Prosperity Concierge

No Money for an Emergency – Study Finds Most Families Have No Cash for a Rainy Day

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:06:54 +0000

Most Americans can’t afford a $1,000 emergency.

A majority, or 64%, of Americans don’t have enough cash on hand to handle a $1,000 emergency expense, according to a survey by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, or NFCC.

Only 36% said they would tap their rainy day funds for an emergency. The rest of the 2,700 people

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Unemployment, Economy Contribute to Record Use of Food Stamps

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 17:45:33 +0000

Unemployment and global debt worries continue to hurt the economy, adding financial pressure on families that increasingly rely on food stamps.

Nearly 15% of the U.S. population relied on food stamps in May, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

The number of Americans using the government’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – more

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Debt and Slow Growth Keeps Hiring at Slow Pace

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 18:39:36 +0000

Payrolls at U.S. companies increased by a slow 114,000 in July, suggesting modest job growth in the wake of debt reduction and fears of slower growth, in an employment report released by ADP.

It was the 18th straight month of job growth in the ADP report.

The ADP report covers only private-sector employment, and not government jobs.

The

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Consumers Lower Spending, Save More as Economic Growth Slows

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 15:01:42 +0000

Along with signs the economy is slowing and consumer sentiment is declining we see that Americans cut back on their spending in June for the first time in nearly two years and their incomes grew by the smallest amount in nine months. This is another troubling sign for an economy that is barely growing.

Consumer spending

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Debt, Unemployment and Slow Growth Continue to Hurt Economy

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 21:16:58 +0000

The debt overhang and unemployment continue to hurt the economy.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of consumer sentiment fell to 63.7, the weakest since March 2009, from 71.5 in June.

Consumer spending from April through June showed the smallest gain since the second quarter of 2009, when the economy was in recession, the Commerce Department

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Weak Consumer Spending, Slow Job Growth and Tight Credit are Restraining Growth – Beige Book

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 21:31:17 +0000

Weak consumer spending, slow job growth and tight credit are restraining growth into the second half of the year.

Growth slowed in eight of the Fed’s 12 bank regions in June and early July, the Federal Reserve’s “Beige Book” reports. That marks the worst economic showing this year.

The Fed’s report found that the job market remained

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Credit Card Use Increases – Shows Gas and Food Inflation and Low Wages

Thu, 21 Jul 2011 18:26:58 +0000

Consumers in the U.S. are increasingly using credit cards to pay for basic necessities as income gains fail to keep pace with rising food and fuel prices.

The dollar volume of purchases charged grew 10.7 percent in June from a year ago, while the number of transactions rose 6.8 percent, according to First Data Corp.

The cause

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Consumer Confidence Lowest in Two Years, Reflecting Employment, Debt and Housing

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 18:00:34 +0000

Confidence among U.S. consumer fell in July to the lowest level in more than two years, adding to concern that weak employment gains and falling home prices may keep households from spending.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment decreased to 63.8, the weakest reading since March 2009, from 71.5 the prior month.

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Spending Slows Due to Low Income Expectations

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 14:22:35 +0000

Consumers are becoming more worried about their income. As a result, consumer spending may become lower.

The share of Americans foreseeing a drop in wages over the next six months compared to those expecting an increase is at its highest level since October 2010, according to the Conference Board’s consumer research center.

The research center expects that

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Bond Rates Show Slow Growth in Economy

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:27:45 +0000

The 3-percentage-point gap between yields for three-month and 10-year Treasuries indicates the economy may grow 1.1 percent in the 12 months ending June 2012, a study by the Fed Bank of Cleveland says. That’s less than half the central bank’s current forecast, and may delay any rate increase from the zero- to-25 basis point range

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Become Resilient to Cope with Adversity and Improve Relationships

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 21:13:36 +0000

Resiliency helps you to cope with and bounce back from adversity. Building your resilience will help improve your relationships at work and at home.

There are four types of resiliency.

Physical Relience requires a healthy and balanced diet, regular physical activity, adequate sleep and self-care.

Cognitive or mental resilience describes attention, judgment and decision-making skills, during both good

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Being Grateful Helps Us to Be Happy

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:11:50 +0000

Genuinely appreciating the different aspects of your life can improve your well-being. In fact, people who regularly practice gratitude – by writing gratitude lists, for instance – report greater happiness and optimism, have lower levels of stress and depression, and even sleep better at night.Related Activities and Side Trips Asset Allocation and Diversification – Asset Classes Debt

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Have the Right Temperament for Investing

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:17:39 +0000

Warren Buffett, one of the world’s most successful investors, famously claimed that the most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect. To be successful, you need to stay calm and rational during the market’s boom and bust cycles and avoid falling victim to the market’s herd instincts.

Even during dull market days, it takes

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Special Situations: Live Within Your Means: Self-Employment Opportunities to Follow Your Passion

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 03:54:48 +0000

The activity: Explore opportunities to follow your passion through self-employment. The trek: Improve cash flow and use net worth to supplement income. The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant IV (negative cash flow; positive net worth). This activity suitable for: People that have a passion and entrepreneurial spirit. Difficulty rating: Moderate

If you have a passion and an entrepreneurial spirit then you should

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Cash Flow: Live Within Your Means: Self-Employment Opportunities to Follow Your Passion

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 03:15:22 +0000

The activity: Explore opportunities to follow your passion through self-employment. The trek: Improve cash flow. The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant I (negative cash flow; negative net worth). This activity suitable for: People that have a passion and entrepreneurial spirit. Difficulty rating: Moderate

If you have a passion and an entrepreneurial spirit then you should consider the possibility of increasing your income

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Where to Find Cash to Reduce Debt, Invest or Other Financial Need

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 19:11:13 +0000

When you need cash to reduce debt or to invest you’ll have it if you’ve followed a disciplined financial security plan that gives you the cash to tap into your accumulated assets when needs or opportunities arise. If you want to advance your education, make a major purchase, invest in a business or take care

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Special Situations: Live Within Your Means: Cash From a Reverse Mortgage

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 02:26:52 +0000

The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant IV (negative cash flow; positive net worth). The trek: To improve cash flow and use net worth to supplement income. This activity on the trek: Consider the advantages and disadvantages of a reverse mortgage. This activity suitable for: Families exploring options for cash to reduce debt. Difficulty rating: Moderate

What is a Reverse Mortgage?

From the AARP website

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Cash Flow: Live Within Your Means: Cash From a Reverse Mortgage

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:18:42 +0000

The activity: Consider the advantages and disadvantages of a reverse mortgage. The trek: Improve cash flow. The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant I (negative cash flow; negative net worth). This activity suitable for: Families exploring options for cash to reduce debt. Difficulty rating: Moderate

What is a Reverse Mortgage?

From the AARP website “A reverse mortgage is a special type of home loan that

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Special Situations: Live Within Your Means: Cash From a Life Settlement

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 02:52:26 +0000

The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant IV (negative cash flow; positive net worth). The trek: To improve cash flow and use net worth to supplement income. This activity on the trek: Consider the advantages and disadvantages of a life settlement. This activity suitable for: Families exploring options for cash to reduce debt. Difficulty rating: Moderate

A life settlement, or senior settlement, as they

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Cash Flow: Live Within Your Means: Cash From a Life Settlement

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 02:34:45 +0000

The activity: Consider the advantages and disadvantages of a life settlement. The trek: Improve cash flow. The terrain: Prosperity Quadrant I (negative cash flow; negative net worth). This activity suitable for: Families exploring options for cash to reduce debt. Difficulty rating: Moderate

A life settlement, or senior settlement, as they are sometimes called, involves selling an existing life insurance policy to

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We Produce Breadlines and Deficits

Mon, 22 Aug 2011 19:52:38 +0000

Statistics can paint a picture that reflects our current values and our future prosperity.

1. 15% of us are in a breadline.

Altogether, there are now almost 46 million people in the United States on food stamps, roughly 15 percent of the population. That’s an increase of 74 percent since 2007, just before the financial crisis and

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Spending and Investments Decline, Chance of Recession Rises

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 19:07:18 +0000

With spending and investment portfolios declining in the midst of a household debt contraction our chances of going into recession are rising.

Household spending fell in June for the third straight month; never in the past five decades has this happened outside of a slump.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index plunged 16.8 percent in 11 days,

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Our Federal Debt and the Pursuit of Wealth and Happiness

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 17:41:48 +0000

The national discussion on how to get our debt problem under control and reduce our spending raises many various arguments. A recent example offered that our pluralistic society is causing the givers to resent giving to the takers. Now, Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, shares that only by allowing people to struggle to improve

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Dollar will Drop so Don’t Invest in Dollar Assets – Marc Faber

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 19:53:31 +0000

Marc Faber believes bonds are currently a bad investment.

“I disagree with the bond bulls that are basing their case on a deflationary environment. In such an outcome tax revenues would collapse and stocks would fall heavily.” Should stocks fall the Fed would initiate more quantitative easing.

Faber says people shouldn’t be buying bonds with yields trading

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A Liquidity Trap – Monetary Policy Unable to Stimulate the Economy

Wed, 06 Jul 2011 21:04:52 +0000

A financial crisis initiates a sudden flight to safety among bondholders – widening interest-rate spreads, diminishing the private sector’s desire to sell bonds to raise capital and encouraging individuals to save more and consume less as they, too, hunker down. Thus bond prices rise, and interest rates drop. As rates fall, firms see that they

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Buy an Annuity and Delay Social Security – GAO

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:43:08 +0000

Retirees may have to delay Social Security benefits and buy an annuity to have enough money for retirement, said a U.S. government study.

“The risk that retirees will outlive their assets is a growing challenge,” according to a study from the Government Accountability Office scheduled for release today. Increased life expectancies and health-care costs coupled with

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Attempt to Reduce Debt is Difficult and Impacts Global Economy

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:51:44 +0000

The attempt by households and governments to reduce debt is showing that it is difficult to do. Today, U.S. consumers have more mortgage and credit-card debt than they did five years ago, and the U.S. budget deficit is worsening.

The government and individuals alike are still heavily in debt. U.S. consumer debt has skyrocketed by 37%

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College Education – Finding Value in the High Cost and Student Debt in a Global Economy – Bill Gross

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 17:55:46 +0000

Bill Gross, PIMCO founder and co-chief investment officer, shares his insights on the value of a college education.

Bill Gross:

College was great as long as the jobs were there.

Now, however, a growing number of skeptics wonder whether it’s worth the time or the cost. Peter Thiel, an early investor in Facebook and head of Clarium

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At Some Point It Doesn’t Pay to Learn More About Investing: Andy Tobias

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 17:44:27 +0000

Andy Tobias, author of “The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need”, believes that after a certain point, it doesn’t help to know more about investing.

Andy Tobias:

If you’re using more complex strategies, that implies active trading. Transactions have costs. There are brokerage commissions. You have the spread. And then you have taxes if the trade’s not

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Our Economy: No-Growth and Immune to Stimulus

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:15:35 +0000

The U.S. government can choose one of two economic paths: Austerity or irrelevance. Our debt burden and money-happy efforts to avoid the difficult parts of an economic crisis have left an economy virtually immune to stimulus yet devoid of actual growth in jobs or GDP.

On the other hand, clamping down on stimulus in a world

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