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Archive for the ‘Finance’ Category

Negotiating credit card debt is considered to be one great way of taking care of all your debts. In this method, you find ways to contact your creditors and see if you can get lower monthly payments or avail of different payment terms. Yet, it must be noted that debt negotiation is not intended for everyone. You need to have the correct mindset as well as the financial resources in order to make it happen. So, if you are new to this process, learning how it works is essential in order to make it work. Basically, it is the process of negotiating on accounts that are past due so that you can have the chance to decrease the total amount that you owe as compared to your original balance.

Doing debt negotiation has multiple benefits and saving a lot of money is on top of the list. In many cases, people who have undergone negotiation have saved up to 50% out of their total debts. This can also happen to you if you will negotiate well with your creditors. In case that you need professional help, taking advantage of non profit debt relief agencies can help, but if you want more personalized assistance, going for paid services can definitely make a lot of difference. However, you must be prepared to present your financial picture so that you can obtain appropriate help. Click here to get a free debt negotiation quote.

What is Carpetbagging? No it has nothing to do with carpets and actually is a term used for investing in a Mutual Building Society in the UK with the aim of getting a financial payout at no cost and risk. More about this later.
The people who participate in Carpetbagging are called Carpetbaggers and this world has its origins in the American Civil War, as Southerners called the Northerners who moved south with the aim of making profits from the unsettled conditions in the South “Carpetbaggers”. The name gained prominence in the UK when the boss of the Woolwich Building Society said, “I have no qualms about disenfranchising carpetbaggers.” When the Woolwich Building Society floated on the London Stock market the average windfall for the Carpetbaggers was £2175!
So what does it entail? Banks are normally owned by shareholders but the UK also has a group of organisations called Building Societies whose origins can be traced back to 1775. In the 19th century there were 1,000s, but today there are 47 remaining who have an estimated 19% of the market in mortgages and savings accounts. Unlike a bank a Building Society is owned by its members and to become a member you either need a mortgage with them or a savings accounts conferring membership rights (normally a savings account with a minimum £100 in it).
As the building society is owned by the members should the building society agree to be taken over or float on the stock market then the monies they receive from these actions is owned by the members and hence a windfall is sometimes paid out. So for an investment of £100 in an instant access savings accounts not only do you have an account you are earning interest on, but also the potential to get a windfall and if you are opening an account in the hope of a windfall then you are carpetbagging!
The last windfall took place in 2008 when the Catholic Building Society was taken over by the Chelsea Building Society with a typical windfall for Catholic savers of between £225 and £250. Another windfall will be due in 2012/2013 for people who were members of the Barnsley Building Society before it merged with Yorkshire Building Society although currently the figure has not been announced.
Unfortunately since the financial crisis a number of building societies have merged or been taken over with no windfalls paid out to the members. But who knows what the future holds and as the turbulence in the financial sector subsides and financial organisations look to grow again windfalls might re-emerge and while you are waiting you are still getting interest on each £100 in a building society.

Have you ever made an afternoon trip to your trusty mailbox and discovered a fancy looking flyer advertising a particular penny stock? It is a tactic that has been used for decades, and it is still a tactic that is embraced by penny stock promoters across the United States and Canada.

Traders commonly refer to stocks that are being promoted through the mail as mailer promotions or pump and dumps. Don’t let the sales copy contained in the advertisement fool you. Most of these companies are simply trying to lure unsuspecting people into investing money that they will never get back. The only way you can potentially benefit from playing promoted stocks is by day trading them. This involves intense monitoring of both live charts and level two quoting systems.

Don’t just jump blindly into an advertised stock, scour the web for several hot penny stocks and then decide which one you want to trade. Like I mentioned above, however, treat this as a short term trade and not as an investment.