Latest financial news and information
Are the Elderly More Likely to Conned by Scams?
Popular wisdom would have us believe that seniors are more susceptible to falling for scams because of diminished brain activity, coupled with an accumulation of assets. However, new research suggests that as people age, they may lose those “spider senses,” or gut feelings, that alert people to situations in which they should raise their guard.
Are seniors more vulnerable to scams?
An estimated $2.9 billion was bilked from American seniors in 2010 alone, according to the MetLife Mature Market Institute. What makes the elderly more vulnerable to this kind of crime? Shelly Taylor, a professor of psychology at the University of California [...]
IRS Budget Cuts Cost You Money
The Internal Revenue Service has few fans but serves an essential function. Currently, budget cuts and other issues at the agency are costing taxpayers.
Budget cuts causing issues
Few federal agencies are as maligned as the Internal Revenue Service. Joe or Jane Taxpayer may think that trimming the IRS budget is a blessing. However, there are consequences of making it harder for the IRS to do its job.
According to the Washington Post, the operating budget for the Internal Revenue Service for this year is $11.8 billion, $1.5 billion less than what was requested by the president and $300 million less than last [...]
Save Money Shopping on Your Smartphone or Tablet
More American’s than ever have a smart phone or tablet, and they are quickly replacing the common laptop and desktop. With this comes more shopping from the smartphones than ever. With new technology comes new ways to be wise with your money. There are still several ways to save money while using your smartphone.
Standing up for tiered pricing
Technology blogger Anson Alex believes that a tiered data plan can be economically more sensible than an unlimited plan. In his opinion, unlimited plans are “equivalent to paying a fixed fee for electricity every month regardless of the amount of electricity you’re actually [...]
Most Financial Institutions Do Not Offer Payday Loans
There is a good reason a traditional bank or credit union doesn’t offer payday loans. Many people have wondered why it is that a small loan for a short period of time is solely the province of payday lenders. Banks and credit unions steer clear of the practice. There are good reasons why payday loans will never be offered by traditional institutions.
Typical institutions do not offer payday loans
A lot of people have observed that while you can visit any payday loan store for a loan until payday, a similar loan is not available at a bank or credit union. It [...]
Small Businesses in America are Big
Small businesses in America represent 99.7 percent of businesses in the United States and employ more than 55 million American citizens. So think of a collection of people that you know. Roughly nine out of every 10 people you know, or simply meet on a typical day, work for a small business in the United States. Some may even work for a company that provides short term loans for bad credit. Furthermore, knowing whether the majority of small businesses in America are doing well is a near accurate barometer of how most of your family and friends are doing economically.
Small [...]
Are Movie Theaters Finally Seeing Their End?
I have heard and read that movie theaters are hearing their death-knell a multiplex worth of times. The general argument is that DVDs, Blu-Rays, Redbox and especially streaming video, will put them all out of business once and for all. However, they still remain, and I believe they will be around as long as people want to get out for an evening without burning up their budgets.
Gone With the Wind?
People have been making the dire prediction since the late forties, when the inception of television coincided with the federal government’s break-up of the studio system monopoly. Before that time, each [...]
75th Annual Spokane Lilac Festival This Saturday
It’s time for a little hometown spirit. This weekend Spokane, Washington will celebrate its 75th annual Spokane Lilac Festival, and the world’s largest Armed Forces Torchlight Parade. This is one of the many claims to fame my small city has to offer, and I am proud to support them. So what is the Lilac Festival?
Spokane Lilac Festival
The Spokane Lilac Festival is a way to honor our Military, Celebrate our Youth, and Showcase our Region. This is done through a series of events. There is the Jr. Lilac Parade to celebrate our children, there is a car show to celebrate our [...]
You’re More Likely to be Audited if You’re a Millionaire
Tax season is over and now the IRS will start their audits. According to a report from the Internal Revenue Service nearly twice as many millionaires were targeted for tax audits in 2011. That’s right, you’re more likely to be audited if you’re a millionaire.
Number of all audits about the same
The overall audit rate in 2011 remained nearly unchanged at 1.1 percent of all taxpayers. Not so, however, for taxpayers who earned between $1 million and $5 million over the year. Twelve percent of taxpayers in those brackets were audited, a five percent leap from 2010.
Higher the income, greater the [...]
Small Business Loans to Start Your New Venture
Starting a new business takes time, energy, focus, and always money. Many people look for investors, many finance it themselves, and many use small business loans. Many low-interest and no-interest loans, however, are sitting unused.
Using small business loans to create jobs
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, among other things, made a point of trying to create jobs. Small businesses account for a large number of the jobs created in the United States each year. The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 created loans and stimulus programs intended to encourage businesses to hire. The idea is that small businesses are the [...]
Steps for Planning Debt Consolidation
Debt Consolidation loans can be a good way to simplify your debt. But when it comes to debt relief, it’s only the first step. You have to change your spending habits as well, or you’re simply trying to borrow your way out of debt, which doesn’t make any sense no matter how you look at it. Debt consolidation makes sense if, by grouping all individual forms of debt into one place, the interest rate is lower. But if the only reason for the lower interest rate is a longer term, you could end up paying more money in the long [...]
DIY Mothers Day Ideas 2013
Mothers Day 2013 is almost here, and you don’t have a present. You also don’t have much money, but you’re crafty. Why not try one of these cheap, DIY Mother’s Day gift ideas? Remember, it’s the thought that counts.
Smell your way to potpourri
Homemade potpourri is a great, cheap way to remind mom that when it comes to love, she comes out smelling like a rose. To make a bowl for mom, pick and dry flowers, roots, fruit peels, plants and more that compliment your image of her as a scent-being. Dry them by hanging them outdoors on string or by [...]
Is the Housing Market finally Stable?
The housing market will be largely on its own. The Federal Reserve’s $1.25 trillion program of buying up mortgage-backed securities ended and the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit ended a long time ago. The Obama administration’s emergency money program to provide debt relief for up to 4 million households by restructuring distressed mortgages has produced only 170,000 permanent modifications.
Job losses continue to create loan defaults, foreclosure sales are still driving property prices downward, and mortgage interest rates are expected to rise. These things do not bode well for a turn-around of the housing market, and with budget deficits dominating the political [...]
Cap Rates on Cash Advances are not Ideal
Cap rates on cash advances is a common practice in the financial industry. It may seem like it’s a good thing to do to protect consumers from unfair interest rates. In reality, interest rate caps can sometimes be an unfair standard on cash advance loans. Furthermore, rate caps constrain businesses in an industry in which almost half of all loan lenders are small business owners.
The cap rats on cash advances use bad math
Many states have introduced initiatives that cap interest rates on loans, aimed at capping the rate of a cash advance, usually at 36 percent APR. It seems like [...]
Do You Trust Your Bank? Most People Don’t
Phrases like “bank bailout” and “too big to fail” have left a sour taste in the mouths of consumers. The results are easy to see in recent consumer confidence polls, suggests Bankrate. The question “Do you trust your bank?” posed by banking consultants BAI & Finacle in their biannual Index of Bank Sentiment survey received negative replies from consumers. Not only that, but the survey shows that bankers’ assessment of consumer confidence is entirely out of whack.
The divide between consumer and banker opinion
The Index of Bank Sentiment survey polled a large group of bankers and more than 2,500 U.S. banking [...]
Student Loan Collections – What You Should Know
There are trillions of dollars of student loans currently in the U.S. market, and $67 billion is in default with student loan collections. Student loans are one of the few things that can’t be written off in bankruptcy, doesn’t go away after seven years, and must be paid off at some point. Though there are programs to help loans in default, federal student load debt collectors may not be offering those programs to troubled lenders.
Student Load Debt Collectors
The Department of Education does not directly collect on overdue student loans. Instead, the Department of Education contracts out with debt collection agencies [...]
Was The Secret Coca-Cola Formula Published?
The Coca-Cola formula is one of the most closely guarded trade secrets in the history of the United States. The syndicated radio show “This America Life” revealed that the original Coca-Cola recipe was discovered in an old newspaper column. The Coca-Cola Company keeps the Coke recipe locked in a tightly guarded vault, but the radio show said all the ingredients can actually be bought online.
How the secret Coca-Cola Formula recipe was revealed
The formula for Coca-Cola was concocted by a doctor in Atlanta named John Pemberton in 1886. It has been reported that only two people who know how to mix [...]
Debt Consolidation the Right Way
Allowing credit card debt to pile up can be a disaster, and today millions of people around the world are in over their heads when it comes to this particular debt. Instead of feeling trapped, as if no solution exists, you might consider credit card debt consolidation. For many, this has proven to be a highly beneficial solution, but some factors need to be considered.
Advices for starters
For starters, you need to understand what credit card debt consolidation involves. Simply put, this service is a process that makes it possible for all credit card debt to be rolled into one debt. [...]
Recent Conversations