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Last Entry: July 03, 2009 at 12:34:55

Medical Insurance Is Critical!

Posted on July 03, 2009
How often have you thought that insurance was a luxury and not a necessity? Come on, fess up. When it comes to managing a budget I hear people say “I am healthy and do not need insurance.” I am here to tell you first hand that medical insurance is critical and could mean the difference [...

Wages Are Falling Fastest in New York State

Posted on July 01, 2009
Six of the 10 cities where wages have fallen the fastest this year are in New York. Average wages fell dramatically in Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, New York, Poughkeepsie and Buffalo - and the decline has been devastating on New York State’s finances, according to a study released last week from the Brookings Institution...

Handling the Emotional Impact of Debt Problems

Posted on June 30, 2009
This online article provides an interesting 7-step “how to” handle the emotional implications of debt: Acknowledge that you are in debt and in over your head. Forgive yourself and focus on repaying. Understand how you got here so that you do not return in the future...

Need Money? Flashy v. Fast

Posted on June 30, 2009
A recent article in the Summer 2009 USAA magazine (published for its members’ benefit) by Lisa Holton provided sound advice on “Where To Get Money Now” — how to manage cash shortages in today’s economy. Ms. Holton is the former Business Editor for the Chicago Sun-Times and offers wise advice to the USAA readers–to stay away from the [...

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What Can I Do to Stop Bill Collector?s Harassing Phone Calls?

Posted on June 30, 2009
You don’t have to put up with harassing phone calls from bill collectors. In 2008 alone, over 78,000 consumers filed complaints with the Federal Trade Commission. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (”FDCPA”) sets restrictions on how creditors can attempt to collect debts...

?Get Help Now PA!? Provides Help for Pennsylvanians Experiencing Financial Difficulties

Posted on June 29, 2009
Pennsylvania initiated a new program to assist Pennsylvanians facing financial difficulties (i.e. credit, finance, and bankruptcy) called “Get Help Now PA!“ The program provides free assistance and referrals on issues related to credit, finance, and bankruptcy by visiting a help desks staffed by volunteer lawyers and financial professionals...

Student Loan Debt ? New Options for Repayment?

Posted on June 28, 2009
The website providing details for a new student loan repayment program is up and running to provide information to borrowers anxious to get their student loan payments under control. The website, www.IBRinfo.org, provides information, a calculator and is a portal to further information...

Debt Settlement Companies - Unreliable, Unwise, and Now Bankrupt!

Posted on June 26, 2009
Too many of my bankruptcy clients tried to avoid bankruptcy by working with a “Debt Settlement Company”. Only after they paid out thousands of dollars, saw their credit scores plummet, and got served with lawsuits, did they come to see me about bankruptcy...

Debt Control Begins With Listening to Your Conscience.

Posted on June 25, 2009
Whether you have financial or weight debt your fist step to recovery is to listen to your conscience. Easier said than done that is for sure. However, if you can train yourself to start listening to your inner voice, Jiminy Cricket, conscience or gut, you can start on the road to gaining control over your [...

I Am Thinking About Turning In My Car

Posted on June 18, 2009
Turning in a car to get out from under high car payments may backfire. Many people think that a “voluntary” repossession won’t come back to haunt them, but any surrender or repossession of a car that does not pay off the loan in full can lead to big debt problems for the borrower...

Bankruptcy Discharge Violations Are FDCPA Violations Too

Posted on June 15, 2009
Debt buyers and debt collectors seem to prefer going to bankruptcy court instead of federal district court when they break the rules. At least that seems to be the lesson from their litigation strategy. If you filed bankruptcy, scheduled a debt, and received a discharge of it, you have a right to count on the debt [...

Loans on 401(k) Plans a Tax Trap

Posted on June 12, 2009
Conventional wisdom and prudent financial planning caution against borrowing against a 401(k) retirement account for anything other than emergencies. A post by Dana Wilkinson on Bankruptcy Law Network similarly urges caution in using 401(k) loans to pay off dischargeable credit card debt...

New Income Based Repayment Plans, Same Old Story

Posted on June 11, 2009
The arrival of yet another government-initiated plan to manage out of control student loan debt has attracted more fanfare than it merits. The new plan is hailed as a “life preserver” for student borrowers drowning in high student loan debt by the finance and education industries...

Is Bankruptcy Better Than Debt Settlement?

Posted on June 07, 2009
Bankruptcy may be a better solution for a consumer with too much debt to pay than a negotiated settlement with the creditors. Debt settlement companies will probably not tell you this, but you could end up owing tax if you settle with your creditors for a discount rather than discharging debts in bankruptcy...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Retirement

Posted on June 07, 2009
Yeah, it’s a long way away and every year, it seems to get further away as the federal government raises the age to collect social security. But Social Security was never meant to be a substitute for a retirement plan or pension and advances in health care lead to living longer...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Life and Disability

Posted on June 06, 2009
A big mistake that we make is that we believe that we are indestructible. Not Superman indestructible, but we don’t believe bad things happen to us. We do know that uninsured medical bills are a major cause of bankruptcy. Yet we fail to take advantage of the insurances available to us to save on the premium and we [...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Plan Major Purchases

Posted on June 05, 2009
I love the internet. I truly do. Why? Because it is an endless source of information, both good and bad and it forces you to think about what you are reading. That resource can be utilized to research almost anything. If you going to need to make a major purchase, you can use this resource [...

Is It Legal For Collection Agencies To Harass Me?

Posted on June 04, 2009
No. A jury in California recently answered that question emphatically, slamming a collection agency being sued under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In this case, the debt had been paid off already. These days, debts are sold in batches of thousands and tens of thousands...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Employee Benefits

Posted on June 04, 2009
What does your employer really offer to you as an employee? I’m not talking about raises; there won’t be many of those this year. But there are benefits that employers offer to employees that many do not take advantage. For instance, everyone thinks of getting medical insurance...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Learn Self Control

Posted on June 03, 2009
Know the difference between ‘needs’ and ‘wants’. You want a flashy sports car, but you don’t need it. You need transportation to get back and forth to work, but you might not want that ugly Yugo. But a Yugo is all you can afford, so lay your eyes off that new Jaguar...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Teach Your Children Well

Posted on June 02, 2009
And the one they pick, is the one you’ll know by. (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, 1970) Children are part of the family and while they might not understand high finance, they are sensitive to the stress and strain that an out of control budget will bring on any family...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Emergency Funds

Posted on June 01, 2009
Every good budget needs an emergency fund. What is an emergency fund? It is savings that you have put aside for that unplanned expense that just has to be paid. It is not for impulse buys. It is for that car repair that needs to be performed so you can get back and forth to [...

College Students and Credit Card Debts

Posted on June 01, 2009
College students face huge financial burdens getting their education, then paying it off. It is bad enough to take out student loans for tuition, but today’s students are being lent money to cover living expenses under the umbrella of an educational loan...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Private Banking

Posted on May 31, 2009
Do you remember that saying, “Never a lender nor a borrower be”? It is sound advice founded on personal experience. It is amazing how often family or friends will go the extra mile to lend to each other. It is good to support your family or friends, but nothing ruins a relationship faster than a [...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Set Limits

Posted on May 30, 2009
Part of every plan is a budget. Part of every budget is limits in spending. If you set limits in the budget, you can reach your goals. If you don’t set limits, soon spending is out of control and soon you are on the endles treadmill of trying to pay off that credit card debt [...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Share Goals

Posted on May 29, 2009
The greatest mistake most people make with their finances is to set goals and plan. In a family situation, that problem is made worse by failing to set mutual goals. If one spouse has a goal of buying a great bass boat and the other spouse is working towards a new house, the goals will [...

?Gotcha Capitalism??A Guide to Stamping Out Hidden Fees

Posted on May 29, 2009
Gotcha Capitalism: How Hidden Fees Rip You Off Every Day and What You Can Do About It (way to go with the pithy title) came to my attention recently, and strikes me as a good investment for consumers. If you eliminate $15 in fees the book will pay for itself, and you might even find [...

Camping Maybe the Answer to Family Fun During a Recession.

Posted on May 28, 2009
Camping just may be your answer for a family vacation during a recession. One of the stressors that I see in clients right now results from people not being able to go on a vacation. For many vacation has always been a fantasy and not just during this recession...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Work With a Partner

Posted on May 28, 2009
In a family situation, it is important that everyone know what the finances are. When the finances are a deep, dark secret, there is no information upon which family members can decide whether a spending decision is appropriate. Nothing inhibits that impulse buy and soon the bidget is blown...

Twelve Personal Finance Mistakes - Failure to Plan

Posted on May 27, 2009
Are you living from paycheck to paycheck”? What happened to that grand plan to be a billionaire at age 30? What happened is that you didn’t plan to make your dream a reality. Goals don’t just happen, they are reached after detailed planning...

Are All Debt Collectors Nasty?

Posted on May 24, 2009
I have always said that natural selection worked in such a way that all the nice people ended up in sales and all the nasty people ended up in collections. Now I find, as occasionally happens, that I am wrong! Well, not completely. Nice looking people, young females, of course, are being used by some of the nasty [...