing expenses, while back-end debt ratios use all existing debt and any new projected monthly mortgage payments.  For most purposes, you should look at your back-end debt. Many lenders will usually look at front-end debt, but as a borrower, you should look at both front-end and back-end debt to determine how much you can actually afford regarding new loans and credit. Front-end debt-to-income ratios are also known as housing-expense-to-income ratios. This percentage should be at or below 28 percent, while a back-end debt-to-income ratio should be at or below 36 percent. If your debt-to-income ratio is higher than you would like it to be, you can help lower it by implementing lifestyle changes that decrease your debt levels.  Increase the amount of money you pay toward your debts. If you can manage it, make extra payments toward your loan, house, car, or any other debt for which there is a principle you must pay off in addition to interest. Make sure that the payment goes toward your principle. This will lower your overall debt faster. Do not take on more debt. Put away the plastic and avoid making more purchases on your credit card. Do not apply for any other loans or lines of credit, either. Avoid making any large purchases. If you do not have much savings built up right now, wait until you do. This will allow you to make a larger down payment, and as a result, less of your purchase will be funded with credit and you can reduce the amount of debt you accumulate. Whether your debt-to-income ratio is healthy or not, monitoring it continually can help you avoid major credit problems. You should keep an eye on it even if you do not plan to make a major investment any time soon.  If you know that your debt-to-income ratio is on the high end, keep tabs on it every month. Otherwise, checking the ratio once or twice a year should suffice. Having too much debt can lower your credit score, causing your lending limits to decrease and your interest rates to increase. Monitoring this ratio can help you make better decisions about buying on credit and taking loans out. It can also make the benefits of making more than your minimum credit card payments more evident and allow you to avoid major credit or financial problems in the future. If your debt-to-income ratio rises too high, you could have difficulty making major purchases and you might lose out on the lowest interest rates and best credit terms.
Question: What is a summary of what this article is about?
Know how your ratio looks to lenders. Understand the difference between front-end and back-end debt. Take steps to lower your debt-to-income ratio, if necessary. Monitor your debt-to-income ratio periodically.
Article: If you are reading a piece of literature with the purpose of critiquing it internally rather than for an essay, you should begin with understanding the cultural milieu of the piece. Knowing the social context of a written work boosts your understanding of the vocabulary, setting, and character motivations, all of which are critical for forming an accurate critique. Bring a highlighter or pen with you to your reading sessions, and mark words you don’t understand. Looking them up in a dictionary as you read will increase your understanding of the text, just as knowing the cultural milieu in which the text was written does. Once you begin reading, consider the significance of the title. Ask yourself why the author chose this title. Is it a simple title, merely relating the main setting or object, such as the title of the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper”? If so, why would the author understate the work so much? Questioning the title helps in determining the main theme and contributes to a more accurate critique. Thinking about the title will help you determine the main theme of the work. Determining the main theme provides a trunk from which the branches of the rest of your examination of the text will spring. You will look at the elements of literature of this text, and knowing what theme they should be pointing to helps you to critique how well the author accomplishes this. Examine the elements of the piece of literature you’re reading by exploring how each element is presented in the text. Identify examples of each element and determine how each relates to the main theme. You may want to write down where these connections take place in order to organize your thoughts.  Setting—description of the surroundings. Plot—events of the text. Characters—the motivations and depth of each character, such as how much they change or don’t change as a result of the events. Characters can be people, objects, even ideas (especially in poetry). Conflict—the opposition that the main character encounters and its climax and resolution. Themes—what the narrator observes about human nature. Point of view—the way that a character thinks, whether it is curious, condescending, etc. Can also be the perspective the text is told, whether in first person, third person, etc. Tone—the way the text feels, whether sad, happy, angry, apathetic, etc. Symbols—objects, people, or places that repeat consistently throughout the story and seem to represent another abstract idea. Once you have analyzed the different elements of the text, you may form an interpretation based on your analyses. This interpretation could be that the author could have done a better job, that the author is profound, that some elements of the text connect to modern society in an interesting way, etc.  You may want to write down your interpretation of the work at this point, as it is an excellent springboard into a thesis statement, if you end up needing to write a paper about this text. You can review outside sources such as peer reviewed articles and books to verify that your interpretation is accurate or needs work.
Question: What is a summary of what this article is about?
Look up the author and cultural context. Highlight and look up words and passages you don’t understand. Investigate the meaning of the title. Decide on the central theme. Examine components of the work. Form an interpretation of the work.