By Charles | November 17, 2007 - 9:29 am - Posted in Loan

Loan can be termed in other word as debt. It is the redistribution of financial assets between lenders and borrowers. The circle goes in this way, the borrower receives money from lenders and they pay back to the lenders with some additional cost which is known as interest. Contractual agreement between lender and borrower makes a loan secured.

It is the principal tasks of the financial institutions to act as a provider or lender of loans. It is always important to raise the money supply in a nation and the bank or other financial institutions are playing that role.

Types:

Generally loans are categorized in two parts:

  • Secured loans
  • Unsecured loans

Secured:

Secured loan can be defined as “a loan in which the lender or borrower pledges assets like property, land, home, car etc. as collateral.”

Mortgage loan is one of the most common and popular types of secured loan which individuals used to purchase home. The financial institutions are given the license to repossess the housing and sell it to recover the due amount if the borrowers are unable to pay off the full amount of loan. Car loan is another type of well known secured loan, but its duration is much shorter than housing loan.

Unsecured:

Unsecured loan can be defined as “It is a loan which is not secured against any assets of the borrower.” Unsecured loans are available in the financial market in the form of different marketing packages like:

  • Credit card
  • Personal loan
  • Bank overdraft etc.

The interest rates on these loans vary from lender to lender. These loans may not be regulated by any law.

Some Abuses of loan:

Predatory lending: One of the popular abuses is predatory lending. It works in this way; lenders put the borrower in a position from where they take advantage over the borrower.

Loan shark: It is known as loan shark when the moneylenders are not authorized. That means loan shark is nothing but a lender who offers illegal unsecured loan and with high rate of interest.

Usury: When any unsecured loans are given at excessive interest it is called usury.

By Charles | November 15, 2007 - 10:03 am - Posted in Federal Reserve, Money and Banking

The Federal Reserve is just a name on dollar to Most of the Americans. They don’t know the act of the Central Bank (Federal Reserve) to the economy of USA. If you want to know about Federal Reserve and its act on money, banking and to the economy then you must watch this video:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-466210540567002553

By Charles | November 13, 2007 - 9:47 am - Posted in Debt

Today’s small debt can turn into big ones if you are not conscious enough. Usually it can be seen that in festive season people spend lot more than their affordability. Many marketplace and shopping malls offer special festival discounts to the customers and these discounts make people pay out more using credit cards and other cards.

Many young especially students are not getting proper financial advice from their parents regarding personal finance. Due to this problem they found themselves in debt problem every now and then. There are many financial advisors and debt management companies who offer free consultation. So if you are in this category then you can have free advice from this companies or organizations.

Huge amount of credit card bills and unsecured loans against your name can create lots of difficulties if you don’t have the ability to pay them on time. So if you are having problem of this kind then it can be advised that you should consolidate all your credit card bills and unsecured loans into one monthly payment. In this way you don’t have to pay all your creditors differently, which will make your life lots of good. Some times debt consolidation loans can help you but you need to remember that if you default in payment of this loan then you will be in deep trouble. So it’s better to opt for debt consolidation service rather than a loan. Suppose you are not in a position to pay all your debts with monthly payment then you can look for debt settlement which shortens your total debt to near about 50%. But it is always better to adjust your lifestyle according to your earning to make your life debt free.

By Charles | November 5, 2007 - 6:18 am - Posted in Bankruptcy

If we have been through bankruptcy then maximum of us think that our credit is shattered and we will not be able to regain it, but not that all times, you can regain credit through some unique ways. After filing bankruptcy your goal or motive should be to start establishing credit and straighten things out. Find 10 ways to recover from bankruptcy below:

  • Find the causes of the bankruptcy
  • Prepare a suitable budget
  • Pay your bills on time
  • Check your credit report
  • Use a single credit card
  • Re-establish credit steadily
  • Avoiding unfair deals
  • Don’t give up hopes
  • Beware of credit repair scams
  • Acquire positive approach

1) Find the causes of the bankruptcy: It is really important to find the cause of filing bankruptcy. You need the find the problem from the root and to remove it. Think about new type of employment or some specific budget, so that you find yourself in different position after five years from now.

2) Prepare a suitable budget: One of the most important things in life is to have control over it. And to control your lifestyle and spending attitude, you need to make a suitable budget. Just track six months of your expenses and you will get an idea about your expenses and income. Now you need to make a balance between them to create a realistic budget for you. It is the first step of saving which will help you make funds for future needs.

3) Pay your bills on time: It is necessary to pay all your bills on time if you want to gain good credit after bankruptcy. Bills include small ones like phone and power company bills. Dealings with your bank are also important. Your credit score gets affected on bouncing checks, overdrafts, bank fees etc.

4) Check your credit report: You have got a clean page after filing bankruptcy. Now you have to make sure that you maintain a good and healthy credit report. That’s why it is necessary to check credit report on regular basis to make it errorless. Some of us are scared about numbers and don’t want to go thorough it but for your benefit it is necessary to take control of it.

5) Use a single credit card: One of the best ways to re-establish good credit is using a single credit card and make a good payment record. Creating lots of credit card accounts can’t help your credit.

6) Re-establish credit steadily: Using one or two credit cards and paying them off in full each time helps a lot to your credit score. It should be good within two years if you maintain this behavior. Another thing which will make people who filed for bankruptcy happy is that some lenders prefer to provide loan to people who have filed for bankruptcy in the recent times. The reason behind their thought is that these people will not be able to file bankruptcy again for the next 8 years and they will be liable to pay the new debts.

7) Avoiding unfair deals: This is another area you need to avoid. You will find companies will offer loans with high rate of interest after knowing your situation that you have filed for bankruptcy. You will probably be happy to find this credit but wait, this high rate of interest may not suit your situation, hold for the better offer or deal.

8 ) Don’t give up hopes: Most of us think that after filing for bankruptcy no lenders will agree to approve a loan to us. You need the right lenders to approach. Do some research to find them. Another thing is that of human touch. If you can approach to the lenders properly explaining about the situation and the reasons of filing bankruptcy then they may approve your loan.

9) Beware of credit repair scams: Move yourself away from anyone offering or promises to “repair” or “fix” your credit after bankruptcy. Repairing credit overnight is the next word to impossible. It can only be done by you and with no fee.

10) Acquire positive approach: After filing for bankruptcy you may think that you are alone, you can’t disclose your financial situation to anyone. But think positively because you will find many of your friends and neighbors have also filed it.

By Charles | November 2, 2007 - 7:57 am - Posted in Stock Market

In the last five months, October has added most number of jobs for U.S. economy. Despite of this good news in the job market, stock markets were still in the swing to the downward. Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 2.6% or 362 points on Thursday, and today at 12.45 p.m. ET, was also down by 36 points to 13,531. Although Nasdaq was up by 1 point at 2,796.

Want to know more about this news? Visit this article.