About Income Taxes; Tidbits
Posted on July 19, 2008
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1812
The first attempt to impose an income tax on America occurred during the War of 1812. After more than two years of war, the federal government owed an unbelievable $100 million of debt. To pay for this, the government doubled the rates of its major source of revenue, customs duties on imports, which obstructed trade and ended up yielding less revenue than the previous lower rates.
And to think that the Revolution was started because of Tea Taxes in Boston?
Excise taxes were imposed on goods and commodities, and housing, slaves and land were taxed during the war. After the war ended in 1816, these taxes were repealed and instead high customs duties were passed to retire the accumulated war debt.
What is Taxable Income?
The amount of income used to arrive at your income tax. Taxable income is your gross income minus all your adjustments, deductions, and exemptions.
Some specific taxes:
Estate Taxes:
One of the oldest and most common forms of taxation is the taxation of property held by an individual at the time of death.
The US still has Estate Taxes, although there are proposals to do away with them.
How to Find a Good Online Homeowner Loan
Posted on July 19, 2008
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A quickly growing trend in lending is the online homeowner loan. This loan uses the equity that you have in your home to secure the loan amount, and features both a convenient way to apply and check on your loan as well as faster decision times and lower interest rates than many loans offered by more "traditional" lenders such as banks and finance companies.
If you’ve been considering applying for an online homeowner loan, it’s best to do a bit of research beforehand so that you’ll know exactly what sort of loan you’re getting.
Let’s look at some of the various advantages of getting an online homeowner loan, as well as ways that you can get the most out of your loan.
Advantages of online loans
One of the main advantages of getting an online homeowner loan is the ease of accessibility to both the lender and the loan via the internet.
Instead of having to visit a bank or finance company during their hours of operation, with an online homeowner loan you can simply visit a website for the information that you need at any time during the day or night.
Credit Scores and Loan Applications
Posted on July 19, 2008
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Keep Your Credit History Clean - Remove A Negative Credit Record From Your Credit Report
It can make a difference of up to 18% in loan repayment costs. For example, on a 30-year, $150,000 fixed rate mortgage, a borrower with the best credit score, 760-850, will pay 5.59%, or $860 per month, while someone in the worst score range will pay 7.18%, or $1,016 per month. This can make a big different to the household budget, so it’s to your advantage to keep your credit score as low as possible.
The 3 major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and Trans Union are similar and feature a “Credit Score”, which is derived from credit report information submitted to them about you.
Uner the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, a credit scoring system may not use characteristics such as race, sex, marital status, national origin or religion as factors, though they are allowed to use age.
Credit scores are determined by your bill-paying history, the number and type type of accounts you have, late payments, collection actions, and outstanding debt. The total number of points reflects how likely you are, statistically-speaking, to pay back a loan.
In a Time of Need
Posted on July 18, 2008
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As I take my leisurely walk with my dog through the older section of the local cemetery, I pause to read the details on the barely legible, weathered headstones. I am fascinated with the dates, for I know each stone has a story to tell, a history of its own time and place, but only enough space for identity. Proceeding up the rolling asphalt pathway, I am led into the new section of the cemetery. It becomes crystal clear as I compare the cemetery’s old sections with the new, Americans are living longer.
The aging of people in the US over the next three decades will have a huge impact on the way financial planners conduct business. Most baby boomers will reach retirement age over the next 30 years, causing rapid growth of the population over age 65.
According to the 1999 National Vital Statistics Reports, a total of 2,391,399 deaths occurred in the United States in that year. The age-adjusted death rate, which eliminates the effects of the aging of the population, was 881.9 deaths per 100,000. In 2001, a total of 2,416,425 deaths occurred in the United States. The age-adjusted death rate was 854.5 deaths per 100,000 (U.S. Census Bureau 1999, 2001).
Industry Regulation and Recent Legislation
Posted on July 18, 2008
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A number of states from coast to coast are attempting to impose further regulations on the payday loan industry, but without much success in many cases. Consumers of payday loans have generally argued against more stringent measures and limitations, that would limit their access to payday loans. And, in the meantime, the payday loan industry continues to grow, both in the numbers of loans issued and the dollar amounts of loans issued.
In Washington State, there were no less than 14 bills introduced during the 2004-2005 legislative session, with the specific intent of more tightly regulating the payday loan industry. Nine of the most aggressive proposals stalled in committee. If passed, these bills would have lowered payday loan interest rates and decreased the maximum amounts that a borrower could access.
Even more heavily opposed was a proposal to establish a statewide database of payday loans, giving both the industry and the state a way of looking at how many payday loans a borrower already had when he or she applied for another. This measure was designed to prevent borrowers from seeking loans from multiple lenders. Some analysts viewed the proposal as a potentially dangerous intrusion into people’s personal finances. The payday loan industry contended that cutting interest rates and putting a lower cap on loan amounts would significantly damage their business.
Stock Market Report: Day Trading or Swing Trading Online? Stock Investing Information
Posted on July 18, 2008
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Profitable day traders recognize that momentum trading is among the fastest & most effective ways to harvest BIG piles of cash in the stock market.
The problem is that if you don’t know what stocks to look for and how to approach them while limiting your risk, you won’t even get close to making some profits.
You don’t necessarily have to trade momentum hot stocks all the time. But you can learn how to take advantage of them when you encounter the best opportunities while at the same time limiting your risk.
If you want to learn how to trade and pick stocks with momentum in a simple yet effective way every week, just log on to HotInPlayStocks.com right now and discover what youve been missing.
Take a Look at The Valuable Strategies and Bonuses that You can acceess today:
+ $ Trading Psychology. Realistic mindset of experienced momentum traders. The ones who make more money look at every opportunity in certain ways.
+ $ Short Selling Opportunities. Focus on these strategic scenarios and short stocks like a pro over and over without getting confused. The other side of the golden coin: Shorting to profit when the stock goes down.
Debt Consolidation
Posted on July 17, 2008
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Sometimes life can get on top of you and out of control. When this happens many of us indulge in a little retail therapy but when a little becomes a lot then you can hit problems. When your spending constantly out strips your income you will find yourself in debt. The only way out may be a Debt Consolidation Loan to bring all your debt under the one payment.
If you have got yourself into so much debt that you don’t know how you
are ever going to pay it off then a Debt Consolidation Loan may seem the
answer to your prayers. With a Debt Consolidation Loan you will have
just one monthly payment and hopefully be able to finally pay off your
debts.
Of course, your goal in consolidating your debt should be to lower your
overall costs. There are two important points to keep in mind to achieve
this. The first is to get the lowest interest rate possible and the second is
to plan to pay off your debts in 3 - 5 years.
A Guide to Quick Homeowner Loans
Posted on July 17, 2008
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The search for quick homeowner loans can seem futile at first, especially if you don’t know exactly what it is that you’re looking for.
Different lenders may take longer or shorter periods of time to make loan decisions, and the time that they use may be time that you desperately need.
Quick homeowner loans can be found, however, and can often save you money on interest in addition to time!
Factors that effect your loan
Several factors can effect the process of applying for and receiving quick homeowner loans.
The first and one of the most important of these factors is your home’s equity? that’s the percentage of the home’s value that has already been paid off against the mortgage.
Equity is what serves as collateral for quick homeowner loans, guaranteeing that the lender will get their money back even if you end up unable to repay the loan.
Other factors that can influence both the speed and cost of quick homeowner loans are the amount that you want to borrow, what portion of your home’s equity the amount you want to borrow is, where you apply for the loan, and both local and national interest rates.
Government Grants - Beware of Scams
Posted on July 17, 2008
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As the saying goes: “Buyer Beware”. If you see ads claiming you qualify to receive a “free grant” for education, to start a home business or to payoff unpaid bills, be wary. Scam artists will claim your grant application is guaranteed to be accepted and approved, and you never have to repay the money. But the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns that these grant offers are often a scam. The grant isn’t free, nor is it guaranteed, nor is a refund.
According to the FTC, some scam artists market “free grants” in classified ads and even provide a toll free phone number. Here’s an example of what happens when you call:
A company representative asks non-threatening, simple questions to supposedly determine if you qualify to receive a grant. The representative then acts as if he/she is checking your eligibility, and then congratulates you as being eligible. But for you to get the grant information from them, they will charge you a processing fee. Although they will promise you that the grant is guaranteed or you can get your money back, the truth is far different.
What You Need to Know About Interest Rates
Posted on July 16, 2008
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For all people shop around for the best rate, there are few who have taken the time to sit down and add it all up. After all, why would you bother? The answer is that understanding just how interest rates work can help you see how important small differences in rates and payment amounts can be.
Interest Rates are Compound.
It is important to remember that what you owe is compounded ? that means you pay interest on the interest you owe from the month before. That means that if you’re paying 2% per month in interest, you’re not paying 24% per year ? you’re actually paying 26.82%. Charging interest monthly instead of yearly is a trick to make it feel like you are paying a very low price for your borrowing.
A Thought Experiment.
Here’s a question: would you rather have $1 million, or $10,000 in a savings account earning 20% per year in compound interest?
Well, let’s see how that $10,000 would grow. After 10 years: $61,917. 20 years: $383,375. 30 years: $2,373,763. 40 years: $91,004,381. 50 years: $563,475,143.
— keep looking »-
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