The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has set up a new website (www.AnnualCreditReport.com) where US residents can obtain free copies of their credit reports from the three major credit report bureaus (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian). The FTC site was set up as part of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act enacted last December. The site was set up in an effort to help fight the increasing threat of identity theft. The credit reports must...more
Albert Einstein called compound interest "the greatest invention of all time." It has even been referred to as the "Eighth Wonder of the World." The trick is to get this tremendous force working for you rather than against you.Is compound interest gobbling up a significant chunk of your earnings? If you maintain an ongoing balance with a credit card company, compound interest is costing you much more than you probably realize. Let's start...more
Refinancing has become a valid option for many individuals with high interest rates on their mortgage. Refinancing is essentially a replacement loan, with a different lender and (hopefully) a lower interest rate.So why would you choose to refinance? You may be able to take advantage of lower interest rates. You may also be able to extend the repayment period of your mortgage. While you will end up paying more in interest charges for this, this will reduce your monthly outgoings. You may be able to switch from a variable rate to a fixed rate mortgage, giving you greater security in the future from potential rate increases. You may also be able to increase the amount of your mortgage, to pay off other, higher interest rate liabilities such as credit card debt, cell phone debt and personal loan debt. This will enable you to save money on interest rate chargesWhy would you avoid refinance?If you decide to borrow more than your existing mortgage, you need to be wary of your budget. If you default on your payments you run the risk of losing your house.If you do not calculate the costs involved with refinancing correctly, you could end up paying more in interest charges.Thoroughly review...more
When you first take over a department, expectations are usually high but operations are sometimes in disarray. The staff is disorganized, goals aren't being met, and hours are spent on unproductive tasks. Just when you think the company would never get on track, the CFO recommends that you learn more about something called operations...more
Lenders are using credit scores more and more to make decisions about who they will lend to. The main developer of these scores is called Fair, Isaac Co (FICO), thus these scores are often called FICO scores. Scores range from 300-850 with a lower score indicating a higher chance of defaulting on a loan and a higher score representing a better...more
One very important wealth creating habit is to set up a concrete plan that you can actually follow. You see, wealth takes planning, and is usually the result of taking a set of orderly, progressive steps from where you are now to where you want to be financially. Why is this a top wealth creating habit? Because the most extraordinarily wealthy people on the world did it this way. Less than 7% of the wealthiest people in the world received an inheritance, and of those 7%, almost none received their total wealth that way. In other words, almost everyone has to have a step-by-step plan for achieving wealth. The "I hope I win the lottery" works for almost no one.While a complete financial plan can be difficult to create overnight, you can get started by practicing creating concrete financial goals. And we do mean concrete. When most of us think about our financial situation, we tend to recoil from it because it makes us uncomfortable, especially if we are in debt or we are not as far along as we want to be. Stop recoiling! Take a careful look at your financial situation and set 1 to 3 goals that you want to achieve. Write these goals in concrete detail. For instance, don't write a...more
Have you ever heard the phrase, "Thoughts are things and words have wings?" This phrase is the perfect expression of the principle of prosperity. How you think about and talk about your level of prosperity is what actually manifests in your life. How...more
You do if you're a business, non-profit or association manager with important external stakeholders whose behaviors affect your department, division or subsidiary the most. In your own best interests, here's what you'd better be doing about them....more
A few years ago, many of us would have had a light chuckle to ourselves if someone mentioned that you could borrow money to buy a house with only the promise of solid future earnings. But today this is a regular occurrence. Many of the industry's...more
I hear it all the time. "What should I do about . . .?" As a business owner you're faced with the daunting task of making all the decisions that affect your business. Should I remain a sole proprietor, become an LLC or is an S Corp better? Should I...more
MARKETING STRATEGIESAn enterprise may adopt different marketing strategies dependent on the size and position of the business in its industry. The marketing strategy adopted may prove crucial to generate sales. These marketing strategies are often...more
What is bad PR? Well, if you're a business, non-profit or association manager, bad PR does nothing positive about the behaviors of those important outside audiences of yours that most affect your operation. It fails to create external stakeholder...more