Last week the Federal Reserve Bank released new data showing that consumer debt grew in November 2011 by the swiftest rate since November 2001.
Although there's still a lot of uncertainty in the housing market, the drop in home prices has made home ownership very alluring. However, you may think you don't qualify for a mortgage. It might not be as bad as you think.
Due to the recession, households have been holding back on spending. A weak job market has made people afraid to spend; a weak housing market has made many people feel less wealthy and therefore reluctant to spend, and with the recent increase in gas prices consumers don't have the money to spend on other things. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling conducted a poll; 66% of respondents said they were suffering from "frugal fatigue." Retail therapy, here we come...
If you've declared bankrupcty, you now have a second chance to have a clean life... credit-wise, that is; don't blow it! You have to strategize so you can make the most of this "second chance." Here are five important steps to take:
Amazingly, consumer debt has decreased 8.6% since reaching it's peak in September, 2008. Converting that to dallars, that translates to over $1 trillion!
Just like the Federal Government, most states are running deficits. However, unlike the Federal Government, states can't print money to cover those deficits
This is disarming because we're no longer tops when it comes to education, which means other countries can surpass us with inventions and leave us in their dust.
It has now been nearly two straight years with unemployment at 9% and greater. One of the ancillary effects of this long recession and its high unemployment is a downward pressure on wages.
With the unemployment rate still hovering at 10%, crime will be on the rise. All the more reason we need to be aware of it. One in four Americans have had their identities stolen.
Yesterday I blogged about whether an under 30-year-old with student debt should buy a house. The alternative, besides living with your parents or in your car, is to rent.
The majority of economists are raising their growth projections for the US economy. How cool is that? But, it’s going to take a really strong economy to bring the unemployment rate down. There are approximately 100,000 + new workers joining the economy every month, so we need substantial growth to create those jobs plus jobs for the several million who lost theirs during the latest downturn.
Have you ever had a dream where you are walking in public and you realize you are wearing absolutely no clothes?
How does this relate to your emergency fund?
Some cycles are just hard to figure out when and where they start and when and where they end. So let’s look at the housing cycle. I’ve always said, if you follow housing, you follow the economy.
There is an economic term, “economies of scale,” which is usually applied to manufacturing. What it means is that it’s cheaper by the dozen; well, perhaps not by the dozen, but by purchasing in bulk, the unit price diminishes.