Written by Scott Barnes on November 24, 2011.
Borrowers who apply for a Prosper loan through this Sunday, November 27, 2011 get an Apple iPod Nano when the loan originates. I cant tell if the iPod Nano is 8 gb ($129) or 16 gb ($149). Note that the fine print for this offer does not exclude AA loans with 1-year terms, which have very low origination fees of only 0.5% of the amount borrowed; a $2,000 loan would have an origination fee of just $10. There is no pre-payment penalty for paying off your loan early, so do the math.
Before committing to anything, you can get a free rate quote without affecting your credit score. Youll even get a free credit score afterward unless you get the best AA rating, at which point you know your credit score is sky-high anyway.
New lenders who register by December 12 and invest the minimum needed for each gift by December 23, can get the following:
- $5,000 Apple iPod Nano, 16 GB ($149 value)
- $10,000 Bose® QuietComfort® 15 Headphones ($299 value)
- $25,000 Apple iPad 2 32 GB WiFi model ($599 value)
Lenders who receive promotional offers from Prosper may be subject to IRS Form 1099-MISC reporting requirements should the total value of those items exceed $599 in a calendar year. G
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Written by Joseph Perry on November 19, 2011.
Marketing, like art, never ends – it is always changing, evolving with the time, adapting to new social and economic trends. The most successful firms on this front recognize this fact from the get-go and, consequently, are constantly attuned or open to new ideas.
While you don’t want to upend your marketing strategy every time you read about some cool new guerrilla campaign, you need to be open-minded.
Take television, for instance. While TV commercials are perhaps the most sought after and effective advertisements available, they may not be so desirable a few years from now. Internet marketing – including search engine optimization, web content and social media – is surging toward the front of the pack. According to Pew Research, 78 percent of internet users conduct product research online.
This underscores the need to rank highly in search returns, but also points to the need to augment SEO strategies with social media and content creation. Even em
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Written by Scott Barnes on November 17, 2011.
Yesterday I told you the story of when I borrowed money from my parents and how it really bothered me. I don’t think I could ever utilize my parents as my mortgage lender but as credit markets continue to tighten, more and more people are heading for the Bank of Mom and Dad for their own personalized mortgage deal.
Family mortgages can work as long as everyone fulfills their end of the bargain, timely payments are made, and the taxes and insurance premiums are paid. When you consider the minuscule returns on “safe” investments such as certificates of deposit or money market accounts, getting a 5% return on a mortgage backed by real estate can be appealing. Additionally, when you combine these type returns with the tight lending standards many young home buyers are facing, you begin to realize that there’s a need and a way to fill it. With ma
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Written by Joseph Perry on November 12, 2011.
I just came into tens of thousands of dollars that I plan to safely invest. When do you anticipate that bank interest rates on CDs will begin to rise? – M.P., Nashville, Tenn.
If this were a rational world, they would have started rising long ago, since inflation is now substantially higher than interest rates. Stockpiling cans of soup is a better investment than a CD at current CD yields.
Trying to guess the future of interest rates has always been a great way to renew humility. Whenever I think interest rates can’t possibly get any lower, they drop again. More important, my 30 years of searching for good fortunetellers has yet to produce results. The future is a great equalizer.
Rather than think about CDs, I suggest you start learning about how much risk you can tolerate. The average five-year jumbo CD is now yielding about 1.25 percent, according to www.bankrate.com.
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Written by Scott Barnes on November 10, 2011.
Are you a student looking to consolidate your debts? UK student loan debt consolidation can help. With the rising cost of a college education, many students are turning to debt consolidation to ease the burden of having to pay several bills a month and in some cases with high interest rates. Consolidating student loan debts into one manageable debt is an effective way for students to manage their debts in the UK.
Today it is much easier to manage student loan debts than before. UK students that are trying to balance studying and paying huge bills such as high interest credit cards, car payments, student loans and other expenses now have a way to consolidate their student loan debts into one simple monthly payment and ease their monthly financial burden. UK student loan debt consolidation programs are helping many students who are going through financial difficulties paying back their student loans.
If you are a student looking to consolidate your UK student loans into a single new loan, this is a good idea.
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Written by Adam Sullivan on November 10, 2011.
Centennial Bank primarily offers different savings options for individuals, whether it is CDs, IRAs or savings account. They do offer one savings account; however, it is variable meaning the rate on the account can change at any given time. Don’t let that scare you off though because it is currently a high rate of return.
With a low $500 minimum opening deposit and balance, you can earn 0.80% APY on the Variable Savings Account. The interest on the account is compounded daily and posted monthly. If your balance falls below $500, then you will not be able to earn any interest. Also, this account is allowed 4 withdrawals per month.
Terms & Conditions: Rates subject to change without notice. Rates effective as of 10/3/11.
Written by Joseph Perry on November 5, 2011.
Readers Question: I want to understand what happens when the exchange rate depreciates and appreciates please can you make me a brief summary based on exchange rates.
- Depreciation – fall in value of exchange rate – exchange rate becomes weaker (see also: definition of devaluation and depreciation)
- Appreciation – increase in value of exchange rate – exchange rate becomes stronger.
Example of Pound Sterling depreciating against the Dollar.
- £1 used to equal $2. Now £1 is only equal to $1.75
What does this Depreciation in the value of the Pound mean?
- Buying goods from America becomes more expensive. If a meal cost $10 it used to require £5 for a British tourist. But, now after the depreciation the $10 meal will cost effectively £6.67
- The depreciation in the pound may discourage British tourists to travel to the US.
- It makes US imports into the UK more expensive so it may reduce UK imports
- UK Exports will become relatively more competitive. It is cheap
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Written by Scott Barnes on November 4, 2011.
WASHINGTON –U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, today slammed Senate Democrats for offering a flawed $60 billion infrastructure spending bill (S. 1769) that would use permanent tax hikes for temporary, second-stimulus spending and undermine much-needed job growth during a speech on the Senate floor:
Mr. President, let us be clear about what the Democrats’ Rebuild American Jobs Act is and is not about.
It is about expanding infrastructure spending, financed by tax increases.
It is about setting up a brand new government bureaucracy, in the form of an infrastructure bank that will take years to get underway and will subject taxpayers, once again, to private-sector risk taking and to bailouts.
It is about following in the footsteps of the ongoing, costly, government sponsored enterprises — or GSEs — called Fannie and Freddie.
It is about increasing the federal footprint in the infrastructure arena.
It is about increasing taxes on those with incomes above $500,000, now creatively called millionaires, including incomes of many business owners who risk their own capital to create jobs. It is about further federal wage controls on construction projects which lead to inefficient use of taxpayer funds.
And it is about creating political talking points for the upcoming Presidential election.Now here is what the legislation is not about. It is not abo
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