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1) Can you manage without having to borrow?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
In a perfect world, people would always be able to live within their means, and have some money set aside in case of emergencies. The reality tends to be different with many living hand-to-mouth from one month's end to the next.
Even the idea of being able to save brings a sad smile. There's just no slack. In such situations, the ability to borrow money gives people a buffer. Instead of money always being in short supply, you can budget without the same pressure. Except that, with the credi...
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2) What's the credit crunch all about?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
Turn on your TV. Open a newspaper. There's been only one story over the last months. Something called a credit crunch is coming. This is bad. Nobody should panic but the economy is in trouble. You're short of money, thinking about a payday loan online. Then come all the headlines. Wall Street high fliers suddenly bailed out, taken over or dropping into bankruptcy.
The Fed is running around trying to look as if it's in charge. Even the President comes on TV to push a plan to save everyone....
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3) The money is there. Should you borrow it?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
As if you had the choice! Well, let's take you through the arguments and you can make a better decision. There are two basic possibilities: Situation 1. Let's say you've been unlucky. Your car got in an accident or there are hospital bills. This type of expense can push even the best laid financial plans out the window. Now you're looking at a big hole. You tried to negotiate instalments for paying off the bill but the creditor is unsympathetic - wants the whole amount in one hit. If you do thi...
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4) A word to the wise on taking a loan
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
When you look around the TV stations and the newspapers, there's one story everywhere. It's this long-running story of the credit crunch, except now we're seeing Wall Street take a hit. Some of the biggest names are in deep trouble. The Fed is pumping money into the banking system. Well, never mind what's happening up there, what's happening to you? You've been working. It's not a glamorous job like these high fliers but, up to now, it's paid the bills.
But there's a problem. Perhaps you've...
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5) Industry is breeding cars for lower insurance premiums!
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
The world of technology is changing fast. When I was young, it was not uncommon for tradespeople to use a horse and cart for local deliveries around town. Now, we have trains that ride on a magnetic field, jet aircraft and hybrid cars. The idea of a hybrid is quite fascinating. As a gardner, to be able to take two different species and create something new with the best qualities of both. As a technologist, to be able to take a conventional internal combustion engine and combine it with electri...
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6) Women are victimized
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
According to the New York Times, there is a real difference in the premiums paid by men and women of the same age for the same health insurance terms. The differences can be many hundreds of dollars. Even in an economy that was booming, it would be difficult to justify this price discrimination. But as the US appears to be entering a more difficult time and some people are even using the "r" word, the victimization of women in this way shou...
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7) How many are uninsured?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
In 2007, before we were hit by the credit crunch, the wave of foreclosures and the loss of jobs, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 47m people have no health insurance. That's a rise of almost 5% as against the estimated number of uninsured made in 2005. So what does this actually mean? The results confirm that these people have no health insurance plan through their work (including the military) or union membership, and no access to federal or state programs including Medicare and Medicaid a...
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8) Health insurance from the employer's point of view
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
There has been a sad trend since the turn of this century. Health insurance costs have been rising so fast that even large sections of the middle class now find it a struggle, if not impossible, to pay the premiums demanded by the insurers for private plans. The fact is that, although in the last one or two years, there have been some increases in average take-home pay, these increases have not kept pace with inflation. People today are more poor than they were ten years ago. For a time, people...
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9) What happens when the uninsured go to the emergency room?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that an increasing number of people are now unable to afford medical insurance. Some 47 million people do not have medical insurance. When they begin to fall sick, there is nothing that can be done if money is short. When it comes to a choice between food on the table and treatment, most people decide to eat. They hope they will get better. When health does not improve, there is no improvement in the choice to be made. If treatment remains unaffordable, they have...
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10) How much is enough?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
It's a sad fact that auto insurance is a boring subject. The only reason we tolerate it is that all but three states in the union have passed laws requiring us to have it. Were it not for that, we would all just let it die. So the eternal question we ask each other when we have nothing better to do is, "How much is enough?" Every state with a compulsory system starts off with a statutory minimum. This is the amount of liability in...
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11) Rating the insurance companies
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
Has it occurred to you that it's not very fair when insurance companies start poking around your life. They want to know how well you drive your vehicle, what you have in your home worth protecting, how likely you are to fall sick and, most cheerfully, when you think you're going to die. There's no part of your life they don't investigate and build into their models for deciding how much to charge you as a premium in your latest policy. So you retaliate. Instead of blindly picking a company out...
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12) In praise of California
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
In November, 1988, the electorate in California approved Proposition 103 to prevent the massive increases in premiums that were affecting all consumers looking for insurance. After major litigation to decide whether the Proposition was constitutional, it was finally implemented in May 1989 and rapidly revolutionized the rates of insurance across the state which fell by an average of 45% between 1989 and 2001. It is estimated that up to 2006, Californian drivers alone saved $62 billion on their...
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13) About Ambien
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Health
The symptoms of insomnia can run the gamut or be as simple as not sleeping enough. There are many ways to find out if you suffer from a sleep disorder or if you have insomnia. Insomnia is a disorder that affects most people who are in their declining years but can affect anyone. Environmental issues, stress, poor diet, and so many other factors can all create underlying stress in your sleep pattern, making it very difficult to fall asleep, stay asleep, or have the much needed deep sleep for a s...
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14) Keeping medical scare stories in perspective
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Health
There are many stories on the internet (and elsewhere) about people who take ambien expecting a good night's sleep, and then wake up to discover that they have been eating peanut-butter sandwiches during the night -- personally, the only way I'd ever eat a peanut-butter sandwich is if I was asleep and then had no memory of it afterwards. Taste is personal. But back to the urban myths. It seems that people have been sleepwaking their way through routine tasks and putting themselves in danger by...
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15) Comparing policies saves you dollars
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
This last few months has seen all the prices of basic necessities rise. As jobs have come under pressure, the purchasing power of the average household has dropped. Nowhere has the family budget come under greater pressure than with health insurance. All too often, the premiums have been raised (again). This forces yet another tense discussion. Are families to gamble with the health of their children or can other savings be found?
Sad to say, this discussion is no longer restricted to low-in...
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16) Family health insurance policies
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
When you're young and in good health, you often live for the now. Some have the qualifications to find employment including health insurance in the compensation package, but most take what is available and let things drift until responsibilities come along. Then you start asking questions about what you want in the future. It starts with a partnership or marriage. It gets more urgent when children appear on the scene.
If you found a job with a health insurance package, you can usually add yo...
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17) Problems with tickets?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
The road to the lowest possible auto insurance premiums is full of potholes. You can be riding along smoothly one minute and find a small crater opening under your wheels the next. It often comes in the form of a traffic cop whose flashing lights in your rear view mirror attract your attention. This happy soul has noticed some infraction. Perhaps you ran a red light or were traveling a little too fast through town. Whatever the r...
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18) Is honesty the best policy?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Insurance
When life is going along well, there are rarely temptations. You have everything under control and there's no need to cut corners. But as the household budget comes under pressure, you have to keep the cost of essentials like auto insurance under control. No-one wants to risk driving out on the public roads without insurance. Cars are essential to most households. You don't want to be put in the situation of having to choose between food and insuring the car. Yet, if you have picked up a traffi...
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19) How many years in a mortgage?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
The first time you take a home loan, it can all be a little bewildering. Although you learn from your first experience, it can still be confusing the second or third time round. So, to help you find the best mortgage deal, let's have a quick look at one of the most important variables. This is the term of the loan. This gives you wiggle room to get the best deal. Loans are usually offered for terms of up to thirty years, i.e. you repay the capital plus interest on the reducing balance for the a...
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20) What should you know about interest only mortgages?
Author:
David Mayer
Category:
Finance
After finding out which term of years works best for you, then think about the type of mortgage. The choice is between an interest only mortgage and a repayment mortgage. In the first, you only pay the interest on the loan during the term of years. This may be at a fixed rate or, more usually, a variable rate to give the lender a guaranteed commercial return on the capital invested. Whenever time runs out, the whole sum of capital falls due as a lu...
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