Deciding If You Need Life Insurance?
April 30, 2009
Deciding If You Need Life Insurance?
by: Joseph Kenny
Most people are aware of how life insurance works and what are the events and dangers that it is designed to protect against. They may also have family commitments and people who they provide for and know that some sort of life insurance would protect their family financially, if something were to happen to them. However, it is still often a very difficult decision to make if you are trying to decide whether or not you need life insurance.
Life insurance is a big commitment financially speaking. The premium can vary in cost but can be considerable, then there is also the issue that life insurance often extends over many years, even decades. This means that not only are you committing to pay the premium for this year, but also for many years into the future. There are not many people who can say with certainty what their earnings will be in ten or fifteen or twenty years time.
The Advantages of Reverse Mortgages
April 29, 2009
The Advantages of Reverse Mortgages
by: Charles Kirkendall
In recent years property values have soared, while investment returns have been modest. This has created a situation where a lot of seniors are finding themselves in the position of being house rich and cash poor. These cash strapped seniors are looking for ways to increase their retirement income while continuing to live in their homes. These retirees find that their options are limited, and in most cases require them to risk their home. Enter the reverse mortgage, which can provide many advantages over these other less desirable options.
No Payments With Reverse Mortgages
The biggest advantage of a reverse mortgages is not having to make payments as long as you continue living in your home. In fact, this is the number one reason that seniors choose to borrow reverse mortgages. Almost 80% of reverse mortgage borrowers use a reverse mortgage to pay off their current loans in order to eliminate their house payments. Let’s say you owe $50,000 on your first mortgage and borrow $80,000 with a reverse mortgage. This would pay off and eliminate the payment on the first mortgage and provide you with $30,000 to use as you please.
Bargain Basement - Finding Stocks That Go Up
April 29, 2009
Have you been listening to the talking heads on CNBC-TV? Or those talk radio stock experts? Getting all those good recommendations on what to buy now. Now?
Those guys keep telling me the market is oversold. It can’t go any lower. (But it does.) I bet your broker has some hot tips for you too. Advice from a broker is a eulogy for your money. I don’t think he has told you about the one position you should have in your account right now. It’s a nasty four letter word to him - CASH. In a money market fund it will make you about 5%, maybe 6% and that is better than the bloodletting going on in the market.
There is an old saying - “When in doubt, get out”. And right now everything is in doubt. The “experts” are confused as one says ‘recession’, another says ‘hard landing’, another ’soft landing’, ‘buy’, and no one says ’sell’. That last word is a ‘no-no’ on Wall Street. Less than 3% of all brokerage recommendations are sells. They are afraid they will offend the company and won’t be able to talk to the CEO any more. Hey, what about us customers out here? We are the ones who are paying the bills.
The Game Of Switching- Credit Cards
April 28, 2009
The Game Of Switching- Credit Cards
by: Dr. Judith Earl
Are you overburdened with the outstanding balance of your credit cards? Are you sick and tired of juggling between 3-5 credit cards? Don’t you need a way out to relax yourself from this burden? If yes, then read on. This article might help you in finding out the way.
One of the easiest ways to relieve yourself from the burden of outstanding balance of your credit card is to switch issuers. Many credit card companies offer extremely low (or zero) interest rates on balance transfers.
Now, let’s find out what are balance transfer deals and how is it going to help you?
A balance transfer is when you move your balance from your existing card to another card for better APR. A balance transfer credit card is where you get either a zero interest rate or very low interest rate for a set period. The set period is normally for 6 months; however it might vary at your lender’s discretion. Balance transfer would be the smartest option for you to consider if you think you can pay off the debt within six months and the 0% offer applies for six months. Yet to remember that once the set period expires, the increased monthly repayments can soon outweigh the introductory benefit offer. So, stay alert and keep yourself informed about the move of your credit card company. It should be remembered that if utilized properly a balance transfer can act as a much more favoured option than a personal loan.
Money Problems? Consider A Viable Home Business
April 27, 2009
Money Problems? Consider A Viable Home Business
by: Jim Eastman
Many people find themselves in what might be called the “Time and Money Catch 22.” Trapped in a dead-end job with no hope for advancement, they live from paycheck to paycheck making barely enough money to meet expenses. They long to break free and start a business of their own, because the hope of better money “somewhere down the road” is way better than no hope at all!
The “catch” is that starting a business would require more time than their job allows, and yet they can’t quit their job because they’re forced to depend on it to pay their bills. There’s just no getting around it! No new business is going to begin making money the very first day. There will always be a period of time when there’s just no money coming in.
What’s needed is a business that:
• One can start in his spare time and at his own pace
• Can be started with very little money
• Can be making money in a reasonably short time
• Most importantly, can be operated part-time while the entrepreneur maintains his present job during the “start up” phase.
Own a Credit Repair Business
April 26, 2009
Own a Credit Repair Business
by: Jay Conners
If you are looking to start, or you already own a credit repair business, than the concept of purchasing credit repair leads has undoubtedly crossed your mind.
The benefit of purchasing credit repair leads for a credit repair business is that the potential customer is motivated to have their credit repaired by a professional such as yourself.
These customers are not playing games. They are not just looking for information. The moment they were directed to a site for credit repair help and filled out the on line form, they committed themselves to seeking the help of a professional and they are waiting on a phone call.
If you are new to the credit repair business, or you are looking to breath a little life into your existing business, than credit repair leads may be the way to go.
If you do some looking around on the internet, you should be able to find a credit repair lead company that sells their leads exclusively and relatively cheap. At least no more than fifteen dollars per lead.
Retirement is Never Urgent Until
April 25, 2009
If you’re like many people, your retirement savings have not been growing consistently over the years. We’re not referring to the wild fluctuations in the stock market, but rather the fluctuations in our short-term needs. Every once in a while, it just seems like a good idea to yank ALL those retirement savings out and pay for something.
You might need to pay for a down payment. You might need to pay off some credit card debt that’s nagging at you. You might want to ‘bugger off to Europe’ as Rick did some years ago. You know it’s not a good idea financially, but you do it anyway. Retirement savings are not designed to bail us out when we need this kind of short-term cash infusion but if it’s there?
As financial advisors, we have our ideals. Ideally, you should put retirement funds away and ‘leave it there’. Ideally you should never touch it at all, even when you retire! Why? Because it is the ‘earnings’ from the nest egg that you should be using, never the principal. As we heard one person suggest recently, your principal is like your ‘goose’, and you never kill the goose, because then you’re eliminating all those future ‘golden eggs’ (interest/earnings) it will lay.
Comparing Google’s Search Franchise to McCormick’s Spice Franchise
April 24, 2009
Comparing Google’s Search Franchise to McCormick’s Spice Franchise
by: Geoff Gannon
Google has a competitive advantage. In fact, one might even say it has a franchise in web search. I wouldn’t say that. I mean, Google does have a franchise; but, it doesn’t have a monopoly on web search and never will. There are real problems with Google’s model that are often overlooked. It does a poor job of finding certain sites that are difficult to describe in keywords. For this reason, there may still be a market for web search in the form of specialized niche directories and in some of these “social search engines” (e.g., Stumble Upon) for many years to come.
I’m not suggesting any of these services will be as successful as Google; I’m sure they won’t be. I am simply pointing out that there is a difference between a need and the means by which that need is satisfied. Even as the dominant search player, Google will only have a franchise on the means (keyword search); it will not have a franchise on the need (finding stuff on the web). Also, Google can not, at present, rightly be called the dominant search player. There is no dominant player in search. Google is the leading search player. It is also the catalyst for many changes in search. But, it is not yet the dominant player in search the way McCormick (MKC) is the dominant U.S. spice producer.
Home Based Business Success
April 24, 2009
Home Based Business Success
by: LND Marketing
Building a successful home business IS possible, if the recipe
for success contains the right ingredients!
With so many opportunities available for the home business
entrepreneur, it’s hard to decide where to start.
It takes a few key ingredients to be successful with your home
based business, these ingredients will make your income rise…
1. You must have a solid company, a lucrative pay plan with no
hurdles to jump each month so that you are not restricted in
compensation in any way.
2. A product that is consumable, that will be used each and
every month so that you have repeat business, a long term
customer base will produce a long term residual income.
3. A mentor or coach, who can support you both Online and
Offline to grow your business quickly and efficiently.
4. A team of like minded individuals to support you during your
first few months of learning how to build your business.
Friendly support and encouragement from others who are also
Instant Credit Cards Can Be Expensive
April 23, 2009
Instant Credit Cards Can Be Expensive
by: Charles Essmeier
One day, while you are shopping at your favorite department store, the sales clerk says to you, “If you apply for our credit card, you can save ten percent on your purchase.” You think about it and decide, “Why not?” You provide some information to the clerk and a minute or two later, your credit card application is approved, your discount is applied, and you’re on your way home.
Was this a smart thing to do? There are several reasons why it may not have been a good choice:
# The card will probably carry a higher interest rate than the major credit card you had planned to use. Do you really need a credit card with a 20% interest rate?
# The card may not include a grace period for the accrual of interest charges. You may find that although you saved 10%, you started paying 20% interest the minute you walked out the door!
