Analysis Topic: Personal Finance
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Pre Paid Credit Cards- Great Idea, or Financial Con? / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: Mike_Gracia
Pre paid credit cards are, in a way, like a debit card, in that now actual credit is involved. They differ from debit cards however, because they are accepted pretty much anywhere that accepts the credit card brand (for example, MasterCard)Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Treasury Bill Accounts a Smarter Alternative to Money Market Funds / Personal_Finance / Savings Accounts
By: Paul_Lamont
Investors are rushing into cash as the financial system is deleveraging. But what form of cash will preserve investor's wealth? ‘Cash-like' instruments, such as adjustable rate securities, have become illiquid with the credit markets. Some money market funds, full of asset-backed commercial paper, have had to be supported by their sponsors. Even bank deposits could be unavailable for a time in an FDIC backlog (they expect to be quite busy as their recent hiring suggests).Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
UK Credit Continues To Get More Expensive / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: MoneyFacts
Michelle Slade, analyst at Moneyfacts.co.uk, comments: “With increasing costs on all household bills, many people are relying on their credit card to get by each month. But these people are going to find themselves out of pocket as purchase and cash rates, along with charges, continue to increase.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Borrowers and Lenders: Take Responsibility for Your Decisions / Personal_Finance / US Debt
By: Alex_Epstein
Throughout the housing crisis, we have heard demands from spokesmen for desperate homeowners, banks, and investors for every variety of government bailout. But there is one group from whom the nation has not heard: the millions of Americans who, like me, had nothing to do with the crisis, who entered into mortgage contracts they could meet or who refused to buy at exorbitant prices, but who will be forced to pay the bills for these bailouts. If we had a spokesman, this is what I wish he would say.Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, May 02, 2008
How to Teach Your Children Financial Independence / Personal_Finance / Educating Children
By: Money_and_Markets
Nilus Mattive writes; My daughter is only 10 months old, but my wife and I are already anticipating the day she comes asking us for money to buy the latest designer handbag. Disha is making a list of her favorite stores. Me? I'm envisioning how I'll use the request as a way to talk about the importance of money and sound spending habits.
Last time I checked, very few elementary schools — or even high schools, for that matter — were teaching kids anything about finance. And that's a real shame.
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Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Instant Decision Credit Cards– A quick fix for bad credit? / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: Mike_Gracia
Many people are now aware that opening a new credit card and running the account well is one of the best ways of improving one's credit rating. Those with bad credit that are expecting to get one of the instant decision credit cards however, may be a tad disappointed.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, April 14, 2008
How Safe is My FDIC-Insured Bank Account? / Personal_Finance / Credit Crisis 2008
By: Dr_Martenson
Your bank account may not be as safe as you think (or hope). Taking a deeper look at the legal details and the financial depth of the FDIC reveals several troubling details that call into question how the FDIC would fare during a true banking crisis.
The US is coming out of a period of unusually low banking stress and failures. Since it is typical human behavior to let one's guard down during tranquil periods, we might legitimately ask if this has happened with respect to the FDIC.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
What Are Air Mile Credit Cards? / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: Mike_Gracia
As you spend money using your air miles credit card, you accrue points that you can redeem for car hire, flights, or hotels.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
HSBC Mortgage Rate Matcher Rescue Offer- Smoke and Mirrors? / Personal_Finance / Mortgages
By: Nadeem_Walayat
Britain's biggest and most profitable bank offers to rescue mortgage borrowers who's fixed rates expire this year to high variable rates, with an offer to match their maturing fixed rates down to 4.5%.
HSBC Remortgage Offer Specs
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Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Purchase credit card offers– The 10 Must read Tips for getting the best 0% card offers / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: Mike_Gracia
0% on purchases … 0% on balance transfers … sounds great – We can't loose can we – Or can we!
We have put together a small list of tips to help consumers get the most from these promotional offers. With this guide, hopefully you will learn how to sieve through the multitude of deals, and get one that's right for you.
Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, April 07, 2008
Using Credit Cards Abroad– Avoid Nasty Charges and a Shock on Your Return! / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: Mike_Gracia
Having a credit or debit card while on holiday can give you peace of mind, knowing that you are not having to carry large sums of money all the time.
But what about the costs of using your credit cards abroad ? If you do not use your card wisely, you could come home to a shock that turns the normal post holiday blues into a financial nightmare!
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Wednesday, March 26, 2008
The Real Scoop on Annuities - Part One / Personal_Finance / Pensions & Retirement
By: Steve_Selengut
Insurance companies have always been big time financial institutions, and they could probably have claimed possession of the largest and safest investment portfolios on the planet. At one time, their role vis-à-vis Wall Street was clearly that of a giant customer for the securities the investment banks brought to market and which the securities firms distributed. Their real estate holdings were religious in size and quality. They were direct lenders to corporations, their owner-policyholders, and to other institutions. They were the Trustees who managed the private employee pension plans of the world. Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Abbey Super Cash ISA 10%- Too Good to be True? / Personal_Finance / Savings Accounts
By: Nadeem_Walayat
Abbey have launched what on face value looks like an unbeatable market breaking Cash ISA savings account paying a remarkable 10% for up to 13 months on lump sum investments of up to£3,600 (from 6th April), but and there is a big BUT, savers also have to invest a lump sum into their Guaranteed Equity Bond GEB, which usually tend to prove to be very bad investments, therefore this article attempts to present an objective look at the Abbey product to determine whether or not it stacks up against other Cash ISA's such as the Barclays 12 month Tax Haven Cash ISA paying 6.5%. Both Cash ISA savings accounts are instant access.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, March 10, 2008
Best Cash ISA Savings Accounts- Barclays Tax Haven ISA -March 2008 / Personal_Finance / ISA's
By: Shahla_Walayat
The end of the Tax year is little more than 3 weeks away giving enough time for savers to make sure that their cash ISA allowances are fully utilised. Savers can still enjoy remarkably good rates of interest despite two Bank of England interest rate cuts to 5.25%. This continues to be as a consequence of the credit crunch which means that cash starved banks are willing to pay savers that bit extra to get cash in through the doors. Though as the economy slows there will be further cuts in UK interest rates and therefore cash ISA savings rates will decline further from the heady levels approaching 7% seen in October 2007.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Devaluation of Your Savings - When Cash is Trash, Part II / Personal_Finance / Inflation
By: Money_and_Markets
When I wrote Part I of "When Cash is Trash" just three months ago — colleagues, investors, even friends and family told me I was nuts. "How can you go wrong with keeping most of your money safe in cash?" they asked.
"Safe?" I replied. "Give me a break!" Cash is like any other investment — its value goes up and down relative to other assets. Back then I said the current environment made cash just about the worst investment to hold on to. And, today, I still believe that.
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Thursday, February 28, 2008
Are Your Savings and Investments Safe From Bank Failures? / Personal_Finance / Credit Crisis 2008
By: Christopher_Laird
Time to ask a few good questions
about your Interest rates - I think its time to start asking some basic questions about what we all think we are doing financially. Is what we do appropriate for the times? Or, more to the point, do we view risk appropriately?
Do we live in a time where we might just see our personal banks, or financial institutions such as money market funds, MMFs, fail?
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Friday, February 22, 2008
High Risk 125% and 100% Mortgages Disappearing / Personal_Finance / Mortgages
By: MoneyFacts
By the close of play yesterday four of the six lenders that were offering 125% loan to value mortgages had announced that they were to withdraw these higher risk home loans. Alliance and Leicester, Coventry BS, Godiva Mortgages and Abbey are all set to pull these deals this week. Julia Harris analyst at moneyfacts.co.uk investigates:Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Credit Card Balance Transfers – Not What They Used to be / Personal_Finance / Credit Cards & Scoring
By: MoneyFacts
Samantha Owens, Head of Personal Finance at Moneyfacts.co.uk, comments on the 0% balance transfer deals and how this market has changed: “It was way back in 2004 when balance transfer fees first started to raise their ugly heads on 0% credit card deals. However with increasing levels of personal debt, the market for transferring balances has become more competitive, but for the consumer it has become harder to get these deals.Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, February 15, 2008
UK Long-Term Fixed Rate Mortgage Advantage Over Short-term Interest Rates / Personal_Finance / Mortgages
By: MoneyFacts
As the year goes on, an increasing number of borrowers will be facing the dilemma of what to do once they come to the end of their fixed rate mortgage deals. Julia Harris, mortgage analyst at moneyfacts.co.uk, looks at the options available.
Trackers without penalties
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Thursday, January 31, 2008
Inland Revenue Extends Tax Filing Deadline to Midnight 1st Feb 08 / Personal_Finance / UK Tax & Budget
By: Shahla_Walayat
Due to technical difficulties which included the crash of the online self assessment filing system, the Inland Revenue announced earlier today that the penalty free deadline has been extended to midnight 1st of february. However as I highlighted in yesterdays article - UK Tax Filing Deadlines - 31st Jan 2008, 1st Feb 2008 and 4th Feb 2008! , earlier court rulings had already ensured that people could submit tax returns up to midnight on 1st of Feb without incurring the £100 penalty.Read full article... Read full article...