World’s Richest Countries
By financen | February 28, 2012 - 4:13 pm - Posted in Others

We all are interested to know the most richest countries in the world. Here is the list of 15 richest countries on the basis of per capita income.

  • 1) Qatar: Qatar has become the richest country in the world. The gross domestic per capita is more than $88,000 for 2010.
  • 2) Luxembourg: Luxembourg ranked 2nd in the list of world’s richest countries with a Per capita of $81,466.

  • 3) Singapore: Singapore is in the third position. Per capita of Singapore is $56,694.
  • 4) Norway: With a per capita of $51,959 Norway is in the 4th position on the list.
  • 5) Brunei: Brunei is ranked 5th in the list of world’s richest countries with a per capita of $48,333.
  • 6) UAE: With a per capita of $47,439 UAE is in the 6th position on the list.
  • 7) United States of America: USA hold the 7th rank on the Forbes list with a per capita of $46,860.
  • 8 ) Hong Kong: Hong Kong is in the 8th position on the list with a per capita of $45,944.
  • 9) Switzerland: With a per capita gross domestic product of $41,950, it is in the 9th position of the list.
  • 10) The Netherlands: Per capita of The Netherlands is $40,973. So it holds 10th rank on the Forbes list.
  • 11) Australia: Australia is in the 11th rank on Forbes list. Per capita of Australia is $39,764.
  • 12) Austria: As per the Forbes list Austria ranked at No. 12 with the per capita of $39,761.
  • 13) Ireland: With a per capita of $39,492 Ireland is in the 13th position on the list.
  • 14) Canada: Canada ranked No. 14 in the list with a per capita of $39,171.
  • 15) Kuwait: On the list of 15 richest countries Kuwait is in the last position. Its per capita is $38,775.

The list has been taken from Forbes.com

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Why Your Second Mortgage is a Bad Idea
By financen | February 16, 2012 - 9:35 am - Posted in Mortgage

It may not be true for everyone, but for most people a second mortgage is a bad idea. Finance companies also call them home equity loans and home equity lines of credit. They do have benefits if used properly, but there is a lot of downside to them as well.

Unlike traditional home loans and first time buyers Mortgages, a second mortgage is a loan taken out on a home that already has a mortgage.

This is easier to do today than in the past because customer-hungry loan companies are devising new ways to create business. Therefore, the companies have been allowing second mortgages that take the total of both loans up to 125 percent of the value of the home. That is where the first problem begins.

When the total of your mortgages is more than the value of your house, you are ‘under water’ in the home. In other words, if you have to sell it, you will not get enough money out of it to pay your home loans off. For most people, this means living there for many more years if they can afford to, or if not, suffering a foreclosure.

Another problem is that it is harder to get any other kind of loan such as an auto loan. This, among other things, is because the loan may max you out on your available credit. Your debt-to-income ratio may be too high, meaning you do not have enough income to qualify for more credit until you pay the mortgages down. First time buyer mortgages are also hard to get if you have too much debt.

  • Who Owns Your Mortgaged Home?

Until you pay it in full, the provider of your first home loan owns the house. If you fail to pay the provider, it can foreclose on it and take it back. When you get a home equity loan, that provider now has a loan on the house as well and it can take the house from you too.

However, to do that, the loan company would have to pay off your first loan. If you owe too much money for the company to do that, it may decide to sue you instead.

  • How a Second Mortgage Makes Life Tougher

Obviously, a home equity line of credit is one more monthly payment you have to make. While you think you can easily make it now, a time may come when it becomes a burden. By then, it may be too late. The problem worsens with the next issue – not having the ability to refinance your house.

If you are thinking you can just refinance your house to get out of the problem, you are probably wrong. It may be three or more years after you take out the second mortgage before you can refinance. That allows time to build enough equity again to get a new loan.

Of course, as with all credit, interest is a big issue. It is even more money out of your pocket that you could be using for other things such as retirement funds. Additionally, every loan has fees and those take awhile to overcome, even with a low interest rate.

Second mortgages are not all bad, as long as you know what you are up against. It may be better to take one out and pay off credit cards rather than to pay high interest rates. If you do, just be sure you do not acquire the same debt again, or you will double your trouble.

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Currency trading tips – Buying foreign currencies
By financen | February 2, 2012 - 3:17 pm - Posted in Forex

You may be planning to become a successful forex trader over the period of time. Read this article and you will get to know the most effective currency trading tips and become a successful forex trader.

The first and foremost thing is to know how the foreign exchange market works and moves. The currency trading market is influenced by a number of factors. It includes policy decisions, economic data releases, fluctuations in interest rates, etc. Therefore it is very necessary for the foreign exchange traders to spend quality time in understanding these factors and their possible results on currency trading.

A good foreign exchange trader will sell currencies at low interest rates and buy them with high interest rates. He has the required experience to find a ‘reason good and more than enough’ to support his or her findings about the market. Since the real money is invested in the currency trading, therefore a small mistake can cost a lot.

Foreign exchange traders should also know the art of managing risk. If they cannot analyze risk, it will be hard to be a successful forex trader. They need to have the financial stability and resources to take risks before anticipating profits out of them. Successful traders will not invest their money on uncalculated risks and this is what differentiates them from other traders in the market. They will make every possible effort to mitigate downside risk and always emphasize on trading strategies like stop losses and limit orders.

An experienced foreign exchange trader will concentrate on one or two currency pairs at a single point of time. This gives them more time to do a thorough research on a few and make more profits. It is much better than conducting superficial research on many and ending up with no profits or huge losses. It is always recommended to try few currency pairs, preferably major pairs that have better liquidity. Tighter spreads, and lower volatility. Avoid those currency pairs that are characterized by poor liquidity, wide spreads and volatile movements.

A good forex trader should stick to a long term plan and stay disciplined rather than changing plans every now and then in order to make small profits with extremely high risk trades. Investors dealing in forex trading should avoid feelings that are attached with a missed-out opportunity or trying revenge against the market or going complacent after winning a few trades or developing fear after a lost trade. These feelings might encourage an impetuous, irrational decision and should be avoided by all means.

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