Finding What is on Your Credit Report
A credit report is basically a file about you kept by lenders and banks. As annoying as it may be, it's still perfectly legal for them to gather all sorts of details about you. In turn, you have the right to check this file - and you should do so and inquire regularly about your credit report and ... more...

New Housing Starts Do Not Guarantee Aftermarket Sales
We have been studying a trend of new home buyers in the US in light of this latest housing boom. And how we should adjust our strategies to deal with it. Last year we saw 5.56 million sales of existing homes and we all know that the number of brand new homes was substantial to say the least. This ... more...

Learning a Foreign Language: Why Should you Learn Words You Never Use in Your Mother Tongue?
Imagine a child sitting in front of a desk, his head in his hands, and mumbling various lists of words over and over. Does this child remind you of your own experience? If yes, I bet that "list of words" does not sound appealing to you. You are almost ready to swear that they do not work. Before ... more...

Get Your Credit Score To Soar In The Twinkling of An Eye
Ever wonder how a creditor decides whether to grant you credit? For years, creditors have been using credit scoring systems to determine if you'd be a good risk for credit cards and auto loans. More recently, credit scoring has been used to help creditors evaluate your ability to repay home ... more...

Soul Band for a Party
Was the request six months ago, a sixtieth birthday party, the client said. It got me thinking. There is a whole untapped market out there for people who lived as teenagers and twenty somethings through the sixties and seventies. They are all coming up to this big sixtieth birthday date and they ... more...

Over Fifty and Overloaded With Debt?
In a recent article for AARP, Lucretia Marmon says older Americans are going deeper in debt!Did you know that 450,000 of them filed for bankruptcy in 2003? This makes older Americans the fastest growing age group in bankruptcy. It seems that a down-turn in economic times and todays easy credit ... more...

Unintended Consequences
Direct Answers - Column for the week of May 26, 2003My sister is celebrating her tenth anniversary this summer, and I'm concerned she is letting her relationship go. Her husband refuses to acknowledge any problems and doesn't believe in counseling.At the time my sister married, she was a ... more...

Debt Management Systems
What is a debt management system, and when do you need it? Like any kind of management system, debt help systems can be good or bad. We will take a look at what you can do to manage your debt better. One element is paying off debt, but thats not the only one. It is much more than paying off ... more...

Local Advertising for Affiliates
While the web was once a way for advertisers to promote national brands and sell regardless of geography, the move to localization has begun. In the past, local advertisers, by virtue of their market size, tended to focus primarily on local yellow pages and local or regional newspapers. Now, ... more...

Refinance Home Loan and Refinance Home Loans
Refinance home loan lenders are eager to lend money to any individual regardless of credit as long as the homeowner has a fair amount of equity in the home and the home itself is in a condition that can be resold. Refinance home loans are different than a second mortgage or line of credit in that ... more...

Credit Scoring: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You
You've probably heard the term credit scoring. You may have some idea that your credit score can have an effect on your life. For example, you may understand that when you apply for a mortgage, the mortgage company will check out your credit score.But did you know that the interest rate you can get ... more...