With unemployment higher than it’s been in years and current salaries on a down-turn, it has been harder and harder for people to make ends meet in this particular economic climate. Many are losing their homes to job loss and balloon payments on adjustable rate mortgages. So many others have gotten sick or injured and have had to turn to government assistance to get by. Most people think that Americans are greedy and only care about themselves, but there are good Samaritans out there who genuinely want to help others and will offer assistance when available. People like Bill Gates are in good economic shape and give millions away to charities across the world, but we don’t necessarily see many normal, average people helping others financially. In many instances, helping others is just not possible, but some do manage to pull it off without much fanfare.
Continue Reading 21st Century Robin Hood »
The old quote, “Nothing is certain but death and taxes” is especially true of property taxes. Apparently, some towns in the United States continue to show rising property taxes, even when homeowners are struggling with a recession and the average house price in 2009 has decreased. Yet, there are mechanisms in place that make hiking property taxes appealing for local governments, when other forms of revenue are unavailable.
Continue Reading Why Property Taxes Can Rise In A Recession »
Even with new anti counterfeit measures put in place for U.S. legal tender, there’s always some enterprising criminal trying to cheat the system. Instead of copying an already established currency note, which might be hard to duplicate correctly, why not just create a new one? That must have been the thought behind a Lebanese man’s attempt to create new denominations for the United States dollar, ranging from $500 notes, a $100,000 note, and finally a $1 million dollar note. None of these currency note values are actually still within wide circulation, as the highest note currently in circulation is only $100.
Or, the man might have done some poor research and discovered that, in fact, there were denominations of $500 and $100,000 U.S. bills in existence. He just may have gotten the dates of their issue and circulation wrong. The last time $500 notes were printed legally was in 1945, and they there are few within mainstream circulation. There was also a special edition $100,000 note, created in 1924, but it is not in circulation either, making it very easy to spot an obvious fake for anyone in the financial industry.
Regardless, the enterprising criminal might have gotten away with the scheme except that his first act was to tip hotel staff in Kuala Lumpur, where he was staying, with a fake $500 note. The recipient of the note tried to exchange the note at a local moneychanger and was then informed that the bill was a fake. Malaysian police arrested the man who might face up to 10 years in jail. When they searched the man’s room, police found over $66 million dollars of counterfeit bills with the same denominations. The man already has a prior arrest record in connection with fraud over the sale of office supplies in 2005.
As tax season begins, many are starting to feel the pressure and stress of filing. Every year, it seems like tax rules that we use to determine our tax liabilities on our current salaries gets harder and harder to decipher. Luckily, the I.R.S, or Internal Revenue Service, is available to answer any and all of your questions. They do realize that it can be a burden on regular folk and are available to answer questions, but many professionals agree that obtaining a good tax representative is the best way to get through each tax season. These experts are trained on the tax code and any new items that arise every year. If you simply work and have no investments and rent your home, you may be able to do your own taxes, but there are situations where you may have to file 5 or more forms and this is where an expert can really be worth the expense.
Some of the more common questions involve things that most of never really think about. When we die, who pays our taxes? Usually the estate, but it is always best to contact the I.R.S. about certain circumstances that we do not understand. Also, most people have questions regarding past due balances and how they affect their upcoming refunds. If you owe back-taxes or are on a payment plan, the I.R.S. will apply any new refunds to the amount owed. If you are planning something with ytour refund money, be wary of this as you may never see any of it if you still owe from years past. The I.R.S. is flexible and you can either file for a 6 month extension to save up to pay your liability. Payment plans are also available to those who cannot afford their tax debt. They have flexible payment terms and will give you ample time to pay them what you owe.
There are many circumstances where you should consult with a tax expert to make sure you are doing the right thing. If you are honest and have made mistakes, the I.R.S. will work with you to rectify any of those and give you ample opportunity to rectify the situation. They are aware that people make mistakes and are not out there to get you, but to simply enforce the tax code.
Gold prices are dropping, and that’s a good sign for the overall economy. However, if you’re a precious metal investor, it might not be such happy news for you. You may have missed your “golden” opportunity to open a Swiss bank account backed by this metal and expect a significant return on your investment. Gold prices generally rise on fears of a depression event in the economy, as a hedge against a devalued national currency. Since the panic of 2008, in the financial markets, gold was rising quickly, indicating a loss of confidence in the overall U.S. Economy. While that might have made gold bugs happy, it’s a serious signal that something is wrong with the fiat economy. The price of gold dropping in the market means only one thing: More confidence in investors that the U.S. economy is recovering. Continue Reading The Price of Gold Dropping Is A Good Sign »
If you’ve looked at the fares online right now, you’ve probably wondered where all the deals have gone. On top of paying huge fares for tickets, airlines are now charging to check in bags too. Is there any way a traveler can get a good deal these days? The answer is yes! There are still ways to plan ahead for the vacation and either get lower prices while shopping online or securing tickets via mile rewards programs. Continue Reading Getting Deals On Airline Travel »
There’s some good reasons people getting set to retire pick up and move to Florida. They’re looking to get the most bang for their buck, now that they will be on a fixed income and most of their high earning days are over. At that point, the thing that becomes more important is the quality of life based on what they have stored away for retirement in various investment accounts. That quality of life can be severely impacted by simple things like taxes, cost of living, and even energy bills. Continue Reading How To Pick An Affordable Retirement City »
While the home buyer’s credit has spurred people towards buying new homes, it still has yet to show the same stimulus for people wanting to upgrade their homes. As part of the home buyer’s credit extension, there is a tax credit now for existing home owners, but it’s only $6,500 compared to the $8,000 maximum for new home buyers. Once existing home owners take into account moving costs, additional utilities costs for bigger homes, and closing costs, many have made up their mind to stay put. This is especially true where real estate markets have depressed prices and they can’t get as much as they want for selling. Housing prices predictions show many homes have lost value in the market and will be slow to recover such that selling, even with a home buyers credit, is not going to be the best decision. Instead, a new trend is arising: nesting. Continue Reading Nesting: The New Trend In Homes »
Investing is still one of the best ways to grow wealth. You can earn as much as you want as an employee, but if your money isn’t invested properly, you will end up putting far less aside for retirement than the person that invests their money. The problem with investing in today’s economic climate is the risk of losses due to volatile markets. For that reason, you have to take a hard look at your investment strategies, and even if you consider yourself a high risk investor, you have to make changes in how you allocate funds in your portfolio. The biggest change will be how to figure out how much of your money you can safely invest in stocks while the economy struggles to recover from this recession. Continue Reading New Investment Strategies For Low, Medium, and High Risk Investors »
Some towns are taking note and learning how to survive a depression by using old tricks from history’s playbook. When people have no ready cash on hand, some towns are trying to stimulate commerce using some dollar alternatives that work in local areas. One of these alternatives is scrip, local currencies that can be used to trade within a select group of merchants. Another alternative that can work is a time bank. Instead of using dollars, people trade hours for different services. Each of these probably can’t uphold an economy all by themselves, however they do support additional ways to create commerce when cash is in short supply.
Continue Reading Dollar Alternatives Catching On In Some Towns »
