52 Tips

Cyber-Crime Dramatically Up Recently, noted retirement specialist Phil Cannella, founder of First Senior Financial Group and host of The Crash Proof Retirement Show™, interviewed Special Agent Brian Herrick regarding Phil Cannella complaints, who supervises the Philadelphia cyber-crime squad. Here are some highlights from that interview. Phil Cannella: Give me some idea what your job consists of? [...]

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Good news: homeowners that are “underwater” (aka owe more on their homes than the homes are actually worth) can now refinance their mortgages via the Home Affordable Refinance Program (aka HARP). Bad news: con-men and fraudsters are popping up to take advantage of the initial confusion. Here are a couple of tips to help you [...]

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Only invest if the projected returns will outweigh the interest of your debt and if you can absorb any potential losses. This is a good rule of thumb if you are mulling the prospect of investing money instead of paying off your debt. On one hand, you’ve got the opportunity to make a little extra [...]

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A mortgage can be savior or slaver, depending on what happens between the time when you first sign the contract and the time when you make your final payment. A lot of things can go wrong in the job, and in this economy, that is something that not many of us can afford anymore. So [...]

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Cars are an indispensable transportation tool for the average American – especially when living in counties where mass transit is expensive and hard to work with. You may find yourself facing (or already are in) the process of bankruptcy – a very painful and traumatic experience – but that does not mean you have to [...]

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An estimated 3.7 million Texans are receiving food aid from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), courtesy of the state Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). Texas also holds the number two spot for households that are unable to access nutritious food. It doesn’t help that SNAP was completely messed in the recession of ’08, [...]

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If you’re nearing retirement and getting tired of having to shoulder the mortgage of your home, why not just get a home equity loan (HEL)? The traditional method of selling your property and financing a new one presents a whole host of problems: disposing of your existing property, finding a cheaper place to live in, [...]

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So student loans are predicted to reach $1 trillion by year’s end – a prediction based on the really, really weak economy isn’t making things easier for everyone. And then there is Obama’s plan to forgive student loans that has polarized a lot of folks about the whole issue. Did you know, however, that a [...]

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One reader of Bob Dahms’ “Ask SCORE” column – courtesy of the Bellingham Herald – is concerned that his weak credit score and blemished credit report will negatively affect an equipment loan he is planning to take out for his business. Dahms gets straight to the point by recommending that the reader obtain a free [...]

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What happens when you hire ten employees to do the work of twenty ? While the ratio is not exactly spot-on, this understaffing of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is one reason why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were not able to effectively deal with the surge of foreclosure listings they received since 2007. [...]

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