What is it? The first-time homebuyer credit is an incentive to perk up the housing market. It rebates 10 percent of your home price— up to $8000 for first-time buyers, and up to $6500 for previous buyers. Continue reading
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Banks Respond to CARD Act with Tougher Terms
In recent months, credit cardholders with good credit histories have found their rates climbing and their lines of credit reduced. Issuers have either remained silent, or claimed that this is just a standard procedure. Continue reading
Credit Card Bubble
Let’s review some recent financial history: Continue reading
How to Reduce Phone Bill
The secret to keeping costs down in general is being aware of what you use. Once you know the details of your expenses, you can find services that meets your needs at the lowest price.
This includes cell phone service, too. If you’re looking to lower your bills, these are the areas you need to examine: Continue reading
Safe Finances Online (part 3): Passable Passwords
Password protection is not an unbeatable system when it comes to Internet security, but it’s extremely common. Oftentimes it’s the only barrier between your sensitive data and the outside world. Continue reading
Safe Finances Online (part 2): What Should Be Kept Confidential?
Anyone old enough to be enrolled in elementary school knows that you shouldn’t leave certain possessions sitting around in public— they could be stolen. Purses, wallets, computers, iPods, and cell phones are very tempting to thieves, and if you leave them unattended, they likely won’t be there when you return. Continue reading
Greekonomics 101
Until recently, most of us Americans knew Greece as the birthplace of Western Civilization (and an idyllic Mediterranean tourist spot.) Now there’s doomsday talk of Greece’s debt crisis causing another global recession, or a collapse. Continue reading
Fake Insurance, Real Problems
Many rumors and accusations have been passed around about healthcare reform, but one of the most upsetting effects of the legislation is the rise in fake health insurance.
Here’s how the scam works: Door-to-door salesmen claim that health insurance is now mandatory, and then pitch “limited-enrollment” insurance with a time sensitive offer. They claim that their policy is exempt from Obamacare restrictions, and thus will be grandfathered into the new law. Continue reading
Safe Finances Online (part 1): Is ID Protection Necessary?
The Internet can appear to be a private place— we Facebook, watch YouTube, and even do banking in seeming seclusion. In reality, the Net is as public as Times Square, and as dangerous as the shadiest parts of any city in the world.
This the first realization in becoming a wise Netizen: if you wouldn’t share it with Jerry on a Central Park bench, then don’t share it online. Continue reading
Live Large on a Small Salary: Budgeting Help in This Economy
Face facts: the economy is really crummy right now.
Whether you’re looking at reduced wages, reduced hours, a lower-paying job or no job at all, the trickle-down effect is felt in nearly every sector. Employers and consumers are forced to cut back everywhere. Continue reading
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