The upcoming tax filing deadline is giving most Americans headaches and sleepless nights. But the IRS is doing its bit to help people by asking them to stay informed about the latest changes in policies so that they can benefit from the new tax breaks announced as part of President Obama’s economic reconstruction program. [Read more…]
Avoid Being Scammed When Using Your Debit Card
When buying a product or service, many people use their debit card to make the payment. But before you use your debit card, stop and think whether it is the best way of making that particular payment.
Debit cards and credit cards are quite different and they have their own advantages and disadvantages. There are different levels of protection provided in these cards – the most important difference being that a debit card gives direct access to your checking account, which means it is riskier. [Read more…]
Understanding Your Financial Situation
It would be great if all of us had a barometer to keep a check on our personal finances. But we don’t! So it becomes important to understand some key concepts that will help you assess your financial situation. This will give you insights into how stable your finances are and what you can do to improve the situation. Here are a few things you need to know: [Read more…]
Minimizing Your Communication and Entertainment Expenses
Recent studies show that Americans are spending more and more on communication and entertainment equipment and services. Some common expenses include cable TV, internet, video games, cell phones and land line connections. The problem is that the prices of these services are steadily increasing and people often end up spending more than they have to. [Read more…]
Greenspan Appears Before FCIC
The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission called former chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan to testify before it this week.
Greenspan had earlier asked for his report to the Brookings Institute to be included in the findings of the inquiry. In this report, Greenspan admits that under his leadership, the housing sector was not monitored adequately and neither was the banking expansion analyzed with regard to its long term effects on the economy. [Read more…]
Fed Still Cautious About Recovery Predictions
The Federal Reserve is keeping its optimism regarding the future of the American economy under a tight rein for now. At a meeting earlier in the week, debate appears to have taken place on what the Fed policy should be in the near future to improve the current pace of growth, without upsetting the delicate balance which many sectors of the economy have just managed to achieve. [Read more…]
Planning for Changes in Healthcare Laws
The healthcare scenario is going to change significantly because of the reform bill passed by the Obama administration. Health insurance will become compulsory for the majority of the population and failure to get it could lead to a penalty. Though many of the changes are still far away, you should start thinking about how you will adjust to the new system. [Read more…]
Money vs. Job Satisfaction
Your work constitutes a crucial part of your life. An average person starts working from the age of 23 till the time that he or she is about 60 years old. And during this period, a large proportion of your time is dedicated to your job for at least 5 days a week. [Read more…]
Tips on How to Make Money from IPOs
Initial public offerings, or IPOs, are considered riskier than the rest of the stock market because there is lot of uncertainty attached to them. It is hard to predict the right price of an IPO stock, but understanding the market fundamentals will help you make money out of these opportunities. And if you get it right, investing in IPOs can be extremely profitable. [Read more…]
How to Get Back on Your Feet After the Recession
The economy has recovered from the recession and is again growing at a good rate. The value of stocks has started rising again and investor interest in stock market is slowly picking up. The government is also retracting some of its liberal policies that were introduced to deal with the recession and the inter-bank lending rate could soon be increased by the Fed. [Read more…]
How Are Lenders Recovering Money on Distressed Home Mortgages?
Lenders are employing a mixed bag strategy to recover money on bad home loans. Interestingly, the mortgage servicers are the ones showing way to even large lenders on how to settle loans of distressed borrowers. Besides the traditional mortgage modification methods, principal reductions and short sales are some of the other commonly adopted settlement strategies currently. [Read more…]
Obama Administration Optimistic About Economic Recovery
According to statements from President Obama’s team of economic advisors, the American economy is recovering slowly but steadily. Last month recorded a moderate rise in employment, and senior advisers to the President said that real progress was being made for bringing down the current unemployment rate, which stands at 9.7 percent. Around 162,000 new jobs were created in the month of March. [Read more…]
SBA’s Lending Program Vital for Economic Recovery
The past year has seen no significant increase in loan disbursements among lending institutions. The good news is that the small business lending market is recording considerable progress, thanks to the legislation that extends the provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. [Read more…]
Questions You’ll Be Asked when Buying Auto Insurance
When you are getting motor vehicle insurance, the insurance company would ask you many questions. These questions are not just the basis for refusing insurance cover, but they also determine the premium you have to pay on your insurance policy. Here are some of the common questions asked by motor vehicle insurers and their potential impact on insurance costs. [Read more…]
Is it Unethical to Walk Away from Your Mortgage?
Voluntary foreclosure, often referred to as walking away from the mortgage, has been called unethical and ruthless by some people in the financial industry. What the industry does not seem to realize is that most people who have to walk away from the mortgage do not have a choice as they are in severe financial distress. [Read more…]
Private Equity Fails to Give Good Returns to Pension Funds
Pension funds have paid huge fees to private equity companies in the last decade in order to increase the returns on their funds. But a look at their returns shows that it would be very hard to justify the fees that they have paid. [Read more…]
How to Build Your Retirement Savings
When you are young, retirement seems like a distant prospect, which you do not need to worry about. However, before you know, time will fly and you will be close to your retirement age. Instead of being sorry later, it is better you start investing when you still have ample time to build your retirement savings without unnecessary pressure. If you start early, you get more time to earn higher returns on your investment. [Read more…]
Citigroup on Their Way to Recovery
Even as the Obama government initiates plans to stop hand holding Citigroup and move out of their bail out program for the banking giant, the company is taking its first steps forwards after a particularly bad phase which threatened its survival. The man being hailed as the one who achieved the near impossible and turned around the group is the Citigroup chief executive Vikram S. Pandit. [Read more…]
FCIC Commission Not Meeting Expectations
The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission or FCIC, the ten member panel that has been given the task of identifying the main factors which caused the recent economic crisis is not likely to meet expectations. Panel members are believed to be struggling with several differences, leading to stagnation in the investigation process. [Read more…]
Housing Crash Has Not Reduced Desire for a Home Fannie Mae
Although the housing sector has not really regained its balance after the recession left borrowers struggling to keep their heads above water, Americans still appear to view buying a house as an essential expense. But the volatility in the market has taken its toll and potential home owners and investors are using extreme caution when actually finalizing a home deal. [Read more…]
How to Prepare for Getting Laid Off
Most companies had cut down their staff drastically during the economic recession. Some of my friends, and millions of other Americans, learn the hard way that being fired is a nightmare that can come true without warning.
It is even worse when you have not planned for the possibility of being fired and are caught off guard, as losing your job can easily lead to a financial disaster. The good news is that by following some simple tips, you can minimize the negative financial impact of a layoff, and start afresh. [Read more…]
Credit Score Killers that You May Not Be Aware of
There are many small things that can unexpectedly drive your credit scores down. Here is some information on how to avoid nasty surprises in your credit report.
Balance Transfers [Read more…]
The Benefits of Investing Early in Your Life
You might have just started enjoying the freedom of getting a paycheck and would be tempted to spend it all on shopping, traveling and having fun. Studies show that many young Americans are careless with their finances. They do not save money, forget to pay their bills on time and do not bother about starting retirement funds. But remember that lack of investments and spending more than your income can be very harmful in the long run. [Read more…]
Investing in Stocks from Emerging Markets
Emerging market stocks from economies that are growing at a fast rate, such as China, India and Brazil have attracted a lot of investor interest recently. I was impressed by how resilient these economies turned out to be as compared to economies of developed nations during the recession. The growth rate of these countries is also far higher than the growth rate of developed nations. [Read more…]
Consumer Confidence Index Effect on the Economic Activity
The markets react instantly to variations in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) that is used for measuring the level of consumer confidence in the economy. The index takes into account the consumer expenditure and savings. It is an important economic indicator as it depends on activities that account for more than two-thirds of the total economic activity. [Read more…]
Greenspan Acknowledges Beginning of Turnaround
As everyone cheers the news of the biggest jobs creation in three years, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve has acknowledged and acceded that the economy is indeed on the mend, as indicated by these improvements. The 9.7% unemployment rate has been the cause of concern in the recent months even as the activity in most sectors showed signs of revival. [Read more…]
Stocks Show Heartening Rise as Consumer Optimism Grows
As signs of improvement on the employment scene become evident, the optimism in the stock market appears to be growing too. Increased demand in the service industry is contributing to confidence among investors.
A government report, which was released late last week showed how the employment scenario was finally witnessing a change for the better after a long haul of three subdued years. In March, the biggest job gain in the year was recorded. Although more private employers were seen adding to their employee roll as opposed to the government affiliated organizations, optimism has not been dampened by this fact. [Read more…]
Foreclosure Prevention Gets New Impetus with HAFA Plan
The Government’s Making Home Affordable plan gets another makeover with the addition of the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives or HAFA. Though many have benefited from the affordable home incentives and provisions, the program has not really met expectations and it has largely failed to revive interest in the housing market.
The Obama administration is still fervently making policy changes and bringing in new schemes to make it easier to own a home. [Read more…]
Understanding Hidden Costs of Credit Cards
Credit cards can prove to be very expensive if you do not handle them cautiously. When you take a card, there would be various hidden costs that you need to understand. Most people ignore the terms and conditions document that they get with the card, but this could prove to be quite costly. [Read more…]
Spending Your Tax Refund Wisely
You could be among the 90% of American taxpayers who are going to get tax refunds this year from the IRS. Although you might be tempted to blow the money on a shopping spree or a holiday, don’t forget that the economy has still not recovered fully. Spend your tax refund wisely so that you get maximum benefit out of the money. Here is some advice on spending your tax refund money. [Read more…]
The Truth About Free Credit Reports Offered Online
You would have come across many tempting advertisements of websites that claim to offer free credit reports. Be cautious before you sign up for any such service as it may not be the credit report that you are looking for.
Only the Federal Trade Commission gives three free credit reports every year. You can get one credit report each from the three main credit reporting companies, Transunion, Experian and Equifax without any charges once in a year. These free credit reports are available on annualcreditreport.com. [Read more…]
Geithner Optimistic About Chinese Currency Policy Shift
Following heated debates about China’s suppressed currency value, the US government seems to have arrived at some sort of truce with the trading partner for now.
Treasury Secretary Geithner recently made an announcement placing China’s currency policy in a favorable light. The announcement comes after President Barack Obama’s meeting with the Chinese President Hu Jintao, leading to the impression that the outcome of the meeting may be positive to some extent. [Read more…]
Bankruptcies Spike in March
The National Bankruptcy Research Center recently released data that showed 149,268 personal bankruptcies filed in the month of March this year. The American Bankruptcy Institute points out that this figure is the highest ever since the Bankruptcy Code overhaul in 2005. [Read more…]
Filing Your Tax Return Need Not Be a Taxing Task
As every tax season draws to a close, most Americans inevitably find themselves stressed out about filing their returns and getting them done in time. Many a time last minute tax calculation and filing can cause oversight and error, and the taxpayer may end up paying more than he or she needs to or vice verse. To make tax filing a less painful experience, a few tips can help. [Read more…]
The Three Basic Mortgage Options for Home Buyers
There are three basic types of house mortgage loans offered by lenders. Understanding these basic mortgage types will help you choose the best option for financing your purchase.
Fixed interest mortgage is the traditional mortgage loan in which the loan is amortized for the entire loan period using a constant pre-decided interest rate. You have to pay equal monthly installments for the loan period. For the first few years, the interest payments are front-loaded and only a small fraction of the principal is paid from these payments. [Read more…]
