Credit Card Debt & the Unfairness of the Universal Default Clause
Lets look at a real world example: A woman purchased a new $4,000 large screen TV a few months ago based on the knowledge her monthly payment was going to be $175, and based on the 9% interest rate charged by her credit card company. For five months straight she made all her payments on time, but ... more...

Its 2005----Bulk Email is Dead
A typical day at the inboxToday, I received 374 emails total.A pretty light day considering some days I get more than 1,000.To clarify what they were35 were for business, 4 were personal in nature, 11 were from groups I asked to get information from like Neiman Marcus and Urban Outfitters, VH1, and ... more...

The 12 Most Pesticide-Ridden Fruits and Veggies
I will never forget the day my mom told me to wash strawberries. As a typical inquisitive 4 year old, I asked, 'Why?' Because fruit pickers pick their nose was her response. I then washed them - sometimes.Now as a 31 year old, I buy organic produce which must mean it is free from boogers and by all ... more...

Buy a Home With a Government Grant? Avoid this Scam
If you watch enough late night television, youll see advertisements that suggest that the Federal Government is giving all kinds of things away. Youll see ads for auctions that promise that you can buy a Ferrari for $500 or a home for $1000 through government liquidations or some such thing. ... more...

Rear View Mirror
Buying a stock or mutual fund is like a driver who is going down the road at high speed, but is using looking in the rearview mirror as a guide. He can see fine out the back, but has no idea what is ahead. Sound familiar?Your broker is going to help you with driving; I mean picking stocks and ... more...

Real Estate Investing 101 Understanding the Different Types of Lenders
The changes in financing options available for residential investment properties over the last 5 years are staggering. Lenders have relaxed the credit and income guidelines for qualification that formerly deterred many would-be investors from entering the real estate. In addition, the down ... more...

Is the Real Estate Bubble About to Burst?
How long can prices rise before no one can afford to buy? In a nutshell, that is the basic question that is niggling at the back of our collective subconscious when we talk about the real estate bubble.Real estate is appreciating at staggering rates - as much as 19% in some counties in Florida ... more...

Home Loans Lenders Continue to Offer High-Risk Loans
Home prices in the Untied States continue to soar, and the remarkable run of real estate as the must have investment continues. The median price of a new home, which only recently crossed the $200,000 barrier, is now $215,000. The high prices of homes havent deterred buyers; sales in June reached ... more...

Home Equity Increases $1 Trillion in Five Years Is the Market Peaking?
A new survey reveals that in the last five years, the equity in the California real estate market has increased by more than one trillion dollars. A trillion dollars is a large number to ponder, but put in concrete terms, it can be represented by a stack of one hundred dollar bills that is six ... more...

Knoxville Mortgage Companies
Eastern Tennessee is the home of the University of Tennessee in the city of Knoxville. This large state university is a main draw for local residents and has brought numerous people to the area who are interested in buying homes and settling down. Did you know that Knoxville has scores of lenders ... more...

The Truth About Shopping for Mortgage Rates
With so much lender advertising focusing just on rates, you may not be aware of the importance in choosing an experienced, reliable loan professional who can match you with the appropriate loan program. Good loan officers and mortgage brokers may quote todays rate when asked, but they will quickly ... more...

Mortgage Delinquency Facts and Fiction
Kenneth Harney, a highly respected columnist for the Washington Post, expressed surprise in his column recently because home buyers in high-cost parts of the country like California, Hawaii, Boston and Washington, D.C. are not leading the nation in mortgage delinquencies.Mr. Harney stated (in near ... more...