Personal Finance Tips

Correcting Four Common Money Mistakes

2009-08-30T21:48:00.000-07:00

If you feel as though you keep making the same mistakes when it comes to money, there's good news.

By making a few small, practical changes in your behavior, you can often correct financial mistakes and make some positive changes that are likely to last. Here are four examples.

• Eliminate emotional spending: Before you head off to the mall, take a minute to note what you are feeling. In a recent study by moneycentral.msn.com, people who had just watched a sad movie clip were willing to spend more than those who had just watched other types of movies.

Remember, if you are feeling sad or frustrated, there are ways other than shopping to make yourself feel better.

• Pay off credit card debt as soon as possible: Take a long look at how much you are paying to borrow money from your creditors. Think about consolidating debt with a single loan that has a lower interest rate that's fixed.

• Start planning for retirement now: If you are not saving money for retirement, you should be. A recent study in USA Today showed that currently, 53 percent of people in the workforce have no pension and 32 percent have nothing set aside for retirement. If you're planning on relying just on Social Security, you probably should think again. The current average payout is just $955, or $11,460 annually-and could be even less, depending on your work history. You should consider working with a financial professional and completing a personalized financial profile. This can help determine how much you need to start saving in order to reach your financial goals, such as retirement, education savings for your children and other goals.

• Prepare for the unexpected: Don't use the "it could never happen to me" excuse when dealing with something as critical as your family's financial future. Sudden accidents or unexpected critical health problems happen every day to those who least expect it. If you are the breadwinner of a young family, according to the experts at Kiplinger's, life insurance protection of eight to 12 times your annual income is recommended. Most experts agree that the most affordable form of insurance is term insurance. According to Kiplinger's, "Dollar for dollar, term life insurance gives you the most protection for your money. Period."

Good Investment Advice: Only For The Rich?

2009-08-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

If you think good investment advice is only for the rich, you're not alone. Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of investing Americans believe that those with more money are able to get better financial advice than those with less money. Further, more than a quarter (26 percent) state that it takes at least $100,000 to get top-quality financial advice.

This is according to a new survey by the Retirement Corporation of America, which also finds that more than half (56 percent) of investors believe that financial advisors lose credibility when they accept fees or commissions.

Given the above perceptions, it is not surprising that 53 percent rely on themselves or turn to family and friends when it is time to make investment decisions rather than seek professional advice. However, changing investment funds is easier said than done for investors. The survey finds that nearly a third (31 percent) are willing to wait from one to five years before they move their money from a poorly performing option to a better one. The factor that makes it most difficult for investors when contemplating change is the scarcity of time to conduct adequate research, as cited by a third of respondents. This is followed by 20 percent who state that they are confused by all the available options and 16 percent who are afraid of making the wrong decisions.

The Retirement Corporation of America conducted this survey to better understand why consumers stay invested in poor-performing mutual funds. Their newly launched investment opportunity-Money Masters Investment Portfolio-is the first to offer unbiased advice and access to top-performing investment funds for every American.

Taking The Guesswork Out

The good news for confused American investors is the new registered investment advisory account (the "R" Account), offered through the Retirement Corporation of America, with no minimum account balance, commissions, transaction fees or exit penalties. It allows investors to access a fully managed Money Masters Investment Portfolio containing 15 of the world's top-performing mutual fund managers-the "Money Masters." The Money Masters are the top 10 stock fund and top five bond fund managers chosen from more than 8,000 fund managers who meet very strict selection criteria.

How It Works

When an investor opens an "R" Account, Retirement Corporation of America advisors determine the individual's objectives and risk tolerance. Based on that profile, a Money Masters Investment Portfolio is created to best suit the individual investor's needs.

Balancing A Budget And Saving Money

2009-08-10T21:48:00.000-07:00

Your finances are your business. But unfortunately it seems like you need an accountant to help you understand and decode the mysteries of balancing a budget or saving money. At some point you might need to get a loan. When that day comes, this article can help you understand which is the right one to get.

An unsecured loan is simply a loan you get based on your good name and your credit rating. Often the interest rates are higher on an unsecured loan than on a secured loan because the risk is higher to the lending institution. If, for some reason, you are unable to pay back the loan and the lending institution does not get any money back. However, your good name and your credit rating are potentially ruined.

On the other hand, a secured load is a low you get when you put up some assets. The advantage of a secured loan is that you often get more money at a lower interest rate for longer repayment period that you would with an unsecured loan. This is because you have some assets to backup your loan. The lending institution prefers this kind of loan because if you find yourself unable to make payments, they can see your assets as an alternative form of payment. Because the risk to them is diminished they are able to provide you with more attractive loans at a better rate.

You might think of a mortgage as a secured loan. The bank lends you money to buy a home and they use the home as a way to back up the loan. If you do not make your mortgage payments, the bank can seize your house.

Or you can think of a secured loan as a pawn shop that lends you the money you want but lets you still use the goods you pawned!

So which one is the right one for you? It’s a tough decision to make. In most cases, a secured loan will get you a better rate, so you just might prefer that.

However, perhaps you don’t have any assets available, or you don’t want to risk the seizure of certain assets if you are unable to make payments. In this case, you just might not mind paying a little more for the benefit of having an unsecured loan.

Both unsecured and secured loans are good options to have when you are doing your financial planning. You can use them to consolidate your outstanding bills, leverage your home investments, or get the things you need and want. And, with the choices between unsecured and secured loans, you have the benefit of being in total control of your financial destiny!

About Dormant Bank Accounts

2009-07-27T21:48:00.001-07:00

Banking experts estimate that up to ฃ5bn may be sitting unclaimed in UK bank accounts that have gone 'dormant'. What does this mean, and could you be entitled to a share in this huge amount of idle money?

A bank account goes dormant when, in the words of the British Bankers' Association, a bank and a customer 'lose touch with each other'. What this usually means in practice is that a customer has either passed away or moved house, and the bank haven't been told and are unable to locate the account holder some time later.

If there are no transactions on an account over a period of around 12 months, the bank will write to the account holder at the last known address to ask them if they wish to keep the account open. If no reply is received, then the bank will change the status of the account to 'dormant'. This means that from now on, no statements, chequebooks or other correspondance will be sent out to the customer.

The money in the account will still earn interest at whatever the normal rate of that account is, and the bank will still keep track of the account balance and keep a record of the last known address of the holder.

There are two main reasons for an account being made dormant. The first and most obvious one is to save the banks the administration costs of sending out statements and the like when there is no activity on the account from month to month (other than that initiated by the bank itself, such as interest payments).

The more important reason however is to guard against identity fraud. If a bank continues to send statements to an address when the account holder is no longer there to receive them, it is all too easy for these documents to end up in the hands of fraudsters, who could use the sensitive information they contain to begin a campaign of ID theft.

Most dormant accounts will have very small balances, but some will inevitably contain a substantial sum, often those belonging to someone who has passed away. If you think you may be entitled to money held in a dormant account, you can make a claim by filling in a form available from the bank in question.

You will need to give your reasons for making a claim, such as that the account belonged to a close relative whose estate was passed to you. You will also need to prove your own identity, and your connection to the original account holder if applicable.

If the bank don't agree that you're entitled to take over the account, you have the right to pursue an appeal, where your claim is re-examined. If the appeal fails, you can take your claim to the Financial Ombudsman Service, whose decision is final and binding.

Cash Advance Loans Online - The Plus Side

2009-06-30T20:17:00.000-07:00

Cash advance loans online can be a huge lifesaver when you find yourself in a bit of a pinch in between your paydays. So just what is a cash advance loan and how will it be helpful to you?

A cash advance loan (or payday loan) is a very short-term loan that carries extremely high interest rates. Generally, these types of loans last from a period of one to four weeks and you either write a check out that the company will cash when the loan is due or you would have to authorize the company to be able to make withdrawals out of your savings or checking account.

If you are in a bad credit situation when it comes to obtaining a loan, getting a cash advance loan may just be the answer you are seeking. Most all payday loan companies only require that you have either an active savings or checking account and have held your current job between 3-6 months and be able to prove how much you make in a month.

You can obtain your money very quickly when you decide to into applying for cash advance loans online. After you have provided the loan company with all of the information that they require and you are approved you are likely ti have your cash within 24 hours sometimes instantly depending on the company you are getting your loan through.

Getting a cash advance loan can assist you in making your credit score better. Just make sure that when you are getting an advance you make sure that the loan company reports to one of the three major credit agencies.

Now the next time that you are in a bind and need some cash quickly, if you are you sure you can meet the terms, applying for cash advance loans online would be a smart move.

Steps To Get Your Financial House In Order

2009-06-20T20:15:00.000-07:00

Managing your finances may be easier than you think. That's because online banking offers the same services found at bricks-and-mortar institutions-plus many others.

For example, through online banking, customers can check their account balances, transfer funds, pay bills and more. And because of the convenience, online banking can make it easier to get your finances in order. Here's how:

• Eliminate clutter and help save the environment-Pay (and receive) your bills online and you can get rid of unnecessary paper, envelopes and stamps. You can also view images of your paid checks and account statements online.

• Simplify your Web life- Instead of bouncing from site to site to view and pay your bills, you can do it all through your bank's Web site-and save yourself the trouble of multiple log-ins and passwords while you're at it.

• Easily monitor your accounts-You can choose to receive e-mail alerts when checks are paid, deposits clear, bills are due, your account reaches a certain limit and more. Alerts also help you stay on top of recent account activity so you can detect and prevent fraud.

• Reduce your chances of fraud-A study released in January 2006 by Javelin Strategy & Research shows that Internet-related fraud incidences are less severe, less costly, and less prevalent than theft detected offline due to online account monitoring.

• Manage your investments-Invest and build your portfolio using helpful tools and resources online. You can also watch your retirement savings grow and decide how to invest your money.

Some banking sites take customer service even further-even if you're not a customer. That's because these sites serve as valuable "at your fingertips" resources for everything from current interest rates to protecting your accounts to retirement tips.

One Web site, wellsfargo.com, offers an added benefit for its customers called My Spending Report. This expense management tool gives customers a "big picture" view of their spending, combining payments and purchases from credit cards, check cards, checking accounts and online bill payments in one convenient place. My Spending Report automatically organizes these expenses into 19 categories, including gas, groceries, health care and entertainment.

The Fight Against Fraud Knows No Border

2009-06-10T20:16:00.000-07:00

Canada and the United States share similar cultures, enthusiasm for sports and a common border.

Unfortunately, the border is proving to be no barrier to fraud schemes that target victims in both countries. Armed with the Internet and cell phones, con artists target victims-many of them older Americans-in these cross-border schemes. Using false names and electronic tricks, they hide who and where they really are.

The good news is that the U.S. Postal Inspection Service is working with Canadian law enforcement to stop these crimes. Prevention, however, is still the best medicine. Chief Postal Inspector L.R. Heath encourages consumers to protect themselves by following these tips:

• Be wary of anything that promises large sums of money, such as sweepstakes or lottery winnings, in exchange for your advance payment, donation or investment.

• Don't be pressured into making a decision about an offer. Check it out first.

• Be cautious about businesses that try to conceal their mailing addresses and phone numbers, and evade questions about their operations.

• Be aware that if you respond to even one of these "offers," your name will be added to a "mooch" list by these criminals. These are contact lists, similar to those used by legitimate businesses, that track people who have fallen for scams in the past. They are bought and sold by these criminal enterprises and you can count on being targeted again.

The Postal Service's Consumer Advocate Delores J. Killette said, "Older Americans need to be educated to avoid becoming victims of consumer fraud and convinced that it's okay to say 'no' to solicitations. But their children, many of whom are baby boomers, also need to play a role. They need to keep an eye on elderly parents and grandparents to protect them from scammers. Fighting fraud truly is a family matter." Educated families are the best defense against these fraudsters-if they recognize the warning signs.

How You Trap Into Credit Card Debt

2009-05-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

These days credit card or plastic money is very popular and used extensively. It is indeed of great utility if used in a calculative manner, but it is also the main cause that leads many people trap into credit card debt. Let see how it happen to most of people.

Many of retailers are implementing easy payment scheme for their products or services, with some fraction amount of money for monthly installed, you can buy thousand of dollars of items or go for a luxury vacation which you can't afford to buy if one lump sum of money is needed, these monthly installment are automatically charge to your credit card. Every month, you just pay the minimum amount of your credit card balance and you continue spend on your credit card. Let use a case study to review on how a person credit card debt can grow and how it will take to get rid of it.

Case Study

Scott earn $2,500 a month, he is holding a credit card with interest rates of 12%. All his credit cards allow him to pay a minimum of 3% or $10 which ever is higher. His credit card limit is $15,000.

Scott's credit card balance at current month is $4,550 ($3000 in principle and $1550 interest). He tends to pay the minimum of his credit card balance and each month he will averagely swipe about $500 on petrol and other utilities.

Let see how's Scott's credit card balance grow:

Month 1

Credit card balance = $4,550.00

Minimum Payment = $136.50

New Credit Card Spending = $500.00

New Balance = ($4,550 - $136.50 + $500.00) = $4913.50

Month 10

Credit card balance = $7976.02

Minimum Payment = $239.28

New Credit Card Spending = $500.00

New Balance = ($7976.02 - $239.28 + $500.00) = $8236.74

Month 20

Credit card balance = $11109.85

Minimum Payment = $333.29

New Credit Card Spending = $500.00

New Balance = $11109.85 - $333.29 + $500.00) = $11276.55

Month 30

Credit card balance = $13662.60

Minimum Payment = $409.88

New Credit Card Spending = $500.00

New Balance = $13662.60 - $409.88 + $500.00) = $13752.72

Month 36

Credit card balance = $14961.02

Minimum Payment = $448.83

New Credit Card Spending = $500.00

New Balance = $14961.02 - $448.83 + $500.00) = $15012.19

If Scott continues his practice, his will hit his credit card limit after 36 month compare to current month.

Let say Scott stop using his card with the balance at month 36 of $15012.19 and continue paying the monthly minimum. It will take him 228 months which equal to 19 years to just to pay off his $15012.19 debt.

The above example is just a simple case study to show you how your credit card debt may piles up so quickly without you even aware of it. You need a lot of time and spend a lot of money on interest in order to get rid of this debt. In real life, many people have more than one card and other loans to support; hence situation may even worse.

How to get rid of credit card faster & affordable?

If you are already at this situation, the first thing you need to do is to change your behavior of paying the minimum only. Paying more each month will definitely pay off your debt faster but the question is you may say that you can't afford to pay more than the minimum. In actually fact, the easiest, faster and affordable way to get rid of your credit card debt is maintain your current minimum monthly payment.

For example, we use back Scott's case. If he affords to pay the minimum payment of his $15012.19 debt, which is $448.83, this is his affordable payment. If he continues to pay $448.83 every month instead of the minimum of his credit card balance, he will need only 43 months to pay off his debt as compare to 228 months. This mean, Scott will have his debt free life in less than 4 years instead of 19 years.

In Summary

Credit card will remain important in many people life, use it intelligently for your convenient, but you much carefully manage your credit card balance, don't let this plastic money drag you into financial crisis; the ideal way is pay the balance in full each month.

Do-It-Yourself Financial Planning.

2009-05-20T20:13:00.000-07:00

The fight for financial freedom isn’t fair. No matter what kind of spin you try to put on it, the path to comfortable living seems either impossible or too long to attempt. Many people these days are spending copious amounts of money going to see professional financial planners for advice on how to get their money situation under control. But let’s be honest, while a financial planner can show you how to prioritize your spending and how to go about consolidating your debt, surely there must be a way to plan your finances that doesn’t cost you visits to a professional? This article has been written to open some people’s eyes to the fact that it is possible to properly plan your finances from the comfort of your own home.

The main aim when planning your finances is to make everything as simple as possible. There is nothing worse than sinking so far into depression that you can’t see a way out. Whether you are in debt and looking to get out of it of if you are simply looking for a way to keep a little more spending money aside each month, the simpler you make your planning the better the result you will get. From the beginning, you need to be realistic. I’ll start with the example of a single income situation, firstly you need to calculate what your net pay is per month. If you’re self employed or not on a regular pay, always calculate the worst-case-scenario, what is the lowest you might get paid. Then go through your monthly bills and write down the ones that are a fixed amount. Do the same for all other bills but use the worst-case-scenario again, what is your estimation of the most that those bills might be. Add everything up and subtract it from your net income total.

Next onto the incidental expenses you might run into on a monthly basis. These might include petrol, car upkeep, public transport fares, food etc. make a list of all the little expenses you might need money for in a month. Even things that you’re not sure you might need to buy. Don’t add general spending money to the list, be specific. Always add more to the totals if you’re not sure as you can fine tune it later. Again, subtract your total from the money left over from your bills. Don’t worry if you’ve gone into the negative figures here, we can fix it.

Once you’ve got your expenses total in front of you, obviously any money that is left over is your profit for the month. In the event that you have nothing left or have gone into the minus figures, the next step is to minimize your expenses. Pretty straight forward, huh? Any incidental expenses that you might not need, remove them. And any expenses you know you will have, like food and petrol for example, really get down to the lowest spend on them. How much do you really need to spend on them? Your aim should be to save at least $50 per month after spending money. All that extra builds up and gives you a nice petty cash at the end of a few months!

If you are in a multiple-income situation, the same process applies. You need to start building up that petty cash tin. There will always be unexpected expenses, everyone knows that. In truth, the basis of comfortable living is really the knowledge that you can afford to pay for something unexpected.

To finish, all of this can be done on a piece of paper if you want to invest a little time, or you can lay it all out on an Excel spreadsheet. The way that saves the most time is to use a Financial Planning software program, you enter the numbers and the program gives you an automatic monthly planner. Whatever way you choose to go, always remember to keep it as simple as possible. When you’re following a plan, the pressure on you will decrease. What more could there be to comfortable living?

Consumer Confidence In Banking Takes A Hit

2009-05-10T20:12:00.000-07:00

A recent survey has shown that consumers' confidence in banks has taken a real hit, with one of the major causes of this decreasing confidence thought to be the recent situation with Northern Rock. According to the results of the survey close to 25% of Brits state that they do not trust lenders, and less than 50% thought that high street banks could be trusted. The turmoil and chaos that erupted after Northern Rock was found to have taken a loan from the Bank of England, fuelling rumors of a near collapse and resulting in many of the bank's 1.5 million savers withdrawing billions of pounds worth of savings.

As a result of this situation the Bank of England has stepped up assurance over the guarantee of savings of Northern Rock customers, as well as the savings of customers with other banks that fall into a similar situation. However, it seems that these assurances have done nothing for consumer confidence in banking, with over fifty percent stating that they no longer trust high street banks.

The survey revealed that of the 2484 people interviewed only 46% now trust high street banks. Building societies fared a little better, with 48% expressing confidence in building societies. Online banking has also taken a knock, with experts stating that reduced access to online bank accounts by Northern Rock customers also affecting this area of banking. Only 25% of consumers now trust online banking according to the survey results.

One industry professional stated that consumer confidence in banking and finance was already fairly low, and added that the recent turmoil with Northern Rock has contributed to this lack of confidence. It is not just the banking industry that has taken a knock, however, according to professionals. Lenders across the whole financial sector have been affected by lower levels of consumer confidence. It is thought that this could be as the result of problems throughout the whole of the financial sector, which has stemmed from the credit crunch sparked in the sub-prime sector in the Unites States, which has resulted in global repercussions.

Bad Credit and Unsecured Credit Cards

2009-05-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

Bad Credit and Unsecured Credit Cards: Two terms that don’t often go together.

If you are a consumer that is suffering from a poor credit history you are likely to be aware of how hard it is to get an unsecured credit card. A good majority of consumers are enjoying the conveniences of being able to shop with a credit card carrying and unsecured credit limit. While it is extremely nice to be able to apply for and actually qualify for a credit card you do not have to put money down to get you will quickly see that an unsecured credit card is usually the type of credit card that someone with bad credit is not very likely to obtain.

Since an unsecured credit card isn’t very likely if you are having issues with your credit the best plan of action is to look into a secured credit card for the time being. There are many different types of secured credit cards out on the market for people with bad credit all with different options so be sure to shop around so do some comparison shopping so you locate the card that is going to best meet your needs.

Now while there is no rule set in stone about the exact time that you would be able to apply for and actually qualify for a credit card with an unsecured limit there are some factors that will determine what types of cards that you will qualify for. For instance your debit to credit ratio plays a big factor in whether or not you could get an unsecured credit card.

So while it is not unheard of for someone with a bad credit history to obtain an unsecured credit card the route that is easiest for most consumers is to obtain a secured credit card build up their credit and then apply for the unsecured credit card if they so choose.

Dollar Saving Tips on your Next Car Rental

2009-02-28T20:34:00.000-08:00

One of the biggest vacation expenses is a rental car. Below are a few suggestions on how you can save money on your next rental car.

If you are flying to your vacation destination and have booked the flight either online or through a travel agency, you can more than likely get a discount on your rental car if you book it as part of the package. The majority of car rental companies collaborate with at least one airline to provide frequent flyer miles or other types of rewards when you rent a car. In addition, many airlines offer incentive and bonus programs where you get extra miles or extra credit, so be sure to inquire about these programs when making your reservation.

When choosing your rental car, a compact or subcompact economy car is usually less expensive than a full size sedan or minivan. Therefore, selecting an economy will not only be less expensive, but you will also get better gas mileage thus saving on gas expenses.

If you need a large sedan, SUV or minivan for the comfort of your family, it is well worth your time to shop around. There is usually a high demand for these types of vehicles and therefore a larger price tag. Travel related web sites are a good place to start your research to familiarize yourself with the average price in your vacation area.

The duration of the rental will have an influence on the cost as well. Weekly rentals are usually far less costly than a daily rate spread over a week. Therefore, if your vacation plans are for a week or more, be sure to inquire about special rates. If you are taking a weekend vacation, many companies offer weekend specials on certain makes and models of their cars.

In addition, a number of national car companies and local smaller companies rent their used cars for much less than a new car from a rental agency. In most instances, these cars are only a few years old and provide the same protection as a new car.

For the business traveler, joining a frequent renter club, or using the same rental car company each time, is a great way to get some special coupons and some very good deals that you could use for the family vacation.

Most people purchase car insurance from the rental agency. Usually, this is not necessary. If you have purchased your rental car on your credit car, you may already have coverage as part of your credit card plan. In addition, as an automobile owner, you car insurance may provide coverage for rental cars. Therefore, it is necessary for you to check your credit card plan and automobile insurance, if you are covered, then purchasing insurance from the rental car agency is not necessary.

Seven Tips To Get The Best Discount Car Rental

2009-02-20T20:34:00.000-08:00

Contrary to popular belief, car rental rates are not set in stone. Often, discounts can be found by doing your research, and simply asking for them. Rental companies are eager to rent out cars they are not using. Cars sitting on a lot are not making them any money.

Here are some tips to get best discount car rental rates

1. Do your research. Car-rental research can be done online, on the phone, or by reading newspapers magazines or even your mail. It is important to compare the rates from various car-rental companies. Most car-rental companies web sites, where they will show you rates for various locations. Also check the travel comparison web sites to compare companies against each other.

You can also get on the horn to the car-rental companies, but this takes more time. Check the business and travel sections of your local newspaper and check the inserts in your credit card bills. Often, you will find discount coupons in those places.

2. Book early. If you are planning your trip several months in advance, check car-rental prices available at that time. If you find what you consider fair, go ahead and lock it in. You can change it later, if you find a better rate. Many times, car-rental companies will give deep discounts to early renters.

3. Book late. As the time for your trip approaches, car rental discounts may be found as car-rental companies try to unload their excess inventory. Like I said, cars that are just sitting around aren't doing anyone any good.

4. Pick your car in town. You pay a price for the convenience of picking up your car at the airport. Ask your rental car company, about how much it would cost to pick up your car in town. Normally, free shuttles are provided from the airport to the car-rental location.

5. Get the smallest car available. Determine the number of passengers traveling with you and the amount of their luggage, then get the smallest car that you will all comfortably fit in. Ideally, the car-rental company will be out of this car and will upgrade you for free to the next higher class. You can also ask about complementary upgrades.

6. Ask about discounts. Ask your car-rental company if there are discounts for a weekly versus a daily rental, or if there are discounts for memberships such as AAA, USAA, AARP, or other organizations. If you work for a large company, ask about corporate rental rates.

7. Gas up your car before returning it. I remember when car-rental companies would charge more than three dollars a gallon to gas up your car up on return. These days, that would almost be worth it. However, car-rental companies are charging a whole lot more than that for a gallon of gas. You can save a lot of money by putting the gas in yourself on your way to return the car.

By following these tips, you can get a better rate on car rentals just about anywhere in the world. Have a great trip!

Tips on Saving Energy Dollars in Your Home

2009-02-10T20:33:00.000-08:00

A typical U.S. family spends more than $1,600 a year on home utility bills, yet making some simple changes around the home can save money and make heating and cooling systems more efficient, according to World Energy Solutions, a publicly traded energy services company based in St. Petersburg, Fla.

By evaluating facilities and equipment, World Energy Solutions (symbol: WEGY) helps businesses lower their utility consumption and maintenance costs and extend the life of their equipment.

"Many of the energy-saving strategies we use for our commercial customers can also be applied to the home," says Benjamin Croxton, chief executive officer of World Energy Solutions. "There are many common-sense, low-cost and no-cost ways to lower your home energy use as well as many new technologies that can be applied to your home's energy-consuming systems."

Here are some tips from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy on things homeowners can do to make their homes more energy efficient:

* Turn down the temperature of your water heater to the warm setting.

* Use energy-saving settings on refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines and clothes dryers.

* Use compact fluorescent bulbs, which can save three-quarters of the electricity used by incandescents. First to be replaced should be any 60-watt to 100-watt bulbs that are used several hours a day.

* Have your heating and cooling systems serviced in the fall and spring. Duct sealing can also improve the energy efficiency and overall performance of your furnace or central air conditioner.

* Clean or replace furnace, air conditioner and heat-pump filters.

* Assess your heating and cooling systems to determine if you should replace or retrofit them to make them work more efficiently to provide the same comfort, or better, with less energy.

"If your home's central air-conditioning system is over 10 years old, a new state-of-the-art system can save you 30 percent or more of your home's air-conditioning expense," says George Walker, air-conditioning expert with World Energy Solutions.

Top 10 Ways to Cut Spending

2009-01-30T23:37:00.000-08:00

Do you run out of money before you run out of month? Do you wonder where your money goes each month? Do you struggle to find money to invest for retirement, emergencies and other financial goals? Here are 10 tips to cut your spending and stretch your dollar to the max:

1. Consider dropping your home telephone line. Your cell phone is probably all you really need, and most likely it has free long distance. You could save $30 or more per month by dropping your “land line”.

2. Cut back on trips to Starbucks or other premium coffee shops. Often called the “latte factor”, spending several dollars per day on luxuries like premium coffee can really add up. For example, if you spend $4 for a cappuccino five times a week for 50 weeks out of the year (you’re on vacation the other two weeks), you would spend $1,000 in a year. Try treating your trip to Starbucks as a treat instead of a habit. You’ll save money and probably lose weight too!

3. Pay your mortgage payment bi-weekly instead of monthly. You’ll pay less interest and pay off your mortgage faster.

4. Carry cash instead of credit cards. Psychologically it’s harder to spend cash than it is to use the credit card. You’ll spend less and save on interest charges.

5. Use the “envelope system” for groceries, dining out, entertainment, and other discretionary spending categories. This will help you track how much you spend in these categories as well as prioritizing your spending.

6. Raise the deductible on your homeowners and auto insurance policies. It’s not wise to file claims for small losses anyway (insurance companies love to raise rates after you file a claim), so a higher deductible will save you money now and in the future.

7. Buy regular gas instead of premium. Most cars don’t need premium gasoline. Also, take public transportation if it’s available in your area. Take advantage of “park and ride” and carpooling options.

8. Plan your purchases to avoid impulse buying. Take a list with you to the grocery store and stick with it. Studies show that impulse buying can add $10-50 to your grocery bill – ouch!

9. Go to the library instead of the bookstore. If you’re an avid reader, give yourself a book budget for books that you will want to keep, and go to the library for everything else.

10. Take a vacation at home. Check out all the local sites and happenings. You’ll rediscover your hometown and save on travel and hotel costs.

These are just a handful of ways you can cut spending and stretch your dollars, but if you follow these tips you’ll discover you have more money at the end of each month to apply to other financial goals, such as saving for college, retirement or just for a rainy day.

4 Money-Saving Tips For Every Homeowner

2009-01-22T20:32:00.000-08:00

Losing weight. Finding a new job. Spending more time with the family. A new year means setting new goals. Why not make saving money one of them?

If you're a homeowner, there are many ways you can cut costs and still live comfortably. The following tips will help lead you to financial success.

* First, set a budget. Figure out exactly how much you spend on the upkeep of your home. Compare each month's expenses with the previous month's to get a better idea of how much to budget for each necessity. Then, see what costs you can cut. Once you set a budget, stick to it.

* Save energy. You might be losing a substantial amount of energy dollars during the winter and summer because of air leaks. By caulking, sealing and weather-stripping all cracks and openings, you can save 10 percent or more on your energy bill.

Also, look into replacing older appliances with newer, more energy-efficient alternatives. Your light bulbs can make a difference, too. Fluorescent bulbs are four times more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs.

* Refinance. Shop around to see if you can replace your existing home loan with one that has a lower interest rate. You can easily save hundreds of dollars each month by refinancing your home.

* Purchase a home warranty. Most homeowners don't account for possible repairs in their annual budget. There is a 68 percent likelihood of a home system or appliance failure in a given year. The average replacement cost of one of these systems or appliances is $1,085. A home warranty is your best defense against unexpected and costly repairs to your home's appliances and mechanical systems.

The American Home Shield Home Warranty, for example, ensures you get the best possible service through the company's network of pre-screened technicians. The minute something breaks down, you can contact American Home Shield and a local service technician will schedule an appointment that fits your schedule. The warranty covers a multitude of household systems and appliances, regardless of age.

The American Home Shield Home Warranty is a one-year contract that requires no home inspection to enroll. Several affordable plans are available to fit every budget.

Tips On Buying a House after Bankruptcy

2009-01-20T23:37:00.000-08:00

Nowadays, people file for bankruptcy for a number of reasons. Some unexpected medical bills, the loss of a job or perhaps overwhelming debt can be some of the reasons for one to file for bankruptcy. One may then start thinking if it is possible to buy a home after bankruptcy. And the answer is in the affirmative. There are many mortgage companies and online lenders out there who offer home loans for even those who have bankruptcy on their credit report.

You will then have to rebuild your credit once your bankruptcy is discharged. You can do this by opening a credit card account to which you will have to make regular payments. Another alternative is to save for a considerable down payment as the larger the cash reserve is, the better the rates you will get! Check on your credit report to make sure that all accounts linked with your bankruptcy are closed.

Make sure that the payment history information is right too as the difference in one late payment can greatly increase your interest rates by a percent or more. Once you improve your credit score through the repayment of the home loan, you can easily take out an equity loan on the home to consolidate any other debt you have since your bankruptcy or to use the extra cash on some business venture.

Before you actually start looking for the right house loan, it is better to look at your budget. Decide how much you can afford as a loan, how much you can make as a down payment, and the monthly payments you can make. With this information, you can decide how much loan to apply for, and the type of financing to opt for.

However, if you intend to live in that house for more than seven years, it is better to find a fixed rate mortgage as it saves money; in the long term. To get an idea of the type of loan to get, you could use a mortgage calculator for estimations.

Once you have an idea of the type of loan you need, you should start investigating the various financing companies. Lenders have little to lose when approving home loans after bankruptcy as the lender feels confident when your home serves as collateral for the loan. There are some lenders who need a certain amount of time to pass before approving for the loan. However, there are also lenders out there who will approve your loan even a day after the bankruptcy has been discharged.

Request free quotes and then investigate their rates. To get these quotes, you need only to furnish basic information, with no need of showing your credit card. This way your credit score is not affected. Once you get all the quotes, compare the APR for the real cost of the loan. It is no point just looking at the interest rates, as they are rather misleading.

Ask if there are any; fees related to the loan as if you plan in refinancing your home, you may have to pay thousands as fees. However, these fees can be negotiated.

Residual Income Can Be Your Key To Wealth

2009-01-10T23:35:00.000-08:00

Are you standing at the door to wealth but can't seem to find the right key?

There are many keys on the key ring that can unlock the door to wealth, but you have to know which ones they are and how to use them correctly.

In this article I'll focus on the "residual income" key that many have discovered can be used to enter the inner sanctums of the wealthy.

But before I go too far, I should probably define what I mean by "residual income," (also called passive or recurring income).

While there are perhaps a number of definitions for "residual income," I will be using the term here as follows:

"Residual income is income that continues to be earned after the initial effort has come to an end." In other words, it can be thought of as the process of making a sale one time but getting paid over and over again.

How can this be? That is, how can you make one sale and get paid over and over again? Well, let's take a look at some common examples of residual income.

An insurance policy. When you buy an insurance policy, you normally pay premiums monthly, quarterly or annually. You made one purchase, but you continue to pay as long as you maintain you policy. The insurance company earns a residual income from you.

A service subscription such as a pest control, lawn maintenance, or web hosting contract. When you purchase a pest control, lawn maintenance, or web hosting service you normally again pay a monthly, quarterly, or annual fee. As long as you continue your service, you continue to pay the fee. The service company earns a residual income from you.

A membership subscription such as to a membership Website or a club. To continue your membership, you much continue to pay membership fees. The membership entity earns a residual income from you.

In all of the above examples, the sale was made only one time, but you continue to pay the company over and over again.

Residual income is distinguished from "linear income," where a single payment for a single one time purchase is made. For example, if you have an hourly job, you are exchanging one hour of your labor time for an hourly pay rate. You must work each hour to get paid. If you stop working, you stop getting paid. Your income is linear.

However, if you sell memberships to a Website and your members pay a monthly fee to belong, then you continue to collect their monthly fees as long as they continue to remain a member. You made the sale one time but continue to collect an income long after the initial sales effort was completed. This is an example of "residual income."

Which would you rather have, a residual income or a linear income?

Generally, whenever possible, you should try to earn a residual income that will continue to grow over time as you make individual sales. If you put in a consistent effort toward earning a residual income, you will find that your income will compound itself as the amount of residual income continues to grow.

For example, let's take a look at the difference between selling a $29. ebook and a membership to a Website with a $29 monthly fee. We'll assume that both sellers began their sales effort on 1 January and continued the effort for six months.

With the sale of each ebook, the seller earns $29 but then has to make another sale to earn another $29. Hopefully, the seller has some backend or follow on products to sell to each customer in the future, but many do not. So each sale stands alone. Let's also assume that the cost to make each sale (including Web hosting fees, merchant card fees, advertising, etc) come to $4 per sale. Our merchant thus earns $25 net per sale. We'll assume that 10 sales are made per month so over the six month period he made 60 sales. So for 60 sales, he has earned $1,500.

Now, let's take a look at how the membership site might do.

Each membership sells for $29 per month and the cost to make each sale is the same $4 per sale so the site owner earns the same $25 net per initial sale. However, he continues to earn the $29 each and every month that the buyer remains as a member and there is no sales cost for the subsequent months. We'll also assume that our membership site makes 10 sales per month and that each buyer remains a member for 4 months on average before dropping their membership. Now lets take a look at the numbers.

Month 1 = 10 sales for $250
Month 2 = 10 sales for $250 plus $290 residual income
Month 3 = 10 sales for $250 plus $580 residual income
Month 4 = 10 sales for $250 plus $870 residual income
Month 5 = 10 sales for $250 plus $870 residual income
Month 6 = 10 sales for $250 plus $870 residual income

The total income for the six months comes to $4,980 plus there is still a continuing income that will come in from sales that were made during months 4, 5 and 6.

Which would you rather have, the $1,500 made as linear income or the $4,980 plus earned through sales with a residual income tail? The sales effort was the same.

As you can see from the above example, residual income can quickly surpass linear income if your sales effort remains constant. So, keep on the lookout for good residual income opportunities, they can be your key to opening the door to increased wealth.

In Debt Over Your Head? These 5 Simple Steps Will Help

2009-01-01T23:34:00.000-08:00

The next 5 steps are not difficult. They only take commitment. You can do it. The feeling of freedom and success when the bills are not hanging over your head will make this all worthwhile.

Ready to get stated? Let's go.

Step #1. Work out where you are now

You may not have looked at your financial position for a while. Maybe that's why you are suffering under a load of debt presently. But you need to take stock of your financial position now. Unless you know where you are now, it's hard to work out how to fix things.

Just get a pen and paper and all your credit card bills and look at the situation honestly. List out all your debts and their interest rates and the minimum monthly repayments.

Don't get worried about how much you owe. It's been said that anyone can get rid of all their debt within 5-7 years, including their mortgage. That means you too.

Step #2 Stop spending more than you earn NOW

This is the first thing that must be done to start the ball rolling for your financial success. This is most probably the reason you need to take action now. Look at your living expenses and cut out those things you can't afford.

Also cut up all the credit cards except one for emergencies and commit yourself to only spending what you can afford from your own income.

Step #3. Find some cash to pay down those debts

Once you have come to grips with Step #2, the next step is to work out ways to put some money aside every week or month to start paying down those debts, preferably faster than the minimum monthly requirement. Pay as much as you can. It's better to pay down these debts than to put the money in the bank. This is because the credit card interest is a lot more than you can receive from the bank for funds on deposit. The aim is pay down the highest interest debt first.

If you have 2 credit cards with the same interest rate, pay off the one with the smallest balance first. That will give you a boost and the resolve to keep on going.

Step #4. Build a Savings Fund

Once you have those credit cards under control it's time to think about putting some funds aside to start building some savings. You'll be surprised how fast your money grows if you religiously keep adding to the balance and don't touch it. If you really need to purchase an expensive item like furniture or car it is better to save for it than to borrow, if at all possible.

Step #5. Pay Down That Mortgage.

Since the interest rate on your mortgage is usually a lot less than credit card and store debt you can leave this item till last. Also it is increasing in value over time - unlike your car, TV, Video, furniture and boat. You will be surprised how many years you can cut off your mortgage repayments by just adding a few extra dollars each month to the payment.

These a just a few basic rules to help you get back on your feet financially. The main principle here is to work on reducing your credit card debt. Once that is done use those freed up funds to build your nest egg and pay off the mortgage. That's the plan that works.

Now get those documents out, do the sums and start on your road to financial freedom.

The Simple $10 Debt Elimination Solution

2008-12-30T23:34:00.000-08:00

Ask a friend what resolutions they made for the new year and your bound to hear them reply “Pay off my credit cards.” Ask them how they planned on reaching that goal and many of them will not have a clear cut answer.

The obvious first step to paying off credit card debt or paying down credit debt load is to cut back or eliminate the use of your credit cards. For some people this first step can often be the most difficult. If you’re used to spending freely with plastic and worrying about the consequences later, it’s difficult to break free from this “buy now, pay later” attitude.

To gain control of their careless credit card spending habits, some people cut up their credit cards therefore making it impossible to use them. Others lock up their credit cards or hide them in a safe place and vow to use them only in an emergency.

The second step to paying down credit debt is to pay more than the minimum balance due. Most credit card companies require a minimum monthly payment of 2.5% of the outstanding balance. For example, if you have an outstanding balance of $1100.00 on a credit card charging an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) of 18.9% your minimum monthly payment would be $27.50. It will take you 66 months or 5.5 years to pay off your balance of $1100.00 making the minimum payments. The credit card company will make $676.94 in interest from your use of their credit card.

Monthly payments are purposely kept low by the credit card companies so that they can earn as much as possible from the interest rate charged to you the consumer. Paying just the minimum payment will keep you tangled in credit’s web for years and years to come.

If you’ve been paying only the minimum due month after month, ask yourself this question, “Do I have an extra $10.00 I could apply to this month’s payment?” I’m sure that most of us could find some way to come up with an extra $10.00 for the month. Try cutting out a few cups of coffee or lunches at your nearby fast food outlets and in no time flat you’ll have saved up the extra money that you need.

Now, it’s time to unveil “The Simple $10.00 Debt Elimination Solution.” Take that extra $10.00 and add it to the minimum monthly payment above, therefore making a payment of $37.50. By adding just that $10.00 a month to your minimum payment, you’ll trim 23 months or nearly two years off of that credit debt! On top of that you’ll save $277.00 in interest alone! That’s money you can put toward savings or paying off other debts. Imagine how much you’d be able to save if you applied this same simple strategy to each of your other credit card debts!

Paying down credit debt doesn’t always mean having to make huge monthly payments or sacrifices. It just takes some basic planning and a simple effective strategy to make it work.

The Four Mandatory Buckets Of Personal Finance

2008-12-20T23:34:00.000-08:00

I have already written about the financial necessity of saving a portion of any income payment that you receive. This means that a percentage of every single source of income is set aside, marked, or tracked as money that you cannot spend. This task isn’t optional if you want to have some basic financial stability or start growing some serious wealth. Saving is the first step and it is the easiest, simplest, but the most emotionally difficult step. I know that starting to save money is emotionally painful because spending money is easy and pleasurable, while saving money feels difficult and challenging. But like any behavior, it becomes easier and natural the more you do it.

As a review, the billionaire John Templeton started out working during the Great Depression but he saved 50% of his income. This guy was serious! OK, you may have a lot of fixed expenses that you just can’t cancel immediately, but at least enroll in financial nursery school by saving 1% from all the income that you receive. Or start with only $3 a month and then ratchet up your savings rate continually until you are at least over 10%; or if you are ambitious get it over 30%. (If you are trying to find the loophole, this savings is your after-tax income that you can spend – don’t count your 401K or medical savings accounts or any other qualified money that you don’t have full/immediate access to spending).

The remainder of this article is about what to do with that savings. Economics is the study of allocating scarce resources. Personal economics are similar, but I think that it is better described as: The allocation of your income that you can’t spend. If you don’t spend this money, and maybe have it setting aside in savings account, what do you do with it? Do you pay down on a credit card, save it for a car, donate it to a worthy cause, or purchase a bank certificate of deposit? How do you go about deciding?

Well, I have given this some thought and have reached a few conclusions. It is my view that your monthly savings needs to be divided among four mandatory categories. By this, I mean that among the zillions of things you can do with savings, it is my view that four of them are absolutely mandatory. For example, if you earn a paycheck (and after all of the taxing authorities take their share) of $1,000 that you can deposit into your checking account and you’ve chosen a personal savings percentage rate of 8%, then you move $80 ($1,000 X .08) into a separate savings account. Now, you will take this $80 and divide it up into at least the four mandatory categories I am going to discuss, along with any other categories that you value. In this way you’ll have the whole $80 assigned to specific financial duties to meet your financial goals.

Here are the four categories in priority order:

1. The Vault – this is your wealth account. Money gets deposited into this account and it never leaves, like a one-way valve. The Vault is invested and the principal is never spent. It will grow into the largest part of your net worth, generating nearly all of your investment income. If you don’t start creating wealth penny-by-penny, you’ll never have any.

2. Soft Savings – a delayed spending account. This money is marked for things that you want to buy, but can’t afford to purchase with normal pocket money. For example, a house, car, boat, vacation, college fund for kids, planned medical care, clothing, jewelry, etc. But this also includes maintenance to your home, like a roof, new appliances, new siding, paint, landscaping, remodeling, etc.

3. Paydown Debt Balances – making extra principal payments on your credit cards, car loans, and your mortgage. By chipping away at these expenses you will eventually eliminate them all, and then have more money available for other categories. Personal debt is the opposite of financial freedom and dramatically makes it more difficult to reach your financial goals. If you doubt this, look at the interest charges you pay each month and imagine if that money had been invested instead.

4. Financial Education – books, magazines, newsletters, seminars, software, investment memberships. Also, hiring professional financial advisors, tax accountants, estate attorneys, etc. (Avoid free advice a buddy, your cousin, or a friend’s neighbor – buy the best, most expensive professional advice you can afford).

As I mentioned before, you can put your savings into places that are only limited by your creativity. But it is my view that these four areas are so important that they need to be continually fed money in a systematic manner.

If you are missing the first account, The Vault, you’ll never have the money to start investing so you’ll never receive any investment income. This is pretty much the goal of all personal finance, to help you generate the most investment income. That is why this is the most important of the four categories, to get your money earning money so that you don’t have to. (I do not consider any retirement accounts or qualified accounts to be Vault money. This is because you do not have direct control to invest the money or receive any investment income until the government decides that you can).

If you are missing the second account, Soft Savings, you either can’t buy what you want, or you have to increase your personal debt. This is moving in the opposite direction of financial freedom – you are reducing the amount of money that you can spend each month by the amount of the debt payment, and you are reducing your net worth by the principal and interest that you’ll be charged. Another symptom of a lack of Soft Savings is disrepair to your car, home, and health because you don’t have the money for upkeep. Everything physical needs to be maintained, from your teeth to your vacuum, and it costs money to do so. This depreciates the financial assets that you own, and puts at risk the most important quality of life – your health.

If you are missing the third account, Paydown Debt Balances, you are simply going to be the patsy in the financial game of life. People that are building their wealth collect lots of little interest payments from the people that are destroying their wealth by making lots of little interest payments – money is transferred every month from one group of people to the other. Which group do you want to be in? Well, your Vault can automatically put you into the group of wealth-builders and your Paydown Debt account starts to extract you from the group of wealth-destroyers. The Paydown Debt account puts you on track to permanently extinguish all of your personal debt. The sooner a personal debt is paid off, the more rapidly you can take all of this money and put it into the other categories.

If you are missing the fourth account, Financial Education, you won’t know how to captain your Vault, and you may run it straight into the rocks. Only you will manage your money in a manner that will be to your maximum benefit. So it is best if you pay to learn how to handle money and learn where to put it. But not everyone has an interest in these subjects, and that is fine. For them, instead of personally managing your money, you are going to personally manage your financial advisors. You’ll be spending money and time to hire and manage the advisors to attend to financial details.

By allocating your savings into these four categories you are addressing the four most important elements of financial management. You’ll be making certain that: Your investment income will always increase by adding to your Vault; you’ll have money available for extra expenses with your Soft Savings; your net worth will always be increasing with a Paydown Debt account; and you’ll intelligently learn how to lower your investment risk, raise your investment returns, and lower your tax liability with your Financial Education account. The only source of money to build these critical financial functions to increase your income, net worth, and stability is your savings – you simply have to do it.

I recommend you fund these accounts simultaneously – do not focus only on debt or only on education because I have seen how it is financially detrimental to do so. For example, let’s say that you really want to paydown your debt so you don’t contribute anything to The Vault. I have found that if you don’t have any investments, your investing skills will be under developed. You will not know how to invest once your debts have been paid off, you’ll have no investment income to manage, you won’t be looking for investing opportunities because that is something you can’t afford right now, etc. And as a result, it will be harder to get into the investing game later, you’ll have more to learn in a shorter amount of time, and may just avoid it altogether and put Vault money into a low paying account.

How much do you allocate among the four categories? Anything more that zero! It is up to you, and your financial situation will fluctuate and be different from others. Just to get some starting percentages, below is my allocation. It is not a recommendation for anyone, it is just what works for me right now.

My current savings rate = 20% of all after-tax income.

(This does not include 401K, medical savings accounts, or other deferred/qualified withholding). This means that 20% of all cash income that hits my checking account each month is set aside into these categories:

1. The Vault receives 50% of total savings each month.
2. Soft Savings receives 20% of savings each month.
3. Paydown Debt receives 20% of savings each month.
4. Financial Education receives 5% of savings each month.
5. And that leaves 5% for other categories each month.

You may receive continual, ongoing income, in addition to some rare, one-time inflows of money. The percentages detailed above are how I allocate regular income savings. But if there is any one-time inflow of money (garage sale, bonus, extra project), then I take 90% of the proceeds and split it among the four accounts, and the other 10% is just spent. You can create your own money rules for different types of income; you can tell by my allocation percentages that my primary focus is to build up the balance of the Vault.

The amount of money that you can save from every source of income is your key to a brighter financial future. Contrarily, a risky and dimmer financial future awaits those that refuse to systematically save money. So be sure that you take the steps necessary to set savings aside and then simultaneously divide it among the four mandatory accounts by consistently allocating money to them. You don’t have a financial foundation without these four accounts, but with them, you can build as high as your ambition takes you.

The Threshold between Wealth Creation & Destruction

2008-12-14T23:36:00.000-08:00

Wealth is simply the accumulation of money, and it can only be created by the amount of money that is received and never spent. If you want to build wealth, then anytime you receive money: don’t spend all of it. Sure it is a very simple concept, but it is very difficult to continually achieve. Luckily there are readily available allies to help you: find some compelling reasons to start saving, build it into a habit, watch the results of your efforts build, and set some financial milestones to reward yourself.

Setting aside a percentage of any money that you receive is the best method to follow through and build the habit of saving money. There are a few misers among us who find saving easy to do, but most people want to spend far more than is earned; let alone have the discipline of spending less than what they earn. So it starts as an uphill mental and emotional battle that gets easier by following through with the habit, and seeing the results of your effort. Spending less than what you earn every week, every month, every year, is the only way to amass money.

How much money should you set aside to build up savings? It should be a percentage so that you automatically move it into a separate savings account anytime you receive income, without exception. It is my experience that the range of 3% to 10% is the most successful starting percentage for people who continue saving over long periods of time. Saving only 3% is so small that it is nearly painless to even the lowest income earners (this is actually where I began years ago). Selecting a percentage under 3% accumulates to such a tiny amount of savings that I haven’t heard of anyone sticking with it. And starting out by setting aside over 10% is too painful for even high income earners to withstand, because they are so accustomed to spending on every whim. As you repeatedly save a set percentage rate, it will become more habitual, automatic and expected. Then you’ll be ready to increase your percentage rate. And the higher the savings rate, your growing pile of money will create more motivation to continue to save. This summer, I spoke with a successful saver who lives very well on only 30% of his income. Because he saved diligently to continually buy rental homes, after a couple decades he earns over a million a year in rental income by Ashville, North Carolina.

In the fragile first years of saving money, it can take only a single wrong financial move to wipe out everything that you’ve saved so far. And the most common wrong move doesn’t look like it when it is occurring. This draining move can also start insidiously small and build a different habit, the wealth-destruction habit. You know the problem: pay your credit card balance in its entirety, every month, without exception. As an example, if you haven’t saved money for a vacation before you depart, and then charge it all to your credit card, there is a giant probability that you won’t pay it off for a very long time. The credit card companies know this and they are extracting interest dollars from you instead of earning interest yourself. You’ve shifted to the dark side of wealth destruction where it is more common for your credit card balance to grow than shrink.

Let’s get back to building your wealth. Once you start setting aside the savings percentage that you’ve decided and opened a dedicated savings account, you need to closely review your account statements for motivation. Reviewing the progress that you’ve made so far you’ll see how you are moving toward financial goals can be self-reinforcing. And another motivator is rewarding yourself by spending some money on yourself when you’ve reached certain milestones. For example, you could start with a goal of accruing $500, and reward yourself with something meaningful; and then each time you double your amount of savings you get another reward. My advice is to at least begin with a savings percentage, even as small as my 3%, and allow this simple concept be of great financial benefit to you.

How To Get Rich Today

2008-12-14T23:24:00.001-08:00

Want to know how to get rich today? You could try the lottery, or try your luck at the roulette wheel. Of course, you know the odds are against you, right? Want a better way?

Start thinking about what it means to BE rich. Consider that you are sitting there with a fantastic machine in front of you - the computer. It can entertain you, educate you, employ you and more. Think back two hundred years ago, when the richest people in the world didn't have access to a computer, or a television, or a car, or a refrigerator, flush toilets or modern medicines.

Think about how many millions of people TODAY would eagerly trade places with you. If you consider yourself poor, there are others who would consider you rich by comparison, right? "Rich" is relative, isn't it? While others imagine how much better their lives would be if they had as much as you, you imagine a life made better by even more wealth.

It's certainly true that life can be improved by money. Those who tell you differently are lying or have a real lack of imagination. However, long before you get rich according to whatever standard or goal you have, you can get rich by living differently. You can learn how to get rich by enjoying the real wealth you already have. If you don't learn how to enjoy life first, you may not enjoy future wealth in any case.

Who is really richer, a person with a lot of money and things who is alternately stressed and bored, or a person who is enjoying all the good things he has, however few they may be? Appreciate what you have, and you WILL be richer. Of course you should plan for the future, to make more money, but get rich today by living in a state of gratitude for what you already have.

How To Get Rich Today - Part Two

Isn't money a blessing, as well as an incredible and fascinating invention? It's the distilled essence of all the worldly things and situations you might want or need. Why not make more of it? The following are some simple reminders of things you already know about how to get rich.

1. Plan to make more money. Choose a way (there are many) and work it. Try another if you fail, but don't stop trying. Fast or slow - you can get rich. However, don't just think about getting rich. Put your goals in writing, and take the steps necessary.

2. Decide what is truly important to you. I have seen more than one person spend what could have been a wealth-building investment on things that really weren't important to them. Self control doesn't have to mean self-denial, but it should mean doing what you REALLY want for the long term.

3. Learn to manage money. If you watch those "Where Are They Now" programs, you'll quickly see that it's easier to lose millions than to make them. How many famous people have blown through all their money in a few shot years? About 1,897. Okay, who knows, but the lesson is clear. You need to understand how to manage money if you want to get rich and stay rich. Why not start educating yourself?

Enjoy what you have, and put a plan in place to get more - this is how to get rich today.

Tips to Consider Before Buying an Annuity Policy

2008-12-08T22:19:00.003-08:00

Annuities may be a useful tool for those who want a steady stream of income throughout their lives. While most annuities include a death benefit, an annuity is almost the opposite of a life insurance policy - annuities offer financial protection against outliving your income.

Buying an annuity can be a complicated decision. Following are a few key considerations for buyers before deciding whether to purchase annuity policies:

* Review all of your other savings plans, pensions or retirement funds to determine whether you need an annuity and whether the annuity you are considering is the right one for you based on your age, financial status, investment objective and risk tolerance. Is there a possibility that you could outlive your assets? Will you keep the annuity long enough so that the charges do not eat up your investment?

* Determine whether you want your investment to be steady and fixed or variable. While variable products offer an opportunity to capitalize on market highs, they also carry additional risk in a downturn.

* Be careful about exchanging one variable product for another. For instance, exchanging a variable annuity for a fixed or equity-indexed product may result in a "surrender charge" and higher annual fees, along with a new period of time during which you cannot withdraw money from your account without substantial surrender charges. Always check the schedule of surrender charges and other fees. They may be higher on the variable annuity with the bonus credit than they were on the annuity you already own.

* Make certain the company from which you are considering buying an annuity product is reputable. A good place to start is to look for the Insurance Marketplace Standards Association logo. Only companies that have proven through extensive outside review that they adhere to IMSA's stringent Principles and Code of Ethical Market Conduct can display this logo. Visit www.IMSAethics.org to see if the company is listed and for other information.

* Be sure the company offering the annuity product is financially strong. Many independent services rate the financial strength of insurance companies, such as Standard & Poor's Insurance Rating Services (www.standardandpoors.com), Moody's Investor Services Inc. (www.moodys.com), Fitch Ratings Inc. (www.fitchratings.com) and A.M. Best Co. (www.ambest.com).

* Check with your state's insurance department to be sure the company you're considering buying from is licensed to do business in your state.

* Remember, an annuity is a legally binding document. Read the annuity contract carefully and be sure your agent has answered your questions thoroughly before you buy. - NU

Structured Settlement Annuity: The Real Deal

2008-12-08T22:19:00.001-08:00

Structured Settlement Annuities have been shown to provide a valuable, safe and guaranteed source of lifetime income to parties in personal injury or other cases. Today we look at situations where these special annuities would be helpful.

Personal injury.
This is obvious to most, but let's take a closer look at situations that might warrant such settlements.

Temporary or permanent disability.
A structured settlement can help here by making sure the cost, if any, of rehabilitation is covered.

Guardianship of minors or persons with diminished mental capacity.
We've seen before how dangerous mismanagement of a lump sum settlement for a child can seriously impact the future care of the child. Guaranteeing that care for the injured child will be covered will add greatly to the overall quality of life for the caretaker and the child.

Wrongful death, particularly when the surviving spouse and / or children need steady income.
When tragedy strikes the main money earner of a household loss to a family is felt in many ways. In some cases this can cause financial ruin to a family. A structured settlement can help replace the monthly income lost and provide a family piece of mind that the rent, bills etc will be paid for.

Severe injuries, especially those that result in shortened life expectancy.
Once again, protecting the financial future of the family or caregivers to make sure that specialized care is covered and monthly expenses are paid.

Cases where future needs can be determined today.
This is a bit more risky as it can be difficult to predict expenses in the future. However, certain costs may be fixed or are more easily anticipated like mortgages, tuition, and monthly bills.

If someone finds themselves in any of these situations, it's important to take these factors into consideration:

1-Significant, ongoing medical expenses
2-Rehabilitation or permanent care facility expenses
3-College tuition, retirement income, the down payment on a home or a mortgage payment
4-Replacement of monthly income, annual income or supplemental income<

Though some of these may seem too far in the future to think about, ignoring these will cause more hardship than necessary.

Should I Save Mad Money For A Rainy Day?

2008-12-08T22:18:00.006-08:00

Yes, this is a good idea! I know you want to know what is mad money? Well, a long time ago this term came about when a young lady went out with her friend to a party and her friend left her at the party with no way home. So, the young lady was mad with her friend that left her at the party and luckily for her, she had money stowed away in her shoe to take a cab back home. She thought to herself on her way home in the cab, that it was good that her mother had taught her to always have money set aside for emergency situations such as this!

Thank goodness, this young lady had the forethought to stash her mad money away so she could take a cab back home, since her friend left her in a lurch. Get the point? Having an emergency fund whether it be mad money or saved money is important for you to have. You say, how do I go about doing this? Well, you can read these tips to help you learn what you can do:

1) Set up a savings account specifically for your emergency fund or mad money fund. Whatever you want to call it, just establish one!

2) Deposit a certain amount of money on a weekly, biweekly, or monthly basis in your account. You may want to set up automatic deposits to your account via your payroll department. Or, you may want to have your bank automatically withdraw a certain amount of money from your checking account into your emergency or mad money savings account.

3) Try to save at least 2-3 months of your monthly salary to cover your bills for at least three months if you were to loose your job. This amount of time will hopefully allow you the cushion you need until you secure new employment.

4) The money you save in your emergency or mad money account should be used for household emergencies, personal emergencies or if you’re no longer able to work. Don’t use it for other expenditures such as bills, travel, etc... Get the idea? It’s a savings account that you don’t want to touch unless it’s absolutely necessary!

5) Make sure the bank account you put your emergency or mad money into, is paying you the most interest you can earn for this account! Research as many sources as possible on securing the best interest rate you can get. Check with your bank, the internet, newspaper and other sources for the prevailing interest rate. You want to make sure your money can be accessed easily and quickly if you need it for an emergency!

By establishing an emergency or mad money fund, this will give you a better peace of mind if you need access to money when there is an emergency in your life. So, the sooner you start setting money aside for a rainy day, the better off you will be! Make sure the amount of money you contribute to your emergency or mad money fund, is realistic for your budget. Save as much as you can without upsetting your overall personal or family finances. So go ahead, get started today!

Saving Money at the Pump

2008-12-08T22:18:00.005-08:00

A recent report in the Financial Times predicted that the average price for a gallon of gasoline in the United States may soon reach $3.00 . . . that's the bad news! The good news is, skyrocketing gasoline prices have caused many Americans to start looking for ways to either cut back on the miles they drive or find ways to make their cars more fuel efficient. That's good news because these fuel-saving attempts and attitudes will help reduce the fuel emissions that regularly foul our atmosphere. The question remains, just what do we need to do to spend less on gas and reap the reward of cleaner air; a few tips follow:

Get your car in shape

A well maintained car will burn less gas than one that has been neglected:

1. Keep your tires properly inflated; check your car's user's manual or look for the sticker that gives you the recommended tire inflation pressure. If your tires need replacement, look for tires that are rated as LRR (Low Rolling Resistance). Proper tire inflation along with the LRR tires will be your biggest fuel savers.

2. Change your motor oil at the manufacturer's recommended intervals and be sure to use the recommended 'weight' (viscosity) motor oil. While changing your oil, change the oil filter and check the engine air filter -- the air filter may not need to be changed every time you change your oil but it should be checked every time.

3. When you buy gas, pay attention to the octane rating marked on the gas pump -- it should fall within the octane range recommended by your car's manufacturer.

4. Buy your car a 'tune up' at the manufacturer's recommended interval -- on modern cars a tune up is mainly replacing the spark plugs, checking the engine timing and checking the spark plug wires.

Drive smart

How, where and when you drive are equally important factors in your attempt to save gas money and keep the air clean:

1. Do you really need to drive? Every trip to the store does not require car keys; walking a couple blocks will not only save your gas money it will help keep you in good health. More than just a couple blocks? Dust off your bicycle (or buy one) for those trips that are not more than two or three miles. Also consider public transportation and car pooling to and from work as gas-saving alternatives to your ignition key. If telecommuting is an option for your job, take it!

2. If you do need to drive, plan your route! Sometimes the shortest route has the most traffic congestion so you are wise to take the longer, less-traveled route to save gas by not being stuck in slow traffic. If possible, arrange your work schedule to allow you to drive to and from work in less congested traffic.

3. Slow and steady wins the race.“ When pulling away from a stop light or stop sign, go easy on the gas pedal and gradually increase speed -- jackrabbit starts are really bad for fuel efficiency . . . sudden stops don't help either, if you find yourself jamming on the breaks, you are driving too aggressively -- slow down and 'mellow out'!. When you're finally on the highway, keep your speed at the posted speed limit and, if you have a cruise control use it.

Some other fuel saving tips

1. Don't spoil your car's aerodynamics by placing luggage or other things on top of your car.

2. Keep your car windows closed; in the summer air conditioning won't effect your gas mileage as much as open windows.

3. Travel as light as you can -- more weight in your car equals poorer gas mileage.

4. If you rent a car you'll be buying your own gas so rent the most fuel-efficient car available.

5. If you are ready to trade your car in for a new one, give serious consideration to a hybrid vehicle or at least a vehicle with the best gas mileage rating you can find.

Rising gas prices will probably be with us for quite a long time so take some of these tips to heart to save money and save our environment.

Point and Click Your Financial Plan

2008-12-08T22:18:00.003-08:00

You've organized the contents of that bulging shoebox and tracked down the stray receipts lurking in jacket pockets. Now you're ready to point and click your way to what you hope will be a generous tax refund.

But while your records are still organized and your computer's still on, why not look beyond that refund to your financial future?

Using do-it-yourself online financial tools, planning ahead is easier and more convenient than you may think.

"The purpose of creating a financial plan is to define what you hope to achieve in terms of financial success," says Peter J. Rossi, director of financial planning for NetBank. "If you take the time to write down what you want to achieve, you're much more likely to achieve it."

For NetBank customers, it's as easy as clicking on your mouse.

The bank's online interactive planning tools include an Express Planner that provides an overview of the customer's current finances; plans for specific goals, like retirement, education and insurance; and a Comprehensive Planner that integrates all the others for setting multiple goals.

In addition, the bank offers access to brokerage services and other investment and insurance products.

Dedicated financial advisers are available to help analyze the plan, answer any questions and help put the plan into action.

Financial planning isn't just for people with excess wealth. Financial planners recommend that everyone have a plan in place for their financial future.

The experts at NetBank recommend taking control of spending by tracking expenses over two to three months. After you get a clear idea of your expenses, develop a plan to spend less and save more.

For instance, you could consolidate your high-interest debt by refinancing your home or getting a home equity credit line.

They also suggest reviewing the asset allocation in your investment portfolio to confirm that it's in alignment with your goals. And make sure your insurance coverage is enough for your financial position.

Performance Contracting Helps Save on Energy Costs

2008-12-08T22:18:00.001-08:00

To improve energy efficiency, some companies are doing more than just turning out the lights at the end of the day.

As soaring energy costs increasingly affect the bottom line of U.S. businesses, the "energy performance contract" has become an attractive solution for commercial building owners. This contract is a financing or operating lease offered by an energy service company, also known as an ESCO, to help businesses improve the energy efficiency of their buildings or facilities.

The key to energy performance contracting is to use long-term utility savings to fund the improvements. The ESCO often guarantees energy savings that will meet or exceed annual payments to cover all project costs, usually over a contract term of seven to 20 years.

"A building owner either pays a utility for an inefficient building, or they can pay an ESCO to improve their building," says Jeff Stokes, a vice president at World Energy Solutions, a publicly traded ESCO (symbol: WEGY) based in St. Petersburg, Fla.

World Energy Solutions strives to reduce kilowatt usage by up to 30 percent. The company offers a variety of services, including utility billing and rate analysis, energy auditing, installation of building improvements, building systems maintenance and ongoing monitoring and verification of the energy savings.

ESCOs can provide flexible and unique ways to finance their services. For example, World Energy Solutions offers to pay the

total up-front cost of installation as well as equipment maintenance in return for an 80 percent share of the actual savings realized over a minimum 10-year period.

"In some cases, our company will fund the entire installation, at no charge to our customer, and live off the savings we generate over a certain amount of time," says Ben Croxton, chief executive officer of World Energy Solutions.

ESCOs not only identify energy-saving opportunities, but also develop engineering designs and specifications and manage the entire process. They also can provide staff training and ongoing maintenance services.

Even the federal government has gotten into the act, and for good reason: Executive orders that require federal agencies to use 35 percent less energy by 2010 in comparison to 1985 levels will require $5 billion in energy projects. Much of that will go to "Super Energy Savings Performance Contracts," offered by the Department of Energy.

Just Fill Survey and Get Paid Cash, It is That Simple!

2008-12-08T22:17:00.009-08:00

Fill survey and get paid cash: many of us are wondering if it really can be that simple. Actually, it is just that simple!

You can get paid money for simply filling out a survey. Getting money for filling out a questionnaire is not a new concept. In fact it has been around for many years. Recently with the introduction of the Internet survey companies have started incorporating online surveys as part of their market research.

To earn money for complete a survey you are basically agreeing to be one of the statistics that a company is going to use for their own purposes. There are a variety of reasons for companies to use paid surveys to gather their market research, but the biggest reason is the variety of survey responses they will get.

To earn a survey pay day, you need to be registered with an online company that can match you up with paying surveys. There are a variety of ways to earn money through this type of system. But the easiest way is to find someone else who is earning money for filling out surveys and ask them to recommend a company you could work through. If you work hard, it is possible to earn a high level of pay as a full-time survey taker.

After you have found a good company to work with, then it is your responsibility to register with all the individual companies that need survey takers. This process should never cost you money, but it can take up a lot of your time. You need to register with all the individual companies that you would like to receive surveys from in order to get a cash paid survey.

Once you have registered with the individual companies, they will begin sending you surveys to start filling out for money. Simply respond to all the questions on the survey and follow all the directions and you will get paid. It is really as simple as that!

After you have filled out a few surveys, you may start to get a feel for it and actually want to work more. It is easy to increase your survey workload and start earning some really good money. Just add one or two more surveys a day to your regular routine until you have reached the amount of money you are happy with.

Many people also find they can earn good money referring other people to the survey website that they are using. Most survey companies pay very well for their referrals. Referrals are also the best way for you to learn about other good paying survey companies.

Paid surveys are real and they are available to anybody that is willing to take the time to fill them out. If you are dedicated to making money doing online surveys, then you will be able to make money. The more dedicated you are the more money you can make! It really is just as simple as that.

Investors and Financial Execs Agree: Dividends Are On the Rise

2008-12-08T22:17:00.007-08:00

In a recent study released by Boston-based investment manager, Eaton Vance, senior finance executives at dividend-paying American corporations agreed that stocks that pay dividends are growing in appeal. The nationwide survey of executives from all major corporate sectors also projected long-term dividend growth.

The survey, conducted by Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates, Inc., revealed that 47 percent of finance executives anticipate dividend growth to continue to outpace earnings growth in 2006. These projections dovetail with research by Standard & Poor's, which found that dividends rose faster than corporate earnings over the past year. Duncan Richardson, executive vice president and chief equity investment officer of Eaton Vance remarked, "With strong balance sheets and cash flows, American companies have the means and motivation to continue to increase dividends."

How long is this trend likely to continue? Of executives who believe dividends will continue to outpace earnings, a majority (60 percent) expect the trend to last for one to two years. An additional 25 percent anticipate the trend will last up to five years. However, the duration of this trend may depend on whether Congress extends the current reduced tax rate on dividends. According to Mr. Richardson, "Businesses may not continue increasing their dividends if the tax cut extensions fail to go through and dividends once again are taxed at a higher rate."

Regardless of the possible extension to current tax act provisions, "the important takeaway is companies are increasingly returning more to investors in the form of dividends," said Mr. Richardson. As many dividend-paying companies use excess cash to increase dividends, six out of seven finance executives polled said they consider a company's track record of increasing annual dividends as a way of displaying shareholder friendly behavior. Furthermore, four out of five believe a firm's dividend growth rate can give investors confidence in the company's projected long-term growth potential.

Investors who were polled last year in Eaton Vance's sixth annual investor survey agreed with these sentiments. A majority of investors polled held a very positive view of companies that pay dividends (78 percent), seeing them as predictable cash generators and viewing dividends as a sign of financial strength.

"There has been a significant shift in investor preference from an emphasis on growth investing towards a more value-oriented conservative investment style," said Mr. Richardson. "In the 1990s, investors preferred companies that offered buybacks-which increase reported earnings per share-over dividends." As the results of the Eaton Vance study reveal, a majority of polled individual investors (57 percent) now say they prefer regular quarterly dividends over stock buybacks (23 percent) or special dividends (8 percent).

According to Mr. Richardson, "Dividends have returned to popularity, and value investing has emerged from the doghouse."

Eaton Vance Corp. is a Boston-based investment management firm whose stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EV. Eaton Vance and its affiliates managed over $113.3 billion in assets as of January 31, 2006, for more than 100 investment companies, as well as individual and institutional accounts, including those of corporations, hospitals, retirement plans, universities, foundations and trusts.

Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates, Inc. is a Washington, D.C.-based full-service strategic polling and market research firm.

Before investing in any Eaton Vance Fund, prospective investors should consider carefully the Fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses. The Fund's current prospectus contains this and other information about the Fund and is available through your financial advisor. Read the prospectus carefully before you invest or send money.

How You And Your Partner Should Save Money

2008-12-08T22:17:00.005-08:00

Most newly-married couples are having a hard time adjusting to a different way of life, especially when it comes to financial matters. As separate individuals, your spending habits will differ. This is why you both need to make certain adjustments to combine the household budget.

Here are some ways on how you and your partner can make the ‘financial aspect’ of your marriage harmonious and organized:

1. Understand the way that you both look at money.

If you and your spouse have different beliefs when it comes to money matters, sit down and discuss it. The key here is to be able to compromise. For some people, money is a security measure that needs to be saved. Other people spend it luxuriously and look at spending money as a means to reward themselves for their work. Still, other people are very thrifty that they hardly ever spend a cent of what they have earned.

Understand that the way that you both treat and spend money stems from how you were brought up by your parents. Think of everything that you need to discuss when it comes to your household budget. If possible, set rules on how you will spend your combined income on utility bills, food, mortgage, car maintenance, etc.

2. Set future financial goals.

If you are newly weds and you are planning to have a baby soon, consider this when organizing your finances. If you are a couple nearing the age of retirement, you can make plans on where you will spend your leisure years. Setting long-term and short-term goals will help you finalize your financial plans.

3. Share your money-saving skills with your partner.

If you have different family backgrounds, then you would have something to contribute towards organizing your joints assets. Make each other aware of your personal finances then think of ways on how you can further boost your money-handling tactics.

By following these tips, you will surely have your finances organized to lead a more comfortable lifestyle.

High Interest Credit Cards

2008-12-08T22:17:00.003-08:00

Most high interest credit cards are usually easy to get and really the interest rate only matters if you roll over your balances from month to month. People that have had bankruptcies, judgments or just have a bad credit rating, for what ever reason are the most common applicants for high interest credit cards. Many low interest credit cards will allow you to transfer balances from your high interest credit cards but you must have a decent credit rating. The most important thing about a balance transfer card is the amount of money it will save you, especially if you have a high interest credit card that you carry a balance on.

Credit

Beware some credit card companies will try multiple ploys to get you signed up and then if your late on a payment for some reason, charge large fees even if your credit card payment is only one or two days late. Those who want to apply for a major high interest credit card to re-establish or to establish new credit should consider the price they will ultimately pay. Even those who don not qualify for low interest credit cards should still shop and compare to get the best deal available.

Interest

Most major financial companies base the interest rates on your credit score, this tells them whether you pay on time and just how you use your credit. If you have a card with high interest rates you DO NOT want to carry a balance. If you do get a low interest credit card and make a payment late, the default interest rate goes into affect, sometimes up to 22 percent, making it very hard to ever get caught up. The difference between high interest credit cards and low could be hundreds and even thousands of dollars a year.

Getting your high interest credit cards paid off should be your top concern. When your credit score improves try to transfer all of your high interest credit card balances, some transfer cards even offer 0 introductory offers for balance transfers, thus making it much faster and easier to pay off your debt.

Great Money Saving Tips

2008-12-08T22:17:00.001-08:00

Everyone wants to save money, but no one wants to change his or her lifestyle to do so. Many people think that the only way to save is to go without; Give up eating out at restaurants, stop going to the movies, stop shopping, etc. This is not the case! It is very simple to still enjoy going out, as well as save money. You just have to find ways to spend less while going out. Here are some examples:

When going to a restaurant:

ท Always use coupons! I can’t stress that enough. There are many ways to find them. The Sunday paper usually has coupons for a few restaurants. Many restaurants send out coupons in the mail hoping to get you to visit them. The Entertainment Book has coupons for many restaurants. The restaurant’s own website might have a coupon that you can print out and bring in. Sometimes you will find coupons in their take-out menu. You will be able to save a few dollars just for taking a few seconds to look for a coupon.

ท Share a meal. If you’re going out to dinner, many times you can get away with ordering one main course and an appetizer or salad and sharing them with your partner since the portions are so large. By splitting them, you will save a lot more then if you had each gotten your own meal, plus you will get more of a selection since you’ll get to taste both an appetizer and an entr้e.

When wanting to see a movie:

ท If you want to go to the movies, consider going during the day, or in the early evening. These are all considered matinee showings, and you will usually pay about half of the price you would pay at night! It doesn’t sound like that big of a savings, but if you go to the movies just once a month, you can save $54 a year per person. You’ll save even more if you go more often!

ท If you want to save even more money, you can rent the movie once it goes to DVD. Many websites will allow you to buy packs of 10 DVD rentals, and you will end up saving anywhere from $0.50-$1.50 per rental! This can really add up. If you rent one movie per week, you can save up to $78 a year! Also keep an eye out for coupons that allow you to rent one and get the second free.

There are many other simple things you can do to save money when going out to enjoy different forms of entertainment. For other tips like the ones you just read, see the website below.

Finding A Personal Budget That Can Work For You

2008-12-08T22:16:00.007-08:00

A good way to prevent yourself from digging yourself further and further into debt is to form a personal budget that can work for you. Many people spend their hard earned money frivolously without having much regards to how much money they will have left before their next paycheck comes. They will often find themselves having no money left and ending up having to borrow from a lender just to pay essential bills or provide for their family. The problem with this type of spending is that you tend to incur debts that will begin to cause added problems with your finances that you become unable to pay off your debts when needed.

This is not the correct way of handling your finances. By creating a personal budget you will begin to plan all of your financial aspects and prioritizing items. Eventually you will achieve a successful financial situation you will enjoy. The first thing you need to do is take a careful assessment of your needs on three different basis:

• Short Term
• Medium Term
• Long Term

Ask yourself a few questions, what are you objectives? What is it you would like to achieve over time? What are your targets for your budget? Make a list of all of these things, then you should begin to layout your financial means.

Itemize your income and your expenses monthly, then itemize the expensive starting with the most important ones, important expenses, and then least important. Find and implement a prioritizing formula that will work well for you and your situation. Assess your consumption costs monthly write your figures down. After you have done this, jot down your sources of income and what each one brings in on a monthly basis. Place your expenses on the right and your income on the left hand side. Add each column up then subtract to find the difference. You will want to figure out rather you have a deficit or surplus.

Figure out what you can actually afford and amend the budget, once you have established a working budget that will help you, print it out and stick to it. Sticking to the budget is perhaps the most important aspect of creating a personal budget. If you fail to adhere to the budget, you will not have helped your financial situation by any means, it is likely you will only further your debt.

Do You Really Need to Buy A New Car?

2008-12-08T22:16:00.005-08:00

I have notice that keep on changing new car has become a trend of today’s life in city. People keep on switching to new car for no reason. It seems like car has become a way for people to express and show their status. Every year there are so many new car models coming up. So they keep on changing the car whenever they saw some new models that they like.

I had even heard people saying this: ‘Since I need to pay for my installment every month, then why don’t I switch to a better new car?’ It seems like paying car installment has become part of people’s routine life where if they don’t pay for the installment, they don’t know what to do with the money. Maybe people have forgot that they don’t have to pay for car installment if they don’t want to.

I know that I may offend a lot of people by saying that buying a new car is not necessary. However what I am saying is not that you cannot buy a new car. But when you wanted to buy a new car, think about why do you want to buy it. Is it neccesary? Do you want to buy it because you need it? Or you want to buy it simply because you wanted to show off to people that you are rich. Do you buy the car to boost up your ego?

For me, I only buy a car when it is needed. When I say needed, I mean that I really need the car. Not for no reason, not for showing off purpose. If my house is located at an area where I have no access to public transports, then I will consider to buy a car. If my old car has too many problems, then I will consider to switch to a new car.

Currently I have a car of 5++ years old. I have no intention to change a new car right now as my current car is still in good condition. I plan to use the car for at least 10 years if the conditions are ok. Actually the car is currently used by my wife to drive to work. For myself I am actually taking public transport (LRT). I have no intention to buy a second car although there is no problem in getting one financially.

With this I can save at least RM1000 per month. I would rather leverage this RM1000 per month for other purpose for example paying extra for my house loan. This way I can finish my house loan faster and reduce the interest. Why do I want to increase my expense to somewhere that I don’t really need. I can even use the extra money to do some investment. This will improve my financial situation.

Debit & ATM Cards

2008-12-08T22:16:00.003-08:00

The following article covers the liabilities of fraudulent activities for credit cards, ATM cards and debit cards.

Many people find it easy and convenient to use credit cards and ATM or debit cards. The Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) offer procedures for you to use if your cards are lost or stolen.

Limiting Your Financial Loss

It is faster and easier to process financial transactions today than ever before. Thanks to the electronic age, check cards, debit cards, and ATM cards give us instant access to funds on deposit at the local bank or a financial institution miles away. This also provides an avenue of opportunity for thieves and scam artists to rapidly deplete our financial reserves as well.

There are laws in place that provide a measure of protection from total financial ruination, but you need to be aware of your rights and responsibilities should your cards be stolen or appropriated for mischief. The Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) are two laws implemented on a federal level that can assist individuals targeted by the criminal element. For the laws to work properly, however, you need to invoke the protective measures by doing certain things if your cards are lost or stolen such as reporting the loss or theft promptly to the issuers.

Limit Your Financial Loss

As soon as you discover the loss or possible theft of your credit cards and your ATM or debit cards you must immediately notify the companies that issued the cards so they will have that fact on record and can monitor the cards for unusual activities. You can usually find toll-free numbers for the 24 hour help line on the back of the card or on your billing statement. It is a good idea to make a list of your cards, along with the account identification and the toll-free numbers, for reporting their loss. When you travel be sure to keep this information separate from the cards so you will have access to the information should you have a need to make a report while away from home.

Keep a record of the companies you notified. Follow up the phone call with a letter that includes all of the pertinent information such as account number, when you noticed your card was missing, and the date you first reported the loss.

As a side note, you might want to check your homeowner’s insurance policy to see if it covers the liability amount you are responsible for in the case of theft. If you do not currently have such coverage, you might want to contact your insurer to include this protection in your policy.

Under the Credit Card Loss or Fraudulent Charges (FCBA) act, the maximum liability for illegal use of your credit card is $50 per card. If you report the loss before any unauthorized charges are posted you cannot be held liable for any of the charges. If the charges are made using your account number, but not the card itself, you will not be held responsible for any of the charges. The FCBA specifically says the card issuer cannot hold you responsible for any unauthorized charges and limits your loss to $50 of the charges made on the cards prior to you reporting them lost or stolen.

You should always review your card billing statements for errors, but following the loss or theft of the cards you should be even more diligent. If you notice anything amiss in the statement, send a letter to the card issuer along with a description of the questionable charge. Remind them of the phone call you made and the letter you previously sent notifying them of the loss or theft of the cards. There is usually a separate address on the statement to which you will direct billing errors. Do not send the letter along with your payment unless you are directed to do so by the card company.

The Electronic Fraudulent Transfer Act (EFTA) also protects you from fraudulent use of your bankcards. Federal protection from loss due to unauthorized use of your ATM or debit card depends on how quickly you report the loss. For example, if you report the loss before the card is used, the EFTA protects you from any loss. If the report is made within two business days after noticing the loss you will not be responsible for more than $50 on each card.

If you fail to make a report within two business days after you discover the loss, you could be held responsible for up to $500. If you wait more than 60 days after you receive a billing statement reflecting fraudulent activity to make a report, you risk unlimited loss. For example, if you do not file a timely report on the theft of the cards, you could lose not only all of the money in the account, but also be held liable for the amount of overdraft protection you are granted. You must report unauthorized use, loss, or theft of the cards within 60 days of the mailing of your card statement or face unlimited loss. You are liable for charges made between the date of loss and the date the loss was reported. If the thief only uses your account number and not the card itself, however, you will not be held accountable for those charges.

Protecting Your Cards

To protect yourself against fraudulent use of your cards, you should know where they are at all times and keep them safe and secure. If your card requires a password or personal identification number (PIN), don’t write the number down so the thieves will get the code along with your cards. Do not use your address, birth date, phone or Social Security number as the PIN. Commit the pass code to memory and don’t share the information with anyone.

In addition, the following suggestions may help you protect your credit card and ATM or debit card accounts.

For Credit and ATM or Debit Cards:

* Do not reveal your account number over the phone unless you know you're dealing with a reputable company.
* Never put your account number on the outside of an envelope or on a postcard.
* Draw a line through blank spaces on charge or debit slips above the total so the amount cannot be changed.
* Don't sign a blank charge or debit slip.
* Tear up carbons and save your receipts to check against your monthly statements.
* Cut up old cards - cutting through the account number - before disposing of them.
* Open monthly statements promptly and compare them with your receipts. Report mistakes or discrepancies as soon as possible to the special address listed on your statement for inquiries. (For more information on the federal laws regarding FCBA and EFTA, click here)
* Keep a record - in a safe place separate from your cards - of your account numbers, expiration dates, and the telephone numbers of each card issuer so you can report a loss quickly.
* Carry with you only those cards that you anticipate you'll need.

For ATM or debit cards:

* Don't carry your PIN in your wallet or purse or write it on your ATM or debit card.
* Never write your PIN on the outside of a deposit slip, an envelope, or other papers that could be easily lost or seen.
* Carefully check ATM or debit card transactions before you enter the PIN or before you sign the receipt; the funds for this item will be fairly quickly transferred out of your checking or other deposit account.
* Periodically check your account activity. This is particularly important if you bank online. Compare the current balance and recent withdrawals or transfers to those you've recorded, including your current ATM and debit card withdrawals and purchases and your recent checks. If you notice transactions you didn't make, or if your balance has dropped suddenly without activity by you, immediately report the problem to your card issuer. Someone may have co-opted your account information to commit fraud.

Paying For A Registration Service

There are service providers who, for an annual fee, will contact all of your credit card and ATM bank card issuers in the case of theft or loss of your cards. This service will notify the issuers and request new cards for you, but other than allowing you to make one phone call and saving you from making numerous phone calls yourself, you do not need this service.

The FCBA and the EFTA allows you to contact your card issuers’ customer service department directly to notify them of the theft, loss or unauthorized use of your cards. If however, you would enjoy the convenience of a notification service to make the calls for you, be sure to compare the companies’ offer versus the fees they charge. Be sure your card issuer will work with such a service and find out if the service pays any fees if they fail to notify the card company in a timely manner and you incur charges on your card.

If you decide to purchase service from a registration company, compare offers. Carefully read the contract to determine the company's obligations and your liability. For example, will the company reimburse you if it fails to notify card issuers promptly once you've called in the loss to the service? If not, you could be liable for unauthorized charges or transfers.

Credit Card Debt and Interest

2008-12-08T22:16:00.001-08:00

Credit card debt is one of the leading cause for needing to file for bankruptcy or take out mortgage loans on your home or other drastic measures. Studies indicate that credit card debt is slowly making a consumers financial situation bad or worse than ever before, and can also cause psychological depression and contribute to lower GPA's and increased substance abuse among college students. Credit card debt can build up quickly, especially if you have more than one card and a habit of charging everything.

Interest

The interest is the money paid on a balance to a lender by the borrower, which is to be paid every month, if you roll over your balance from month to month. Interest doesn't usually go down on its own, and when only minimum payments are made your balance can grow to un-manageable amounts. If you are late on a payment your interest rates can increase to 35 percent, making it very hard to pay off balances. With interest rates still on the rise, there's no better time to take a good close look at your finances.

Payment

Debt, especially credit card debt can accumulate very fast and many people soon find themselves barely able to even make the minimum payments. Remember if you are late on only one payment, your rate could increase drastically. If you are not good at remembering payments, it's wise to set up direct debits to pay your credit card bills. It's always best to control your spending and try to pay more than the required minimum payment whenever possible.

The main problem with credit cards is that they make it very easy for you to spend money. The most important step take to reduce credit card debt is to not use your credit card for every little thing, use cash whenever possible. Studies show credit card debt is higher for males than female debtors, and even higher for joint accounts. The problem with carrying credit card debt is that the interest on the card will typically accrue much quicker when you only make minimum payments.

Building An Emergency Fund - A Vital Part of Financial Planning

2008-12-08T22:15:00.000-08:00

None of us have the ability to foresee the future or predict the hurdles which lie ahead of us. This makes building an emergency fund a financial priority. Building an emergency fund is healthy for your financial well being, since you’re rarely given advance notice of a setback or an accident which will keep you out of work for an extended period. It is also a safety net that can save you from bankruptcy or severe financial hardships in the event of an unexpected change in your income or expenses.

Housing a small rainy day fund should be a vital part of an individual’s financial goals. This is of high importance if you don’t already have readily available funds in your account for covering any unanticipated expenses. They provide financial security because they give you funds to fall back on if you become ill, or if you or your spouse loses your job, you incur large medical bills, or have an unexpected large bill such as a major car or home repair. You do not want to end up in a situation where you have to buy daily necessities on credit and end up payments on groceries you bought two years back on credit, with a further 10-18% interest on it.

Saving your money in an small account for emergencies is definitely a better alternative to taking a loan or cashing in your long-term investments. If you take a loan, there is the additional burden of paying interest. Encashment of your investments before maturity means not only will you lose out the interest, but also some part of the original investment. This will also set you back significantly in your overall financial plan.

Success at building an emergency fund depends on consistency of saving money on a regular basis, and resisting the urge to dip into this rainy day fund for non-emergencies. This money should be kept separate from the general savings account. Otherwise you will be tempted to dip into these monies even if you simply run over your budget at a certain point. A substantial part of this emergency fund account should be invested in low risk funds. This ensures that your investment does not lose its value in case you need the money. Also, it should be extremely liquid, to give you access to the cash easily and quickly if you need it.

The size of the special savings account will depend on your personal situation. People often keep three to six months’ salary in the reserve. But you will have to decide on an appropriate amount based factors such as your dependants and fixed monthly expenses.

If you are single with no obligations, and have a reliable support system of friends or relatives during a financial crisis, you might not need a substantial amount stashed in this fund. This is opposed to someone who needs to pay nursing costs for his aging parents and supporting a young family. The more people you support, the more likely you are to have unexpected or unplanned costs.

While making a decision about an emergency fund, you should also take into account the degree of difficulty you'd have in finding a new job if you lost the present one. In case of a two-income household, the contribution of both parties should be weighed while calculating how much you should keep aside.

You may not be able to gather your emergency fund money together at once. Treat it as a financial goal and add to the kitty over time. If you get a tax refund, put it in your special rainy day account. Maybe a part of the bonus at work!

Bankruptcy Attorney: Questions To Ask

2008-12-08T22:02:00.001-08:00

If you have tried every way imaginable to avoid bankruptcy but find that you have no other way out of the situation, the first step you should take before filing is to consult with a bankruptcy attorney. A bankruptcy attorney can be hired or appointed by the court systems to help you through the court proceedings. If you decide to select your own attorney, make sure to select someone with previous experience in bankruptcy law, preferably someone who works specifically with bankruptcy.

No matter which bankruptcy attorney you select, you should always be prepared to ask the attorney questions regarding your own case. Here is a list of questions you should always ask your attorney to make yourself more aware of your bankruptcy proceedings:

* What type of bankruptcy is right for me?

Keep in mind that the Federal court system in the United States has eight different types of bankruptcy filing available. Of course the two most popular are Chapter 13 and Chapter 7, but there are a variety of different details and rules that apply to each type of filing. A good bankruptcy attorney will be able to sift through your financial difficulties and recommend the best type of bankruptcy for you.

* How do I file for bankruptcy?

Filing for bankruptcy will need to be done in the state where you currently live. If you plan to remain represented by a bankruptcy attorney, their legal staff can help to prepare all of the paperwork that is necessary to present to the court system. If you simply want to use the bankruptcy attorney for a consultation, make sure you don’t leave the attorney’s office without the necessary paperwork to begin the bankruptcy process.

* What type of fees will I owe?

This is important to ask in regards to your bankruptcy attorney as well as the court system. Most bankruptcy attorneys will give a free consultation but any remaining time on the proceeding or in court will cost a fee. Some attorneys charge by the hour while others charge a flat fee for bankruptcy services. As well, the court systems usually charge a court fee connected with filing the case, administrative charges and extra Chapter 7 fees to pay a trustee in charge of the bankrupt account.

* Where do I go to file my bankruptcy claim?

Bankruptcy cases are handled by the federal court systems in every state. This usually means that the bankrupt party will need to give the bankruptcy paperwork to the state courthouse, usually in a state’s capitol city. Your bankruptcy attorney should know the address and rules regarding whether or not paperwork can be sent by mail or if paperwork needs to be given in person.

* What happens after filing for bankruptcy?

Immediately after filing for bankruptcy, the court system will send out notification to creditors of the pending bankruptcy case. From this point on, creditors are considered to have a "restraining order" by the debtor and are not allowed to contact the debtor requesting payment. Depending on the type of bankruptcy, a hearing will be scheduled and deadlines will be set for creditors to file a claim and attend the hearing. Of course, all of the proceedings from here are dependent on the type of bankruptcy filed, so it is important to be in contact with your bankruptcy attorney who can more readily answer these questions.

A Guide To Accounting Software

2008-12-08T21:54:00.000-08:00

Computer software that helps in processing various financial transactions, recording them, and presenting them in the form of a report is know as accounting software. There are several functional modules in accounting software.

Organizations operating on a large scale prefer to develop such software within their organizations so that it suits their needs. However, there is no need to worry for the small-scale or middle-level entrepreneur who cannot afford to develop in-house software. There is no dearth of accounting software on the market. The price range is wide, and most of the good accounting software is easily affordable for even a sole proprietor. They are easy to operate and one does not need to be a computer genius. This software generally comes with “how to" information. They are quite user friendly. In fact, you might not feel the need to keep paying your part-time accountant once you start using accounting software.

There is also complex accounting software that is generally used by the government and large organizations. Such complex software can be operated by trained professionals only. One of the major benefits of accounting software is that it can not only help the organizations in computing their income, revenues, profits, or losses over a period of time, but they can also help the individuals in computing their tax liabilities. This is especially true if they have multiple sources of income.

A number of firms also provide accounting software online. You can easily download it by paying a nominal fee. Some websites also offer such software for free. It is advisable that once you have decided to use accounting software, the first thing you should do is to use it on a trial basis and check for loopholes or any problems that might be there.

Ways To Pay For Your Next Holiday Away

2008-11-28T19:40:00.004-08:00

Any time of year can be the right time to plan your next vacation-and how to pay for it. Here are some tips for saving or earning extra money to help make this year's vacation special:

• Set up a vacation "piggy bank" and contribute regularly. Make coffee at home rather than buying it on your way to work, and bank the difference. When the kids break a house rule, deduct $1 from their allowances and set it aside for vacation.

• Arrange for a portion of your paycheck to be deposited automatically into a vacation savings account. An increasing number of employers offer direct deposits that can be split among different accounts.

• Book your vacation plans early. Most experts encourage families to make reservations for flights or hotels early, before seats and rooms start to fill up and prices rise. Also, look for special summer deals that many popular destinations offer on their Web sites.

• Look for additional sources of income. For example, you could become a direct selling representative. Direct selling involves the sale of products and services in the home or workplace (think Avon or Pampered Chef). A wide variety of products and services are sold this way, from cosmetics and clothing to pet supplies and cookware.

According to Amy Robinson at the Direct Selling Association (DSA), direct selling companies sell $30 billion worth of goods and services annually.

"Direct selling is a growing business and a flexible, family-friendly way to earn extra money for a family vacation," Robinson said.

Top 5 ways To Improve Your Credit

2008-11-28T19:40:00.003-08:00

Your credit rating is extremely important to your financial future, and those with a low credit rating will often find it difficult to get any sort of finance until their credit improves. This could affect your abilities to get anything from a credit card or loan to a mortgage or car finance, and as a nation that relies heavily on credit this could spell disaster for many.

Your credit rating can be adversely affected in a number of ways. Most commonly is failure to make bill and finance repayments on time or defaulting on payments altogether. However, other factors such as association with those with bad credit or being the victim of identity theft can also affect your credit rating – as can a simple human or computer error by credit reporting agencies or agencies that register details with these companies.

There are a number of ways in which you can help to improve your credit or maintain good credit. This includes:

1. Always maintain timely repayments on bills and financial obligations, as this will help to maintain good credit. If you already have a tarnished credit history or rating make sure that you focus on making all of your repayments on time and for the amount s requested to try and start improving your credit.

2. Keep a check on your credit report. This can easily be ordered from the credit reporting agencies. Monitoring this will enable you to check that no errors have been made that could be affecting your credit rating, and will enable you to identify any cases of fraudulent activity that could also be affecting your credit.

3. If you already have poor credit consider taking out a credit card or loan that caters for those with bad credit. By taking out a bad credit loan or credit card, and making sure that you make the repayments on time and for the amounts requested, you can start to slowly bring your credit back up.

4. Focus on paying off your debts. If you have a high level of debt then you run the risk of falling behind with repayments and adversely affecting your credit. By clearing the debt as quickly as possible you can reduce this risk. If you already have bad credit and are in debt, you could see improvements in your credit rating by clearing the debts as quickly as possible and ensuring that you pay at least the requested amounts on loans and bills each month.

5. Look out for scams that offer fast solutions to repairing credit. These usually charge a fee and offer only a temporary reprieve by questioning any factors that may be affecting your credit. The best way to repair your credit is to be sensible and responsible about repaying your debts and paying your bills, and although it may take some time this is the most effective long term solution to credit repair.

The IRS Owes You Money If You Have Paid Long Distance Phone Taxes

2008-11-28T19:40:00.001-08:00

The IRS has decided to give up the fight on an ongoing legal issue regarding taxes it has collected on long distance telephone services. Here is the scoop.

The IRS Owes You Money If You Have Paid Long Distance Phone Taxes

Every one of us pays for some form of long distance telephone service. The more you use the service, the more you start hunting for better rates. Whatever choice you make, however, you are always stuck paying a federal tax on the bill. For those of you with large long distance phone bills, this tax can add up quickly given the fact it is calculated at three percent of your total bill.

The tax in question is known as the federal excise tax on long distance telephone service. It was created in 1898. Yes, this tax arose well over one hundred years ago. As you might image, a few people started to wonder how a tax established in 1898 could possibly apply today, particularly given the advancement of telephone technologies. Turns out it doesn’t apply! Given a chance to review the situation, five appellate courts have ruled the tax invalid.

After contemplating the situation, the IRS has decided not to challenge the legal rulings. Instead, it has voluntarily agreed to issue credits or refunds for the excise taxes paid the past three years. Specifically, you will be able to claim a refund of all taxes paid from February 28, 2003 till the date the IRS stopped collecting them.

To collect the refunds, the IRS will create a new box on all 1040 filing forms for the 2006 tax year. In practical terms, this means you will be able to check a box and get a refund when you prepare your 2006 tax return in 2007. The IRS will pay interest on these funds.

It should be noted the refund is applicable only to the long distance excise tax. You still must pay local service taxes and the refund does not apply to taxes collected by states and such. Still, any refund is a good refund in my opinion.

The Benefits Of Saving For Your Child's School Finance

2008-11-28T19:39:00.005-08:00

Defining your savings goals is the first thing to do before you invest, especially when that investment will have an impact on your child’s future.

It is after-all your child’s future that you are investing in--and school finance cannot be avoided, as babies will grow into adults who need to be given the best opportunities we can offer as parents.

The best advice that any parent can get is to start saving early. College tuition fees can cause a strain on your family's budget and lifestyle. You need to have a goal to keep you motivated to save. And what better motivation is there than knowing that the money you save will finance your child's education.

Normally the best stage to start saving for your child’s finance towards college tuition is at birth. If, however, you have not started, then the time to start saving is now. It is never too late to start saving.

The sooner you start saving, the more time there’ll be for compound interest to build up into a nice college fund for your child. Remember that each child should get his or her school finance savings fund.

You also need to decide the amount you intend to save by the time that your child reaches college age. There are many options available for you to choose from when it dollar amount. This means that you calculate the projected cost of public college tuition by the time your child is ready for college.

The other commonly used method, which many parents prefer, involves devoting a fixed percentage of income to their child's future college costs. The idea is this: whatever you do, you have to have a defined goal. You should save as much as you can, whether it be a large amount, like several hundred dollars a month or a more modest amount, such as $25 to $50 each month.

A college education is an investment in the future of your child. If you truly want to see your child succeed, as all parents do, what could possibly be a better investment?

Saving Money On Magazine Subscriptions

2008-11-28T19:39:00.003-08:00

If you are interested in subscribing to a magazine or different magazines, you may be wondering how you can fit the costs of subscribing to a magazine or magazines into your overall budget. In this day and age, many people find it very difficult to make ends meet, to maintain a wise budget. They simply do not have a great deal of discretionary money to be used on such things as magazine subscriptions.

With that said, there are some ways in which you can save money on magazine subscriptions. One of the easiest ways you can save money on magazine subscriptions is through the Internet and World Wide Web. There are now many websites in operation that offer magazine subscriptions at reduced costs.

In addition to websites that market magazine subscriptions at reduced costs, there are also Internet websites that market magazine package deals. In other words, you can obtain a number of different magazine subscriptions that you might not otherwise be able to afford for a low cost.

In the brick and mortar world, you can stop by the local bookseller and visit the magazine section. By flipping through magazines, you can find subscription cards that offer reduced costs for subscriptions to these publications. For example, they might offer upwards to 75% off the regular price for these magazines.

Also keep in mind that by subscribing to a magazine for an extended period of time, the publication likely will knock a good deal of money off of the overall subscription cost. For example, you can save a great deal of money by subscribing to a magazine for a period of three years as opposed to a single year subscription.

Finally, there are some charities that sell magazine subscriptions to raise money for their work and causes. In this regard, these magazines are made available to people at a reduced cost. In addition, a part of what you pay for the subscription is donated to the charity in order to allow it to further its good works.

When all is said and done, by taking the time to shop around, you can save money on magazine subscriptions. You will be able to work the costs of receiving magazines into your overall budget. By keeping an open mind as to where to look for reduced costs magazine subscriptions you will be able to have the publications that you want at a price that you truly can afford.

Retirement Calculator: How Much Will It Cost You to Retire?

2008-11-28T19:39:00.001-08:00

Many people have imagined a secured future by the time they have reached their retirement age.

However, only a few have truly worked out the estimated amount of that they need to hit the sack happily. This is because most people are not aware about the importance of using retirement calculators.

With retirement calculators, you can easily foresee the probable amount that you will earn by the time you retire. In this way, you can easily plan the necessary savings that you have to make to achieve your desired amount in the future.

Getting to know how much to save to arrive at your desired amount is easily computed on a yearly investment. From there, you can work towards a more achievable goal.

The computation, however, is greatly dependent on several factors. It does not necessarily mean that using retirement calculators will guarantee your future. Here is the list of the items that you have to consider when using retirement calculator:

1. Your present age and your desired retirement age

This will greatly affect the results in the retirement calculator. The available years from your current age up to your desired retirement age will determine the amount of savings you have to accumulate in order to reach your goal.

For instance, if you have lesser years to save, then your retirement calculator will tell you that to invest more money if you want to retire with considerable amount of disbursements.

2. Life expectancy

Your expected life expectancy will also affect the result in your calculator.

3. Inflation rate

4. Total Social Security Disbursements

5. Rate of ROI (return of investment)

These are just some of the probable factors that you have to consider when using retirement calculators. All of these things will have individual effects on the results. In the end, people tend to mix everything up and errors on computations are expected.

Financial experts recommend some feasible solutions to avoid possible confusions and errors in using the retirement calculator. Here’s how:

1. Be careful in choosing factors

Some people tend to choose some factors when using retirement calculator. Any considerable errors in the selection will constitute clear negative effects on the results.

Hence, it is important to be cautious in choosing a particular factor. Try to give some allowances as well.

For instance, if you will be using the “rate of return of investment,” it would be better if you will use a lower rate than what the current or even the best possible rate available. Things like this will not put your computation in a negative light.

2. Do not stop at a single computation

Experts recommend that you evaluate the factors that you have used during your first computation. Keep in mind that these factors may vary as the time pass by. Hence, it is best that you keep up with the flow.

3. Experiment

Do not stop from where you have started. In order to reach your desired retirement goal, it is best that you experiment on the variable factors that will greatly affect the results.

For example, inflation rate is highly changeable. Hence, experimenting on its different rates will provide you considerable low and high rates.

4. Always seek a professional

Do not depend on the tool alone. It is always important to seek the help of a professional. In this way, you can understand the use of retirement calculator better.

Knowing its pros and cons will help you understand the viability of retirement calculator. In turn, securing your future will be relatively easy.

Online Banking Made Easy

2008-11-28T19:38:00.002-08:00

Here's a really simple way... to have your banking handled with no muss, no fuss... on the internet.

Traditionally you have been used to doing your banking by going in to a physical brick and mortar building and taking care of whatever banking business you had to take care of.

Whether it was opening an account, checking balances, depositing a paycheck, taking money out for living expenses, applying for a loan, paying a bill, moving money around from account to another or whatever.

Of course you had to make a special point of putting it into your schedule and arranging other tasks around it to accommodate your planned trip to the bank. Well, those days are over.

With the popularity of the internet during the last 5 years banking has never been easier or more convenient than it is today.

With the internet and online banking you can access your bank 24/7. Or as close to 24/7 as can be since there is always the time when the bank's website is not accessible due to website maintenance.

And you don't even have to get dressed to do your banking. I find this benefit very useful in the cold winter months when I can just sit in the warmth of my home and do my banking activities through my computer.

Nowadays, most large national banks, regional banks and even smaller local banks and credit unions have some form of online banking for both the convenience of their customers and for their convenience as well.

By allowing you to access their bank and your banking account they don't have to pay for someone to attend to your needs and they save money. They can pass that savings on to you through higher interest rates on your money.

In fact there are virtual banks that exist today that do not have a brick and mortar existence and exist solely online. Because of the great savings that they enjoy with that arrangement they offer some of the highest banking interest rates I have seen.

Another great benefit of online banking that I have been taking advantage of is online bill paying.

In the old days when I had to pay a bill I took the bill, wrote out a check, put it in the envelope, put a stamp on the envelopeand put it in the mail, hoping that it arrived on time so I wouldn't be assessed a late fee.

Now I can just get on the internet and get on the website of the place where I am paying the bill, hit a few keys on the keyboard of my computer and the bill is paid, saving a stamp and a lot of time and worry about the reliability of snail mail.

Another great advantage of internet banking is the concept of direct deposit.

Using direct deposit your employer can now take your paycheck and automatically deposit the money in whatever banking account you designate. That way you don't have to worry about getting the money into the bank in time to pay your big bill coming up. Now having the money in the bank and the paying of the bill can be done electronically.

And now dealing with the IRS has been made somewhat easier with the arrival of internet banking.

Now you can file your return and if it turns out you owe Uncle Sam some money you can pay it electronically by submitting your banking information with your return. If the IRS owes you a refund they can send it to you using that same banking information. And, it is all done more speedily than it was in the old days using snail mail. If you are due a refund you will be very happy to get your money sooner.

As you proceed into the 21st century you can take advantage of the progress that the banking industry has experienced in the
last few years. You will find many ways to make what used to be
considered a drudge or a necessary evil into some thing that is
more pleasant and less time-consuming to deal with.

So if you haven't experienced online banking, give it a try. You'll probably like it!

Multiple Streams Of Income Are Key To Staying Afloat

2008-11-28T19:38:00.001-08:00

In today’s society it is practically impossible to stay on top of bills, increasing gas prices and extraneous financial obligations with just one job. What’s more, it is becoming increasingly scary to rely on one stream of income because the economy is so shaky. Who knows when that one lifeline will falter? Many people are discovering that the way to stay afloat in today’s rapidly fluctuating market is by using multiple streams of income. This simply means drawing funding from various venues.

One venue that many people find convenient to their schedules and their lives is taking part in an Internet business. Since lots of people are only using their Internet businesses as one of several streams of income, they only do it on a part time basis. There are lots of opportunities on the Internet to earn multiple streams of income, including starting an ebay business, taking part in an affiliate program, making contacts for freelance work, and writing and selling an ebook. The flexibility of working a business on the Internet is valuable for many people who also work other jobs, and especially for those with loved ones who need to be taken care of.

Other off-the-web venues that people use as multiple streams of income include real estate, starting a small independently owned business, mail and phone-based freelance work, and childcare. Many of these businesses are owned and operated out of people’s homes, which is time effective for people who are multi-tasking.

If you are planning on using multiple streams of income to stay on top of your growing pile of bills, remember that it is important to think about your personal needs as well. Make sure that you still have enough time to sleep, eat, and spend quality time with loved ones. Time efficiency is very important, so think about cutting down on commuting by multi-tasking from home, or by commuting only to one job. Though more complicated than relying on one job alone, using multiple streams of income can be an effective way to ensure your financial stability.

How to manage your checking account

2008-11-28T19:37:00.006-08:00

Protect yourself against the possibility of writing bad checks.

The most important thing that you need to do in order to manage your checking account is simple: keep track of all of your transactions. This might be annoying if you end up writing a lot of small checks for small things, but in the end it will definitely be worth it. By writing down each check you write and the amount that they were for, you'll know exactly how much money you have to spend, how much you have spent, and whether or not you can afford what you are buying.

There are a lot of good reasons to know where all of your money is going. However, they are not the only reasons why you should learn how to manage your checking account. Let's say you are not keeping track of the amount of money that is in your checking account. You know that you are getting close to the end of your money, due to it being near the end of the month, but you're not entirely sure. Therefore, you write your last check - and it bounces. Bounced checks are not only embarrassing, but they will result in a lot of lost money for no reason other than that you were careless. First of all, most establishments will charge you extra fees for bounced checks - and may not allow you to write checks in the future. Second, most banks have hefty overdraft fees - and you don't want to waste your money paying those.

The next thing that you should do if you're trying to learn how to manage your checking account, is to try and make sure that you always have a few hundred dollar buffer in your account. This is not just to pad against overdraft fees and bounced checks, but can actually come in handy. For instance, it's always possible that there could be an emergency situation in which you need some extra money - in which case having extra dollars in your checking account could be a life saver.

When it comes to managing checking accounts, these are really the most important things that you should do. Always make sure that you have extra money in your account - and keep track of your expenses!

Getting A Credit Card With Bad Or No Credit

2008-11-28T19:37:00.005-08:00

So you have decided that you want to get a credit card only you may have credit that is not so hot or even no credit history what so ever. Many consumers wonder how it is possible to build a credit history with no credit or credit that might not be so swell. Surprisingly enough it is very possible for consumers finding themselves in these two particular situations to begin building a solid credit history without having to have a traditional credit card.

A secured credit card would be quite simple for someone with no credit or less then perfect credit to be able to qualify for and receive. All you need to do is complete the application for the secured credit card and make the required security deposit. After those two steps are completed you are well on your way to building a solid credit history. Just keep in mind that you need to apply for a secured credit card that will report all of your credit activities to all three of the major credit reporting agencies.

Department Stores such as Sears and Macy’s will often take a chance on someone who may not have any credit and give them a credit card. So if your luck hasn’t been great in applying for traditional credit cards try your luck in applying for a department store card to use as a tool to start a solid credit history foundation.

Many gas stations will allow people with tarnished credit or no credit history to have a gas station credit card. If you are in either of these situations try applying for a card at your local gas station to begin building a credit history.

These are just a few suggestions of steps that you can take to start building a credit history if your credit record may not be so good (or non existent). With a little creative thought and research you will be well on the way to getting the credit and the credit cards that you deserve.

Developing a Successful Home Budget

2008-11-28T19:37:00.003-08:00

This is probably the most requested topic that I receive, normally after someone gets a large unexpected expense, or they start thinking about retirement and realize that they have saved a woefully inadequate amount of money.

I recommend using a monthly time-frame to look at your cash inflows and outflows, because most bills are monthly and four weeks is a short planning period that most people can manage. The first thing to do is determine your monthly after-tax income. Usually, this is the amount of money from your paycheck that gets deposited into your checking account. If your income is variable, then use an average of the last three months. (Any savings account interest income would be a bonus.) Next, list out your fixed monthly expenses, such as rent, mortgage, car payment, phone, electric bill, etc. All of these numbers can be changed in the long-term, but first you need to determine a baseline budget of where you are right now.

Make sure you include all of your utilities; some are only paid quarterly or annually, like car insurance, the water bill, or an association fee. Take these expenses and calculate what they would be on a monthly basis. For example, if your water bill comes quarterly, divide it by 3. If you have semi-annual car insurance, then divide it by 6.

So now you have your fixed monthly income and your fixed monthly expenses. Deduct one from the other, and you have the variable amount of money that you are free to spend any way you want for the remainder of the month. From this remaining amount of money, start listing out your main categories of variable spending: groceries, entertainment, medical expenses, clothing, dry cleaning, personal care (haircut, nails, etc.), and gifts. Take each of these variable expenses and put an amount next to them that you think represents your average monthly spending for that category.

Make as many subcategories as you need to make an accurate estimate. The more precise it is for your spending habits, the more effective it will be for you. For example, food can be broken down by grocery store/fast food/dining out/work lunch/etc. Then go through the last few months of your checkbook and credit card statement looking for any spending that hasn’t been covered so far that you need to include for your situation.

Now you should have a total number for your monthly income, total monthly fixed expenses, and total monthly variable expenses. The moment of truth is when you deduct the two expenses from your income to see if there is anything left over. Don’t panic if it is a negative number – it is far better to discover this out now, rather than building up credit card debt later. Most people comment somewhere along this process, “Oh, so that is where my money is going. I had no idea I spent so much on that!”

Seeing all the numbers in black & white can help you prioritize (and negotiate with all the other spenders in the family). From this beginning budget, you can start to set monthly targets for spending categories, you can focus on reducing the largest expenses, and find areas where you should start doing some price-comparison shopping. And did I mention that saving a 5-15% of your income should be an additional fixed expense? Yes, you need to pay yourself first!

Having a budget is the critical first tool in managing your money. Wielding this tool allows you to finally start making financial decisions based on the facts instead of fiction. You can plan for expenses instead of being caught by surprise. And most importantly, figure out how to move forward with goals like a big vacation, a new car, or investing.

Check Your Bank Statements Every Month, If You Don't You May Be Losing Money In Unexpected Ways.

2008-11-28T19:37:00.001-08:00

Awhile back I got the dreaded letter from the bank saying you are overdrawn. I couldn't believe it, I wondered what the heck did I do?

Then I opened it up and I was overdrawn by over a thousand dollars and I was real concerned.

I called the bank and they told me the $3000 dollar check that I had written was insufficient. Well I did not write a check for that amount but they assured me I did and told me where to.

I couldn't believe I could do something so foolish but I called the company that I had written the check to and they said yep, that was what I wrote it for, and I was overpaid on my account.

Then we had to start the process of me getting the money back that I had overpaid, in the meantime I needed to do a quick transfer or I would have more insufficient checks.

After I got the check covered and started the return process of getting my money back I got to thinking I couldn't have done anything that dumb.

So I called the bank and asked them if they were sure I had wrote it for that amount and she assured me they check those kinds of things, I still didn't believe her so I went down there and said I wanted a copy of the check.

Low and behold I HADN'T been stupid and wrote a 300 dollar check for 3000. The company I wrote it to had encoded it wrong and the bank didn't catch it.

So after apologies from the bank and their assurance they would fix things right up for me I called the other company back and asked them if they were sure I had made the mistake. She also assured me they always check these kinds of things. Then I said then how come I am holding the check and it is obviously written for only 300.00. She didn't have much to say then and they assured me they would fix things right up.

In talking to her she said she just assumed the fault was mine because even if they had made the mistake one of our banks would have caught it, yeah right.

So while most of you would notice a 2700 difference like I sure did, we may not notice those pennies and nickels if we don't check every month.

Because the only one looking after your account carefully will be you!!

Budgeting For Emergency Funds?

2008-11-28T19:36:00.000-08:00

Emergency funds are considered to be a necessity as far as financial security is concerned, since it can provide one with financial resources that one can resort to and depend on when an emergency arises such that when one is sick and have the burden of paying huge medical bills, or unexpected home or major car repair.

When one has no emergency fund, one can be obliged to acquire debt on your credit card that might take several years to repay with interest that would later cost so much more.

However by putting an extra thirty to fifty dollars every month in an individual “emergency savings account” one can be secured with what emergency the future may bring. In doing this, it is recommended that one regards the emergency fund as an additional bill, to be punctually paid each month.

Yes, one can and should budget and allocate the extra money for emergency fund, as this is very significant when one refers to his “financial future”. Here, the goal is to create savings from budgeting your income; the emergency savings should ideally be equal to at least three months your living expenditures.

What's important is that you should steadily put a certain amount of money aside, and only use it for real emergencies.

Not like an investment, the success of one’s long-term savings funds does not really count on the amount of return or interests but on placing a fixed amount of money away constantly and steadily so to have immediate access to it at all times.

In spite of one’s financial status, the initial step in the process of constructing an emergency fund is by knowing where your money is presently being consumed or spent.

When one recognizes and determines where one’s earnings are spent, then it will be easy for one to choose and make a decision where to trim down expenses. In other words, budget.

Budgeting is putting or setting aside money for anticipated and unanticipated future use. It is here that one sets up a goal so as to save. So set an emergency fund as your goal.

Checking, savings, money market accounts and “certificates of deposits”, are great places to keep one’s cash that might be needed on quick notice.

The amount saved from budgeting can either go to your savings goal, emergency fund or both. One could utilize the money saved from budgeting financial expenses by saving half of it to your savings account and half of it for emergencies. This way, you achieve your goals in savings and at the same time put in funds for emergency use. It’s your choice.

Bad Credit Personal Loans - What Are Your Options

2008-11-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

Bad Credit Personal Loans are readily available across the country even if you have experienced bad credit problems such as in bankruptcies, delinquencies, foreclosures, repossessions or other adverse credit problems. Bad credit personal loans are usually easy to qualify for and re-payments can be flexible and even affordable. Bad credit personal loans are classified into two groups, secured and unsecured, with the intention to make it even easier to get the loan you need. Personal loans are to suppose be used for personal needs, not for business related needs, but other than that they do not have any specific requirements.

Secured Personal Loans

Secured bad credit personal loans usually have lower monthly payments and will generally have lower rates of interest. If the value of the property that is used for collateral for the loan is more than your loan amount, then the interest rate can be very low. Lenders have much less risk since the loan will be secured by the customers property, so they think it will be less likely the borrower will miss payments or default on the loan.

Unsecured Personal Loans

An unsecured bad credit personal loan lender is one who provides lending without requiring any form of collateral. Unsecured personal loans can take less time to get the cash you need but if you have bad credit it can be much more expensive due to high interest rates. Unsecured personal loans are readily available for both renters or home owners. An unsecured loan requires no property owner-ship or collateral for approvals.

Two things about bad credit personal loans are sure, the high rate of interest that will be charged on the loan, and the requirement of a down payment or collateral if you have a bad credit history . If used wisely bad credit personal loans can be the first step for those in financial troubles to get back on their feet. Compare lenders today and see what type of bad credit personal loan is right for you.

Credit Cards For People With Bad Credit- Facts

2008-11-23T20:29:00.001-08:00

Credit cards for bad credit are certainly not going to be the best credit deals, but credit cards for people with bad credit might be your only option available. The interest on credit cards for people with bad credit are usually much higher than on a regular credit card. These types of credit cards are especially designed for people with a bad credit history and don't qualify for a regular credit card. If you are a young person just starting to build credit, or if you've had circumstances that has damaged your credit history, you usually can qualify for credit cards for bad credit.

Bad Credit Deals

Bad credit, credit card deals are readily available online with easy, secure applications. Bad credit deals are often divided into secured credit cards for bad credit that need a deposit and bad credit unsecured credit cards, a bad credit card with much higher fees. These types of bad credit offers people with a poor credit score or no previous credit history a quick and easy way to re-gain a good credit history with bad credit cards. If you keep your credit balance under the limit and make your payments on time, you'll become eligible for much better deals on your credit card rates and improve your credit score.

Interest

There are many temptations by having credit cards and while using bad credit cards to hold you over in tight situations, remember it is only temporary relief as the interest rates on credit cards for bad credit are extremely high. Shop around and look for credit cards for bad credit with an interest rate that you are absolutely sure you will be able to pay. Probably the single most important part of picking credit cards is the interest rate, especially for people who will be rolling over balances from month to month.

Tips

A person must always keep in mind that credit cards for bad credit are very easy to use so don't go overboard or you might find yourself in a much worse situation. Check out the interest rates and fees before you start applying for credit cards for bad credit. Don't apply for every bad credit card there is as this will effect your credit score, only choose two of the best bad credit deals you can find.

Cost-Effective Ways to Cool Your Home

2008-11-23T20:27:00.001-08:00

As the temperature rises, so does the cost of cooling your home. But a new federal law may help keep your home both cool and cost-effective.

In January, the U.S. Department of Energy raised the minimum efficiency standards for air conditioners and heat pumps from 10 to 13 SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio). Although homeowners aren't required to replace systems that are less than 13 SEER, doing so could shave 23 percent off energy bills.

Think of SEER ratings like gas mileage: The higher the SEER or miles per gallon, the more energy "mileage" you get. So as SEER levels rise, your cooling and heating products use less energy, giving you more bang for your buck while providing real environmental benefits through decreased energy consumption.

"The new 13 SEER standard not only conserves energy but it also reduces associated carbon dioxide emissions," says Rick Roetken, director of marketing at Indianapolis-based Bryant Heating & Cooling Systems.

Bryant recently introduced a new line of 13 SEER models that provide superb savings, efficiency and comfort. The improved top-of-the-line Evolution System reaches levels of up to 20 SEER while allowing users to control heating, cooling, humidity, indoor air quality, schedules and maintenance reminders from a single, easy-to-navigate source.

To keep your home cooling system at peak efficiency, Roetken recommends having it inspected at least once a year by a trained service technician. Here are some additional tips:

* Install more attic insulation. Upgrading from 3 inches to 12 inches can cut cooling costs by 10 percent.

* Plant a tree. One well-placed shade tree can reduce your cooling costs by 25 percent. Place leafy shade trees to the south and west and evergreens to the north.

* Use ceiling and box fans to help circulate air throughout the house.

* Set the fan on your central air conditioner to "on" rather than "auto." This will circulate air continuously, keeping the temperature constant throughout the house and aiding in dehumidification.

* If you use a window air conditioning unit, make sure it's the proper size. It's better to get one that's too small rather than too large. A larger unit will start up and turn off more frequently and won't do as good a job dehumidifying the air.

* Invest in a programmable thermostat.

* If you don't have central air conditioning, try a whole-house attic fan. This device pushes hot air out through the attic vents, lowering the temperature throughout your home by about 5 degrees in less than 10 minutes.

Bankruptcy Lawyer Dirty Secrets

2008-11-23T20:26:00.003-08:00

The field of bankruptcy law has exploded in recent years, even though the process of filing for bankruptcy really only involves filling out a few forms. Misconceptions, frightening news articles, and misleading advertisements put out by many of the firms now specializing solely in bankruptcy law have convinced the average consumer that they absolutely must hire an expensive attorney in order to get rid of the money they owe.

Even if the client has an above-average number of questions or a combination of income, debt, and assets that are more complicated than most, an experienced lawyer should be able to handle a bankruptcy claim from start to finish in a matter of hours. Some honest legal professionals only bill their clients for this small amount of work, but the majority charges a minimum of $2,000 for a basic filing. In fact, in some areas, rates can skyrocket as high as $10,000 for a single case!

These inflated prices have actually driven many of the honest attorneys out of bankruptcy altogether, because once a client has been convinced that bankruptcy should cost them thousands of dollars, they are naturally wary of hiring anyone who charges much less.

Filling out bankruptcy paperwork is so simple in many cases that attorneys have their secretaries fill it out. Yet the field has created so much money for certain greedy lawyers that instead of letting their clients know this, they instead pocket the cash and stand back and watch while bankruptcy filings needlessly get out of control.

No matter what circumstances brought you into your current financial situation, declaring bankruptcy should never be a first choice when trying to deal with high levels of debt. Especially after taking into account high attorney fees and new credit-card-friendly laws, it would be much better for you in both the short-and long-term if your financial difficulties are handled out of court.

Be Cool, Feel Good And Save On Utility Bills

2008-11-23T20:26:00.001-08:00

Besides staying cool when the warm weather rolls in, not getting hot under the collar when the utility bills arrive can be a challenge. The goal is to find an air-conditioning system that looks nice, makes you feel good and operates efficiently.

How To Measure

Cooling Efficiency

Recently enacted federal legislation helps with the efficiency issue. All central air conditioners manufactured after January 23, 2006, must have a seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) of at least 13 SEER. This increase in the measure of cooling efficiency from 10 to 13 SEER means savings on your utility bills.

As manufacturers of air-conditioning systems work to meet this new efficiency standard, some are also incorporating improved comfort features in their designs. For example, the Acclimate™ Series of air conditioners from Luxaireฎ Heating and Cooling, a brand of the Unitary Products Group of York-a Johnson Controls company, meets or exceeds the efficiency challenge with 13 and 15 SEER units that also address important comfort issues.

These air conditioners are available with two-stage compressor technology to reduce operating cost without sacrificing comfort. On-off cycles are kept to a minimum for even, quiet, more comfortable cooling.

Cool And Quiet

The unit's exclusive SilentDrive™ System further reduces sound. A swept-wing fan design enables air to flow smoothly off the blade, reducing air turbulence and significantly reducing noise. The system also incorporates an isolated compressor compartment and a composite base pan for more quiet operation. In fact, an Acclimate air conditioner records sound levels as low as 69 decibels (dB). This is quieter than competitive units and much quieter than a typical hair dryer, which operates in the range of 76 dB.

Acclimate's quiet, comfortable, efficient operation is easy on the ears and easy on the pocketbook. The unit is also easy on the eyes, with a sleek contemporary look that brings style to home cooling.

Learning The Value Of Money

2008-11-23T20:25:00.001-08:00

This article describes how my father taught me the value of money and at the same time also showed me how to reach and attain the goals I had in my life.

I have a friend called Peter and for his seventeenth birthday his parents bought him a very impressive car which would have cost them around ฃ2000. He was very happy and showed off this car to all of his friends including myself. At this stage he was unable to even drive, however it was still a great present to receive.

Peter lived a couple of doors away from me and I showed my father the car and stated that I would love a car for my seventeenth birthday which was only three weeks away. He responded with words like, I bet you would. Despite this remark I felt sure that he would purchase a car for me as he certainly could have afforded to, in my opinion anyway.

My birthday arrived but no car was presented to me, the main present I received was a pair of trainers. I must admit even though I now feel embarrassed to say it, that I was quite disappointed.

Around eight months later, I managed to pass my driving test and my father was very pleased and congratulated me on my success. I told him that I was very happy, however, what was the point of passing my test if I had no car to drive. He seemed to agree but two months later he still had not bought me a car.

It was now nearing my eighteenth birthday and my father asked me what I would like for my birthday. He explained that your eighteenth is a special birthday and that he would be spending slightly more on me this year. I told him that I would like a car and he started laughing. Despit this I felt sure that he would oblige.

My birthday arrived and yet again no car, the main present I received was a watch, a very nice watch I must add but again I was disappointed.

I waited a further two months and then decided to use the head on approach. I went to talk to my father and told him that I needed a car. He agreed so I asked him, so what are we going to do then? If you want a car, go and buy a car, he responded. I pointed out to him that I was spending per week more than I was earning, socialising, buying clothes etc. He stated that I really wanted a car that I would make sacrifices to get it but also stated that whatever I saved he would match.

This very much annoyed me at the time, but something I am now grateful for as it has taught me that if you want something, you have to work hard and make sacrifices to obtain it.

Top 5 Reasons To Opt For An Internet Bank Account

2008-11-23T20:24:00.002-08:00

Over recent years online banking has become increasingly popular, and many consumers have started to enjoy the benefits of banking online. There are many different reasons why people decide to opt for an online bank account, and in the space of around six years the number of consumers using online banking has more than doubled. Here are some of the top reasons for opting for online banking.

1. Convenience and ease. With online banking you do not have to even leave the house or pick up the phone in order to conduct your banking transactions. Thanks to the Internet you can now perform these transactions from the comfort and privacy of your own home, and at any time of the day or night, so there are no time constraints to worry about.

2. No queuing or rushing necessary. Many people with full time jobs have had to rely on their lunch hour to try and get to the bank and conduct a transaction in the past. Often this resulted in lengthy queues and rushing around, with little time to actually enjoy your break and have a bite to eat. With online banking this becomes a thing of the past.

3. Choice of transactions. With online banking you can perform most transaction that you would be able to perform by visiting the branch or calling the bank. This includes setting up or calling standing orders or direct debits, transferring cash, making bill payments, checking your statement, and even ordering a new check book or card. You can also apply for other services such as a credit card via the Internet.

4. Special offers and incentives. Often you will find that online banks offer special incentives and offers to those that open up a bank account or savings account with them, such as a sum of cash credited into the account once you have been a customers and met the necessary requirements for a specified amount of time.

5. Saving valuable time. In this day and age time is of the essence, and people simply don’t have much time to dedicate to their finances. With online banking you can conduct your transactions or check your statement at the touch of a button, saving you time and hassle when it comes to managing your bank account.

Bankruptcy Law: Some Important Facts

2008-11-23T20:24:00.001-08:00

As applying for loans, credit cards and other forms of credit are easier to come by, so are the bankruptcy rates in the United States. In a ten year period, between 1994 and 2004, bankruptcy rates in the United States nearly doubled. The government’s reaction was to take a closer look at reasons parties were filing for bankruptcy, new laws were instated to ensure that individuals and businesses had valid reasons for applying for bankruptcy.

One of the primary laws regarding bankruptcy that was passed in the United States in 2004 is the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. This law just went into effect in October 2005, but has already caused quite a stir in the financial and bankruptcy law arenas. Besides making it more difficult to qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, or complete bankruptcy, the law imposes stricter rules and budgets on Chapter 13 debtors.

A major change the law makes throughout the United States is the need for debtors to have filed tax returns for four years in a row before qualifying for bankruptcy. As well, dischargeable debts, or those debts where personal liability is taken away by the court system, is more difficult to come by. The Act requires that debtors prove good reason for dischargeable debt and is even requiring more debtors to take responsibility with non-dischargeable debt budgets.

As far as the two major types of bankruptcy laws are concerned, Chapter 13 bankruptcy is that which allows the debtor to keep some assets upon proving only limited debt and a steady income. This bankruptcy is excellent for those debtors who have gotten themselves into major financial difficulty but still have means of paying for some assets. The court will set up a repayment schedule and budget that allows for full repayment of mortgages or cars within three to five years.

If repayment is simply not an option, the bankruptcy law requires that a debtor will file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. This is often referred to as complete liquidation of assets, except for exempt items. Exempt items in a bankruptcy hearing are determined by the court and are usually items that are a necessity, such as a car or work related items. As well, the courts will distribute debts into two categories: non-dischargeable and dischargeable debt.

Non-dischargeable debts also fall into two categories: non-dischargeable due to wrongful conduct on the debtor and non-dischargeable due to public policy. Wrongful misconduct by the debtor could mean theft or laundering money while public policy could include child support payment or court related judgments.

Keep in mind that in either type of bankruptcy, an individual is almost always required to still pay for taxes, student loans, alimony, child support or court related fees. This is the place where many bankrupt parties are misled in the Chapter 7 bankruptcy, as it is often referred to as "a fresh start". While the court can set up payment plans to help the debtor repay public policy debts, even Chapter 7 debtors will still be required to make payments.

Another major point regarding bankruptcy law is that a bankruptcy will stay on a credit report for approximately ten years. This will make it extremely difficult to become eligible for any type of credit, even a credit card, but especially for a car loan or a house mortgage. While some creditors will still offer limited credit to bankrupt individuals, the interest rates and finance charges are usually through the roof. This makes it even more difficult for debtors to get back on their feet.

Last but not least, keep in mind that bankruptcy law will require any co-signers to be responsible for debt payments. If mom or dad signed for a car loan when you were young and you still owe on that car, they are liable for payments. These friends or family members who were once doing you a favor may be brought into the bankruptcy law court proceedings, which can put a strain on friendships and family relations.

For specific bankruptcy law questions it is best to contact a bankruptcy attorney or legal aide in your county or state. Bankruptcy laws and proceedings may vary slightly from state to state, so be sure to make contacts in the state where you plan to file for bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy Lawyer: Your Final Solution When Running Out Of Options

2008-11-23T20:23:00.003-08:00

Before rushing to a lawyer to assist you in filing for bankruptcy, you have to make sure what is bankruptcy and what is not. Only then will you have to find a bankruptcy lawyer that you can work with in filing your case. Many people rush to file for bankruptcy thinking that it will solve their financial problems. The opposite is often true.

Declaring your business to be legally bankrupt, only mean that you have done everything you could and there is no way for recovery. It means being deep in debt that it will already be impossible for you to sustain the business.

There are kinds and variations to bankruptcy and the legal process will depend very much on where you are coming from but the purpose is the same. Bankruptcy cases will take years to resolve. The court will determine what debts do not have to be repaid and what will be directly deducted from your income.

In the interim, credit lines will be closed to you. Your credit history will be tainted and no credit institution will want to do business with you. Back taxes that you owe will still have to be paid and obligations will still be enforced like alimony and child support.

When there is no resolution that is possible, finding a good bankruptcy lawyer will then be the only recourse.

A good bankruptcy lawyer should be someone you can be comfortable talking with. Someone you can trust and someone who has displayed competence in handling bankruptcy. This is very important as communication between you and the lawyer must be based on trust. There have been so many instances when the client holds back on information that he thinks is not so significant only to learn later on that the piece of information that was withheld posed additional complication to the case. Withholding information from your bankruptcy lawyer pose problems where non existed before. Bankruptcy lawyers can only help the client to the extent of the knowledge that the lawyer has. It is crucial then that the client works with the lawyer. This is in the first place the client’s future that is at stake.

Do not hesitate to interview the lawyer prior to retaining him. Ask the lawyer questions and a good lawyer must answer you in a language that you can understand. If you don’t, do not be afraid to clarify statements that could be ambiguous to you. Find out a bankruptcy lawyer that already has an extensive experience in handling bankruptcy cases. Whenever possible find a bankruptcy lawyer who is a specialist. Avoid the generalist, as they may not be able to help you as much.

If you feel uncomfortable talking with a particular bankruptcy lawyer, find another one. You can visit the local bar association to find out their recommendation.

When you visit your bankruptcy lawyer, bring a list of all the creditors that you owe, including payments to personal loans that you are not left behind and a list of all your assets and liabilities. The more information you provide the bankruptcy lawyer, the better and more accurate the recommendations he will give you. Remember that lawyers can only work as good as the information that you provide.

Cooperate well in giving your lawyer the data regarding your case because you are in the best position to give those to him. You also will be the person that will either suffer or benefit from the outcome.

Avoid Financial Disaster with Good Planning

2008-11-23T20:23:00.001-08:00

It's tough to get by financially in today's fast-paced life. With mortgages, car notes and massive amounts of credit card debt, most people struggle to get by from month to month. With most people doing what they can just to pay their bills, few people are prepared for the unlikely event of a financial disaster. They come in many forms; a storm like Hurricane Katrina, a loss of job, or a sudden illness can break anyone who isn't prepared for an unexpected interruption in their financial life. But it isn't all that difficult to make preparations that will help you in times of a money crisis. All it takes is a bit of planning ahead of time.

Here are a few things that will help you be prepared for the unexpected:

Get an ATM/Debit card - You may not regularly use cash or have a need for a debit card, but there are some circumstances where it may be necessary. People from New Orleans who were temporarily displaced by Hurricane Katrina would have benefited from having access to cash even while away from home. If you don't use one regularly, get one anyway and keep it in a safe place.

Sign up for direct deposit - With direct deposit, you will know that your paycheck will be in your bank account even if you cannot, for whatever reason, physically get to your bank. This will help you in the event of illness or natural disaster that may have your local bank temporarily closed.

Sign up for online bill paying - You can pay bills even if you aren't at home via the Internet. You don't have to use the service, but it may come in handy at a time when you least expect it.

Save some emergency cash - Financial experts recommend that you save at least three months' worth of financial expenses. That's difficult, but every little bit can help. Try to cut back on a few unnecessary items, such as that tall latte you buy every day. It adds up, and you never know when you may need to access that emergency cash.

Set up a home equity line of credit - Unlike a home equity loan, which provides you with a lump sum of cash right away, a home equity line of credit provides you with cash that you can use a little at a time, and only when you need it. If you don't actually take any money out, you don't have monthly payments. But if an emergency strikes, you'll have cash available. This can be particularly helpful if you find yourself out of work for a short period of time. Your bank won't lend you money when you are out of work, so plan ahead of time and the money will be ready when you are.

A little bit of planning can go a long way when a financial emergency strikes. If you plan for it now, you will have fewer worries later.

Why Gas Prices Go Up and Down

2008-11-18T00:37:00.002-08:00

There are five primary factors that effect the price you pay for gas at the pump. Prices generally increase when the world crude oil market lowers their inventories. Also, when demand exceeds refinery capacity gas prices increase.

The first factor that makes up the price of gas at your local station is crude oil suppliers. This makes up about 59% of the price you pay for gas and it is determined by the world's oil-exporting countries, particularly OPEC, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. The amount of crude oil that these countries produce determines the price per barrel of oil.

The next factor that effects gas prices is the cost of refining the crude oil. This makes up about 10% of the total price of gas.

The third factor is the cost of transporting the crude oil to a refinery, then the refined gas to a distribution point and finally to your local gas station. If you are buying a brand name of gasoline, the cost that company spends in
marketing the or brand will also be added to the price you pay to buy from that brand. This makes up around 11% of the total price.

The forth factor accounts for about 20% of the total cost of gas, and it includes federal and local taxes. State, local and city taxes vary, accounting for some of the fluctuation you may see in gas prices in different geographical areas.

The fifth factor is the markup at your local gas station. Obviously your local gas station is in business to make money and has employees to pay. So you know that they must make money on every gallon of gas they sell. You may be surprised however to learn that the amount is generally not more than 10 cent and may be as low as a penny per gallon! Some states do have laws governing station markup and require a minimum percentage markup to protect small stations from being put out of business by larger companies
who may want to undercut them.

Utilizing Your Financial Safety Net

2008-11-18T00:37:00.001-08:00

A good place to put funds for infrequent payments or for possible emergencies is in a money market account where interest rates are most often higher than savings accounts and are more accessible. With a little self-discipline, you can give yourself some efficient financial security by enabling your money to work for you in several ways.

Where do you keep your money that you set aside for annual or semi-annual payments or for emergencies where you need extra cash quickly? You don’t want to draw funds from any of your savings or investment accounts – there may be a penalty for early withdrawal or it might be financially disadvantageous at that time.
Most people just keep what they have in their checking accounts where it earns nothing or next to nothing. Some don’t keep funds for emergencies and just hope for the best or depend on luck.

“Luck always seems to be against the man who depends on it.”

-Unknown

Here’s another question. Do you set anything aside in case you need to pay the deductible on an insurance claim?

A good place to put funds for infrequent payments or for possible emergencies is in a money market account where interest rates are most often higher than savings accounts and are more accessible. Some banks offer even higher rates on Internet money market accounts. You really need to check your bank’s rates on various types of accounts to see which would be best. It’s good to compare banks. There can be a big difference. Money market accounts require a higher balance, but the amount you will need to keep in it will more than meet that.

The good thing about money market accounts is that even though there is a limited number of checks you can write on it in a given time period, it is usually more than enough for most people.

When you plan your budget, you will need to make payments to this account until the balance is sufficient to cover your home and auto annual or bi-annual payments and cover all your deductibles for your home, auto, medical and dental policies. Once this account is fully funded, the interest earned will be able to reduce your monthly budget payments that go to replace that which was used for insurance payments or for emergencies.

With this account in place, you will be able to take the highest deductible allowed thereby reducing your monthly insurance payment. If you pay your auto insurance quarterly or twice a year, you now will be able to make an annual payment, saving on the service charges.

Money market accounts may not earn the kind of return as a mutual fund or other types of investments but it is definitely better than most savings and checking account interest rates. Money market accounts have the advantage of easy access for your infrequent financial needs.

With a little self-discipline, you can give yourself some efficient financial security by enabling your money to work for you in several ways.

Tips for Future Financial Planning Portfolio for Retirement Employee

2008-11-18T00:36:00.004-08:00

After Retirement Employee will require to plan about future life. Different Financial Planning in which some planning options described same as Mutual Funds, Fixed Income, PPF and other Life Insurance.

Have you ever thought that how you should do future planning for your children? We are now discussing related to the opportunity that you should deploy your future planning. Opportunity means life insurance, mutual funds, equities and fixed deposit should all features are Financial Planning options for your children. And also you make plan for your retirement and other objectives, like as buying property, investment in various industries area and so on.

Mutual Fund:
Nowadays; mutual Fund is the most popular option. Mutual fund is the best option to make money from difference financial services. Investors can invest money in the different segments like gold, equities, debt and also property and various mutual fund schemes. Important thing is that investing and managing your money is need expertise skill. For example: The Fund Manager: Investors can get bunch of benefits by using experience of fund manager by paying a little fee at one time or annually.

Fixed Income:
Fixed income or Fixed Deposit, name itself suggests that fixed income, Get secure return on the maturity of the deposit. Positive point of Fixed Deposit is that investor will get fixed income at the time of maturity. This option is also very popular in different financial services. Fixed income has the capacity to convey a degree of constancy to the Objectives.

PPF:
Usually, Fixed Deposit by Banks has been well-known investment avenues in this part. Same, small investment schemes like PPF (Public Provident Fund) can also aspect in the group.

Life insurance is the one of the basic saving system of this type of portfolio. It is the essential requirement of Every Human being.

After retirement there are the most thing activities Financial Planning will acquire. If you don’t know where the money is coming from once you have established working, you won’t have a very pleasurable life.

Retirement from the any services which is makes considerable changes in employee’s life style. Different Occupations have different retirement ages. There are many reasons behind the employee’s leaving the jobs.

There are many person get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of their daily lives that they don’t even consider having a retirement plan until it is too late. This is the main reason to lack of financial planning behind it.

Employees must need to start planning for this important thing. Now in these days, there are many finance company interested to help to employee for their retirement plan through different choices. And also they give much opportunity by conducting seminar for more information on this area. Because of financial companies have made research on the same and make database by gathering sophisticated data. These all companies have a lot of idea behind employees retirement planning.

And finally, we hope these article will give you more finance technique, more investment criteria and tips for financial planning. We hope your future after retirement is bright and your remaining golden year pass with enjoy.

Spreading Your Investment And Savings Risks

2008-11-18T00:36:00.003-08:00

The world stock markets are going through quite a turbulent period at present and on average around ten percent has been wiped off some of the leading markets over the last month. In this article I write about how on a personal note I try to save in a series of different financial products which helps me to spread the risk, including when we have these stock market falls.

I started saving money on a regular basis about five years ago. At this stage the stock market in the UK had just had some dramatic falls after the terrorist attacks in New York. I wanted to build up a kind of rainy day fund and decided to invest monthly premiums into a unit trust. I started saving ฃ50 a month and over time I increased this figure.

I have to say that I have been very lucky as my investment has done very well, I have even over the last couple of years cashed in some of the units to pay for our family holidays. At the start of this year the stock market in the UK was showing its highest levels in five and a half years.

In the five years that I have been investing, I have bought and now own a large number of units in this unit trust fund. What it now means however, is that if the stock markets have a period just like the one it has had, it costs me financially on paper quite a lot of money.

I now believe that my exposure to the stock markets is high enough and have decided that I will leave the units that I have invested in the fund as they are, but that I will not be adding to them. Instead I am going to put my regular savings into one of the high interest regular savings online bank accounts. This of course is a way of spreading the risk.

I have no idea which way the world stock markets are going to go over the next few months. Many people are saying that the United States interest rates may rise and that this could have a damaging affect on world markets. There could well be another major terrorist attack which could of course result in dramatic stock market falls.

I am hoping that the stock markets will continue to rise in the same way that they have over the last five years and that the falls over the last few weeks are just a blip. I just think that I have enough money invested and would like to start building some form of other savings in a safer type of environment.

Reward Credit Cards - Finding the Best Available

2008-11-18T00:36:00.001-08:00

Reward credit cards come in a variety of forms. Specifically how points toward rewards are earned and the types of rewards that can be earned with a reward credit card varies from card to card.

The rewards offered by reward credit cards are generally related to a special area. For example, some reward credit cards allow cardholders to earn points when making purchases at gas station, supermarkets, or drugstores. The rewards earned are often related to this in some way, such as the cardholder may receive gift certificates to the same types of stores. Similarly, the reward credit card may be related to airline travel. Every time the cardholder makes purchases with a specific airline, he or she earns airline miles or free travel. In addition, these airline reward credit cards also generally offer the cardholder free companion tickets.

When it comes to choosing the best reward credit cards, the consumer needs to assess his or her lifestyle and determine which rewards are most attractive - and most profitable - for his or her needs. A reward credit card that provides specialized rewards, such as gift certificates to a specific restaurant, may not be useful to a cardholder that does not have a need for that reward.

Reward credit cards can provide credit cardholders with fantastic rewards for their purchases. At the same time, the consumer needs to be sure he or she is not actually paying for the reward in the form of finance charges and annual fees. Many reward credit cards assess an annual fee. If this annual fee costs more than it would cost to simply purchase the reward, it is certainly not worth paying for.

The same holds true when looking at the Annual Percentage Rate (APR). A cardholder who pays the balance of his or her credit card in full each month need not worry about the APR. One that intends to carry a balance from billing cycle to billing cycle, however, must consider the amount of money that will be spent in the form of finance charges. Once again, if the finance charges will be too great, the rewards of the credit card are not really rewards - they are items the cardholder is paying for.

Several reward credit cards have expiration dates. For those cardholders that will not be able to collect enough reward points before they expire, these reward credit cards may not be the best option. Similarly, some reward credit cards have limitations to how many points can be acquired each year. Cardholders need to consider these limitations in order to ensure they are receiving the greatest amount of rewards possible. If a cardholder spends $15,000 per year on a credit card, but a rewards credit card only rewards up to the first $10,000, that is $5,000 that is going unrewarded. The answer may be to select a different reward credit card, or to simply stop spending on this particular credit card once the limit has been reached. After all, every dollar spent on a credit card deserves to be rewarded.

A good place for consumers to look for the best reward credit cards is at the businesses they frequent. For example, a consumer that routinely purchases gas from a specific type of gas station should enquire with that business to learn if it has a rewards credit card. The same is true for a consumer that frequents certain restaurants, stores, and airlines. It is becoming increasingly commonplace for businesses to pair up with major credit cards to offer special reward cards.

Point and Click to Your Financial Plan

2008-11-18T00:35:00.003-08:00

Money is About Life: Life is About Mastering Money

2008-11-18T00:35:00.001-08:00

The way we live our lives and the daily decisions we make, are all decisions about money. Yet, few of us actually take the time to think and plan for what is important to us.

Too often we get caught up in our lives to worry about finances. The problem is that finances are in many cases why our lives are so hectic. This phenomenon is all too common. I say "we" because I face the very same difficulties - even though I am a financial advisor.

I like most people would like to live a life where someone else did the things around the house and at the office that I don't want to do, I would like to be able to spend time at an emotionally meaningful and challenging profession, I would like to spend time with my wife and kids, and I would like some down time to do whatever I opt to do.

Given these financial goals I often wonder what I (and my clients) are doing to work towards those goals. I (and most of my clients) spend a lot of time around the house and office doing things I (we) don't want to do. I find excuses for not hiring someone to do those things.

Instead of focusing my energies at work on things that are emotionally meaningful (such as stewarding money towards charitable causes) and challenging (such as structuring complex partnership agreements), I tend to spend my days pushing paperwork and setting up accounts. Yet, I have spent very little time thinking about how to remedy this situation. When I start thinking about these issues, I often make excuses (such as "if I want it done right, I have to do it myself").

I spend a lot of hours in the office and even when I am at home I end up doing tasks that are away from my wife and children (such as mowing the lawn or repairing a leaky faucet). I could easily hire this type of work out, but somehow I always end up just doing it myself.

I have a lot of interests, such as coaching my son's soccer team, reading classic literature (especially 18th century thrillers), and restoring old run down Volvos. Other than the coaching, I never seem to find time to do these things that I enjoy.

At this point you might be thinking, "so what does that have to do with finances?" The answer is that it has everything to do with finances. Each decision is predicated on either earning more money or spending less money. That is the rub. The dirty secret that is all too taboo in our society. Money, if used properly, can in fact make your life better.

In all of the financial advice I give my clients, one message remains the same: your money is your happiness. Secure your money and you will secure your life. Of course this advice means different things to different people. The "do-it-yourselfer" may read this to mean that they should be frugal and save every penny, to have a brighter tomorrow. The "fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants" kind of person might read it to mean that they should spend everything to have a brighter today.

Luckily they are both right. Each individual can and should examine what is important to them. They should set out (I mean by actually writing it down) a plan in light of what is important to them. They should take steps over time to fully implement that plan and they should review the plan periodically to ensure that they are still pursuing goals that are important to them. This is what I teach clients and this is what I try to implement in my own life.

I spend more time at home with my family and I hire rather than do some things myself. In short I force myself to do what is not what I would normally do. After exploring my (and my wife's) goals, that was what was important to us. Having made a lot of progress towards these goals, I can tell you that my life is a thousand times better today than when I started. I fully expect it to be a thousand times greater in the future.

This is what true financial planning is all about. If you have not explored your goals, I urge you to do so now. If you haven't met with a financial professional to discuss your goals, I urge you to do so today. Once you start making progress towards your goals, you will wonder why you didn't do so sooner.

Instant Payday Loans: Fast Cash to Tide Over Pay Day

2008-11-18T00:34:00.004-08:00

Instant payday loans are short-term money provisions. These money provisions provide instant cash direct into your account in less than 24 hours. You can apply for such loans online and offline, though online applying is preferred these days.

The problem is that you borrow money for a reason – the reason to tide over to payday, to fund a holiday, some home improvement etc. the focus on what the way we want to get the fast cash. For Instant Payday Loans has given a good answer to the spending question and suggested to spend now and repay the amount tomorrow. Altogether, it has become an ethos of the day.

Here is certain eligibility criteria that you need to fulfill in order to qualify for these payday loans. For example, it is must for you to be at least 18 years of age and to be permanent citizen of the UK. Besides that, the most important factor is that, you must have a stable employment and an active checking account. Your present job should be at least three months old. As older your job, the more your chances of securing instant approval gets brighter. A checking account is a bank account, in which your monthly salary is credited every month on the payday.

Before you hit the shops you should start with a planning of your expenses. You know that borrowing will almost always cost you money. Is saving is a possibility instead? You should think also about what you would do if interest rates rise again. Most people will look no further than their own bank or building society, but a variety of providers now offers instant payday loans. It is certainly pays to shop around. Do not assume that your bank will offer you the best deal. Go to a name that you can trust and steer clear of dubious-looking adverting sections.

Using Internet, many lenders have gone online to provide payday loans. Gone are the days when you had to submit supporting documents to apply for a cash loan. All you need to do now is simply login to a lender’s website, complete online application form, and wait for them to do verification. The whole process can take as quick as one hour or so. And a little later, you will get the money deposited directly into your bank account.

How to transfer a retirement account

2008-11-18T00:34:00.003-08:00

As you probably know, an individual retirement account requires that you decide where your money is going to be invested in order to work with the retirement account.

Make sure you know where you intend on moving your money in advance!

As you probably know, an individual retirement account requires that you decide where your money is going to be invested in order to work with the retirement account. Essentially this is called a "custodian" for your investments. You should generally chose a safe custodian - some of the most common ones are mutual funds, savings accounts, and bonds. While you should definitely be careful as to which custodian you choose for your retirement account, don't worry! You are not stuck with the same investment until you retire.

However, unlike a normal investment, you should keep in mind that you are only allowed to transfer or "roll over" your retirement account once a year. Also, there are some very specific rules that you need to follow. It is generally a good idea to find out how to transfer a retirement account before you even begin to invest in one. That way if you ever need to do a roll over in the future, you'll be ready.

First of all, you should probably have a good idea of where you want to invest the money before you start the rollover process. The reason for this is that after you take the money out of your original IRA custodian, you'll only have 60 days to put it into the new custodian fund. If you take too long, then you will be subject to a large penalty tax - and penalties are definitely not worth the few extra days that you take!

Something to keep in mind is that if you do a roll over, you will need to report that at the end of the year. Just like anything else that is involved with your finances, you should make sure that you keep track of which custodians go with your individual retirement accounts and how much money is in each account.

If you are going to do a smaller transfer from one existing IRA to another, then it is possible that you won't even have to report your transfer. These transfers are also tax-free. This is a good idea if you do not want to change all of your money from one custodian to another, but you think that it would be a good idea to change how much money you have in each IRA.

Here’s a secret: expenses can mean more income!

2008-11-18T00:34:00.001-08:00

Find me a person who doesn’t want to make more money. It’s nearly impossible to find! Everyone wants to make money and there’s nothing wrong with that because money makes the world go ‘round! But many people don’t know that you can actually make money with a loan! Did you know that? It’s true! One way that you can get more money is with a secured loan.

Wait a minute, you’re saying. How can a loan give me more money? Doesn’t a loan, by its very nature, reduce the amount of money I have?

It’s true that it may seem like that, but a secured loan is an ideal way to make money. Here’s how:

A secured loan is a loan that provides some kind of asset as a guarantee to a lending agency. So when you apply for a loan, you also suggest that if you cannot pay, you have some kind of asset that will cover the default amount. For some people, it’s their car. For others, it may be their jewelry or some stock certificates.

Whatever it is, lending institutes like secured loans because it reduces the risk they have when lending money. Unsecured loans are high risk endeavours for them because if someone defaults on the loan, there is little they can do to get their money back. On the other hand, secured loans have some kind of guarantee which makes them a risk-free investment for the lending agency. And because there is little risk to them, they are willing to pass some of that savings on to you in the form of reduced interest rates and longer repayment terms.

So here’s how you can make money from it. First, collect all of your credit card bills together. Add up how much you own. Many people owe in the thousands and are shocked to discover that the interest rate is abysmally high. Second, find an asset that you can use to get a secured loan. Third, shop around and find a loan provider.

Collect those debts together and consolidate them under one secured loan. That way, you’ll reduce the amount of interest you pay on each debt because secured loans have lower interest rates than credit cards. And, you’ll stretch out your repayment period beyond the short term that credit cards give you. And, even better, you’ll have a fixed amount of money you know you have to pay each month, rather than get surprised every few days with another bill from a credit card company.

Since people often pay half as much above the purchase price in interest on credit cards, you’ll make money you would have spent by consolidating your loan into a UK secured credit card consolidation loan.

Five Steps to a Comfy Retirement

2008-11-18T00:33:00.006-08:00

Building a comfortable retirement nest egg is easier than you think. Here are five steps to help you build a comfortable retirement.

You’ve probably heard about the Nebraska meatpackers who won the largest lottery jackpot in the United States last week. One winner replied “I’ve been retired for about four days now” when asked what he would do with his winnings. His response did not surprise me; I’m sure my reaction would be similar!

What does surprise me is that many Americans believe that they cannot retire comfortably unless they win the lottery. A survey by the Consumer Federation of America shows that 27% of Americans believe that their best chance to gain $500,000 in their lifetime is to win a sweepstakes or lottery.

Fortunately, building a comfortable retirement nest egg is easier than you think. Here are five steps to help you build a comfortable retirement:

1. Start early! If you started saving $100 a month beginning at age 18, you would have over $500,000 by age 65. The power of compounding is great, and the earlier you start saving, the greater the benefit.

2. Have a plan. The best way to ensure that you will have a comfortable retirement is to plan how much you will need to retire. You can’t reach your destination if you don’t know where you’re going.

3. Participate in company sponsored retirement plans. Many companies offer matching contributions to your 401K or other retirement plan contributions. This is free money – take it!

4. Invest in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, that fits your goals and risk tolerance. Studies show that your investment return is determined primarily by the allocation of your assets, not the individual investment selections you make.

5. Keep your costs down. Invest in no-load, low cost mutual funds (or other investments). Lowering the expenses in your portfolio by just 1% can equate to 20% more money in your portfolio after 20 years.

Although winning a large lottery certainly can’t hurt, following the steps above should send you well on your way to a comfortable retirement.

Doorway to Quick Cash Immediate Approval Loans!

2008-11-18T00:33:00.005-08:00

In case of an immediate approval loan, you do not provide any guarantee, so there is more risk for the lender and less for you.

Financial matters are crucial one and you need to be extra careful while opting for any kind of loan. One more thing, in financial matters you should remember that a stitch in time saves nine. Therefore, always consider whether you will receive instant cash to meet your needs from that particular loan or not. One such loan in financial crisis is immediate approval loans.

Have you missed few monthly payments on your home loan? Are you a discharged bankrupt? Do you have arrears to clear? You have probably convinced yourself that loan market has no options for you and the few options available are way beyond your reach.

In case of an immediate approval loan, you do not provide any guarantee, so there is more risk for the lender and less for you - but you still have some risk because you have to pay the loan back, and lenders can still take some action against you to recover their money. The amount of money you can borrow on them is usually limited by your ability to repay.

Prior to applying for a personal loan against next pay cheque, note that such a short duration of loan, prompts the lenders to charge exorbitant fees. These immediate personal loans therefore may even result in debts for the borrowers. So be careful in finding a suitable lender who has lower fee charged on instant personal loans.

The lenders do not insist any security for instant approval loans. So much time would have been otherwise spent on evaluation of the residential property is now saved. It facilitates for the instant approval of these loans. These loans are slightly expensive compared to other loans. As they are short term loans, lenders charge very high interest rate on these loans.

Lenders usually have no hesitation in approving the loan amount within a short span of applying for it, if the borrower enjoys a constant source of income to repay the loan amount. The loan approval process is very easy. Apart from the identification and employment status of the borrower, another factor that needs consideration is borrower's regular monthly income. If the monthly salary of the person is in accordance with the amount to be borrowed then it cuts down the risk of the lender. Lender therefore can quickly approve your Fast approval home financing loan plan. Find out from experts which loan serves you right, try now!

Debt: Self-Help or a Credit Lawyer?

2008-11-18T00:33:00.003-08:00

“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen shillings and sixpence, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds and sixpence, result misery”. Mr. Micawber's remarks on debt remain just as true today, perhaps more so with the explosion of credit cards, as they did when Dickens wrote them. We might, like Mr. Micawber, indulge in wishful thinking and try to convince ourselves that “something will turn up”.

In reality, though, we all know deep down that sooner or later debt problems have to be faced, the sooner the better. Nowadays we might not face debtors' prison for consumer debt, but we should not fool ourselves either into thinking that credit repair or filing for bankruptcy are easy options. Whichever you choose, self-help or credit lawyer, the road ahead will be a long one. It's well to face this fact at the outset.

Presenting the options for dealing with debt as a stark choice between self-help and legal relief is a bit misleading. In truth, whether you seek a lawyer or not, you still need to help yourself by acknowledging bad spending habits and poor budgeting management. You must bite the bullet, and the first very important step to take is to take responsibility for the situation you find yourself in. Second, if you want to avoid the courts, you'll need to set up a budget plan which, unlike lawyers' fees, will cost you very little. For a small fee you can enlist the services of nonprofit organisations which will be only too willing to give you assistance in drawing up a plan. You don't have to feel you're fighting a lone battle.

But perhaps you're a natural self-helper, and you want to get yourself out of your financial mess by using your skills to draw up a budget plan yourself. Software programs are now readily available which will enable you to begin budgeting your money with a view to repairing your credit. Being proactive is the best way to build solid foundations for fiscal fitness in the short and long-term: you are retaking control of your life. Remember: your flexible friend will only keep you fit to live beyond your means. If you want to keep fiscally fit, stick rigidly to living within your means and the strict discipline imposed by a budget plan.

Living within your means sounds very laudable, but real self-help should mean living below your means, well below. Why? Simply because you're looking to repair your credit as soon as possible, and you can achieve this by paying off as much as you possibly can on all your debts simultaneously. Paying off a small amount monthly to each company you owe money to is a good start, showing both commitment on your part and a safeguarding of your position to ensure you don't face court proceedings. Some debts, however, gain interest and you're therefore paying off less of the principal each month. Increase your monthly repayments and you put yourself in a good light with your creditors as well as working towards an earlier credit repair.

Living below your means: sounds a good idea but how is it done? Realistically, If there's no pain there's no gain. Changes in your lifestyle have to be made, some quite radical, particularly if your debts are substantial. Of course, you will have got rid of your credit cards and curtailed your spending habits, but you'll need to go much further if you're to count as a serious self-helper. Raising your income by taking on another job is one option. Selling your home and moving into rental property is another. These potentially are very stressful lifestyle changes, but the alternative of bankruptcy could hardly be described as stress-free.

You might feel, though, that filing for bankruptcy is the only way forward and that your debt situation is intractable. At this point hiring a credit lawyer might seem necessary to protect your interests, particularly if your debt is very large and your case complex. Before we look at the pros and cons of taking such action, it's worth pointing out that new laws have recently been introduced which make qualifying for bankruptcy anything but a foregone conclusion. On current trends, we're likely to reach the stage quite soon when it will become very difficult for anyone to file for bankruptcy.

This tightening of the bankruptcy laws in the US seems to contrast with the apparent liberalization of UK bankruptcy law. In the UK the period of a bankruptcy has shortened from three or two years to one year for 'honest', first-time bankrupts. For serial bankrupts, and others who have contributed to their plight through neglect or fraud, the period of bankruptcy has been lengthened to a minimum of five years. So, for first-time bankrupts, the aim is to encourage financial institutions to give first-timers a fresh start by easing credit restrictions post-bankruptcy. By contrast, serial bankrupts are made to face the seriousness of their delinquent actions.

But returning to the US, the question that tightening the rules on bankruptcy qualification throws up is, do you go for self-help or a credit lawyer? Opt for self-help and you could be doing yourself the best possible favor. If the law is going to make it increasingly difficult to file for bankruptcy then there seems no alternative but to implement a budget plan as outlined earlier. When the going gets tough, and tougher, the tough get going.

On the other hand, opt for a credit lawyer and you could benefit from an experienced attorney's expertise to secure your bankruptcy qualification. Credit lawyers would argue their experience and detailed knowledge of bankruptcy law could prove invaluable in matters like reaffirmation agreements where you'll be able to keep your residence or automobile by continuing to make payments on your home or car. This is possible because they are secured loans. The distinction between secured and unsecured loans, and its importance to the debtor, is well appreciated and used to best advantage by experienced bankruptcy lawyers.

So, self-help or credit lawyer? On balance self-help, because, as the person who created the problem, you must utimately be the one to restore your fiscal fitness. With the increasingly draconian nature of bankruptcy law self-help can only assume greater importance. As a last resort, though, seeking legal counsel might best protect your interests. But only you hold the key to keeping your annual expenditure down to “nineteen pounds nineteen and sixpence”.

Convert To Roth IRA Regardless of Income – 2010

2008-11-18T00:33:00.001-08:00

An odd quirk in the recent legislation to extend the Bush Tax Cuts is giving IRA holders a huge break. For one year, and one year only, the income cap will be gone.

Convert To Roth IRA Regardless of Income – 2010

2010 may seem like a long way off, but something magical is going to happen then if you prepare for it. The recent legislation extending the Bush tax cuts contains a unique clause regarding the Roth IRA. Specifically, it contains language that makes the Roth IRA available to anyone regardless of their income, but only for one year.

A Roth IRA is a retirement account that offers a lot of advantages. The primary advantage is found in the distributions from the account. Simply put, they are tax free if a couple of requirements are met. First, the distributions must be made after you pass the age of 59 years and six months. Second, you must have owned the Roth IRA for at least five years. If you meet this test, the money is yours free and clear including all the gains you have made from your investments over the years.

The only criticism of Roth IRAs has to do with income caps. Simply put, a person with a modified gross adjusted income of $100,000 or more cannot convert an existing IRA to a Roth. While many people fall below this income cap, those that were just over it certainly have had a beef.

In an effort to extend his tax cuts, the President agreed to a number of oddities in the new tax legislation. One of the strange clauses is a single year cap exemption. In 2010, the income cap of $100,000 will not apply to the Roth IRA. Put in simple terms, you can convert to a Roth in 2010 regardless of how much you make. You can only do it in 2010, not 2009 or 2011.

There appears to be no reason why the politicians would create a one year exemption to the Roth IRA income cap. It certainly seems a bit fishy, but you might as well take advantage of it. While 2010 seems far off in the future, it gives you time to plan any conversion. Remember, if you convert a traditional IRA to a Roth, you must pay taxes on the moved money. If at all possible, you will want to do this with cash you save between now and then. The more money you can cram into a Roth, the better off you will be in the end.

Budget your way to success

2008-11-18T00:31:00.002-08:00

Budgeting sounds like a boring strategy used by our parents. For a long time, budgeting was considered the way to manage money because it helped people keep track of where their finances were going. But lots of people are choosing not to budget because it seems so needlessly complicated with little or not benefit. But there is a benefit to budgeting; the real trick is finding a budgeting method that works for you. Here is an excellent strategy to help you manage the money in your personal portfolio.

The first thing you need to do is create a budget. Creating a budget does not have to be restrictive, but it should be a guideline to help you manage your income and your expenses each month. The first thing you want to do is list all your expenses on a month-to-month basis. The next thing you want to do it list all of your income on a month-to-month basis. Then compare. Many people who have trouble saving find that their expenses are very close to their income. So what can you do?

One option you have is to reduce your expenses. This might mean going out with friends a little less or giving up on some luxury that you typically enjoy. Another option you have is to increase your income. Unfortunately, for many people, this is easier said than done.

One way that you can reduce your expenses and increase your income is by using a debt consolidation loan. By consolidating many outstanding debts that are due throughout the month into a single loan with a single monthly payment you will be accomplishing several things.

First, you will be reducing your monthly payment because you will be securing a larger loan and is spread out over a longer period of time. Second, you'll be reducing the amount of interest you pay because you will be consolidating your many debts into one debt from one provider. Reducing your interest not only helps to reduce your expenses but also increases your income!

And if you are able to find some assets that can help you get a secured loan, you'll be able to spread out your payment over a longer period of time and you will likely qualify for a lower interest rate because you have some security to offer the lending institution to back up the loan.

Now that you are actively pursuing a budget, you will need to find a way to continue to reduce your expenses over time. A secured loan will help you do that. But don't forget that there are many ways you can also increase your income.

Congratulations! You are assembling a budget and getting control of your finances and at the same time you are reducing your expenses and increasing your income.

Bankruptcy Information: Some Basics

2008-11-18T00:31:00.001-08:00

As bankruptcy is one of the most important financial decisions a business or individual will ever make, it is essential to have correct bankruptcy information before getting starting with the process.

Finding yourself in a difficult financial situation can be scary. Facing the possibility of dealing with bankruptcy can be even scarier, especially since most individuals or businesses don’t spend time making themselves aware of the legalities that go along with the process. Since many debtors are ashamed of the situation, they often fear asking too many questions regarding the process. As bankruptcy is one of the most important financial decisions a business or individual will ever make, it is essential to have correct bankruptcy information before getting starting with the process.

The federal court systems in the United States deal with all bankruptcy information and set the laws regarding the process. This does not mean that an individual has to go to Washington D.C. to file though, as each state will deal with individuals and businesses during proceedings. This may mean going all the way to the state capitol though. The federal laws on bankruptcy information state that these laws are in place simply to give an honest, but fallible debtor a fresh start.

One of the most important pieces of bankruptcy information to know is that the courts don’t come to the individual or business to file, the individual or business goes to the courts. Simply by filing a petition called a Statement of Intentions, the debtor lets the court system know that they are applying for bankruptcy.

Just because a debtor files the Statement of Intentions does not always mean they will go all the way through the legal system. The courts will need to gather important bankruptcy information through forms that will need to be filled out by the debtor. These forms allow the courts to review a debtor’s credit history, list current creditors and the amounts of the debts, as well as current and past work history. From this the federal court system will make a determination as to whether or not a debtor can proceed with the court case.

Keep in mind that the debtor does not have to hire an attorney to represent them through the proceedings, although attorneys can be a great source of knowledge regarding bankruptcy information. Many debtors are scared to hire an attorney because of additional charges that they cannot afford, but most attorneys are reasonably priced due to the circumstances. Often times attorneys will not charge a fee for an initial consultation when the debtor is simply trying to acquire bankruptcy information.

Unfortunately, most of the general public does not have a thorough understanding of bankruptcy information. This causes misconceptions regarding bankruptcy. One of the major misconceptions of bankruptcy is that all possessions are taken and repossessed by the courts. Since there are many different chapters of bankruptcy, there are also many different takes on repaying debts, and only Chapter 7 requires a complete liquidation of assets. Even with Chapter 7, debtors are allowed exempts, or items that are necessary for living.

One more important piece of bankruptcy information to keep in mind is that there is a new bankruptcy law in place called Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. This law was implemented in 2005 to stop fraudulent bankruptcy claims and may make it more difficult to convince the courts of a claim.

Although filing for Chapter 13 and Chapter 11, or reorganization plans, have not changed that much, filing for Chapter 7 has becoming increasingly difficult. Previously, debtors were not required to take courses on debt, but with the new law in place, Chapter 7 debtors are required to take Credit Counseling and Financial management courses before the process can be completed.

Bad Credit Personal Loans: Delivers Finances Irrespective of Credit

2008-11-18T00:30:00.000-08:00

Bad credit personal loans are designed for borrowers with a history of bad credit. These loans are accessible in secured and unsecured form. By repaying the borrowed amount borrower gets a chance to improve the credit record.

To constantly live with the tag of bad credit is certainly not a good one. More so, it affects the financial stability of a person. This is where Bad Credit Personal Loans can help these specific individuals a lot. It is because these loans offer finances to the individuals irrespective of their poor credit record.

Bad credit happens when a borrower does not repay or skip his past loans which results in creating a series of problems like CCJs, IVA, arrears, defaults etc. It can be also attributed to various factors like sudden illness, transfer, loss of employment on the part of borrower. But with the finances obtained form the loans, borrower can meet the various needs like purchasing a car, renovation of home, education, wedding, travelling etc.

Lenders offer these loans in two forms i.e. secured and unsecured. The secured form of the loans can be availed only by placing collateral of value such as home, real estate property, car etc. Placing of the asset assures the lender that the amount is safe and will be safely returned. The amount offered depends a lot on the equity value of collateral. Besides as there is a security attached, the rates of interest are comparatively low.

Unsecured from of these loans are accessible without the involvement of any collateral. This makes it beneficial for borrowers who do not own any asset such as tenants and non homeowners. Homeowners too can apply for these loans. The amount offered is based mainly on the repayment capability and income drawn. However the rates of interest for this loan option is slightly higher.

These loans not only assist the borrower by offering finances, it also helps to strengthen the credit record. By ensuring regular monthly installments towards the borrowed amount, they can very much improve their credit record

Most of the lenders now offer these loans through the online mode. It is also preferable as these lenders due to stiff competition in the market are offering these loans at cheap rates.

Bad credit personal loans assist the borrower to fulfill various needs without worrying about their credit record. Moreover by repaying the borrowed amount, they can improve their credit record.

Why do we need to invest?

2008-11-13T20:09:00.001-08:00

Discusses why the world's aging population impacts on the need for personal investments.

It is vitally important in this current day and age for all of us to begin taking control of our financial situation and start planning for our future, and the futures of our children.

We can no longer rely on the government to hand out an aged pension once we retire. We cannot take for granted that at the end of our working life we will be taken care of financially.

The world population is ageing, due to the baby boomer generation, and within 30 years there will be so many retired people, compared to the number of working age people, that it will be economically impossible for the government to afford to provide any reasonable source of monetary assistance for the elderly.

The government has realised this, and that is why they introduced the compulsory employer paid superannuation scheme and are even now beginning to give financial incentives to Self-Funded retirees.

Most of us have never sat down and even considered the ramifications of why the compulsory super was introduced and for many of us it is a matter of too little too late. Even for the young women in our society – who have a full working life ahead of them, they still cannot rest assured of a comfortable retirement.

Why is this? It is because that unfortunately even with contributions at the current level of less than 10%, someone on an average wage who works continually for 30 years, is still going to find themselves trying to survive on an income equivalent to less than $20,000,00 per annum in today’s dollars.

You will notice that I said continually working for 30 years. This is another reason why women are particularly disadvantaged. Firstly because they often have to take up to ten years leave from the workforce to raise children, secondly because women in general earn less than their male counterparts and thirdly because an enormous proportion of the women in Australia, for example, will never have received any superannuation contributions, prior to the compulsory superannuation being introduced, and will therefore not have had contributions made over their entire working life so far, giving them even less to fall back on by the time they retire.

Many women may previously not have thought of lack of superannuation contributions as being a problem, as their husbands may have been contributing to super since they first began work. Unfortunately though with the high number of divorces in this country, it is unwise to rely on the fact that your partner’s superannuation will be there for you in your retirement years and even if a large proportion is awarded in a settlement – that it will be sufficient to sustain a comfortable retirement for any length of time.

All of these factors are why women now more than ever, need to begin taking action to build up a source of ongoing income, that will grow to such an extent, as to be able to provide a secure and happy future for themselves and their children.

It needs to be a source of income that is unrelated to physical work…that is an income that is generated from income producing assets – and not from our personal efforts.
One of the best sources of creating this ongoing income stream is to begin building an investment property portfolio, also aptly paraphrased as bricks and mortar.

We need to start investing in income producing assets now, so that they will have time to grow and develop so that we will be financially independent for our retirement years.

The most important concept to grasp in relation to building wealth for retirement and for creating finances that can be directed toward charities, or helping out your family is that of Compound interest.

In mathematical terms 72 divided by Compound Interest Rate of Return = Years for Money to Double in Value.

Therefore if you have $1,000.00 invested at 10% interest, then the number of years that it will take for your money to double to $2,000.00 is 7.2. It will quadruple in 14.4 years and be worth 8 times as much in just over 21 years.

If your money is invested at 7% interest, then it will take approximately ten years to double in value. If it is invested at 5% it will double in just over fourteen years.

The two most important aspects of compounding are one: rate and two: time. The higher the rate and the longer the time something is left to compound, the greater the final result will be. This is why the sooner we start investing, the better.

What is True Wealth?

2008-11-13T20:08:00.001-08:00

What is true wealth? What should you expect if you reach the end of the gold paved road to financial freedom?

If you have a million dollars, will you be satisfied? What about 10 million? Is true wealth a numbers game or do other factors enter into the equation?

Ebenizer Scrooge of Dicken’s The Christmas Carol was very wealthy for his time, but before meeting the three ghosts of Christmas past, present and future,
he lived a miserable life, too cheap to even heat his own apartment.

Meanwhile his clerk, with his many children, was portrayed as happy and loving - a great father.

Of course this is fiction, but is there any truth to the story?

Many people will work incessantly trying to accumulate more and more wealth, but a trite joke is that their last words are never: “I wished I spent more time at
work.”

For some people the only answer to the question; “What is true wealth?", is money pure and simple - the more money the better.

Others would be content to say that true wealth is having the peace of mind of being free of debt.

Another will say he is truly wealthy if he can lead the lifestyle he chooses regardless of cost.

Others might say true wealth is being healthy and surrounded by loving family and caring friends.

There are probably as many answers to this question as they are people to answer it.

You could live in a big house on the hill, have two Mercedes in the garage and a million in the bank and not enjoy life as much as the guy who works in the gas station and lives in a two room furnished apartment.

True wealth is what one perceives it to be. And if it were not so, we wouldn’t have policemen, firemen and soldiers who risk their lives protecting us rather than trying to work on Wall Street, making big bucks.

We wouldn’t have doctors who travel to third world countries, just to try to make some difference, rather than to stay at home with a thriving practice and a comfortable life.

We wouldn’t have all the volunteers this country has, who are ready and willing to help the sick, infirm or destitute – or who suddenly turn up at disaster scenes willing to do anything to help.

This country wouldn’t have the millions of people who donate billions of dollars annually to the charities of their choice.

So even thought we concentrate on financial matters, it’s good to step back and realize there is more to true wealth than money.

I believe that having enough wealth to live a comfortable life makes lots of other things possible.

I also believe that being in debt is merely transferring your wealth to your creditors. While it may make them, or their shareholders rich, it really contributes little to your true wealth.

So my answer will be adopted from Mr. Spock’s famous Vulcan greeting: “Live Debt Free and Prosper.”

Understanding The Importance Of Your Credit Score

2008-11-13T20:07:00.000-08:00

Credit scores are become a more and more important factor in our society. Now a days it is often used in determining prices for both auto and homeowner insurance. Many employers reserve the right to do a credit check of job applicants, in the same manner they reserve the right to drug test potential employees. The fact is that your Credit Score is important.

As recent as a few years back, the term "Credit Score" was not very commonly used in our society. While there were who understood the term and its purpose, the mass majority, although realizing that there was a system out there that their credit, they did not have a term to stick to it.

Today, however, due to a number of factors such as increase Identity Theft and mass media marketing campaigns there are very few who are not aware of the term Credit Score. The goal of this article is to add understanding on the personal to the recognition of that term.

A Credit Score is a number between 300 and 850 based on a statistical analysis of an individual's credit activity. It is used to represent the credit worthiness of an individual. How likely that the individual will pay his or her debts. A credit score is based on their credit report information which is typically sourced from credit bureaus and credit reference agencies, typically from the three major credit bureaus.

Lending institutions, such as banks, finance companies, mortgage lenders, and credit card companies, use an individual's Credit Score to evaluate the potential risk posed by lending money to that individual. Lenders use Credit Scores to determine who qualifies for a loan, at what interest rate the loan is issued, and what credit limits are determined.

The use of credit scoring prior to granting credit is a trusted system throughout the industry. Credit scoring is not limited to banks, however. Organizations, such as mobile phone companies and government departments employ the same techniques.

While there are many others, such as NextGen, VantageScore and the CE Score, The most widely known score in the United States is FICO, which is most widely used in the mortgage industry. FICO is an acronym for Fair Isaac Corporation, the company that provides the most well-known and most widely used credit scoring system in the United States.

The FICO score is calculated by applying statistical methods, developed by Fair Isaac, to information in one's credit file and is primarily used in the consumer banking and credit industry. FICO scores show how likely it is that a borrower will default. No public information is available to determine what the scores mean in terms of statistics. A separate score, BNI, is used to indicate likelihood of bankruptcy.

As stated, banks and other lending institutions use Credit Scores as factors in their lending decisions. Whether credit is denied or approved, what interest is charged, what income level and asset verification is required is all based on an individual's credit score.

The FICO score actually uses slightly different scoring methods to rate a consumer's suitability for three different types of credit; mortgages, auto loans, and consumer credit. Each reflecting the different credit risks of these various types of lending. It is not unusual for these scores to differ by as much 50 points or more for the same borrower.

There are three major credit reporting agencies in the United States. Although often times inaccurately referred to as "credit bureaus", these agencies; Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, also calculate their own credit scores. These additional scores differ depending on what they are meant to predict, what statistical methods used to determine a score, and what information is used and how it is weighted.

These additional Credit Scoring Systems are numerous and are agency specific. For example, Beacon, Beacon 5.0, Beacon 96, and Pinnacle scores are available only from Equifax. Empirica, Empirica Auto 95, Precision Score, and Precision 03 are available only from TransUnion. And, Fair Isaac Risk Score at Experian.

These various Credit Scores are developed for the different agencies by Fair Isaac, each differs and are periodically updated to reflect current consumer repayment behavior habits. The NextGen Score is a scoring model designed for consumers.

In an effort to make credit scoring more consistent across the board, in 2006 the big three credit reporting agencies introduced Vantage Score. Vantage Score uses a different number range from the FICO score. It ranges from 501 to 990 and also assigns letter grades from A to F to specific ranges of scores.

A consumer's Vantage Score may differ from agency to agency, but the difference would be entirely due to differences in the information reported to the various agencies, not due to differences in scoring systems. Since FICO is still widely used by lenders, the agencies continue to offer FICO scores (or their closest equivalent) as well.

Most credit scores use a multiple-scorecard design. Each version may use individual scorecards, and an individual potential borrower is typically compared with other previous borrowers. In other words, a borrower with one 30-day late payment will be scored against a population with some similar delinquency. A borrower with two 30-day late payments will be scored against a population with like credit faults. The individual is then graded according to which variables indicate a risk within that group.

Nearly all large banks also build and use their own systems for credit scoring purposes, and are often times in conjunction with outside scoring formulas.

The systems used to generate credit scores are subject to federal regulations. The Federal Reserve Board's Regulation B, which implements the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, expressly prohibits a credit scoring system from considering any "prohibited basis" such as race, color, religion, national origin, sex, or marital status. It also stipulates that credit scoring systems must be "empirically derived" and "statistically sound".

In addition, if an adverse action, a denial of a credit application, is taken as a result of the credit score then the specific reasons for the denial must be provided to the individual denied. The statement "credit score not high enough" is insufficient. The reasons for denial must be specific; "too many delinquencies 60 days or greater" and such.

Credit scores are designed to measure the risk of default by taking into account various factors in a person's financial history. Although the exact formulas for calculating credit scores are closely guarded secrets, the Fair Isaac Corporation has disclosed the following components and the approximate weighted contribution of each:

35% punctuality of payment in the past (30 Days Past Due)

30% the amount of debt, expressed as the ratio of current revolving debt to total available revolving credit

15% length of credit history

10% types of credit used

10% recent search for credit and/or amount of credit obtained recently

These percentages offer a limited guidance in understanding a credit score. For example, the 10% of the score allocated to "types of credit used" is undefined, leaving consumers unaware what type of credit mix to pursue. "Length of credit history" is also a murky concept; it consists of multiple factors two being the oldest account open and the average length of time an account has been open.

Interestingly, although only 35% is attributed to punctuality, if a consumer is substantially late on numerous accounts, his score will fall far more than 35%. Bankruptcies, foreclosures, and judgments affect scores substantially, but are not included in the very vague pie chart provided by Fair Isaac.

A FICO score generally has a max of 850 and a minimum of 300. It exhibits a left-skewed distribution with a median around 723. The performance of the scores is monitored and the scores are periodically aligned so that a lender normally does not need to be concerned about which score card was employed.

Because the three major credit agencies have their own, independent databases, each of us actually has three credit scores for any given scoring system. As these databases are independent of each other, they may contain entirely different data. Many lenders will check an applicant's score from each bureau and use the median score to determine the applicant's credit worthiness.

As a result of the FACT Act (Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act), each legal U.S. resident is entitled to one free copy of his or her credit report from each credit reporting agency once every twelve months. To guard against inaccurate information or fraud more often than yearly, one can request a report from a different credit reporting agencies available on the net.

This information is available from a number of websites across the net that offer an free credit report and use of their services for 30 days. After which, there is a monthly fee involved. The fee is nominal compared to the necessity of protecting your credit in today's highly technological society where identity theft is becoming more prevalent.

In a time where identity theft and credit fraud in on the rise, the fee these firms charge seems like a small amount to pay to protect your credit and your good name. Having a good Credit Score is becoming more and more prevalent in our society. Here are a few examples of how:

In September 2004, TXU (a Texas utility company) announced it would begin setting individualized electricity prices based on credit score. However, due to negative press and pressure from the Texas Public Utility Commission, the plan was not implemented.

Credit scores are often used in determining prices for auto and homeowner insurance. Recently, some of the agencies that generate credit scores have also been generating more specialized insurance scores, which insurance companies then use to rate the quality of potential customers. These scores are unavailable to consumers.

Many employers reserve the right to do a credit check of job applicants, in the same manner they reserve the right to drug test potential employees. The fact is that your Credit Score is important. Rebuild-Credit.us is a sight committed to providing consumers with quality information concerning credit, how to get it, and how to maintain a quality credit score. It is recommended you take the time to visit them and read through the numerous articles and reports there.

Study Shows Americans Need to Get Financially Fit

2008-11-13T20:06:00.002-08:00

Most Americans lack basic understanding when it comes to their credit score and personal finance, according to the results of a survey by consumer advocacy group Consumer Action and financial services provider Capital One.

The survey polled 1,002 American adults. It gauged respondents' knowledge of the basics of personal finance like budgeting, saving habits and credit principles.

More than one-third reported they do not use a budget to manage their family's expenses; over 30 percent of those surveyed either did not know or responded incorrectly when asked to define a good credit score; and nearly one-fourth have never reviewed their credit report.

"Given the growing importance and influence of credit scores on purchasing decisions, it's startling that the majority of Americans do not understand what constitutes a good credit score," said Ken McEldowney, executive director of Consumer Action.

Various factors are used to determine a credit score, including a consumer's payment history, the amount of debt currently owed and the length of credit history.

An amendment to the federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act passed in 2004 now allows consumers to receive one free credit report every year from each of the three major credit reporting agencies. Consumers can request their reports online at www.annualcreditreport.com.

As easy as it is to check your credit score and credit report, "many still neglect to take this simple step to protect their credit and their finances," said Diana Don Colby, director of financial education at Capital One.

Besides reviewing your credit report, experts agree education is the key to a healthy financial future. To help consumers understand the basics, Capital One and Consumer Action created the MoneyWi$e financial education program.

The MoneyWi$e program includes free, multilingual brochures on personal finance topics, such as improving and rebuilding credit, budgeting, saving and investing.

Retiring or leaving the company--How to Properly do an IRA Rollover

2008-11-13T20:06:00.001-08:00

It's easy to lose 20% of your IRA to tax when you do an IRA rollover. Avoid these simple mistakes and get the right advice when you move your IRA money and avoid taxes and penalties.

Retiring or leaving the company--How to Properly do an IRA Rollover

Whether you are retiring or changing jobs, you need to know what to do with your employer sponsored retirement plan before your leave. Once you leave a job for whatever reason, you can choose to:
•Rollover the money into an IRA (ira rollover)
•Take the lump sum and pay the income tax and potential penalties
•Leave the money at the company if the company offers that as an option
•Rollover the money into your new employer's plan, if that plan accepts rollovers

Realize that the above are options offered by IRS. However, your employer's rules may be more restrictive and if so, there's nothing you can do. For example, if you have a pension plan that offers payout options over your lifetime or jointly over the lifetime's of you and your spouse, but there is no option to rollover a lump sum to an IRA (ira rollover), than the rollover option isn't available to you. In other words, the "summary plan document" rules. You may want to get a copy of that now and have your financial advisor review it so that you know what options you have.

So the starting point is to get the information from your employer plan as to the options available to you.
What is an IRA Rollover?

IRA rollover means to move money from a retirement plan such as a 401(k), 403b (tax sheltered annuity) or 457 (municipal deferred compensation) into an IRA or other plan. If you receive a payout from your employer-sponsored retirement plan, a rollover IRA could be to your advantage. You will continue to receive the tax-deferred status of your retirement savings and will avoid penalties and taxes.

There are two reasons that rollovers are favored over other options:
•You have virtually unlimited investment selections. Unlike your employer's plan which may have six investment options or even 50 investment options, in a self-directed IRA, you can choose any stock, any mutual fund and a host of other options listed later.
•Company plans often can restrict choices for non-spouse beneficiaries. Specifically, they may not be able to stretch IRA distributions over their lifetime. The benefit of this "stretch" is it defers taxes and allows the funds to potentially grow longer and larger in a tax-deferred environment.
The reason to leave your retirement plan with your company (if they permit this) is because your company plan is covered by ERISA and is protected from creditors. However, under the new Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, the creditor protection will follow the money if it is rolled into an IRA and not commingled with other IRA money (from annual contributions).

Combining with Other Retirement Accounts
The rollover IRA is usually funded by the eligible distributions from a company sponsored retirement plan. These distributions can be combined with your existing IRA(s) or placed into a separate IRA, but see the new creditor protection rule mentioned above. In fact, the IRS permits these funds to be combined with other types of retirement accounts. For example, say you have been self- employed and you have a one-person profit sharing plan (often referred to as Keogh plans), you could rollover the employer-plan assets into your profit sharing plan. Or, if you have a second job and that employer has a 403(b) plan and also accepts IRA rollover contributions, you could rollover your 401(k) balance into that 403(b) plan.

Completing your IRA Rollover
When it's time to retire, you have a few options on moving the money from your employer's plan.

Direct IRA Rollover:Your employer can directly rollover your retirement plan payout into a Rollover IRA and you will avoid the 20% IRS withholding tax. This is exactly what you should do by providing your employer the name, address and account number for your new Rollover IRA custodian. For example, you give your employer instructions to send your retirement account to ABC securities, account #8889999. Funds are sent directly to the IRA account and you never touch them. This is the preferred method of moving retirement funds.

Payout by Check: If your employer hands you a check for your retirement funds, the employer must withhold 20% for potential taxes. You can avoid the 20% IRS withholding tax on a payout by check from your employer if you deposit the check plus 20% into a rollover IRA within 60 days. In order to complete the tax free rollover, you now have 80% of your IRA rollover in your hand and you must take the other 20% out of your pocket so that you have a completely tax free rollover (you will get the 20% income tax withheld as a refund after you file your tax return). Don't allow your employer to give you a check, as this requires you to take money out of your pocket to complete your rollover.

Taking a lump sum distribution: This is typically not a wise option because you will pay income tax on the distribution and a 10% penalty if under age 59 ฝ. However, there may be reasons to take a taxable distribution. If you are set on buying a $300,000 boat and spending the rest of your life floating about the globe, then you may need to take your retirement funds now and pay tax. However, if you can avoid using these funds currently, you'll hopefully have a nest egg when you're old.

Realtors! Save Gas While You Drive

2008-11-13T20:04:00.001-08:00

Spark plugs that don't spark, filters that don't filter, and sensors with no sense all lower your gas mileage. Have your car tuned up regularly and check your tires while you're at it. Poorly inflated tires need more push from the engine to get where they're going. A little air goes a long way.

We're all desperate to save money on gas these days. We shop for the lowest prices, follow the news, combine trips, walk more. But for many of us, especially Realtors, dealing with the gas crunch is unavoidable. Not every house you sell is going to be in your neighborhood, not every house a client wants to see is down the street. They want the city, they want the suburbs, they want to see that charmer in a neighboring town. So if you're a Realtor that wants to sell houses, you do what you have to do - you drive. Fortunately there are four simple ways to make your gas go farther while you motor around.

Four Simple Ways to Save Gas While you Drive

1. The single best way to save money on gas is so simple you probably haven't even considered it.

It's this: SLOW DOWN

Slowing down and (gasp) driving the speed limit is the most effective way to get maximum fuel efficiency from your traveling tin can. It simply takes more energy to travel at a higher speed. Increased wind resistance and inefficient fuel consumption are two ways that speed eats into your gas tank. The additional wear and tear on your car also eats into your pocketbook. So if you don't want your car to be an obnoxious gas guzzler, just drive the speed limit. You might get flack from drivers that want to speed like they're on the autobahn, but you'll save on gas and avoid flack from police cruisers, speed traps and your mom.

2. Keep it Steady. While you're at it, you might also try to keep going at a constant speed as much as you can. Keeping it smooth, or even better - keeping it on cruise control will save you big bucks on flat terrain. The ole "hurry up and wait" accelerate/brake combo takes a lot of energy and will cost you in the long run. Look well ahead when you're driving and prepare to slow down in advance. The gradual reduction in speed paired with a gradual increase will use less fuel. Gunning it on green lights is not fuel efficient.

3. Get a tune up and keep your tires inflated. Spark plugs that don't spark, filters that don't filter, and sensors with no sense all lower your gas mileage. Have your car tuned up regularly and check your tires while you're at it. Poorly inflated tires need more push from the engine to get where they're going. A little air goes a long way.

4. Choose the path of least resistance. Depending on where you live, you may not be able to avoid bumpy winding roads but if you can, you should. You can loose up to 30% of your gas mileage on a gravel road and even more if it's one of those beautifully scenic winding ones that require lots of turns and gas pedal/brake pedal maneuvers. Save these for vacations and take the highway.

Of course, if you're a really serious driver these days, you're probably thinking about switching to a hybrid - the next logical step for people who simply can't part with their cars. While you're shopping around for the right one, however, you might want to do it slowly.

Personal Finance. Credit Agencies Refused Access To Information About Student Loans

2008-11-13T20:03:00.002-08:00

These days, when you apply for a mortgage, loan or other form of credit, the lending industry will automatically scrutinise your personal credit history. In practice, you hardly need to tell them anything as within a fraction of a second, the lenders computers will lock into your credit file held by any one of the big three credit agencies; Experian, Callcredit or Equifax And you'll be amazed what they know about your finances!

For many years now banks, building societies and other lenders have been providing information about your finances to the credit agencies. They know about every credit applications you've made, the occasions you've been late or missed paying a loan, mortgage or credit card, the balances on your loans and credit cards and whether you just pay off the minimum each month - even your credit limits! The agencies also accumulated lots of other information about you provided by public records, the voters' roll and the public register of court actions where all county court judgements are recorded. Their computers then statistically analyse all this information and assess your application. So in this context, the credit industry argues that the more information they have about you, the more accurately lenders can make lending decisions.

Yet within this mass of information, there is one notable omission. Despite representations to the government, information about student loans and their repayment history's, is not provided to the credit agencies. The data is refused because student loans are a debt to the taxpayer, not a commercial business.

Prior to September 1998, graduates repaid their student loans by mortgage style direct debits collected once the graduate started earning over ฃ15,000. But more than 59,000 of graduates from before 1998 graduates are understood to be in payment arrears to the tune, on average, of around ฃ2,750 per graduate.

After September 1998, the system of collecting student loans changed. These days, repayments are deducted directly from salaries by employers along with national insurance and income tax. This method is far more efficient and avoids the possibility of bad debts.

The credit industry argues that it needs the information on student loans as they can represent a significant strain on the graduates' finances – especially following the introduction of top-up fees which results in the average student loans being much larger. These loans are repaid at the rate of 9% of the graduates' income in excess of ฃ15,000 and can represent a significant drain on their monthly income.

Therefore, to fully assess graduates' financial situation the credit industry argues that it needs student loan information. The Association Consumer Credit Counselling Service agrees. A spokes person said, “Knowing whether a young person has a student loan and whether it is being paid back, is useful.”

Yet despite the pressure to share its information, the Department for Education and Skills remains steadfast in its decision to refuse permission to the Student Loan Company to provide information to the commercial sector.

Even the Citizens Advice Bureau wants this decision changed arguing that lenders need information on student loans to help ensure that graduates avoid taking on so much debt that they can't maintain their repayments.

But for now at least, the situation remains. The credit industry cannot obtain any history about student loans.

One-Stop Shopping-Now Available At Your Local Bank Branch

2008-11-13T20:03:00.001-08:00

In today's fast-paced culture, convenience is king. Consumers are becoming less satisfied with establishments that offer only one product or service, and "one-stop shopping" venues are gaining popularity for the time and effort they can save.

The convenience trend has changed the face of many types of businesses, and financial services is no exception. In the past, customers visited local bank branches to cash checks and make deposits and were content with these limited services. Today, customers expect more from their banking relationship-they look to their local bank to help them effectively manage all of their financial activities.

Banks of all sizes-from national institutions to community banks-now offer a wide array of financial services and products, including annuities, life insurance and financial planning. Customers can obtain these services in the same convenient location where they have conducted every-day bank transactions for years.

While most banks offer some type of financial planning and investment services, the scope of these programs varies greatly from one institution to the next. Customers should carefully examine their bank's offerings and determine whether they are receiving the level of assistance they require and deserve. Many institutions claim to be committed to empowering clients, but fail to actively reach out to customers and provide the support they need.

In the U.S. retirement market, investors face a number of significant financial challenges-rising health care costs, dwindling Social Security and increased longevity mean that many people are in danger of running out of money in retirement. Furthermore, most Americans are not taking the necessary actions to ensure a secure financial future. Financial institutions should proactively engage their clients to make them aware of these risks and provide effective solutions.

More than ever, financial advisors are choosing to set up practices in bank branches and banks are recruiting experienced professionals. The expert advice and comprehensive services that today's customers demand are available in a growing number of banks. If your current financial institution doesn't provide what you're looking for, maybe it's time to find a new banking relationship that can meet all of your financial needs.

Since 1985, Investment Centers of America, Inc. (ICA) (member NASD, SIPC and a Registered Investment Advisor) has been a leader in offering investment and insurance products through non-affiliated banks. Securities and insurance products offered through ICA and affiliated insurance agencies may lose value, carry no bank guarantee and are not FDIC insured.

IRA Distribution Mistakes--How to Blow your Retirement Money

2008-11-13T20:02:00.002-08:00

IRA rules regarding IRA rollovers and IRA distributions are a minefield. If you are retiring or need to start taking IRA distributions, they just wait for you to make a costly mistake from inexperience. Read and save yourself a small fortune.

With the population aging and over 4000 people a day being forced to take IRA distributions (such distributions are mandatory by April 1 after reaching age 70 1/2), mistakes in taking IRA distributions can total in the billions. Yet, because people have had no prior experience, mistakes are rampant. Here are 4 common IRA distribution mistakes to avoid.

IRA Distribution Mistake #1
Every IRA owner can name a beneficiary and "stretch" the IRA for maximum tax deferral over the next generation.
Informed IRA owners believe that the following will occur with retirement assets they do not use during their lifetime. Say they leave $500,000 of retirement assets to heirs. They believe junior will make small withdrawals each year (required by IRS) and at 6%, the account with a 42-year-old beneficiary, will generate $2.5 million during junior's lifetime (IRA distributions plus ending balance at life expectancy). This sounds great but it may never happen.
There are at least 2 ways that the stretch IRA can fail. The first way is because of a custodian with rules that do not permit lifetime IRA distribution payments. This is particularly common in qualified plans where the rule may be that "all IRA distributions to beneficiaries are to be completed within 5 years." Since no one ever reads that fine print for their qualified plan, they have no idea that a fast IRA distribution will be forced to non-spouse beneficiaries.

The other problem is the beneficiary. Just because mom and dad have the good sense to understand tax deferral does not mean that junior will comply with this wisdom. The minute junior finds out that he can close the IRA, distribute all the money and buy a Ferrari and Lamborghini at the same time, he does so, pays a fortune in taxes and blows the money to have fun.
The way to control this is to have leave retirement assets in an IRA trust. In a trust, mom and dad can control how the heir gets paid.

IRA Distribution Mistake #2
I am leaving my IRA to my wife. I only have one son and he can do with the IRA what he wants when we are both gone. My situation is simple.When most people select beneficiaries for their IRAs, they select their spouse or their children. As simple as this seems, it can create problems. Consider these two scenarios.
When a plan owner leaves an IRA account to the spouse, it inflates the spousal assets. And when the spouse later dies with an estate exceeding $2 million (the estate exemptions limit in 2006), they pay estate tax. By leaving the IRA to the spouse, the deceased spouse has created unnecessary estate taxes by making the survivor's estate larger.
So instead, they leave the IRA to the son. But as indicated before, this leaves the son total control over the asset. He may withdraw the funds immediately and decide to buy a mansion jointly with his spouse (who was despised by mom and dad). To complete the misery, let's say that the following week, the daughter-in-law files for divorce and gets to keep the mansion in the settlement. Mom and dad just gave the despicable daughter-in-law a mansion with their IRA money. Even in death they have money problems.

To avoid the above two scenarios, they decide to leave the IRA to their "estate." Many attorneys advise that you never leave a retirement plan to your estate. Because at death, the IRS requires the account to be rapidly distributed rather than enjoy the potential stretch over the lifetimes of beneficiaries. Additionally, the IRA will now be a probate asset and subject to claims of creditors. So what do rich people do to avoid the three gloomy scenarios above? They leave their IRA in a trust and appoint a trustee like an accountant, financial advisor, attorney, etc., a person that has good common sense and tax knowledge. Within the boundaries of mom's and dad's wishes and IRS-required minimum distributions, the trustee will determine who among the beneficiaries will get the IRA and how much they get. The trustee will determine how quickly this IRA money gets distributed over and above the annual minimum amount of required IRS IRA distributions. Mom and dad can even give very detailed instructions. For example, they could dictate no IRA distributions for purchases of homes with the despicable spouse. Or if the money is to be used for education they may stipulate that up to $15,000 a year can be distributed, or to start a business up to $25,000 can be distributed, and they can go on and on with such instructions.

IRA Distribution Mistake #3
The IRA owner has checked with the custodian and yes, they do allow lifetime distributions to non-spouse beneficiaries. Additionally, their two unmarried sons understand tax deferral and there is no need for a trust. Everything is okay.

Many plan owners don't consider what happens if their beneficiary pre-deceases them.

Let's say you have two sons, Jack and Tom. Your name them as primary beneficiaries for the IRA distributions by completing an "IRA Beneficiary Designation Form" at the bank or securities firm.
Jack and Tom each have a son. Jack's son is Bob. Tom's son is Dan. So you write the grandson's names on the line of the beneficiary designation form that says "secondary beneficiaries."

If Jack dies before his parents who own the plan assets, they probably think Jack's share goes to his son, Bob. Wrong.

It goes to Tom, because on the beneficiary designation form, there is no place to specify how the primary beneficiaries and secondary beneficiaries are related. There is no place for you to explain your intentions or write "per stirpes" to clarify intentions with respect to those beneficiaries. Those beneficiary designation forms with the bank or the securities firm are not sufficiently detailed to carry out your wishes.

At minimum, you should replace those forms with your own forms, called an "IRA Asset Will." This can be inexpensively prepared by any attorney. And if the custodian won't accept it, move your account to another custodian.

IRA Distribution Mistake #4
Failing to use IRA funds for charitable intent
If you want to leave even $1 to charity, do it from your IRA money. You can specify one or more charities to receive portions of the IRA and the heirs will thank you. When taxpayers leave heirs a dollar of IRA funds, the heirs will pay, for example, 35 cents to tax and have 65 cents left to spend. If the estate is over $2 million, heirs will also pay estate tax on this money and may have only 30 cents left from each dollar. However, when mom and dad leave heirs a dollar that is non-retirement money, heirs can spend it with no income tax. Therefore, heirs would much rather have "regular" money and not IRA money.

How to Quickly Improve Your Credit Score by Adding Positive Payment History to Your Credit Report

2008-11-13T20:02:00.001-08:00

Detailed, step-by-step instructions for improving personal FICO credit score. Easy to use tips that will pay off for consumers for years to come.

Most consumers are aware that negative items on their credit report can be disputed with the three major credit reporting bureaus. Often, this process can lead to a significant improvement in credit score through deletion of the damaging items that were lowering the score.

However, to achieve excellent credit, it's not enough to just remove negative entries. Why? Because a lack of positive payment history is also an obstacle to having good credit. You need to demonstrate a record of on-time payments in order to raise your credit score.

In this article I will describe two simple techniques for rapidly ADDING good credit entries to your file.

THE CO-SIGNER TECHNIQUE

All that is necessary to add years of excellent credit history is the love and trust of a friend or family member who has good credit.

Credit card companies are always willing to have their best customers add extra cards for family members. By adding your name to one or more of their accounts, they will actually cause a new credit card to be issued in your name. The "catch" is that they will be the co-signer on the account, meaning that they are responsible if you miss payments.

Of course, you never want to risk the credit rating of a friend or family member, so simply have them use their own address on the application for the extra card. That way, the card will be mailed to them, and even though it has your name on it, the card will remain in their possession. They can even cut it up if they want to.

The simple beauty of this approach is that the new card will show up on your credit report, and normally it will show the opening date of the original card (not just the application date for the extra card), as well as the entire credit history of that card! It's like getting years of good credit added to your file with the stroke of a pen.

THE PASSBOOK SAVINGS LOAN TECHNIQUE

The "Passbook Savings Loan Technique" is a great way to add positive payment history to your credit file. It will also give you an excellent credit reference to use for most types of financial applications. This technique does require some cash – at least $500 to $1,000. However, this amount will be held in a savings account as loan collateral, and the total out-of-pocket cost to complete this technique should be well under $50.

Here is the Passbook Savings Loan Technique in detail, so you can see exactly how everything works.

STEP 1 – Locate a Small Bank that Meets Your Requirements

I recommend that you work with smaller community banks and not the major chains. The smaller banks are more likely to have the exact type of account that you will need to open, and they are more likely to work with you and be flexible. Savings & Loan institutions and Credit Unions can also be used, provided they meet the requirements. The product you want is called the "Passbook Savings Account," which is basically just a simple savings account. And the type of loan you will take out is a "Passbook Savings Loan." This is the easiest type of loan to get because it is totally secured with your own cash. Most banks are only willing to loan you 85% of the amount you have on deposit, so there is always some reserve money in the account.

Your target bank will be suitable for this method if it meets the following three requirements:

A. The bank must have a Passbook Savings Account product with NO MONTHLY FEE on balances of $500 to $1,000.

B. You must be able to borrow up to 85% of your balance on a 12-month loan schedule. This is typically called a Passbook Savings Loan.

C. CRITICAL: The bank MUST report activity on this account to the three major credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax).

If the bank product does not meet these requirements, then do NOT use that bank. There are thousands of small banking institutions throughout the country, so it should be fairly easy for you to find an appropriate one in your local area.

STEP 2 – Open a Passbook Savings Account

Go to the bank you've chosen and open a Passbook Savings Account for $1,000 or less---depending on what you have to work with. Take your Passbook home and wait a week or so, because you don't want it to look like you opened the account only for the purpose of taking the loan.

STEP 3 – Obtain a Passbook Savings Loan

Return to the bank and ask to see a loan officer. Look your best, be courteous, and explain that you wish to take out a Passbook Savings Loan for $850 (or 85% of whatever amount you actually deposited).

When you take out your loan, your savings account is frozen. However, every time you make a payment you unfreeze an amount equal to your payment, less a few dollars for interest. Be sure to ask that the loan term be for at least one year, with minimum monthly payments. Do not get a simple one-year loan with no payments. This will not benefit you at all, because you are trying to establish a history of payments.

You will not be turned down for this type of loan no matter what your previous credit history and in most cases it will not even be checked. If you have bad credit, make sure you tell your loan officer before he or she pulls your credit history. Tell the bank representative you are trying to re-establish your credit and that a good credit rating is very important to you now.

STEP 4 – Make Your Payments

Assuming an interest rate cost of 6%, your monthly payments on the $850 loan will be $73.16. (Remember, this is a secured loan, so the interest rate should be fairly low.) Since you have "borrowed" $850 in cash, you will use that money to keep the payments going on the loan. Be sure to make your payments well before the due dates. Always pay EARLY in order to be on the safe side in establishing good payment history.

STEP 5 – Pay Off the Loan Early

After six months, pay off the loan early. At this point, you will have approximately $980 remaining from your original $1,000 deposit, part of it as cash on-hand, and some remaining in the savings account. You will have paid a whopping $20.31 in interest (assuming the rate was 6% for the secured loan). I'm sure you will agree that $20 is a small price to pay for adding six months' worth of good payment history to your credit report!

STEP 6 – Make Sure the Loan Shows on Your Credit Report

After you have paid off the loan, obtain fresh copies of your credit reports to verify that the loan payment history is showing correctly. Since you selected a bank that reports regularly to the big three credit bureaus, everything should show up correctly. But mistakes do happen. If the loan is not reported correctly, ask the bank directly to fix the omission or ask the credit bureaus in writing to add the credit reference to your report.

The Passbook Savings Loan Technique is a simplified version of the more complicated "Three Bank Technique." Basically, the concept is to use the secured loan proceeds from one bank to open up another account at a second bank, and then to repeat the process for a third bank. The math is a lot more complicated, but the principle is the same, with the added benefit of having three simultaneous loans adding positive payment history to your credit report. This approach costs a little more in interest expenses, and involves a lot more work, but can really turbo-charge your positive credit history.

High Interest Credit Cards: Quick Tips

2008-11-13T20:01:00.001-08:00

Those of you who want to apply for major high interest credit cards to re establish or just to establish new credit should consider the price that they will ultimately pay, including interest, yearly fees, etc...

Most of the high interest credit cards are usually pretty easy to get and really the high interest rate only matters if you are going to roll over your balances from month to month. People that have been involved in bankruptcies, judgments or have a bad credit score, for some other reason are the most common applicants for these high interest credit cards. It might be possible to lower your interest charges with credit card balance transfers. If you are looking to consolidate all your debts or you just want to pay off your high interest credit cards, apply for a card that offers a low rate on balance transfers.

Those of you who want to apply for a major high interest credit card to re establish or just to establish new credit should consider the price that they will ultimately pay, including interest, yearly fees, etc... Those who have good credit may qualify for credit cards that offer a 0 percent interest rate on balance transfers for a full year, but be aware, if you make a payment late, you might end up paying higher interest than before you transferred your balance. A recent FDIC study revealed that the overwhelming rise in bankruptcy rates (up 400 percent in the last 25 years) is directly related to banking de-regulation and the use of high-interest credit cards.

Many credit cards can have interest rates, 15, 19 and even 24 percent or higher. At these very high interest rates you are paying a lot of money in interest. If you are in a bind and missing payments, many credit card companies might agree to reduce your debt on a credit card dramatically if the borrower is able to pay off the balance rather than continue to miss payments, so it might be worth contacting a debt expert to negotiate on your behalf. If you have a good credit score, one way of paying all of your high interest credit card balances, is to take out a debt consolidation loan, which will mean that you can pay off all of your credit cards with one lower interest loan, possibly saving you quite a bit of money.

Finding The Right Credit Card

2008-11-13T20:00:00.002-08:00

Some people feel loyal to certain credit card companies, it's only natural when you've had them for so long, but why not see if they can offer you a better card?

I remember the lecture my mother gave me a few weeks before my first day of college. She sat me down and said, "I have something important to tell you." Right about then is when I rolled my eyes and braced for the, "Young men are the devil's spawn and should not be trusted," and the, "You are going to a place where there will be great temptations," speech. What I got was not really a lecture, but a talk about how it was time to start building my credit.

I really never gave that topic much thought. I always thought that getting a credit card was for grown ups, and Lord knows I didn't quite feel like a grown up at the time. She told me I should start thinking about applying for a credit card. She also warned me if I did so, she would NOT bail me out if I started charging up the world. That alone scared me. I had a full time job, but what if I couldn't handle the payments? What if I went temporarily insane, and decided to charge everything I could. It was too much for me, and I told her, I didn't want to hear any more nonsense about me getting a credit card.

She of course persisted for the next two weeks, and I finally told her that I would look into it. I then asked the million dollar question, "How do I find the one that is best for me?" She blank stared me. Then she blink. Then she shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know, that's your problem." Cue the crickets.

So there I was, eighteen in 1992, trying to get a credit card, but not knowing where to start. Luckily on the fist day of classes, I was in the school book store and found an ad for a student credit card. Without giving it much thought, I applied and to this day I still have a card from that company. Was that the best way of going about it? Probably not. I suppose if I did the research I could have found a card with a better interest rate, or a better limit.

Now days, the internet has changed the way people research topics. I've found the best way to find a good product is to find a site that helps you compare similar products side by side. Are you interested in credit cards that offer airline rewards? How about credit cards that offer hotel and travel rewards? Maybe you are just looking for the credit card that would be right for your business, or one with low interest rates. There are even credit cards for poor credit.

Some people feel loyal to certain credit card companies, it's only natural when you've had them for so long, but why not see if they can offer you a better card? Your time is precious and getting the best credit card for you is important to your lifestyle.

Do You Have Financial Phobia?

2008-11-13T20:00:00.001-08:00

More and more people are suffering from a fear of personal finance, which can have a devastating effect on their lives. What is financial phobia, and what causes it?

With an ever-increasing level of personal debt being reported, along with record numbers of bankruptcies and insolvencies, it's no surprise to anyone that money is becoming a big problem for thousands if not millions of people.

Most of us would equate 'money problems' with 'debt problems', and indeed servicing high levels of debt is a major cause of worry and stress for those of us who've perhaps borrowed too heavily in the past.

There is another kind of money trouble that doesn't receive quite as much publicity. It's called Financial Phobia, and is a real clinical condition that causes untold problems for its victims.

Recent research has suggested that up to 20% of adults suffer from full-blown financial phobia, with nearly half of the population showing some signs of a milder version of the condition.

Sufferers find it extremely difficult to keep on top of their finances, as the prospect of doing simple things like opening bills causes them feelings of anxiety, nausea, and even - in the worst cases - full panic attacks. They will dislike checking their bank balances, will put off paying bills, and in extreme cases will avoid opening mail altogether and throw it away rather than deal with the contents.

So what causes this condition? One of the main triggers is a sense of finances being out of control, sometimes through debt, but also through having a bad experience with finance such as losing money in a bad investment, or of following bad advice. Victims of mis-selling of inappropriate products can lose trust in banks and by extension the whole realm of finance.

The irony is that by avoiding paying attention to their financial situation, sufferers will tend to make matters worse as they can't pick up on problems early on. Missed payments, for example, can go from being a minor issue to a cause of legal action if they are ignored rather than tackled.

As their financial situation deteriorates, the sense of being out of control increases, leading to a vicious circle where other problems including full depression can arise. So is there a way out?

As with all genuine phobias, counselling may be required if the problem has got out of hand, along with professional financial help from debt advisors which is often available for free from charities.

However, people in the early stages of the condition can help stop the situation deteriorating by starting to get back on top of their finances, fighting their urges to ignore the problem, and starting to tackle any underlying causes such as debt.

Credit Counseling -- Why It Doesn't Work For Most Debtors

2008-11-13T19:59:00.001-08:00

Discusses why credit counseling has come under attack by consumer groups for failing to do the job it's advertised to do. Explains the main reasons for credit counseling's failure to provide debt relief for most enrollees.

"Cut Your Payments in Half!" the headline screams. "Consolidate Your Bills into One Low Monthly Payment!"

When you see ads like this, they are often from Credit Counseling firms. In this article, I'll explain the principles behind the Credit Counseling approach and discuss the main problem consumers face when they join one of these programs.

First, let's get our definitions straight. The term "Credit Counseling" is actually quite misleading, since it has nothing to do with preserving or improving your credit score. In fact, Credit Counseling will often damage your credit, an unpleasant reality that is sometimes downplayed by industry representatives.

Credit Counseling is a debt management program where you make a single monthly payment to an agency. In turn, that agency distributes the money to your creditors on your behalf, ideally at lower interest rates so you can pay off the debt faster. Credit Counseling should not be confused with Debt Consolidation, Debt Settlement, or Debt Termination. Each of these debt programs takes a very different approach from Credit Counseling.

Of all the available debt options, Credit Counseling is by far the most popular, with millions of Americans participating. Does this mean it's the best choice for most people struggling with debt? No! There are numerous problems with this approach.

In recent years, the Credit Counseling industry has been heavily criticized by impartial consumer groups like the Consumer Federation of America. But these criticisms often miss the mark entirely. They usually focus on the aggressive companies that use their non-profit status to trick consumers into thinking they are charitable organizations, or even that their services are free of charge. In reality, these outfits charge hefty "voluntary" contributions, often adding up to hundreds of dollars, plus steep monthly fees as well.

However, I'm not talking here about the bad companies who provide little or no actual "counseling," or the ones that are only in business to make their owners rich. No, I'm talking about serious problems with the actual business model itself. So let's take a closer look at how Credit Counseling works.

Let's say you owe $25,000 on several different credit cards. Let's also assume your average interest rate before you enrolled was 20% (which is actually low these days, especially if you've missed any payments). Your minimum monthly payments are $500, which you've been struggling to keep up with. At this rate, it will take a whopping 109 months (more than 9 years) to pay off your debts, assuming you don't miss a single payment along the way.

You enroll in a Credit Counseling program that promises to get you out of debt faster. But does it? Assuming your creditors agree to participate in the program (not always the case), the real key is the concession they will grant on your interest rates. In prior years, creditors looked more favorably on Credit Counseling and they offered steep discounts off the normal interest rates. But lately they have squeezed the industry, and the concessions are not so good any more. Currently, most of the major players will reduce interest rates down to a range of 7% on the low side to 18% on the high side. We'll use 12% as the average.

So if you keep your payments at $500 per month at the new 12% rate, how long will it take? First, we need to deduct the monthly fee charged by the agency. In this example, we'll use a fee of $25 per month, so $475 of your $500 will go toward debt reduction. The good news is you'll be out of debt faster. The bad news is that it will still take 75 months (more than 6 years) to become debt-free.

But what happens if you can't keep up with that $500 per month? After all, you sought help from a credit counselor because you were struggling financially, right? Let's say you drop down to $450 per month. After deducting the $25 monthly fee, that leaves $425 toward your debt plan. Now you're looking at 90 months (7 years & 6 months), which is not much better than the 109 months you started out with.

So how can credit counselors claim to cut your payments in half? Good question. If you dropped down to $250 per month, you'll never pay off your debt! At 12% interest, the debt will climb faster than your $250 per month can reduce it. The lowest you could go would be $300 per month. However, it would now take 20 years to pay off the debt, hardly an improvement!

In order to truly cut your payments in half, down to $250 in this example, the agency would need to completely eliminate all interest! And even then, it would still take more than 9 years to pay off the balance! So the ads claiming you can cut your payments in half are simply false.

Bear in mind here that in our example, we're assuming you're working with a good company that charges low fees and actually obtains good interest rate concessions from all of your creditors. Even with the best of credit counselors, you're still looking at a 5-9 year program to pay off your debts.

That's why Credit Counseling is usually only effective for people with short-term financial problems. Consumers with long-term financial instability have trouble keeping up with the regular payment stream required to make these programs work. The result? Even the most favorable statistics show that about 3 out of 4 people drop out of Credit Counseling programs before completing them.

If you do decide to join one of these programs in order to obtain some short-term relief, be sure to do your homework first. Here are a few tips to help in your selection:

1. Look for a company that actually provides old-fashioned budget advice and counseling. If they want to sign you up right away without first understanding your budget situation, move on!

2. Obtain copies of the contract and read it carefully before signing up. Make sure you understand all of the fees involved. Are there enrollment fees? "Voluntary" contributions? Monthly fees? Extra fees per account? These hidden fees can add up to big bucks.

3. Make sure they work with all the creditors on your list and not just some of them.

4. Don't be fooled by "non-profit" status. That doesn't guarantee you're dealing with a good company. And it certainly doesn't mean the service is free!

5. Aim to find a local company that you can visit in person. Check out your target company with the local Better Business Bureau.

6. Make sure they provide support after the sale. Try calling their customer service number to see if you can get through promptly.

Remember, you can eliminate your debts if you take a disciplined approach to your finances, make a budget and stick to it, and don't use your credit cards unless you can pay off new balances in full each month.

Good luck in your financial future!

Cash Is King

2008-11-13T19:58:00.000-08:00

Cash Is King is the basic principle of using cash instead of debit/credit cards whenever possible

If you understand and follow the basic principle of “Cash is King” you can change your life forever. Your life will be less stressful financially and you will be taking your first major step toward “financial peace of mind”.

“Cash is King” is an easy principle to understand; however it may be difficult to follow. This principle is the key to less stress within your financial life. Many things tell us how to manage our finances and it seems that none of them address the “root cause” of our financial problems.

The biggest problem is that we live in a world of plastic and for all practical purposes we do not respect or understand the value of cash.

If you follow this simple but different principle of “Cash is King” you will start on the road to “financial peace of mind”. Here are two basic suggestions on how to follow the principle of “Cash is King”:

When you are paid make sure you allocate enough money to pay your rent/mortgage, utilities and any other fixed expenses you may have. Any amount of cash that is left should be withdrawn from your checking account to be used for food, clothing, gifts, entertainment, gas, etc. The best way for you to control this cash would be for you to divide and allocate certain amounts of cash for each variable expense and store this cash in labeled envelopes, like the envelopes found in the BUDGETkeeper SYSTEM.
Now remember that this cash is the only way you can spend. Once you have used all your cash there will be no spending until your next paycheck. This is tough! No credit/debit cards? You must be kidding! How will I ever get through to my next payday without using my credit/debit cards? They say smoking is hard to give up, I think sticking to the principle of “Cash is King” may even be harder!

Stick with “Cash is King” and manage your money. You will start by finding the cheapest places to buy gas, run your errands more logically and take your morning coffee from home instead of buying that latte every day. You will have to find many new ways to manage your cash and the first few weeks will be the toughest. You may even run out of cash before your next payday, however, you will stick to the principle “Cash is King” and eventually find “financial peace of mind”.

After several weeks it will get easier to manage your cash and you will be surprised to find extra cash available before your next paycheck. What will you do with that extra cash? Many say put the extra cash into a savings account or pay a little extra towards one of your debts. I say put it in a coffee can and let it accumulate then take yourself out and have one great party!

If you can follow this principle, you will be on your way to establishing a personal/family budget. Let the BUDGETkeeper SYSTEM show you the way to “financial peace of mind”.

Budget For The Future

2008-11-13T19:57:00.002-08:00

Tips and tricks to save for the future and build up a nice nest egg for retirement. Following these simple methods will ensure that you have a nice little cushion for yourself no matter what your income!

Have you sat down and really thought about your financial future? I know people are busy these days and you think "well I'm young now and I'll have time to do it later." You're dead wrong. You are NEVER too young to start saving for retirement!

They say if a 25 year old puts in $2.00 a day into a savings account ($60.00 a month), buy the time he reaches 65 he'll have a million dollars. However, what is a million dollars these days - really? It's practically chump change with rising housing and cost of living expenses.

So you have to make a budget to save for the future. Don't expect Social Security to kick in, they're having problems already - much less when you get to be that age!

Here are some strategies to help you save for the future and your retirement:

1. Make a list of your monthly income. Include everything from your wages to gambling winnings, child support receive, alimony, and any other income you get every month.

2. Then make a list of your expenses. List everything you spend from your utilities to your cell phone bill. Also your child's violin lessons, pet expenses - everything.

3. Subtract your expenses from your income. Hopefully you are coming out ahead! If not, then you need to make smart decisions on which expenses are a necessity or a luxury. Do you really need a cell phone, or is it just convenient? Discipline yourself now and you'll thank yourself later!

4. Do this for several months. And then at the end of each month, figure out where your money went that was unnecessary. Did you go out to eat more than once a week? Did you buy your lunch instead of making a sandwich from home?

5. Put 10% of your income into a savings plan. This is the "rule of thumb" amongst investors on just how much you should be saving a month. If you make $3000/mo. then you should be saving $300. Pay yourself first!

6. Consider other options besides savings. Perhaps invest in a 401k or an IRA savings plan. Check with your banker to see which one would suit your needs and financial situation the best.

Really that's all there is to it! Never take money out of your savings for frivilous purchases like a new pair of shoes or to go to a movie. That is for your future! However if your car needs a new transmission, this nest egg is there for you!

It just takes a lot of self-discipline and the desire to want to have financial independence. Just apply these easy techniques and you'll be on your way!

Bad Ways To Save Money

2008-11-13T19:57:00.001-08:00

There are ways to save money that you just shouldn't use. Don't try these at home.

Finding new ways to save money on almost anything you buy is almost like getting a raise. Maybe it's even better. When you save twenty dollars on a coat you get to keep the whole twenty dollars. When you make twenty dollars more on your paycheck, you lose five dollars or more of it to taxes.

Finding ways to save money can go too far, though. In a recent newsletter on how to save money, one contributor suggested getting free flowers for weddings by picking up the leftover flowers at a cemetery. She didn't say how you can tell which are "leftovers."

I thought I was cheap! The following are gleaned from real suggestions on ways to save money sent in to "frugality" websites and newsletters. Some cheapskates don't seem to notice that an extra hour at work might put them further ahead than many hours of penny-pinching.

Ways To Save Money - Don't Try These At Home

A mother confessed that she makes her kids stuff their pockets with the free ketchup, salt and other condiment packets every time they were in a fast food restaurant. Oh, if only that were all, but no. She has the kids squeeze the contents of the packets into regular jars of ketchup and mustard too. She says she hasn't bought these condiments in years. Pride is found in strange places.

One creative penny pincher found a way to save money on car washes. He washes his entire car using the squeegee at the gas station. Hmm... I wonder if he takes the toilet paper rolls home from their rest rooms too.

Would you like a free umbrella? One man suggests getting one at the lost and found department of any large public library. You just tell them you lost a black umbrella. They will almost certainly have several, from which you can pick the best one and claim it as your own. What if they have no black umbrellas? I guess we'll have to wait for this guy to publish a "lost umbrella color frequency chart," in order to know which color to try for the next day.

Several contributors to these newsletters know how to save on their long distance phone bills. The most common suggestion is to call people long-distance when you know they won't be home, and leave a message for them. Then they pay for it when they return your call. I suppose if your timing is off, and they answer when you call, you can quickly hang up on them and try again later.

I don't recommend any of these as ways to even the most frugal person. Apart from the ethical issues with some of them, they can be lumped in along with washing and re-using plastic wrap - a time wasting frugality. On the other hand, they are fun to read, and I suppose we could view such measures as cheap entertainment as well. Perhaps you can turn off the lights to save money on electricity and tell the kids it's a game of hide-and-seek, or train your dog to beg from the neighbors so you don't have to feed him.

I wonder how many people actually pay for magazines and newsletters that tell us ways to save money? Do these magazines advise that readers go to the library to read them, or stand reading them in the aisle at the bookstore for a hour? Those are some sure ways to save money.

A Real-Time Way To Avoid Identity Theft

2008-11-13T19:56:00.000-08:00

As identity thieves become more of a threat to individuals and businesses, many people wish they had someone-or something-to watch over and guard their valuable financial information.

While most consumers can't afford a financial bodyguard, many are taking advantage of a real-time identity management service that can potentially avert identity crimes.

I consider one service, Identity Sweep, developed with MyPublic Info (MyPublicInfo.com) and Affinion Group (www.affiniongroup .com), a leader in credit monitoring and identity theft, to be more proactive than any other. It may be the consumer's best chance at avoiding identity-related criminal abuse. Identity Sweep protects consumer identities in three ways:

1. It includes a leading-edge identity fraud detection technology that scans billions of public records for suspicious activity associated with identity fraud, including attempts to create a synthetic identity. The service analyzes the suspicious activity to provide a risk score.

2. It searches Internet newsgroups, search engines, blogs and hundreds of thousands of chat rooms and Web sites looking for personal and financial information. It instantly notifies consumers by e-mail of any suspicious activity related to their personal information before the customer is victimized. This technology works faster than credit card and credit bureau monitoring services.

3. It scans online directories that list a consumer's information and requests removal of that information to prevent abuse by telemarketers and identity thieves.

A Real-Time Way To Avoid Identity Theft

2008-11-13T19:55:00.000-08:00