18 May 2012

Money & Finance

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Archive for January, 2010

With fuel prices set to rise in the New Year, those looking for a new credit card may want to consider the AA credit card.

This offers users the chance to earn reward points on all fuel purchases until January 2011.

However, card holders may want to note if they do not pay their balance in full, the credit card provider will use payments to reduce lower-rate balances before higher-rate balances.

The typical variable rate on the credit card is 16.9% APR.

An additional benefit of the card is 0% on balance transfers until January 2011, with a 2.99% fee.

Those who wish to benefit from this deal must transfer any balances within 90 days of opening the account.

Card holders can earn double reward points on motoring, fuel and AA products.

The AA experienced its busiest night for breakdowns in 25 years on December 21st, as the UK was hit by snow storms and ice.

In an effort to talk about the power of goal-setting along with some methods of setting and achieving goals, I’m going to discuss my four resolutions for 2010 this week.

In 2009, I really overspent on my hobbies. My board game collection expanded significantly. I picked up several new video games and computer games. I picked up several new items for the kitchen that were fairly pricey (Le Creuset isn’t inexpensive). Perhaps worst of all, I purchased quite a few books that I probably could have easily checked out at the library.

These purchases weren’t impulsive and they weren’t things that I could not afford. We still spent far less than we earned for the year. My concern is that I don’t really need this much stuff and, more importantly, that I’m subscribing to lifestyle inflation, something that’s dangerous to our long term financial health.

Just before Christmas, I used some statements and totaled up my entertainment and hobby spending in 2009 – and the total was shocking to me. I need to make

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There is a website that is encouraging people to make one of their New Year’s Resolutions be moving their money from the large banks to community banks. They use It’s A Wonderful Life to make their point:

Here, one woman explains why she is making the change:

Do you think that this is a good financial resolution to make for the New Year? Doe

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As an amazing 2009 fades into the sunset, it’s time to review my progress and look forward to the year to come. A

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U.S. foreclosure filings have soared in recent years. In 2009, RealtyTrac estimates, 3.9 million foreclosure notices were sent to American homeowners unable to make their payments, up nearly 22% from 2008.

It’s a terrible problem, emotionally wrenching for many families. And, as if losing your home isn’t bad enough, you may also get slammed by the U.S. tax code. Here’s where the hit could hurt and how to minimize the pain.

Debt relief and a tax break

The basic tax rule on debt discharge is simple: If a lender cancels your debt, that’s taxable income to you, and you and the Internal Revenue Service will get a 1099-C form, and you will have to pay tax on that forgiveness.

But Congress gave homeowners a big gift with the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007. It excludes as much as $2 million in debt relief from income taxes through 2012.

It applies, however, only to debt on primary residences. If you had a mortgage canceled on your vacation beach condo, you could get stuck.

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Tags: Home, Home Tax