Save Money Investing

Investing in Buy-to-Let Property

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

When one has the capital to make a significant investment, the thought of buying a property to let surely comes to mind. Letting out a property can be a fine source of capital growth, however it also requires much work on the part of the landlord. If it is your intention to purchase a property to let, it is important to know a few of the pitfalls along the way and how to avoid them.

The first thing you must know is for what purpose you are buying the property. Your objectives might be income, which is your month to month profits from the tenants, or capital growth, which deals with making a profit through increased equity from the second property as the value increases over time. This choice should influence what type of property you purchase and the location of the property.

Maintaining a property is an expensive process. As a guide, you should be aiming to achieve a gross rent of at least one hundred thirty-five percent of the property’s interest only mortgage repayments. This will help you cover your costs should anything go wrong with the property.

There are three great differences with buy to let mortgages that you should know about. Firstly is rent potential. The decision as to whether or not a mortgage is offered is most often based on the rent you will earn in addition to your income. In some cases your income might not even be considered. Secondly is the interest rate. Buy to let mortgages come with a slightly higher interest rate. Lastly is the larger deposit. The deposit is typically a minimum of twenty to twenty-five percent of the property’s value.

Research into the type of mortgage you wish to apply for is important, of course. For many people, fixed rate interest options are preferable. Repayments for buy to let properties can frequently be done in interest only repayments, but if you wish to repay the entire value of a property then look for a mortgage that will allow you to overpay each month if you desire.

Finding a loan that will calculate interest daily instead of annually is more fair to you, since your interest will be calculated on a current balance instead of on repayments that you have already made through the course of the year.

Before you decide to apply for your mortgage loan, think about how you want to let your property. You can let the property in various stages of furnishing, but if you choose to let a property with furnishings you will have to buy the furnishings and deal with any damage caused by the residents while you are letting the property. Determine if you can afford to furnish the property, and factor that into the cost you will ask for to let each month.

Buying a property to let can be an exciting experience, and although it is hard work it can pay off well in the end. Determine what exactly you want to get out of the letting experience, and how you want to let the property. After that, the sky is the limit.

Investing in a Franchise And the American Dream

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Harley-Davidson enthusiasts Chris McIntyre, Jeff Brown and Peter Wurmer always dreamt of touring the world on motorcycles.

Their dream is now a reality for them and the tens of thousands of customers who rent motorcycles, ATVs and watercraft from EagleRider franchise locations in the United States, Mexico, France and Spain.

McIntyre, Brown and Wurmer started EagleRider as one shop in Los Angeles in 1993, catering to adventure-seeking professionals and tourists. It has since become the largest motorcycle rental and tour franchise company in the United States and Europe.

While the three EagleRider founders have been able to see their business grow and prosper over the years, they understand that starting up a business can be a risky endeavor. To help other entrepreneurs who are interested in investing in the growing motorcycle-rental industry, they have turned EagleRider into a franchise opportunity

Simply put, franchising is a way of distributing products or services that have instant name recognition. According to statistics from the Small Business Administration and Department of Commerce, the failure rate for franchised businesses is significantly lower than for other start-up businesses.

One reason franchises are more sustainable is that they give entrepreneurs easy access to established products and proven business models, reducing some of the risks associated with starting up a business.

And as an added incentive, opening a franchise gives an entrepreneur the opportunity to operate independently while tapping into the experience and expertise of the franchiser's organization.

Like any other investment, entrepreneurs need to do plenty of research before selecting a franchise opportunity. Consider the demand for the product or service, the franchiser's background, the level of support you will receive and who your competition will be.

Whether you want to feed the masses with a fast-food franchise or take part in the exciting and adventurous world of motorcycle rentals, the list of franchise opportunities goes on and on.

Invest Smartly

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Are you interested in real estate business? It sure is tempting, but what are the pitfalls? What should a new investor know before putting money into real estate?

There is one mantra that successful real estate investors live by: "buy low - sell high". How can you apply this to your investment strategy?

1. Don’t get oversold:
New investors can easily get caught up in the sale. Without experience or a background in real estate you may think your instincts are good and quickly get in over your head. Investment properties need to be undervalued and you need to do your research first. Don't plan to buy without spending a lot of time comparing values. Your goal is to purchase an undervalued property which can take time and experience to spot.

The best way to determine the true value of a property is by comparing similar properties and noting the common features. The properties must be in the same area since location can drastically affect price range.

Take note of the features and failings of each property, how long they're on the market and the price they sell for. Once you have a good understanding of the value of properties you will be able to tell when a property is undervalued - perhaps because a quick sale is needed or the seller is inexperienced. Don't hesitate to barter for the best deal possible.

2. Know your market:
You're not buying for yourself so spend time noting the trends in the market. You can often find data in the local real estate papers listing the percentage of growth for various properties in the area over the past year.

Keep an eye on what's moving quickly through the market and what features are promoted in new constructions. You can use this information to make your upgrades as market friendly as possible.

Be careful not to make the mistake of renovating to your personal tastes. Use neutral palettes and current styles to appeal to the broadest market.

3. Know your budget:
The more time you spend researching the costs of your venture, the higher the profits you will see. Know how much you can spend, the price of materials and labor and the time frame to have it completed. Some experts would tell you to double or triple that amount. In any case, the more research you do the more accurate your budget will be.

Don't get swept away in the process either; concentrate on the most profitable renovations. Kitchens and bathrooms are important. Adding French doors or updated lighting can also be a good investment. A fresh coat of paint is a must.

You have to do your home work before entering real estate business because investing in real estate is a financial business. Plan your investment like a business; make well researched decisions, stick to a budget, don't let personal preferences get involved, and you're ready to make some money!

How You And Your Partner Should Save Money

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Most newly-married couples are having a hard time adjusting to a different way of life, especially when it comes to financial matters. As separate individuals, your spending habits will differ. This is why you both need to make certain adjustments to combine the household budget.

Here are some ways on how you and your partner can make the ‘financial aspect’ of your marriage harmonious and organized:

1. Understand the way that you both look at money.

If you and your spouse have different beliefs when it comes to money matters, sit down and discuss it. The key here is to be able to compromise. For some people, money is a security measure that needs to be saved. Other people spend it luxuriously and look at spending money as a means to reward themselves for their work. Still, other people are very thrifty that they hardly ever spend a cent of what they have earned.

Understand that the way that you both treat and spend money stems from how you were brought up by your parents. Think of everything that you need to discuss when it comes to your household budget. If possible, set rules on how you will spend your combined income on utility bills, food, mortgage, car maintenance, etc.

2. Set future financial goals.

If you are newly weds and you are planning to have a baby soon, consider this when organizing your finances. If you are a couple nearing the age of retirement, you can make plans on where you will spend your leisure years. Setting long-term and short-term goals will help you finalize your financial plans.

3. Share your money-saving skills with your partner.

If you have different family backgrounds, then you would have something to contribute towards organizing your joints assets. Make each other aware of your personal finances then think of ways on how you can further boost your money-handling tactics.

By following these tips, you will surely have your finances organized to lead a more comfortable lifestyle.

How to Save on Yearly Automobile Gas

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

If you are a typical driver, you drive more than 1300 miles in a month and, over the course of a year you'll purchase about 600 gallons of fuel to keep your car going. That's the “typical” driver; you may not drive quite that much or you may drive a lot more than that but the point is, at current gas prices, you might be spending as much as $1500 a year or more just to keep gas in your car. Unfortunately, experts in the field predict gas prices going up from what they are now, giving us all a large incentive to try and find ways to reduce our fuel consumption. There are some ways to do that!

The next time you reach for your car keys ask yourself: 'Do I really need to drive?' Every trip to the store does not require car keys; you may find that there are ways of getting to your destination that are less expensive or even free:

Walk! If your destination is just a quarter of a mile or so away, walking those few blocks will not only save your gas money it will help you stay in good shape.

Peddle! You may own a bicycle that's sitting in a corner and not being used; dust it off and use it for those destinations that are just two or three miles away. Don't worry! You never forget how to ride a bike! If you don't own a bicycle, consider buying one.

Public transportation! For those trips that are just not practical for walking or peddling, consider your public transportation options.

Ride sharing! There are literally thousands of carpools operating five days a week and saving their members plenty of money on gas and on wear and tear on their cars. Ask around at work, you may be able to find two or three people who live in your general area and who are willing to start a carpool. Also ask at work if the company has considered starting a van pool -- they may already have one that you can get in on.

Neighborhood networking! Many times, in suburbs and small communities, neighbors get together for weekly trips to the grocery store or into town for other shopping or supplies -- one week one person drives and the next week someone else drives. That type of arrangement also works great for getting the kids to school and home when you live in an area where there is no school bus service.

Telecommuting! More and more people are working for home and, with modern technology, they can even attend virtual meetings right from home. There are thousands of companies across the country that allow telecommuting and, if you can present it as a practical alternative to your management, you may join the ranks of telecommuters -- at least some days of the week.

Perhaps you have no choice -- there is just no way, other than driving, to get from 'Point A' to 'Point B;' there are some things you can do to make your driving a money-saving experience.

Moderation! Watch your speed, if you drive at posted speed limits you'll actually be driving at the most fuel-efficient speeds; if you have cruise control, use it for highway driving. When pulling away from a stop sign or light, don't 'floor it;' jackrabbit starts are a big waste of gas. Jamming on your breaks wastes gas also and, more importantly, if you find yourself constantly hitting the breaks hard you're driving far too aggressively; there is no need to add medical bills to your gas bills.

Plan ahead! During the morning and afternoon 'rush hours' you may find that the shortest route between home and work is also the most congested. Find an alternate route, even if its a little longer, it will get you out of those gas-wasting traffic jams. It also may be possible to have your work schedule changed so that you can miss the heavy traffic on the major highways.

Driving 'lite'! The lighter your vehicle is, the less gas it will use. Don't lug around unnecessary weight. Also, use the cars well-designed aerodynamics to your advantage by keeping your windows closed and not having anything strapped to the top of your car.

Keep your car in shape! A well maintained car will burn less gas than one that has been neglected: keep your tires properly inflated; use the proper (manufacturer recommended) oil and gas in your car; change your oil and have tune-ups at regular intervals. If your tires need replacement, look for tires that are rated as LRR (Low Rolling Resistance). Proper tire inflation along with the LRR tires will be your biggest fuel savers.

Rising gas prices will probably be with us for quite a long time so, if you are interested in saving money on gas, take these tips very seriously.

How To Save On Magazine Subscriptions

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Reading is our essential necessity for information. Everyone knows that periodicals are the best way to get updated information – from business and current affairs to latest fashion trends and movie reviews. We all are different, so are our interests. The vast range of popular magazines is there to satisfy our any information need.

Through thousands of categories and titles you can definitely find the ones that will become your family’s favorites, advisors, best friends. Even with all kinds of resources available on the Internet, to actually hold a nice glamorous issue is a different pleasure altogether.

However, to provide all the family members with magazine subscriptions is rather a luxury for an average family. The father would want an edition stuffed with news and essential information, like News Max or The Week; Mom would go for something like Good Housekeeping or Easy Home Cooking. Teenage daughter would be all for a piece of glamour like CosmoGirl or Teen Vogue. And a little son would be thrilled getting his regular issue of Boy’s Quest or Child Life. Does that mean spending hundreds of dollars annually? May be. May be not. Depends on how smart consumer you can be. Just a few tips will allow you to save on subscriptions and get the magazines you want.

Everyone knows that to buy a magazine subscription is cheaper than to buy the same editions separately every month. But before you go for a magazine subscription, be sure that this particular magazine is actually what you want. If you are not sure it’s good enough, it pays buying an issue or two at a newsstand or borrowing them from a library. Don’t get carried away with commercials – loud titles and glamorous design may turn out to be zero useful information. Make your own opinion and remember – the most expensive doesn’t mean the best.

Once you decided which magazine subscriptions you want, look for the lowest price. The longer the period of subscription is, the cheaper is the rate per issue. That’s how you will also be spared of overpaying in case the price rises. Beware of magazine subscription scams! If you are not buying a subscription from a publisher, at least find out whether the subscription service provider is reliable. Check if there are hidden costs that will add up to a low price, making it high eventually.

Study the cancellation policy before you subscribe to any special offer. Also, if you pay by your credit card, some magazines will automatically renew your subscription unless you call to cancel it.

Finally, hunting for your favorite magazine subscriptions online, give preference to the companies, providing magazine subscription coupons or magazine coupon codes. They will help you save even more than you could do on special offers or magazine sales and get more favorite periodicals for your family.

How to Save Money With a Credit Card Balance Transfer

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Would you like to know how a credit card balance transfer can save you hundreds of dollars from your credit card bills? Do you currently have trouble keeping up with your credit card balances? If yes, then a balance transfer may just be what you need.

Getting a Balance Transfer Credit Card

What is a Balance Transfer credit card and how is it different from standard credit cards in the market? If you try to shop around for credit cards, you’ll notice that some credit cards offer 0% APR as part of their introductory offer. The 0% interest rate will usually apply on purchases but if you take a look closely at your choices, you’ll find credit cards that offer 0% rate on balance transfers. If you’re lucky, you can even find a credit card that offers 0% APR for both purchases and balance transfers.

Why should you take advantage of 0% balance transfer credit cards? Carrying over your balances with each billing cycle increases your debt due to additional interest fees. With balance transfer credit card, you can focus on paying your original charges without the interest. Do the math, and you’ll realize how much you can save from the interest rates alone on your existing balances.

Finding the Right Balance Transfer Credit Card

Does this mean that all balance transfer credit cards are right for you? Take note that different credit card issuers also provide a variety of terms and conditions. Naturally, you’ll want to go with a company that will give you the best deals.

For instance, how long will the 0% introductory period last? Never forget that the zero interest offer is just a temporary option. Some companies offer as little as three months while others offer up to a year or more. Ideally, enjoying at least 12 months of 0% interest offer should give you enough time to repay your balances completely.

How much is the interest rate after the introductory period? Will the interest rate still be reasonable when the introductory offer ends or will it soar high? It’s best to choose a card that will still give you a reasonably low interest even after the 0% APR expires.

How much is the interest on purchases? If the 0% APR is limited to balance transfers alone, how much will the interest be on your charges? If the interest on purchases will be expensive, you may want to consider using this particular card for balance transfers only.

Another thing to keep in mind is how much are the annual fee? Some balance transfer credit cards may have very expensive annual fees. If you have to pay such a large amount each year, will it still enable you to save your money? There are balance transfer cards that have no annual fee so you’ll want to take your time looking for the right card to fit your needs.

How To Save Money While On Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

A holiday does not have to cost you an arm and a leg if you know how to look for and take full advantage of the many exciting money saving offers that are available to you throughout the internet. Many companies offer specific online savings and packages that you cannot find anywhere else. These online savings and offers are available to you online only, so you will have to visit their websites to take advantage of them, and they are not made available to those who visit them offline.

Many travelers can enjoy a bundle of savings by booking hotel reservations, airline tickets, or car rentals online. Additionally, they can also find packages that will allow them to do many things they will enjoy for a fraction of the cost. These packages can often include many exciting attractions you can see within an area, hotel, transportation, and sometimes certain meals are included with in the packages. Packages are geared towards every interest, for example, they could be geared towards specific destinations world wide, such as Paris, Italy, Florida, Hawaii, and the like.

Other packages could be geared towards specific events or activities, such as hiking, camping, jungle adventures, cruises, singles events and trips, couples geared outings, musicals, major shopping trips, or site seeing in exciting new places. There are many websites on the internet that are available to you by simply using one of the many popular search engines. Websites like expedia.com offer a one stop shopping source for flight tickets, trains, car rentals, and hotel reservations. In addition, they offer advice on traveling, points of interest, and an easy to use online reservation request.

The internet has made it so much easier to plan a trip that the whole family can enjoy, you can plan your entire itinerary right on the internet and find some excellent travel and safety tips that you could use. If you need to purchase new items to take with you on your holiday you can also do that online with many special deals from online retailers that sell the products you need.

Take full advantage of all the internet has to offer by booking your entire holiday online and safe a ton of money in the process. After all a holiday is enjoyed so much more, when it is a bargain and money saving one. It will leave you more money to spend on necessities and fun things you want to do.

How to Save Money on Your Energy Bill

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Is it just me, or have energy prices just been going up and up lately? Unfortunately, this results in significant increases in our home energy bills.

Fortunately, there are a lot of relatively inexpensive (sometimes free) changes you can make around the home that will save your money. I've put together a list of twelve tips that cover heating and cooling, lighting, appliances, and home electronics. These areas all tend to be notorious energy hogs. Let's get started.

Heating and Cooling Tips:

1. If you haven't already, switch to a natural gas water heater (electric water heaters use twice as much energy).

2. Whenever possible, cool your home naturally. For example, you can plant shade trees around your house (especially on the east and west sides). Their protection keeps the sun from beating on your roof and siding during the summer, which can naturally keep your home 4 degrees cooler. (Trees also help insulate your house against cold winds in the winter.)

3. Seal your house to protect against heat loss in cold weather. Seal the ductwork, close the fireplace damper when it's not in use, and install a timer on the bathroom exhaust fan.

Money-saving Lighting Tips:

1. Use dimmers on all your bulbs, and only keep lights as bright as needed for your work. Instead of turning on big watt-sucking overhead lights, use task lighting when appropriate.

2. Use timers and motion- or heat-sensing lights outdoors.

3. Make the most of the natural light from outside. Consider skylights and well-placed mirrors, which can reflect more light into a room, thus reducing energy costs.

Home Electronics Energy-saving Tips:

1. Unless you really need ten clocks glowing greenly at you day and night, unplug TVs, DVD players, stereos, etc. when not in use (you can plug them into a power strip with an on/off switch to make this easy). 60-80% of the electricity used by these devices is sucked down when they're idle.

2. Unplug chargers when you aren't actively charging your cell phone, iPod, battery charger, etc. Why? Because as long as the plugs are inserted into an outlet, they're drawing electricity.

3. Unplug or turn off your computer when it's not in use. And in case you forget, set the system to lapse into sleep mode after a certain amount of idle time (sleep mode draws 60-80% less energy than full-power mode).

Tips for Saving Energy with Appliances

1. If your refrigerator was made before 1993, replace it. It could be sucking down $140 a year in electricity as opposed to newer models, which require significantly less. Today's Energy Star-rated refrigerators only use about $20 of energy a year.

2. Do all your laundry on the same day, and dry the loads back-to-back. This makes use of residual dryer heat.

3. If you have a top-loading washing machine, replace it with a front-loading model. These generally use 50% less energy and 1/3 less water.

That's all the advice for this article. Apply these simple energy-saving tips, and you'll soon be looking at smaller bills.

How To Save Money On Gas

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Gas prices just keep going up, and our wallets keep decreasing in size. This how-to will teach you many ways to save money at the local gas station.

Steps

1. Take out a credit card. Some credit cards offer gas savings when you use the card for purchases. This works in much the same way that some credit card companies give you frequent flyer miles when you use their card for purchases.

2 Get a gas membership card. Look for membership benefits. In addition, department and grocery stores give discounts at the fuel pump when you use their store membership cards. Shopping at Giant Eagle grocery store and using their membership card, it’s possible (at the time of this writing) to fill a car’s tank for .79 cents a gallon, with savings of $1.36 per gallon.

3. Give your car a good tune up. While giving your car a tune up won’t actually save you money at the pump, it will save you in gas. Using less gas saves you money over all. Have the oil changed, and have a certified mechanic give your engine a twice over.

4. Check the WWW for deals. Web sites let you find the best deals in your area.

5. Buy a hybrid car. Not only do hybrid cars give you immediate savings at the pump, the U.S. government and your local state offer tax breaks for people that use gas saving cars. Federal deductions for using gas saving cars can be as high as $2000. If you can’t afford the growing number of hybrid cars out there, consider getting a regular car with good MPG (miles per gallon), like the Toyota Echo.

6. Turn off the AC. Running the car’s air conditioning puts extra strain on your car’s engine. This translates into you car eating up more gas per mile. Use less gas, save money. Depending on the car you drive, at highway speeds, the AC might put less drag on your car than if all the windows are open. Therefore, you might want to keep it cool on the highway.

7. Use the cheaper stuff. Most modern cars run just as well with the cheap gas as they do with the more expensive gas. In fact, engineers assume the car buyer is going to use the cheap gas, and so, they design the car’s engine accordingly.

8. Don’t fill the tank when prices are higher. Gas suppliers and gas station owners can charge high prices for gas because they know people will pay for it. The owners monitor how much gas people are putting into their cars each day. If they hike up the price a few cents and people are still filling up their tanks, this tells the owners that people are willing to pay the high price. Adding only a few gallons to your car when prices are high sends a message to the owners that people are not happy about the high prices.

9. Don’t drive. Don’t drive when you don’t absolutely have to. Carpooling, walking, taking the bus, and riding a bike not only saves you gas, but these are better for the environment and may be better for your health. Do you really need to drive to the store when it is only a couple of blocks down the street?

10. Check the tire air pressures weekly. Buy an inexpensive manual air pump and an accurate tire gauge (not a pencil gauge as they are not accurate). Keep all tires inflated to the same pressure as recommended for your car but not for your tire. Go by the sticker on the doorframe and not the tire wall.

11. Drive at a consistent speed and keep the windows up tight. Keeping the windows closed reduces the drag on your car. Sticking to the speed limit also helps. So, will using less gear changes and revving the engine less. Avoid accelerating fast or braking suddenly. Use cruise control when you can.

12. Clean out any unnecessary items in your car. If you have heavy objects in your car that you don’t need - remove them. If your car is lighter, it will use less fuel to get you to where you’re going.

13. Avoid leaving your car idle. If you are going to be stopped for more than one minute, you will save gas by turning the car off and restarting when you are ready to go.

14. Buy on cold days. Buy fuel on cold days and if you can, drive on the hot days. When you buy on cold days, and pay for volume, you buy more “mass” of fuel for the same price. Never fill the tank completely or it will overflow when it becomes hotter.

How To Save For Retirement

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

So, you want to save for retirement, but you’re having enough trouble paying your bills every month? Now what?

How can you possibly find enough money to save for the future when the present is difficult enough?

If this sounds familiar, then here are a few suggestions to help making saving money easier. Not necessarily easy – when money is tight, saving is probably not going to be easy. But at least it can be a little bit easier.

For this to work, you first have to be willing to make a few changes. Actually, it all comes down to one big change – and that is making a commitment. Without this commitment, and a plan to go along with it, then most likely nothing will ever change.

So, go ahead and make a commitment to yourself that you’ll do WHATEVER it takes to change your financial situation. And this change won’t come overnight, so give yourself a time frame to make it happen. Write down your commitment. And put it in a safe place.

And get ready to make it happen! Here are some suggestions for saving money – even when money is tight:

First, take a few minutes to read your commitment each day. The more you believe in what you are doing, the more you will be willing to take action, and achieve what you want!

Second, think of ways to make some extra money:

- get a part-time job
- start your own business
- sell items around the house that you don’t need any more

Third, take out your checkbook and write down a list of all your expenses for the last month or two. Write down everything. Then decide which expenses you can eliminate (and remember, you make a commitment to change your financial situation, and won’t necessarily be easy). And decide which ones can be reduced:

- cable TV
- cell phone
- internet service
- newspapers
- magazines
- entertainment
- luxuries
- anything else you can live without!

Be creative. Be honest. And be committed!

Because when money is tight, and you still want to save for your future, you either need to find a way to make some more money. Or find a way to lower your monthly expenses.

8 Easy Tips: How to Save Money on Credit Cards

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Holiday shopping overloaded your credit cards? Worried about the finance charges you’ll soon start paying? Fortunately, you can use a bunch of different tactics to save money on credit cards. Some suggestions follow:

Leave Home without It

If you’re like most people, you spend more money if you carry a credit card around. Some studies show that credit card holders spend 23 percent more on average even if they don’t carry a balance on the credit cards. No investment pays an instantaneous 23 percent rate after taxes. Even business investments. Despite what one credit card issuer says, you’re really better off if you leave home without it.

Cancel Unnecessary Credit Cards

If you don’t carry credit card balances, cancel credit cards that charge an annual maintenance fee. Lighten your wallet by canceling all the cards you don’t use, for that matter. You’ll only spend more if you use them, anyway.

Ask Your Bank to Waive Its Annual Fee

Call your bank and explain that, because of the annual fee, you might cancel your credit card. Tell the bank you think it should waive its annual fee. Your current credit card issuer will probably gulp and then waive the fee. For a two-minute telephone call, you’ll be ahead by $20 or $30. (By the way, most credit card issuers don’t waive the fee on a gold card.)

Consider an Affinity Card

If you travel on business a lot, you can easily run up $10,000 or more on a credit card as you pay for airline tickets, hotels, and rental cars. In this case, it’s well worth it to pay $50 for an affinity card. Once you have the card, charge all your personal and business purchases on it ().

Cancel Credit Insurance If You Have Any

Credit life insurance is usually a big waste of money. You only need credit life insurance if you know your estate will collect and you can’t get a better kind of insurance.
Credit disability insurance is usually another big waste of money. But, as with credit life insurance, you may need this insurance if you require disability insurance and you can’t get better insurance.

Cancel Credit Card Protection Insurance If You Have It

Credit card protection insurance is another waste of money. If some nefarious type steals your credit card and runs up huge charges, you are probably only liable for the first $50 or so as long as you immediately tell the credit card issuer that the credit card was stolen.

Never Make the Minimum Payment

Pay more than the minimum payment. Paying off high-interest-rate credit cards is one of the best investments you can make. (The others are typically investing in a profitable business and contributing money to a 401(k) plan in which the employer matches a portion of the contribution.) If you make minimum payments only, your credit card debt quickly balloons. Very quickly balloons, I should say. Soon you are paying massive monthly finance charges.

Get Rid of Your Gold Card

You’re paying for the privilege and prestige of that gold card. But you knew that, right? You can probably save yourself at least $40 or $50 just by having an old, boring, regular Visa or MasterCard.

How to Save Big Money with a Gas Station Credit Card

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

The average American spends over $2000 a year on gas alone. Gas and fuel is a billion dollar industry. How can we save on gas? There are the usual tips offered to you such as keeping you vehicle well maintained, changing your oil regularly, using public transportation, packing light and combining all your errands into just one trip daily. Unfortunately, obeying these procedures still doesn't save you enough cash.

Another less known but highly effective opportunity to save is to apply for a gas credit card. There are many benefits of a gasoline credit card that can aid in the amount that we spend solely on gas. Most gasoline credit cards offer cash back and discounts, convenience, reward programs, and a great way to build or rebuild your credit history.

Some gas credit cards offered by well established companies such as Chase, Visa, MasterCard, or Hess offer cash back and discounts on gas purchases which can add up throughout the year to save you big bucks.

Signing up for a gas credit card can also bring you all the conveniences of any regular credit card. You can use them anywhere that accepts credit cards and you don’t have to carry cash around for your big purchases anymore. Most gas stations now even have express lanes where ONLY direct payment or gas cards are to be used. Now that is what I call convenience!

We’re all pretty familiar with earning points for specific stores when we shop at their locations. With most gasoline credit cards, you can earn points wherever you use your card. Earn points and treat yourself to a prize reward, or better yet, redeem them for cash off your gas bill!

What if you have a bad credit history? Gasoline credit cards are a better option than bank credit cards for this purpose because gasoline credit cards have a higher approval rate. Applying for a gas credit card is definitely a good choice for anyone who might have a bad credit history and wants to save on gas.

Once you have decided that you want a gas credit card, applying is easy! Compare credit cards online, then fill out a safe, secure application.

How To Pick A Profitable Mutual Fund

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

We have all heard the advantages of investing in a mutual fund over trying to pick individual stocks. First of all mutual funds hire professional analysts that are market experts and devout many hours of study to the various stocks. Unless you want to devout a large portion of your free time to the study of the financial reports, you probably won’t have as much information to make a decision as a mutual fund manager.

Then there is the well documented advantage of diversification. Risk is reduced by holding several non correlated investments. Put simply, some go up, some go down and combined, the return levels off the fluctuations, or risk.

Finally, a mutual fund offers smaller investors a chance to invest in small increments rather than having to save a large chunk of cash to purchase 100 shares of stock.

Given the above advantages, it’s no wonder that mutual funds have become a very popular form of investing. Now there are thousands of mutual funds to choose from, so how does one make a selection? Here are a few tips:

1. Do not be seduced to jump on the recently performing best fund. It may seem like the safe and rational thing to do, but like individual stocks, you want to buy low and sell high, not buy high and pray for more growth.

2. Even good funds may not be able to overcome the force of the overall market. You should be looking for funds that can exceed the broad market without increasing risk. Each fund has certain risk parameters that it is required to follow. Read the prospectus closely to understand what these are.

3. Limit the number of funds that you own. Unless you are trying to simply achieve the same returns as the broad market, diversifying into many mutual funds will not reduce your risk or increase your return by much.

4. Funds that become too popular and too big tend to slip in performance. There are several reasons for this.

One final point to keep in mind is that the type of fund will totally depend on your investment objectives. There are certain funds that are designed for your objectives be they retirement, income, growth, funding the kids college, etc.

How to Manage Your Money When Working Overseas

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

It’s a fact that employers look favorably on a resume that presents an independent, dynamic individual who has an open mind and has seen more of the world than their own back yard.

With this fact in mind a greater number of people are taking time away from their studies and careers nowadays and spending a period of time traveling or working overseas.

If you’re considering taking a similar path this article will help you get your head around managing your money when traveling, living or working abroad – once your finances are in order you can spend the whole of the rest of the time having fun, exploring the wider world and meeting many new faces!

Even if you’re planning a prolonged period of expatriation you should keep your local bank account open. You can then manage money and expenses back home more easily if needs be, and maybe even send some of your overseas income back home to pay off student loans or to save up for a house purchase one day in the future. Furthermore by keeping your account open you’re keeping your credit history alive which is important if you ever plan to re-settle in your home country and maybe one day apply for a mortgage or credit card.

Next up you might like to think about opening an offshore or international bank account. Possibly your bank offers such account services in which case everything just got even easier! HSBC for example offers domestic accounts all over the world and they also offer offshore accounts to expatriates and professionals living or working overseas for a period of time.

An offshore bank account will allow you to access your money wherever in the world you’re located, you can have access to money from ATMs around the world, you can have instant access to your account status online or over the phone and you can bank in multiple currencies. Furthermore you can easily transfer funds around the world and have one simple, central bank account structure that allows you to manage all of your financial needs from one centralised location.

To reduce ATM and credit card fees consider opening an account with one of the major financial institutions that have ATMs all over the world and who are recognized around the world. The benefits of going with one of the world’s leading financial institutions is that their credit cards are more universally accepted, they partner with many local banks around the world and customers enjoy lower or no charges at any of their ATMs which can be found all over the world. Always check out the charge structure on any account though just to ensure there are no hidden fees.

As an expatriate you’re entitled to take full advantage of the offshore world and save money offshore thus enjoying better interest rates, having access to more interesting financial products and benefiting from interest payable on savings and investments being made gross, i.e., before the deduction of tax. If you’re going to be earning more than you need to live on when working overseas you should consider taking full advantage of this fact and saving as much as you can while you can benefit from the offshore advantage. You will increase your savings power and give yourself a good financial start over and above your peers back home.

Please note that you may still be liable for taxation on income derived from and interest earned on any offshore savings and investments and international taxation advice should be sought from a financial adviser or an accountant.

How to find Cheap Insurance Plans

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Insurance is a form of contract whereby periodic payments (also known as insurance premiums) are made to an insurance company, in order to provide an individual or business compensation in the event of property loss or damage.

The main purpose of insurance is to protect yourself or your family against the financial impact of a tragedy. In general, it is contract in which one party agrees to pay for another party’s financial loss resulting from a specified event. Insurance mainly consist of three things - insurer, insured and policy. An entity seeking to transfer risk (an individual, corporation, or association of any type) becomes the ‘insured’ party once risk is assumed by an ‘insurer’, the insuring party, by means of a contract, defined as an insurance ‘policy’.

There are two main ways to buy insurance. The first one is directly through an agent and the second one is to do it yourself. The main advantage of buying insurance from other is that an honest and competent insurer will decide according to the situation and make suggestions. The advantage of going on your own is that less money is needed for it. While buying any type of insurance, a person will save money by paying annually or semi-annually. Sometimes buying several types of insurance from the same company will save money.

There are different types of insurance available in the market. Life insurance is a form of insurance that pays monetary proceeds upon the death of the insured covered in the policy. There are main two types of life insurance that are term insurance and permanent insurance.

The medical insurance policy is a non-life insurance policy, which covers the expenses incurred by an individual in case of an injury or hospitalization. Individuals have to pay a minimal premium for buying medical insurance. Its main types are indemnity plan, preferred provider organization and health maintenance organization.

Homeowner insurance policy covers property and contents. There are two kinds of Homeowners Insurance policies and these policies can be divided into two categories named-Peril Insurance and all-risk insurance.

Auto insurance is the insurance against loss due to theft or traffic accidents. It can be purchased for cars, trucks and other vehicles. Its primary use is to provide protection against losses incurred as a result of car. Its main types are general liability, no-fault insurance, uninsured auto coverage and medical payments.

Car insurance is the insurance against loss due to theft or traffic accidents. Its main types are fully comprehensive auto insurance, third party insurance, fire and theft insurance, third party insurance, specialized car insurance.

Term life insurance provides protection for a specific period of time. It pays a benefit only if you die during the term. Term life insurance comes in two basic varieties term life policies and cash value policies.

There are numerous insurance providers that designs and markets insurance services for individuals, families, groups and businesses worldwide. Now, there are also online insurance facilities that help a person to select insurance just by clicking. After fulfilling the basic requirements of the insurance company, person is eligible for it.

How to Establish Emergency Money

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

Inevitable and unexpected things can happen anytime. And life always gives us surprises, leaving us with expenses that we usually didn’t plan for. Sickness, accidents and other form of injuries can come and your budget may not be enough. Such occurrences can create debts and you cannot recover easily from it. It is for this reason that emergency money is really needed now and again.

Emergency money or fund is money that you set aside not as an investment or savings but for emergency purposes. It isn’t money for groceries and other needs but strictly for emergencies. Establishing an emergency fund is always important especially in bad times. What matters is you set the money aside consistently then gets it only for real emergency use. The success of your emergency fund depends more on consistently saving your money and leaving it there unless there’s an emergency.

It is advisable that your emergency money contains about three months’ worth of living expenses. It doesn’t mean that your emergency money should be equal to your salary for three months, but you have to make sure that the money you put away for this purpose is enough to sufficiently handle whatever emergency that may come up.

It is way easy to calculate the amount that should go to your emergency money. What you need is enough amounts to cover the rent of your apartment, to pay for your bills and your car, to purchase food and cover other expenses for a normal month. Experts based the three-month rule from the reality that majority of short-term incapacitating sickness need almost three months to heal and recover.

You should make sure that your emergency money is a liquid investment that’s very accessible. Of course, there’s always a risk that if you don’t have that self-control, you can easily get your money for impulse shopping, vacation trips and for buying some needed equipments. Because of this, you need to lock your emergency money up and hide the key.

The best thing that you can do to secure your emergency money is to put it in a very liquid account like money market account or savings account.

Money Market Funds. The most famous option is money market account. This is a liquid investment that is short term and can be accessed through mutual funds and several banks. These banks and mutual funds also provide cash type liquidity. Putting your emergency money in a money market account will give you nominal rate of return that’s above the average savings account rate of a bank.

Savings Account or Certificate of Deposit. Other option that you can possibly do to your emergency money is to put it in savings account or some other assets which can be liquidated easily without taking a loss. There are lots of CD’s that would meet this criterion and can be considered as an option. Putting a portion or all of your emergency money into a CD or certificate of deposit will give you higher interest rate. When your certificate has already matured and the interest has been gathered, you have the choice to transfer it into a savings account or you can put them again in a shorter-term certificate.

Remember that the longer the term of your CD, the higher its rate will be. However, you have to make sure that you didn’t lock up your emergency money for too long, because you might beat its purpose of having an easy access.

How To Deal With Rising Interest Rates

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0700

For the past few years, interest rates have been quite low, causing many people to borrow large amounts of money for a variety of different expenses. Now these interest rates are about to rise, and they will have a large effect on the personal finances of many borrowers. How do these interest rates affect you? What can you do to prepare for rising interest rates? In this article I will answer both of these questions.

When Do Interest Rates Rise ?

When the Federal Bank increases the interest rates, the cost of mortgages, loans, and credit cards are also increased. Because the average American household owes at least $10,000 in credit card debt, they will be heavily effected the rising interest rates. If you are having a difficult time making your payments every month or are only making the minimum payments, it can be very difficult to pay down the principle when the interest continues to increase. In a situation like this it could take many years to pay off a loan.

Don’t Be Depressed

Even worse, if the economy suffers a major depression similar to what occurred in 1929, banks and loan companies may begin calling in debts in order reduce their losses. This means that customers will be forced to pay back everything they owe up front, and if they can't their homes, cars, or other valuables could be taken from them. While this may sound extreme, history has a way of repeating itself. It is important to make sure you do everything you can to protect yourself and reduce the amount of debt you owe.

Try To Pay Your Debt Early

One thing you will want to do is start paying more than just the minimum payments. As the interest rates continue to rise, making only the minimum payments will do nothing to reduce your debt. If you don't have enough money to make more than just the minimum payments, look for ways to cut back on your expenses so that you will have more money left over to pay on your loans. You will want to reduce your spending and set aside a budget that will allow you to make larger payments towards the principle rather than just the interest.

Get On A lower Interest Rate

Don't listen to credit card companies that advertise credit cards at a fixed rate. By law, credit card companies have to give you a notice before increase the interest rate on the credit cards, and very few loans are exempt from the interest rates that are increased by the Federal Bank. It is best to transfer your balances from high interest credit cards to those that have a much lower interest rate. Look for companies that offer 0% interest rates for a set period of time. Home equity loans or lines of credit are tools that can also be used to consolidate and pay of your debts.

Consider A Cheaper Mortgage

If you have a mortgage that features an adjustable interest rate, consider switching to a fixed rate before interest rates begin to rise. This could keep you from getting into a situation where you could lose your home. If you are looking to buy a house, it is important to remember that the cost of houses will greatly increase once the interest rates start to rise. This means you will want to find a house before this happens so that you will avoid paying inflated prices.

Lease Or Buy a Car

If you are thinking of a getting a car, it may be a good idea to buy used instead of leasing a car from a dealership. It doesn't make much sense to get a car loan at a time when interest rates are about to rise. Buying a used car has many advantages, but you will want to do your research to make sure you get a good deal.

How To Invest With Success

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Whether they’re working in the business world or stay-at-home mothers, many people today are drawn to the risky allure of investments, which can mean either huge rewards or painful losses. While it’s impossible to predict the fluctuations of the market with 100% accuracy, as you build your portfolio, you will learn to accept the losses and keep in mind the successes always waiting around the corner.

No one can control the market, but you can control what you invest in. Research products and know the businesses you’re putting your trust - and, more importantly, your dollars - in. One of the most common errors new investors make is jumping to invest in a hot stock from the previous year. It’s a common pattern for a market high to descend to a market low - right at the time you’re investing. This is not always the case, but it pays to invest in a strong stock rather than a fad that’s in one year and out the next.

It’s also important to know why you’re investing in that particular stock. For instance, if you invest strictly to gain some momentum, when prices fall you’ll know to drop out; otherwise, you’ll sit there wondering whether to wait it out or cut your losses.

Ironically, while it’s impossible to predict the market, investments are all about timing. Two of the most important decisions investors make are when to take profits and when to cut losses. When the market is up, some say it’s best to run a profit - a risky choice that could mean a huge loss or an enormous reward. However, many prefer to take their money while the market is rising, in case a fall is on the way. When the market is down, nearly everyone agrees it’s best to close out before it gets worse to avoid losing any more money, cutting your losses.

Most importantly, only invest what you can afford, and have a good reason for investing. Losses are a real part of investment, which means you can’t afford too many rash decisions, especially when you’re starting out. Don’t let the market determine your bank account unless you’re using it to your advantage, whatever that may be.

The smartest thing a new investor can do is study the market. Before investing in a product, look at its record. Don’t jump into any investments - think them over first. Some good sources of information about investments include The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money and Investing (3rd Edition) by Kenneth M. Morris and Alan M. Siegel, The Real Life Investing Guide by Kenan Pollack and Eric Heighberger, and The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias.

If you stay well-informed and make careful decisions, the market can be an exciting tool. In the business world, anything can happen, and with the market highs come enormous rewards that are well worth the risks.

How To Invest Wisely And Make Your Money Grow

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 9 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Wise investments of your spare funds can be a great way to grow rich. These days, savings accounts offer very low interest and it is a waste to allow your money to lie in them. Based on your appetite for risk and your financial needs, you have various other investment schemes and options to choose from.

It is always safer to have a diversified portfolio, that is, to spread you money around in various types of schemes, so that the risks and returns get balanced out. The company you work for would have a 401(k) plan which is always a safe bet. In this scheme, they will deduct a part of your salary every month and give it to an independent financial source to manage the investment, so that you get a healthy return at the end of your tenure. For those of you with greater risk-taking ability, stock markets or mutual funds can be a good idea. In stock markets, you can buy shares of companies listed on the stock exchange. Usually, good companies offer dividends along with a fair return on your investment. Dividends are not mandatory, but a lot of companies like to distribute their profits among shareholders as dividends.

Some companies prefer to reinvest the profits into expansion projects instead of declaring dividends. These re-investments in turn should lead to further profits. However, the stock markets are unpredictable and a lot of people who dabble in stocks with the purpose of making some quick bucks may end up with losses instead.

Mutual funds are relatively safer investments, though they are also subject to market risk. Mutual funds are investments made in the stock market by financial managers with a fund collected from actual investors. There can be sector-specific mutual funds for instance those that invest in Pharmaceutical or IT or infrastructure companies only. Whatever be the mode of your investment in the markets, it is vital that you track these on a regular basis. If the prices of your shares or mutual funds decline at a time when there is a slowdown in the economy as a whole, there is no need to panic and sell at a loss. The markets will quite likely bounce back to where they were or perhaps even better.

However, if the markets are strong and yet, the value of your mutual funds is on a decline, it could mean it is not well invested and it would be advisable for you to sell and move your money into something that will generate better returns. A financial consultant can advise you about the market situation and what types of investments will suit your needs best.

How To Invest And Breathe Simultaneously

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 8 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Well, you say you’re ready to being investing, on your own. No stockbrokers, no financial advisers, just you and the open market. What a thrilling prospect. Wait, are you seriously considering this proposition?

Please allow me to give some advice: Don’t do it. I speak with some experience, having lost my fair share in the “open market” as a do-it-yourself investor. The odds of success in this kind of investing are comparable to the odds of wining the lottery. It’s a crap shoot. Unless you are willing to take the time to investigate, investigate, and then do some investigation. Successful investing is not a privilege of the stock broker and the financial analyst, alone. It is an area open to voluntary participation from any walk to life. The catch here is that you must be knowledgeable, or you will lose.

Take the time to understand all the components of the investing arena, before you risk losing your nice little nest egg in ten minutes or less. What you have spent a lifetime saving can be gone in as little as ten minutes. Now, that should be a scary thought for any sane, rational, investor.

If you still intend to invest alone, here are a few tips and guidelines to help ensure your success. If you are going to invest, at least hire some form of investment professional to give you advice. It’s not necessary to let them do the investing, but use common sense, here. They know things you do not, and have not had time to learn.

Another piece of advice: if it sounds too good to be true, it is. Hands down, dream investments do not exist. If you know someone who acted on a friend’s great tip, you can bet that someone worked hard for that information, and it probably isn’t going to produce the mega return promised.

You must be patient when investing. Investing is like saving, it takes time to accumulate real returns. Don’t panic, take the time to step back and look objectively at your investment and the market indicators. Panic will cost you money. Hand in hand with the patience, there must be some read education about the investing process on your part. If you’re going to invest, take the time to learn the process, learn how to read a prospectus, how to calculate and distinguish a healthy business from one that is about to fold. Your knowledge will be your ticket to successful investing with a show of real returns.

It can be done, it is done everyday, by people just like you and I. You just need to understand the enormity of the commitment necessary to become a successful investor.

How To Get Rich Today

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 7 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Want to know how to get rich today? You could try the lottery, or try your luck at the roulette wheel. Of course, you know the odds are against you, right? Want a better way?

Start thinking about what it means to BE rich. Consider that you are sitting there with a fantastic machine in front of you - the computer. It can entertain you, educate you, employ you and more. Think back two hundred years ago, when the richest people in the world didn't have access to a computer, or a television, or a car, or a refrigerator, flush toilets or modern medicines.

Think about how many millions of people TODAY would eagerly trade places with you. If you consider yourself poor, there are others who would consider you rich by comparison, right? "Rich" is relative, isn't it? While others imagine how much better their lives would be if they had as much as you, you imagine a life made better by even more wealth.

It's certainly true that life can be improved by money. Those who tell you differently are lying or have a real lack of imagination. However, long before you get rich according to whatever standard or goal you have, you can get rich by living differently. You can learn how to get rich by enjoying the real wealth you already have. If you don't learn how to enjoy life first, you may not enjoy future wealth in any case.

Who is really richer, a person with a lot of money and things who is alternately stressed and bored, or a person who is enjoying all the good things he has, however few they may be? Appreciate what you have, and you WILL be richer. Of course you should plan for the future, to make more money, but get rich today by living in a state of gratitude for what you already have.

Isn't money a blessing, as well as an incredible and fascinating invention? It's the distilled essence of all the worldly things and situations you might want or need. Why not make more of it? The following are some simple reminders of things you already know about how to get rich.

1. Plan to make more money. Choose a way (there are many) and work it. Try another if you fail, but don't stop trying. Fast or slow - you can get rich. However, don't just think about getting rich. Put your goals in writing, and take the steps necessary.

2. Decide what is truly important to you. I have seen more than one person spend what could have been a wealth-building investment on things that really weren't important to them. Self control doesn't have to mean self-denial, but it should mean doing what you REALLY want for the long term.

3. Learn to manage money. If you watch those "Where Are They Now" programs, you'll quickly see that it's easier to lose millions than to make them. How many famous people have blown through all their money in a few shot years? About 1,897. Okay, who knows, but the lesson is clear. You need to understand how to manage money if you want to get rich and stay rich. Why not start educating yourself?

Enjoy what you have, and put a plan in place to get more - this is how to get rich today.

How To Find A Good Investment Property

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 6 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Rental real estate is slowly becoming a good investment endeavor although there are some skeptical few who still thinks that it’s a daunting undertaking. Well we just can’t blame them since searching for a good investment property is really hard. However, for those few optimists rental property is great way to accumulate wealth.

Just like any type of business undertaking it is important that you have a concrete plan or strategy on how you are going to develop your rental real estate into a money-making endeavor. Otherwise, you will end up losing all of your investment.

You need to do some painstaking research and probably have some connections to find a profitable rental property. This is because your objective is to make profit within the shortest time possible. This is also the same reason why you should find a seller that is willing to give you free equity.

Here are some tips to help you get started with your rental real estate business:

•You need to have an investment plan since this will help you determine the duration of your ownership of particular rental property. Remember that the longer you own the property, the more you’ll spend on maintenance, repairs and improvements. If you want to make any major improvements on the property, be sure the sale price will be enough to cover the cost. If you are not sure then better not spend too much. Nevertheless, owning the rental estate property for less time would also create more investment risk especially when buying in an overheated market. To compensate for that risk, you need a bigger potential annual return.For many small investors, however, long-term ownership is smart because it allows them plenty of time to outlast any fluctuations in the market -- and also since the rental income can be a nice supplementary income in the meantime. Being a landlord is even a rewarding day job for some.

• There are various ways of finding properties and these are as follows: hunt properties that are already for foreclosure, you will be able to get some information by means of befriending city hall clerks or bank employees who know of properties that are about to be foreclosed or are already foreclosed; you may also try to contact a real estate agent who’s on the lookout for possible buys; or you may join a local landlord or property owner’s association in order for you to make contacts. And while you’re at it why not ask landlords directly to see if they are willing to selling; you may try looking in newspapers for rental ads or you may drive around neighborhoods in order to search “ for rent” signs.

Get your finances in shape

If you really want to engage in a rental estate property business you need to have a good credit standing -- meaning less credit card debt and other consumer debt. You see, lenders usually require bigger down payments, charge higher interest rates and want your finances to be in better shape when you are buying rental properties.

It really pays to have a large cash reserve after buying any property since there might be some needed repairs that rental property may require. If you can afford to set aside at least one month rent for each unit, that’s a good start. You may also try to apply for a line of credit secured either by the property or your own home in order to cover larger costs.

Avoid overspending
The reason why you invest on a rental estate property is for you to gain profits and not to lose every savings you’ve got. Make sure that you still have save enough for your retirement before investing in rental real estate since just like any business wherein you tend to lose some and then win some but just to be on the safe side try to save as much as you could. Better be prepared than be sorry later on.

How To Finance An Investment Property

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 5 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

The secret in real estate business is to use other people’s money. This is how most real estate tycoons are made. Unlike traditional residential real estate mortgages, real estate financing offers much broader financial options, including lending or financing from various financial institutions. Transactions like these call for above-average negotiation skills.

It's not advisable to invest your own money in a real estate as for a few very important reasons. First, you you tend to give most of your profits away by not leveraging your investment. Second, real estate is a very risky business – you don't want to jeopardize everything you have.

This is not to say that real estate investment is all about losses. On the contrary. if you know how to make money work for you, you may actually garner a great deal of money in return for your investment.

Here’s how:

If, for example, you purchase a $100,000 property that increases an average of 7 percent per year (in reality that number could be higher or lower), you would see a net profit from renting your property resulting in an approximately 15 percent return.

If you're content with little return of investment, you might settle with your 15 percent return. But if you really want to earn on your investment, consider the possibility of what leveraging can do for you. At present, a typical real estate investor can find financing as high as 95 to 97 percent of the purchase price. There even some instances where you may be able to get a 100 percent financing but we won't use this for our example as it's an inadequate comparison.

So, if you're are an investor who is already content with a small return of investment then 15 percent sounds like a lot. But for those who really want to make it big in the real estate, 15 percent is far from being considered a noteworthy return.

How does leveraging work?

Let's assume that the rental income will cover all your expenses, including the mortgage payments. Taking the same example, a 7 percent appreciation of your property results in a $7,000 profit per year. With a 95% financing in place, you'll be able to get a $7,000 return on $5,000 (your 5 percent down payment on a $100,000 real estate property). This will provide you with a 140 percent return on your investment. Not only that, with the same $100,000 you can go out and purchase 20 investment properties, finance 95% percent of them, and make an amazing $140,000 profit a year. This totally beats the $15,000 profit with an all-cash transaction.

In terms of the additional 20 properties, expect to have a hard time getting financing for them since usually only five or six new rental property mortgages are the maximum that lenders presently allow. Which is why you need to have an above-average negotiation skills.

How To Create Your Own Emergency Fund?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 3 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0800

Do unexpected car repairs, quarterly insurance payments or unexpected medical bills find you hard pressed to squeeze even one more dollar out of an already stretched monthly budget? These are inevitable expenses and sometimes can put you under a stress condition when you need the cash to pay for these emergencies and unexpected expenses. But if you learn to budget for these emergencies events and save in advance, you will be at a better position to handle them.

Like most of Americans, you may stretch your income to cover the regular monthly expenses, and always choose to ignore or not to think about the brakes that are getting spongy or the plumbing that's beginning to make strange noises. And you end up a surge on your monthly expenses when the brakes wear off and the plumbing break out.

Planning and saving for those events can help prevent an ordinary life from turning into a crisis and can also cut down dependence on credit cards. Not having savings is a major reason people get into debt.

Here are some steps to help you get started to plan for your emergency fund, the "Saving" fund which will help you prevent financial disaster.

1. Identify your irregular expenses

Analyze your pass credit card statement and checking account registers to identify your irregular expenses occur throughout the year. Examples of these irregular expenses are property taxes, insurance premiums, vacations, car tune-ups, holidays and birthdays. List down in a piece of paper all the expenses which are not spent in monthly basis.

2. Write the anticipated amount on the calendar

In most of cases such as insurance premium and property taxes, you will know when the expenses are due to occur. And for those unknown cases such as car repair and plumping repair cost, try to anticipate their expenses and list them somewhat earlier than you actually expect them to come up. Be sure to update your calendar as you discover more expenses.

3. Plan-in the non-monthly expenses into your monthly spending

Based on the foreseen amount and anticipated amount that are captured on your calendar, plan ahead your non-monthly expenses into your monthly spending. For example, you know that your car insurance is going to due on May, set aside small amount of your money for this purpose starting on February. And when May rolls around you can transfer the expense to your spending plan and have money available to pay it. Setting aside even a few dollars each month for foreseeable expenses can prevent larger money woes ahead.

Sometimes, you may find it hard to set aside some extra money from your monthly income; but remember, repairing your car or paying your insurance is not optional expenses and you need to spend it soon or later. So you need to find a way to reduce your monthly expenses so that some money can set aside for emergency fund. You may need to track your spending; then, reduce or cut the optional expenses such as entertainment, dinner at restaurant and other impulse purchase, the money save from those optional expense can be put into your emergency fund.

In Summary

One of the mistakes people make when trying to get their finances under control is not having an emergency fund on their savings account. The problem is that if you don't have money set aside for those unavoidable bills, you inevitably end up adding to your credit card balance to cover the difference.

The bottom line is to start today. It may be discouraging at first if you find that you don't have enough money to fully fund your emergency fund, but you'll begin to succeed the minute you start the process.