Soak time. The length of time you marinate food depends on both the food and the marinade. Delicate fish, shellfish, and fruit usually soak for a shorter period of time (from 20 minutes to a few hours), while meats can go longer (up to a day or two).
Having your taxes and insurance included in your mortgage payment is actually very convenient. Instead of having to pay an annual insurance premium and half of your annual taxes on April 30th and the second half on October 31st, the lender establishes an automatic savings plan for you.
Even paying $20 or $50 extra each month can help you to pay down your mortgage faster. For example, if you have a 30-year $250,000 mortgage with a 5 percent interest rate, you will pay $1,342.05 each month in principal and interest alone. You will pay $233,133.89 in interest over the course of the loan.