Business Finance - Real Estate Investment Property Mortgage Loan

Business Finance - Real Estate Investment Property Mortgage Loan
One of the most difficult business finance transitions
occurs when a residential real estate investor begins an
investment approach that includes commercial real estate
and business opportunity investing. It is important to
formulate a detailed commercial mortgage and business loan
strategy prior to buying a business.

There are approximately 25 critical differences between
residential real estate investing and commercial property
investing. Because more residential property investors are
exploring commercial real estate and business finance
opportunities, this business opportunity financing and
business loan report is designed to help educate new
commercial investors about key commercial mortgage and
commercial loan issues.

Rather than specifically focusing on issues that
differentiate business financing from residential financing
(which we have thoroughly analyzed in separate reports),
this report will offer a few key observations regarding
business finance elements that are often overlooked in new
business investment considerations. These factors include
credit card processing, business cash advance options and
working capital management.

Coordinating Credit Card Processing and Business Cash
Advance Programs -

Many business investments will involve the use of credit
card processing decisions. These business activities should
be analyzed simultaneously with business cash advance
programs for several reasons. If done properly, a business
should reduce their costs and improve their cash flow.

Reducing Credit Card Processing Costs in Business Investing
-

One of the biggest benefits of coordinating credit card
processing with a business cash advance program is the real
potential that overall costs can be reduced. This is due to
the fact that the most advanced merchant cash advance
services will be linked with the lowest cost credit card
processing providers. Many of the best credit card
processors will not be available for businesses other than
through a high-quality credit card financing arrangement.

Improve Cash Flow for Business Investments -

Credit card factoring strategies can produce a business
cash advance up to several hundred thousand dollars. For
most businesses, this level of financing is not routinely
available via other business finance programs. Many
commercial lenders have eliminated line of credit services,
so the use of credit card receivables to obtain a merchant
cash advance fills an important business financing void.

Business cash advance programs do come with some potential
problems and limitations. It also seems that many business
owners are confused by this kind of business finance
strategy, and in many cases new business owners rule out
the use of a merchant cash advance before they have
thoroughly analyzed the pros and cons. Even though credit
card financing is usually thought of as short-term business
financing, it can be effectively used on a longer-term
basis when done properly.

Working Capital Management Strategies -

Obtaining a working capital loan is usually more effective
when arranged in conjunction with buying a business.
However many lenders do not adequately address this issue
in the early business finance stages. This issue should be
discussed as early as possible so that business financing
options are clearly understood before finalizing efforts to
buy a business.

After acquiring a business, it is more likely that business
or personal collateral will be a necessity in getting
working capital financing. One major exception to this
common collateral requirement will be the use of a business
cash advance and credit card factoring as mentioned above.

Additional Key Investment Business Finance and Real Estate
Mortgage Issues -

As previously noted, commercial mortgage and commercial
loan requirements are very different from residential
financing requirements in the United States. Additional
business finance reports include a discussion of many other
significant financing factors. Separate report topics
include SBA loan refinancing, business opportunity
financing, stated income business loans and commercial
appraisals.

Several of these reports and articles are relevant to
factors addressed in this article and will serve as
effective business financing resources to provide
strategies and solutions for many other problematic
business loan circumstances as well. For example, some SBA
loan processes can include working capital as part of the
total initial financing. For those interested in learning
more about both potential advantages and problems
associated with coordinating credit card processing and
business cash advance services, there are several
additional resources which will facilitate a better
understanding of these complex business finance issues.

----------------------------------------------------
Stephen Bush and AEX Commercial Financing Group provide
business finance - SBA loan help and AEX Credit Card
Processing - Commercial Real Estate Investment Property
Financing Reports:
http://www.credit-card-processing-solutions.com

What exactly do you get in a free credit report ?

What exactly do you get in a free credit report ?
In this article we will discuss the misconception of free
credit reports. There are lots of advertisements out there
saying get your free credit report. But what exactly does a
free credit report come with? I have personally seen about
3 different types of credit reports being advertised out
there.

The first type of credit report is the credit report where
you only get a credit report from one of the bureaus. There
are 3 bureaus, and they are Equifax, Trans Union, and
Experian. Typically the offer includes a report only from
one of these bureaus. You might ask yourself how does this
help me, and the answer is it does not help very much. The
reason is since there are 3 bureaus, and they all report
somewhat different information; you might want to get a
credit report from all three bureaus. This is called a
tri-merge, or a 3-1 credit report. In other words you get
one report with all three bureaus and what they are
currently reporting about you in regards to loans
outstanding with your creditors.

The second type of credit report is the 3-1 credit report
with credit score. This is somewhat better; you get all
three bureaus reporting your information along with only
one of the agencies giving a score. Well you might ask
yourself again, what is the advantage and disadvantages of
this type of credit report? Since there are 3 bureaus
reporting your credit, it would only make sense to get all
3 scores since that is what most lenders look at. Mortgage
companies pull your 3-1 credit report with all three scores
and typically use the middle score for qualifying purposes.
If this is the industry standard in the qualifying process,
shouldn't you see the same report? I would have to say yes.

The third type of credit report is the 3-1 credit report
with all 3 scores. This is the best type of credit report,
because it is what lenders look at. Most people out there
getting a free copy of there credit reports are not really
sure what they are getting. Annualcreditreport.com
advertises that you are entitled to a free copy of your
credit report once a year, but fail to mention you don't
get your scores. It is in your best interest to get your
credit report with all 3 bureaus and all 3 scores,
especially since this is what most creditors look at in the
determining process for lending you money.

Here is the break down for credit scores and how they are
classified for mortgage:

• 780-850 - Low Risk
• 740-780 - Medium -Low Risk
• 690-740- Medium Risk
• 620-690- Medium High Risk
• 620 and Below - High Risk or "Sub-Prime."

With all of this being said, it obviously makes more sense
to get your 3-1 credit report with all 3 credit scores.
Especially since that is what creditors are looking at.
When pulling a consumer credit report it does not affect
your credit scores.

----------------------------------------------------
In this article we discuss the misconceptions of free
credit report offers, and what you really get. In order to
get your credit report with all 3 bureaus and all 3 scores,
go to http://www.my720fico.com

How To Establish Credit With Credit Cards, If You're Not Paris Hilton

How To Establish Credit With Credit Cards, If You're Not Paris Hilton
Okay, so you just turned 18, and you want to buy a new car.
You go down to the new car dealership, pick out that shiny
new vehicle, fill out an application for credit, and they
tell you, "I'm sorry, but you have no credit history".
Unless you are Paris Hilton, and your father gives you
about 20 million dollars on your 18th birthday, then you're
going to have to establish your credit the hard way: on
your own. So how do you establish credit when you have no
credit? The answer: credit cards. Credit cards are the
easiest and simplest way, for anyone to establish credit if
they have none.

What you need to do first, is start applying for gas credit
cards. It is extremely easy to get approved for a gas
credit card. Gas credit cards usually have very low credit
limits, and this is why it is easier to get approved for
one of them. Once you get approved for one or two of these
gas credit cards, then use them, and pay off the balances
on time for several months. This will start the process of
establishing good credit.

Next, apply for a department store credit card, these are
the second easiest credit cards that give approval to those
individuals with little or no credit. Once again, charge
items, and then pay the balances on time for several
months. If you don't charge items on the department store
credit cards, then you're not really establishing a good
payment history. So don't be afraid to use them. Just be
sure you don't get crazy and come home with an $8,000.00
flat screen television set, on your first purchase.
Proceed slowly and with caution. Remember Rome wasn't
built in a day, and neither is establishing good credit.
One of the most common mistakes that young adults make, is
to charge up too much credit debt, too fast. Don't get
stuck into a credit card quagmire. Only charge what you
can afford..

Now that you have established a little credit, it is now
time to go for the major credit card. You can start by
applying for one major credit card. This is only
recommended if you have a steady income, and if you have
been charging and paying off your department store and gas
credit cards on time. Don't apply for multiple major
credit cards, because this makes you look desperate.
Applying for multiple credit cards at one time, is a major
red flag to the major credit card companies, which tend to
view multiple credit card inquiries on your credit report,
as a sign that you are in financial trouble. Try to go for
a low credit card limit amount. Some credit card companies
offer no-limit credit cards for an annual fee, but you're
not ready for those cards yet, as they require a
substantial income and an excellent credit history. If at
all possible, try to get a major credit card with very low
interest and no annual fee. Charge items on this credit
card and then pay the balance off, on time, for several
months. Again, remember no $8,000.00 flat screen
televisions yet.

After say a year or so, of paying the gas, credit, and
major credit cards off on time, you will probably be
flooded with pre-approved credit card applications in your
mail box. Just remember never to get over-extended. Apply
for one credit card every six months to one year. It is
crucial to keep in mind that your credit follows you
wherever you go, so if you establish good credit, then you
will be opening doors to great possibilities, however, bad
credit, will close doors to great possibilities.

Once you have established good credit, then always remember
to pay your payments on time. Hopefully, one day in the
future, you will be able to drive to the store in your
brand new car, just like Paris Hilton, and buy that
$8000.00 flat screen television set, with no help from your
rich father, and all thanks to credit cards.

----------------------------------------------------
Bryan Pringle, Ph.D., has written many articles on the
credit industry, and is the webmaster of websites offering
news and information regarding credit cards. For more
information, please visit:
http://www.apply-forcreditcards-online.com

Credit Score Mythology

Credit Score Mythology
There is so much information out there on improving your
credit score that it is hard to know what really works.
Because most people never take a class or fully understand
the credit system, a host of myths and misinformation has
developed regarding the subject. Some of these misnomers
may seem logical or possible, but really have no grounds
for proof. Sadly, much of this information is coming
directly from sources that should know what they are
talking about, such as bank representatives or mortgage
lenders. For this reason, it is important to be aware of
the basic credit score myths to keep from wasting your time
or even hurting your credit score.

Perhaps the most common piece of bad information that
people receive concerns their current accounts. If a broker
or other individual claims that closing accounts will
improve a credit score, they are completely flawed in their
logic. Yes, having too many open accounts will reflect
negatively on a credit score, but closing existing accounts
is another matter. Once the accounts have been opened, the
damage is done, and it is best to keep them open. Shutting
accounts can actually hurt your credit score. The amount of
credit available to an individual is one factor affecting
credit scores. When accounts are closed, the amount of
available credit shrinks, making account balances seem
larger by comparison. Paying down debt is an excellent
idea, but in the process, leave opened accounts open.

Many people believe that checking your FICO score can
actually hurt your credit. This is another common confusion
due to the fact that certain inquiries can hurt your credit
while others do not. Applying for new credit will often
hurt your score, but ordering a copy of your credit report
will not. Mass pre-approval inquiries also go unpunished.
When a credit score reduction is caused by an inquiry of
some kind, it will only change the score by 5 points or
less, so even in this event, this is not a huge factor in
your score.

Your ability to qualify for certain loans may be impacted
by the use of credit counseling, however, many people think
that credit counseling will scar your credit score in the
same way as bankruptcy. This is simply not the case. The
most current FICO formula actually ignores credit
counseling all together. This was a change that occurred
due to a research study conducted three years ago that
supports the fact that people using credit counseling did
not default on their debts any more than other people.
However, take note that using credit counseling might
impact your ability to qualify for certain loans.
Sometimes, counseling agencies make late payments to your
creditors or settle for lesser amounts, and these things
will show up on your score, but the use of credit
counseling in general will not negatively change your
credit score.

These myths are some of the most widely accepted misnomers
about the credit industry. Understanding their falsehood
will help you to manage your credit more knowledgably or
seek the right kind of help to repair your credit. If a
broker, counselor, lender, or agent tries to feed you one
of these myths, you might seriously consider how
knowledgeable they really are about everything else
involving your credit.

----------------------------------------------------
In todays society, it is important to know your credit
scores, and what is being reported on your credit report.
Go the nations leading website for free credit reports and
credit scores.http://www.my720fico.com

Real Estate Investors You Need To Know Your Neighborhoods

Real Estate Investors You Need To Know Your Neighborhoods
It Is True What They Say: Location, Location, Location! It
is such a trite old statement; But there is a reason why
sayings get old and trite. They are true!

As a new real estate investor beginning your investment
career you will have dozens of decisions to make and we
will be there to help you make the right ones and, while it
might cost money, it might cost time; you can correct most
of your missteps.

There is nothing in real estate as permanent as location.

So one of your first steps in your new career as a Real
Estate Investor is to learn everything you can about the
area or areas where you hope to invest.

If your initial goal is to "buy an investment property in
Cleveland" you have already bitten off more than you can
chew. Right now there are 16,853 homes for sale in
Cleveland with prices ranging from $1,500 to over $3
million.

Every Real Estate Investor must narrow his/her focus.

How much do you really know about Cleveland? Whatever it
is, it isn't enough. You might have lived on the shores of
Lake Erie your entire life, but how familiar are you with
the 99.9 percent of the city where you don't live?

You need a plan. Here's a small sample of what this might
entail.

1. Narrow your search to a few
2. Keep your eyes and ears open for any and all news about
your target location(s)
3. Take a Grand Tour
4. Record Your Findings

Narrow Your Search to a Few Pick three areas that strike
you as possibilities even if you don't have a real reason.
Perhaps one is a neighborhood that you find attractive;
another where a friend lives happily. Maybe the name sounds
romantic or stately or it is convenient to your own home or
office. This is not a final decision; a neighborhood you
used to love in childhood may have deteriorated badly in
the last few years or become so posh you can't possibly
afford it. Now you either have two neighborhoods left to
research or room to add another to your list.

Keep Your Eyes and Ears Open
This can be fun. Talk to everyone you know about your
neighborhood choices. Strike up conversations at work, at
PTA meetings, Home Depot, cocktail parties. Everyone loves
to give advice so ask for some: "I'm thinking about buying
a house in Cherrydale Village. Do you know anything about
that area?"

Take a Grand Tour
Even before you narrow your focus to a few neighborhoods
get in your car and meander through every area in your town
that seems even vaguely interesting. Once your two or three
target neighborhoods are identified, make it a point to
drive through each at different times of the day and night.

Record Your Findings
This needn't be anything fancy; it can be a few notes on a
yellow legal pad or an Excel spreadsheet, but unless you
memorialize what you have learned it will soon turn to mush
in your head. A data base will help to inform your property
decisions not only for your first house but for the 51st if
you keep it current.

This is your reference so put into it whatever information
will be most helpful to you. However, here is a condensed
outline to get you started.

• Neighborhood name
• Approximate boundaries or list of street names;
• Age of most buildings
• Number of houses for sale and the price range
• School info
• Amenities
• Access to shopping, schools, churches, parks.
• Public transportation,
• Noise levels
• Traffic levels
• Negative info (i.e. pending negative development,
crime.)
• Positive info (neighborhood ambience, increasing
investor interest.)

To keep it simple, rank those items that can not be
explained with a yes or a no on a five or a ten point scale.

----------------------------------------------------
Chris Parks is a Real Estate Investor who has been involved
in Real Estate in one capacity or another since the mid
1980s. As a member of a small group of Real Estate
Investors & Entrepreneurs, and always having the knack for
explaining Real Estate Basics in an easy to understand
manner, Chris created REI for Newbies in order to teach &
assist new Real Estate Investors in a step-by-step,
easy-to-understand manner. http://www.REIforNewbies.com

Things You Should Know About Home Mortgage Loan

Things You Should Know About Home Mortgage Loan
The term mortgage alone means the mortgage loan. Therefore,
home mortgage is the loan secured by the real property by
the use of the mortgage that is a legal instrument. The
necessity for mortgage arrives when the owner, seeks loan
against collateral that is security on investment.

How the Home Mortgage Loan works?

The mortgage loans are generally long-term loans and are
reimbursed in periodic payments, say for tenure of 30 to 40
years. The money is calculated according to the time value
of the money formulae. Over this period, the original loan
will be paid down through amortization. However, mortgage
loan involves some kind of risk. In case, the loan is not
repaid, then the lender has the power to foreclose or
recoup a part or all of the original cash and also the
financial and interest rate risk, under all circumstances.

Amortized loans are of two basic types - the fixed rate
mortgage (FRM) and the adjustable rate mortgage (ARM).

(1) Fixed Rate Mortgage - The periodic payment for the PRM
remains the same for the life of the loan. This means that
during the tenure of the fixed rate mortgage loan, the
principal and the interest rate should not change at all.
However, the ancillary cost, such as the insurance and the
property taxes can change with the course of time.

(2) Adjustable Rate Mortgage - In case of such type of
mortgage, the interest rate will remain fixed for a period
of time, but after that fixed period of time the rate will
automatically adjust up or down according to the market
index. The change of rate can take place monthly or
annually.

The Steps that Enable You To Find the Best Home Mortgage
Loan

First Step:

The home mortgage loans are of two types - the fixed rate
mortgage (FRM) or the adjustable rate mortgage (ARM). As
already hinted, the FRM interest and principal will remain
the same but, for ARM this can change. Hence, consider the
pros and cons of the both and then you can decide which
loan will be the best option for you.

Second Step:

Once you decide the home loan option, find the best lender.
For the same, browse the Internet and find the apt lender.
Remember, that lenders are many and therefore you have to
choose the one, who charges an affordable fee along with
the best interest rate.

Third Step:

After you have garnered information about a bunch of
lenders, it is important for you to compare the prices of
those lenders and make list of them according to your
priorities. Lastly, try to get approved by the lender.

Fourth Step:

Prior to sealing your signature on any loan paper, it is
important for you to check whether the company has a good
reputation in the home mortgage loan community. In
addition, check if the company from whom you are
contemplating to borrow money is authentic and for the same
you can log on to the Internet and make your search easier.

How to get good Loan, despite having a bad credit history

In case, you have a bad credit history and finding it
difficult to close a deal with the lender, then make sure
that your credit report excludes any information, which may
go against you. Hence, it is more advisable to create a
good credit history, so that you can have good home
mortgage loan from the best lender.

----------------------------------------------------
Debbie Groves is the webmaster of The Home Mortgage People
Inc. which is a premier resource for home mortgage
information. For more information, please visit:
http://www.thehomemortgagepeople.com

How To Obtain A Credit Card With Bad Credit

How To Obtain A Credit Card With Bad Credit
So you have bad credit. Maybe you’ve defaulted on
loans, defaulted on credit cards, or you might have
judgements against you or your property. Let’s say
you’ve defaulted on every debt that you have? Can
you still get an unsecured credit card? Yes, you can! Let
me tell you how.

There used to be a time, that once you’ve filed for
bankruptcy, or defaulted on a credit card, that you were
blacklisted from ever owning an unsecured credit card
again. Nowadays however, there is a plethora of credit
card companies that offer unsecured credit cards to
individuals with bad credit, or individuals who have filed
for bankruptcy.

Many credit card companies that offer unsecured credit
cards to individuals with bad credit, usually start out by
initially offering applicants higher annual fees and lower
credit card limits. Just about every major credit card
company offers an unsecured credit card for individuals
with bad credit. If you pay the credit card payments on
time for several months or years, then the credit card
limits are usually raised periodically. As long as you
keep paying the payments on time, the credit card limits
are raised.

Some credit card companies buy up unpaid, or defaulted on,
credit card debt. This debt is also known as a
“non-performing” loan in the banking industry.
These credit card companies will then go back to the
original credit card holder, who defaulted, and offer them
an opportunity to repay the old credit card debt. Usually,
these credit card companies will offer the debtor an
incentive for repaying the debt. This incentive is in the
form of issuing the debtor a new unsecured credit card.
This new credit card will have a balance with the limit of
the old debt.

The debtor will have an opportunity to repay the old debt,
for little or no interest, and will accumulate a new active
credit limit for every periodic amount that is paid on the
old debt. For example: for every $100.00, that is paid on
the old debt, the debtor will receive a $25.00 credit limit
increase on the new unsecured credit card. The terms of
repayment are usually very strict, however, it is an
excellent way to redeem one’s credit. In this way,
an individual will erase an old debt in which they
defaulted on, and establish a new line of credit.

Another way to obtain a credit card when you have bad
credit, is to apply for a secured credit card. A secured
credit card is a credit card that you actually pay the
amount that you wish to charge in advance. The credit card
limit is dependent on how much money the card holder
actually pays into the account. These cards usually have
an annual or monthly maintenance fee. Although this
doesn’t sound very beneficial at first, the payments,
if made on time periodically, actually do establish a
history of responsibility, and believe it or not, establish
good credit, over long periods of time, if the credit card
company reports to the credit bureau.

Applying for unsecured credit cards is an excellent way for
individuals with bad credit to purchase items through the
normal credit card billing systems found at retail stores
and on the internet. These credit cards can also be used
at ATM’s and at cash advance terminals. The best
attribute about unsecured credit cards, is that it is
almost impossible to be turned down, because your bad
credit history is irrelevant.

The truth is, that if you have bad credit, it doesn’t
mean that you can’t obtain a major credit card.

----------------------------------------------------
Bryan Pringle, Ph.D., has written many articles on the
credit industry, and is the webmaster of websites offering
news and information regarding credit cards. For more
information, please visit:
http://www.apply-forcreditcards-online.com

Lesson In The “Stagnant” Scenario vs. The “Down”

Lesson In The “Stagnant” Scenario vs. The “Down”
The “stagnant” scenario

When we apply the covered call strategy to the stagnant
stock scenario, we take a negative return scenario and turn
it into a positive scenario. Remember, when we sell an
option, we receive a premium for doing so.

When the stock does not move during the option’s
life, the extrinsic value of the option goes to zero. The
amount of money paid for the option goes to the seller.
We’ll take a look at how this sets up.

Let’s go back to our previous example with the stock
trading at exactly $9.50. We sell the front month,
at-the-money call, which would be the 10 strike call. We
sell the front month 10 strike calls at $.50. As time goes
by, there is less chance for the option to become
“in-the-money”. As this happens, the extrinsic
value lessens and finally, after Friday expiration, the
option is worthless.

The stock finishes at $10.00 and you have received no
capital appreciation but you have received the full $.50 of
extrinsic value from the option sale. If the studies are
correct and selling the premium works 80% of the time, then
you will collect approximately $4.00 per contract sold over
the course of the year.

As the examples demonstrate, writing covered calls against
a stagnant stock can provide you with an acceptable return
instead of frustration, wasted time and capital. The
“down” scenario

In the final scenario, where your stock purchase is headed
down into negative territory, the covered call strategy can
help minimize your losses. Although picking losers and
incurring losses is inescapable, it can be minimized and
controlled. Let’s take a look at how the buy-write
can help us do that.

For example, let’s say you bought a stock for $9.50
and at the end of the month the stock had traded down to
$8.50, you would have a $1.00 loss on our investment.

However, if you had sold the 10 strike calls for $.50, you
would only have a $.50 loss. You would have a $1.00 capital
loss in the stock, but a $.50 option gain from selling the
option, which would expire worthless.

If you were going to buy the stock anyway and incur a
possible loss, it is better to take a $.50 loss than a
$1.00 loss. In this down scenario, the option premium
received helped to offset the capital loss.

If the stock is down more than the amount you received for
selling the call, then the option premium serves as an
offset to the loss of the stock.

However, you can still make money in the “down
scenario” using the covered strategy if the stock is
only down a small amount. There is a scenario in the
buy-write strategy where you can profit from owning a stock
that is lower than where you bought it.

Going back to the previous example, you bought a stock for
$9.50 and you sold the front month 10 strike calls for
$.50. At expiration, the stock finishes down $.20 at $9.30
You would have incurred a $.20 loss on your stock.

However, with the stock at $9.30, the 10 strike call that
you sold for $.50 is now worthless. So, you have a $.20
loss on the stock and a $.50 gain from the option premium
sold. This leaves you with a gain of $.30 on a stock that
is down $.20 since the time you purchased it.

To recap: in our third scenario, the “down
scenario,” your loss will be offset by the option
premium you received so your loss will not be as severe.
You still may incur a loss, but it will be minimized, and
minimizing losses is a key to successful investing.

----------------------------------------------------
Brett Fogle is the president of Options University. Brett
and his veteran traders teach safe and effective options
trading strategies. Free strategies can be found at
http://www.optionsuniversity.com/blog

Real Estate Investing For Newbies - Intro To Note Brokering

Real Estate Investing For Newbies - Intro To Note Brokering
The concept of note brokering, or converting a stream of
payments, secured by a mortgage, to up-front cash can be
done with discounted notes.

The main reason why an owner of a property will sell with
owner financing is to earn more money on their money. The
most common reason is when a buyer can not qualify for
traditional financing. The benefit to the seller is that
they can often get a higher rate of return on his/her money.

Another option is that a seller can have a buyer qualify
for a traditional first mortgage on part of the sales
amount, and then offer to take back a second mortgage to
cover the balance. This often lets the seller get a higher
price for his property, while letting the buyer still
qualify for a mortgage.

If an owner sells a property with owner financing the owner
is basically considered the mortgage company. But what
happens if the seller who is holding a note and collecting
monthly payments from his buyer decides that he/she wants
to now use the money for something else, some other
investment or financial need, or simply decides that
collecting payments is not all that fun? Often times they
want to sell the note.

Some note-owners have no idea that they can get cash for
their note (discounted of course) or they do not know where
to start. As a note broker your job is to introduce note
buyers and note sellers and collect a fee for your service.

Popular ways to find those holding mortgages is to

1) Run a classified ad (in the Real Estate Services section
of your newspaper) looking for note holders or

2) Direct mail or

3) The World Wide Web.

Use the public records of recorded mortgages to find those
who are carrying a note. Since all mortgages and trust
deeds are filed in the county clerk's office this
information is available to the public. Next, where do you
find buyers for these notes? The same way actually; use
ads, direct mail, and the web.

Lastly, the internet has made research in general and this
whole process even easier now than ever before. You can
simply type note holder or note buyer or note broker into
your favorite search engine. Look through the results, read
and find out how each of their programs work. You can find
buyers, find sellers and of course make sure you know how
you (as the note broker) will get paid when you broker a
successful deal.

----------------------------------------------------
Chris Parks is a Real Estate Investor who has been involved
in Real Estate in one capacity or another since the mid
1980s. As a member of a small group of Real Estate
Investors & Entrepreneurs, and always having the knack for
explaining Real Estate Basics in an easy to understand
manner, Chris created REI for Newbies in order to teach &
assist new Real Estate Investors in a step-by-step,
easy-to-understand manner. http://www.REIforNewbies.com

Fixing Credit Report Errors.

Fixing Credit Report Errors.
After taking the first step of obtaining a free credit
score report, the next most common step to improving your
credit score is to correct any errors that might be
present. Strangely enough, errors do occur, and it is well
worth taking the time to dispel such inconsistencies. You
must carefully scrutinize the report in order to correct
things like account numbers, names, wrong information, as
well as items that are out of date. The last error type is
the most common mistake and when corrected can have an
important impact on your score.

There are guidelines that regulate how long certain kind of
information can be recorded in your credit score. For
example, most undesirable information that is over seven
years old may be removed. This includes lawsuits,
judgments, paid tax liens, accounts dispatched for
collection, records of criminal activity (other than
convictions), late payments, and even child support and
many other pieces of possibly adverse information. This is
great news for those that have blemishes on their credit
report from years ago. These things will not show up
forever. Even insolvencies that are older than ten years
can be dismissed from your score. Getting rid of this
outdated undesirable information can have an immediate
impact on your score, especially depending on the severity
of the problem.

It may seem silly, but it is just as important to check
things like your Social Security number, name, address,
phone number, and information concerning your occupation.
These mistakes might be outdated or simply entered
incorrectly. These errors actually do occur. In the same
way, errors also occur concerning your involvement with
certain accounts. It is possible that suits or credit
accounts that do not belong to you show up on your credit
report. This is also true of accounts that have been paid
in full. Sometimes these accounts may not have been updated
and still show an outstanding balance.

By filling out a request for reinvestigation form or
writing a letter, you can correct these errors that are
detrimental to your overall credit score. You should, as
carefully as possible, reference every inaccurate or
outdated piece of data that appears on your report as well
as describe why that information is incorrect. The
reporting agency will then investigate those items and
contact you within 30 days to notify you of any changes.
This process may also be expedited if you are trying to
qualify for a mortgage or car loan. This is known as a
rapid rescore.

Once you have rid your free credit score report of any
incorrect information, you can then begin to add positive
information. This might be through a new loan, a secured
credit card or simply making responsible payments on the
accounts you already have. By double-checking your credit
report for errors you might save yourself a great deal of
time in the task of recreating your credit merit.

----------------------------------------------------
It is very important to know what is on your Credit Report,
because there could be errors on it. In order to know, you
must pull a current copy of your Credit Report. Go to
http://www.my720fico.com to obtain a current copy.

Credit Report

Credit Report
What is in a credit report? A credit report is a snapshot
of your current obligations to creditors. These creditors
include credit card companies, mortgage companies, banks,
and retail stores. Lenders are permitted by law to check
your credit report and review it in order to determine
whether or not to grant credit to you. In order to build a
credit report all you have to do is establish credit in the
form of a bank loan, credit card account, car loan,
mortgage, or student loan. Information on your credit
report comes directly from your history with accounts you
currently have outstanding loans with. Whether you pay your
obligations on time or not, lenders will report that
information to the credit bureaus. There are four
categories.

1. Your personal information: Your credit report identifies
you will the following information.

• Your name
• Social Security number
• Current address • Previous address
• Birth date
• Current employer and previous employers
• Phone number

2. Your credit history: Your credit history will show your
payment history with current lenders such as:

• Credit Card companies
• Mortgage companies
• Retail stores
• Finance companies

3. Inquiries: This is where lenders are finance companies
have requested your credit report. The rule of thumb is
“the less inquiries the better.”

4. Public Records: Your credit report lists any obligations
that may affect your credit including the following:

• Judgments
• Tax Liens
• Bankruptcies

Credit Reports are now available to any organization that
is trying to grant you credit, or a company considering
hiring you. Your personal credit report is so important
during this day and age that you need to have a current
copy to see what they are seeing. Even landlords are
pulling credit in order to grant you permission to rent
from them. With all this in mind, it is highly recommended
that you have recent copy of your credit report, so that
you are aware whats being reported in regards to your
personal credit history. Most of the companies that provide
credit reports, dont understand credit, they just sell you
a credit report.There are also websites that offer a credit
report for Free but fail to mention that you will not get a
free credit score. Make sure when you obtain a copy of your
credit report it comes with all 3 reports and score. It
makes no sense to get copy of your credit report without
your scores since creditors look heavily at your credit
scores. Remember "your Credit is your Life."

----------------------------------------------------
http://www.my720fico.com is the leading resource on the web
for credit reports and credit scores. We should know since
we are lenders.

The Leaseback Scheme

The Leaseback Scheme
This scheme can be a great way to buy new build or newly
refurbished property if getting a fixed rate of return on
your investment is a high priority and you don't mind
restrictions on the amount of time you can use it.
Essentially what you are doing when you enter this type of
contract is buying a freehold property but granting its
lease to a holiday company for a period of between 9 and 11
years where the rental return is fixed and guaranteed
regardless of whether it is rented out or not. They are
hence normally located in popular holiday resorts. It is
possible to get a higher return from renting the property
during the summer months yourself but this of course brings
with it a risk and hassle factor.

Refunded VAT: One of the great bonuses of this scheme is
that the purchaser gets a full refund of the TVA (VAT) of
19.6% if it is a new build property which is either
refunded 6-9 months after the purchase or paid and
reclaimed by the developer in which case the purchaser
never has to pay it. At the end of the initial lease period
the holiday company usually reserves the right to lease it
again until the 20th year after its construction but this
is very rarely insisted upon if the client is not in
agreement. If you choose not to lease your apartment out
again or sell it then you will have to pay a proportion of
the TVA according to how many years are left outstanding
from the first 20 years. For example, if the property has
been under lease contract for 11 years and there are
therefore 9 years remaining, then the amount of TVA that
must be paid back to the French government is 9/20ths of
the TVA. After 20 years TVA is no longer payable. Remember,
if you sell the property during its lease contract then it
must be sold with the contract intact to a likeminded
individual who is prepared to see the contract through.

Guaranteed return on investment: The guaranteed investment
return will typically be around the 5% mark net of all
costs tax-free as you benefit from non-professional lessor
of furnished property status (LMNP). This in effect means
that you will receive as much interest as you would in a
high yielding savings account as well as the opportunity to
gain from capital appreciation of the property.

Personal Use: Leasebacks often allow the owner the option
to occupy the property for a number of weeks a year in
return for slightly lower investment yields. If you choose
not to use the weeks then you will usually get a higher
annual yield.

The management company: An experienced management company
will take care of the entire maintenance of the apartment
or villa, usually with hotel services available such as
reception, house linen, well-kept gardens, swimming pools
and 24hr security.

Furnishing: All furnishing, decoration and electrical
appliances are supplied and taken care of by the management
company.

Accounting impacts during the loan's term:

-Deductibility of the loan interest
- Deductibility of miscellaneous expenses (property taxes)
- Amortisation deductibility; 3.3% per year for 30 years,
however they are deferred and not imputable in regard to
the business income.

After the loan's term the deferred amortisation can be
imputed and set against the received net rents.

Notary Fees and sales process: The sales process follows
the same routine as for new build properties with the same
corresponding notary fees: 3% on new builds and for
refurbished leaseback properties you will have to pay the
usual 7-8% notary fees on the property before refurbishment
working out at between 4% and 6% of the value of the
purchase price.

Better than Timeshare: Unlike time share schemes the owner
actually sees a return on his/her investment through annual
rental yields and also appreciation in the value of the
property which can be substantial- so it is not money down
the drain. The bonus though with these schemes is that like
time share the property will be well maintained by the
holiday company with no responsibility for changing of
linen and cleaning- you simply turn up during your chosen
weeks and enjoy it!

----------------------------------------------------
Written by Nick Dowlatshahi Managing Director of Leapfrog
Properties who are French Property agents that specialise
in Property for sale in France.
http://www.leapfrog-properties.com

The Importance of a Solid Forex Trading System

The Importance of a Solid Forex Trading System
Said to be one of the largest exchange markets, the Forex
market is gaining immense popularity. The possibility of
earning large profits adds to the appeal. Although trading
in this market is not easy, it can be, provided you find a
proven and profitable Forex trading system.

Even a planned investment can often take a wrong turn. The
investor has a bad day even after planning his actions.
Nevertheless, this is of little concern to the Forex
trader. Every trader in the Forex market knows that to keep
the losses to a minimum the trader will have to follow
their forex trading strategy and use proper money
management. In this way, he will learn to survive the
volatile investment market and make profitable trades in
the long term.

The Forex market allows traders to conduct their
transactions in a rather emotionless manner. This is
because the pre-determined guidelines that form a forex
trading system can make it easier for traders. Executing
actions is now easy as there are fixed price levels of
initial stop loss and trailing loss. Apart from this, there
already exists a computed price profit, which is projected
in the trader’s interests. This computation allows
the trader to know what his level of loss or profit is and
even the risk to reward ratio before he even begins to
trade for the day.

Using the proper forex trading system, the trader plans his
trade and makes a profit with the right moves. But on the
other hand, if the trader makes a wrong move and is more
likely to make a loss than a profit, the Forex trading
system will show the trader that he is making a wrong move.
In this way the trader is able to move out of the situation
quickly and the huge losses he would have otherwise
incurred is no more a worry. Trading in this way protect
the trader from large losses and helps lock in higher
profits for winning trades.

There are many types of forex traders from position traders
to swing traders to day traders. Forex traders who buy and
sell their currencies or open and close their markets on
the very same day are considered day traders. There are
many traders who believe that the day trading system is not
worthwhile and do not give it much importance, but with the
right forex trading strategy, day trading can be very
profitable. When researching a forex trading strategy, what
you need to do is review it by finding out the reactions of
other Forex traders. You can ask any existing Forex traders
about their trading experience and how they like their
trading system and if they consider it to be a profitable
one. Trading forums are another way of receiving reviews
about Forex trading systems. As there are a number of
forums, you will have no difficulty in getting the
information you require. However, many professionals feel
that day trading is quite profitable though it is not the
easiest way to trade. If this wasn’t a profitable
method of investing then how does one explain the large
number of day traders who earn their income solely from
this source? Therefore, if you wish to be part of any
system that relates to day trading then it is necessary
that you have sufficient knowledge about many Forex trading
systems and strategies.

Many sites let you in on the Do’s and Don’ts of
Forex trading. There are no secrets but there are things
you do need to be aware of. These sites provide you
information on Forex trading strategies, forex trading
techniques and all other information that you may be in
need of. You can also find a number of helpful forex
trading tools, information and techniques are made
available to make Forex trading easier for the trader.

----------------------------------------------------
Andrew Daigle is the owner, creator and author of many
successful websites including ForexBoost at
http://www.ForexBoost.com and
http://forexboost1.blogspot.com , which are Free Forex
Training Resources for the Novice and Advanced Forex trader.

10 Proven Online Marketing Ways To Explode Your Online Profits

10 Proven Online Marketing Ways To Explode Your Online Profits
Online marketing can waste your time or make you incredible
wealthy. If you really want to become wealthy with your
online marketing, practice some of these proven suggestions
to increase your income rapidly.

1. Cordially write a "P.S." at the end of your ad copy. A
"P.S." should emphasize the main benefit of what you are
selling. Or highlight a valuable bonus you are including.

2. Publish a free e-book and give it away as an incentive
for customers to subscribe to your newsletter. This will
increase your list, your e-zine if you have one, and your
income.

3. Create multiple stream of income with your online
business. You can sell your own products, join affiliate
programs, or advertising space.

4. Be polite and give your customers honest compliments in
your ad copy. This will help to build a relationship, put
your customers in a relaxing mood and be easier for you to
sell something or how I like to say, solve your customers
problems.

5. Only spend time creating your own products if there is a
strong online market. Don’t waste your time creating
and marketing online if there is not a strong need for them.

6. When your customers buy from you, immediately offer your
backend products to them. Backend products are related to
the main product that your customer just purchased.

7. Don’t overwhelm your customers with too many
choices. Sell a targeted market of products on your website
rather than offering them everything under the sun.

8. Provide original and valuable content on your site. If
your customers don’t pay attention to your ads, but
find articles or videos they like, they will open
themselves up to other valuables you have to offer.

9. Let your online customers know you are a real person.
Tell your story, share your values and personality with
your visitors.

10. Provide a contact or feedback page. Giving your
customers options to reach you gives you more credibility.
As your credibility increase, so will your sales, and you
will be able to dominate your online competitors as well.

Just by focusing on consistently implementing a few of
these proven online income producing techniques will
dramatically improve your bottom line.

“Some men give up on their designs when they have
almost reached the goal; while others, on the contrary,
obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more
vigorous efforts than before.” –Heodotus

----------------------------------------------------
About the author: Go to
http://www.wealthymarketerdirect.blogspot.com and subscribe
to the author's online marketing newsletter to discover the
two biggest online marketing secrets the wealthiest
marketers implement. Also see:
http://www.wealthymarketerdirect.com to receive two
valuable online marketing gifts.

A Guide To Home Refinancing

A Guide To Home Refinancing
Home refinancing allows you to apply for a secured loan to
pay off another different loan, against the same asset or
property. The purpose for taking a second loan is the
declining interest mortgage rate on the original loan.

Is refinancing a better option?

The need for refinancing appears, when the interest
mortgage rate declines and proves lucrative. Suppose you
mortgage your property and take on loan. If the interest
rate plummets, you take a second loan to pay off the first
loan. However, when you are going for the home refinancing
option, you consider the fact that whether the amount you
save on the interest equals the amount you pay during the
time of refinancing.

The Advantages of Home Refinancing,

The major advantage of home refinancing is that the process
is very lucrative and allows saving extra bucks. At the
same time, the monthly mortgage budget will tend to
decrease letting you have access to extra cash.

When you purchase the house of your dream, the financial
environment actually decides the interest rate, such as
credit rating, amount of down payment and the most
important of all, the prevailing market rate. However, the
interest rate tends to fluctuate and therefore the interest
rate may plummet significantly rendering you the urge to
seek a second loan. Hence, at the time of home refinancing,
you can exchange a higher rate for a lower one, which will
enable you to lower your monthly payment.

The best thing about home refinancing is that, it enables
to shorten the term of the mortgage. If the mortgage period
was 40 years, then the home refinancing will help you to
shorten the term to 15 or 20 years. Another benefit is
that, you can add extra money to your pocket. For example,
you can refinance an amount much higher than the current
principal balance. Firstly, the amount conjugated with
lower interest rate will help you in the future. You can
also use the extra amount to remodel your house or for
miscellaneous expenses.

Refinancing your home is tax deductible. This means you
will receive tax advantage for the closing cost associated
with refinancing, even in times of bankruptcy.

Important procedures of refinancing,

First, you have to understand, why you want to refinance
your home. There can be thousands of reasons for
refinancing your house like for home improvements, debt
consolidation, or shortening of your loan term. Hence,
first get it clear, what are the reasons and purpose of
refinancing. Then, decide what type of loan you want,
whether for ARM (adjustable rate mortgages) or a fixed rate
and what will be the loan term.

However, prior to seeking the loan, you need to fill up a
form that will decide whether you qualify for having the
loan. Pertaining to the loan findings, you need to submit
all the necessary documentations.

When you are contemplating for a home refinancing, it is
important to have your home appraised. As part of the
process of refinancing, you need to appraise your home, as
this will enable the lender to know your property’s
worth.

As part of the formality, you need to sign with a notary,
to fund your home mortgage refinance loan. The formality
will allow the official to witness your signing.

Once, everything is notarized the documents are complete
and the funding for your home refinance loan is released.

----------------------------------------------------
Debbie Groves is the owner of Home Refinancing People which
is a premier resource for home refinancing information. For
more information, go to:
http://www.homerefinancingpeople.com

Options Trading Strategies: The "Up" Scenario

Options Trading Strategies: The "Up" Scenario
The “up” scenario

In the “up” scenario, the maximum gain that can
be attained is the stock finishing at $10.00 or higher.

At $10.00, you would profit from the full value of the
extrinsic value of the option which is $.50 and you would
also have $.50 of capital appreciation from the stock for a
total of $1.00. This represents a 10.52% one-month return
or an annualized return of 126.32%.

It is not realistic to expect this type of return every
month but remember, recent studies show that premium
selling works approximately 80% of the time, which is still
very good.

We stated earlier that the maximum return of this buy-write
will be actualized when the stock reaches $10.00 or above
and the maximum return will be $1.00, and no more than
$1.00. As the stock goes higher, the option will earn less
in direct proportion with the increase in capital
appreciation.

For example, if the stock closes at $10.30 you would
receive only $.20 from the option. The option would now be
worth $.30 because with the stock at $10.30, the 10 strike
call would have $.30 of intrinsic value.

Since you sold the option at $.50, you would see a $.20
profit ($.50 - $.30 = $.20). Since you bought the stock at
$9.50 and it is now $10.30 you have $.80 of capital
appreciation. Combine the two and you have a $1.00 profit.

Let’s look at what happens when the stock trades up
to $12.00 and see if you again have a $1.00 return on the
position. At $12.00, the option will have $2.00 of
intrinsic value (stock price – strike price) because
it is in the money.

You sold the option at $.50 so you have a $1.50 loss.
However, you bought the stock for $9.50 therefore you have
a $2.50 capital gain. Combined, you have a $1.00 profit.

In a third example, if the stock trades up as little at
$.10 you still have a $.60 gain. You will receive $.50 from
the sale of the call which would expire out of the money
thus worthless plus $.10 of capital appreciation. $.60
represents a 6.3% one month return.

Please refer to the chart below for examples of total
dollar profits per number of contracts, remembering that
each contract controls 100 shares of stock.

Observe that if the stock closes over $10.00, then your
stock will be called away because your short calls will be
exercised. This is correct but we will talk about position
management later. For now, let’s get back to our
three scenarios.

In the “up” scenario, you would profit with the
buy-write when the stock is up as little as a penny, but
you are also limited on our maximum profit.

You are limited on your maximum profit as defined by the
formula below:

Maximum Profit = Strike Price + Option Price – Stock
Price.

This method of calculation will work every time. As you
see, the buy-write has a positive but limited upside
potential.

----------------------------------------------------
Brett Fogle is the president of Options University. Brett
and his veteran traders teach safe and effective options
trading strategies. Free strategies can be found at
http://www.optionsuniversity.com/blog

The 10 Keys to Successful Stock Options Trading – Key #6

The 10 Keys to Successful Stock Options Trading – Key #6
Good day and welcome back, this week I have some excellent
information for you in this, the sixth part of how to trade
stock options successfully. Now that we have covered some
of the more technical aspects of how options work and how
to enter and exit the trade I want to start discussing how
to put it all together. The first part of which is writing
a trading plan.

It is imperative you trade with a plan. No trader has ever
successfully prospered without a trading plan or with a
plan that they didn’t stick to. A sound trading plan
includes, but is not limited to, the following items:

1. Money management rules, i.e. acceptable profits and
losses per trade, how much capital you will commit to any
one trade and to the market at any one time.
It is important you identify what your stop loss margin is
(as discussed last week) and even more important you stick
to it. Writing this sort of information into your trading
plan will help cement it in your mind. We will discuss more
on money management in week eight.

2. Stock and option identification rules, i.e. how you will
decide which stocks to trade options on and which options
you will trade.
Decide if you prefer technical or fundamental analysis or a
mixture of both. How big will your watch list be? What
price range of stocks will you trade? Will you trade in the
money options or out of the money options? What Greeks will
you consider?

3. Entry and exit rules, i.e. how you will decide to enter
and exit a trade, how long you will stay in a trade and how
often you will trade.
Entry and exit rules will depend largely on technical
analysis, write down the patterns and indicators you will
look for. Deciding how often to trade will be a big factor
in your success. Most people over trade, if you have a
fixed profit target then once you have met it you should
stop trading. Attempting to go for that little bit extra
can lead to a big loss, all the more difficult to take if
you had already met your profit target!

4. Your own strategy rules, i.e. which trading strategies
you will use primarily and which strategies suit your risk
profile.
“Know thyself” as the ancient Greek saying goes
is critical when formulating a stock options trading plan.
You will tend to trade options and you do anything else in
life, for example, if you are cautious by nature you will
trade cautiously, if you are impatient in everyday life you
will trade impatiently. Therefore consider your unique
traits and formulate your plan around them.

Once you have practiced trading options you will discover
your own style of trading, and from that you will develop a
plan that suits you. Once you have your plan, and you know
it works, stick to it through thick and thin. That
doesn’t mean that a plan can’t be changed but
you must ensure that you give your plan a chance to work
and that you don’t change it the first time you take
a loss.

Once you formulate and implement a good trading plan you
will be well on your to trading stock options successfully.
Next week we will discuss trading with the overall market
and index options.

US Government required disclaimer: Options involve risk and
are not suitable for all investors. Prior to buying or
selling an option, a person must receive a copy of the
Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options. Copies
of this document may be obtained from your broker, from any
exchange on which options are traded or by contacting The
Options Clearing Corporation, One North Wacker Dr., Suite
500 Chicago, IL 60606 (1-800-678-4667).

----------------------------------------------------
Roger Cox was born in New Zealand and has lived in Los
Angeles for seven years. He was President of a freight
company at LAX before setting up his own consulting firm.
Roger has successfully traded stock options for over 4
years and teaches other people how to successfully trade at
http://www.prosperitywithoptions.com

Employees Encouraged To Budget Rather Than Time Waste

Employees Encouraged To Budget Rather Than Time Waste
Employees across the UK spend an average of 50 minutes a
day indulging in activities at their desks such as texting,
using social networking sites and making personal phone
calls, yet are reluctant to spend time getting to grips
with their finances, according to the latest research from
Axa.

Ahead of its initiative known as My Budget Day, where the
company is urging employees across the nation to spend an
hour a month working on their finances and evaluating any
loans they may have, Axa has found that 14 hours a month is
taken up by what it calls social not-working.

The research reflected that every week, employees in the UK
spend around 42 minutes emailing friends and family and in
the region of 26 minutes on social networking sites. This
is time that Axa suggests could be better used looking on
the internet for online loans, searching for a loan quote
or otherwise evaluating and planning their financial
situation.

Axa is encouraging employers to get involved with the
budgeting drive by allowing employees an hour a month to
plan their financial future and ascertain their current
financial situation, making the best of this non-working
time.

Pat Brady from Axa said: “A lack of motivation to
deal with financial matters is arguably at the heart of our
country’s enormous personal debt problem. If
employers can help people to recognise the value of
spending time reviewing their finances it could go some way
to addressing this.”

Activities such as gambling, gossiping and booking holidays
also make up employees’ non-work time, with certain
regions of the country more affected than others. The east
and west Midlands were found to be the biggest users of
online portals shopping at work - time that could perhaps
be better spent looking for a personal loan on the
internet. The north-west was the place for gossips, while
texting was a popular work time-waster in Scotland.

Greater London was found to be the place where a number of
activities were most prevalent, with emailing friends and
family, booking holidays, gambling, making personal phone
calls and using social networking sites all happening for a
longer amount of time there than anywhere else in the UK.
Axa is suggesting that such time could easily be put to
better use, especially with the aid of the internet, to
find online loans or to plan a budget more effectively.

The proposed move has been welcomed by union Unite and its
national officer, David Fleming: “This initiative is
providing employees with an opportunity to help tackle a
great cause of stress in the workplace - financial worries.
Unite welcomes this scheme as a positive step in addressing
the widespread issue of financial exclusion.”

Last month, Chris Tapp from Credit Action highlighted the
need for consumers to spend more time planning their
finances suggesting that interest rate changes had caused
consumers to struggle with repayments on mortgages and
other loans. Mr Tapp said that more people are visiting
services such as Credit Action to ask for advice on how to
repay their mortgage.

----------------------------------------------------
Abbi Rouse writes for All About Loans. Our visitors are
offered advice and information all about loans, they can
also apply online for tenant loans and secured loans for
any purpose, including self cert loans for the self
employed. Visit today: http://www.allaboutloans.co.uk

A Real Estate Investor's Guide To Basic Real Estate Principles

A Real Estate Investor's Guide To Basic Real Estate Principles
It is important for Real Estate Investors to have an
understanding of some of the basics of real estate so you
can be a more-informed investor.

In real estate, there are two categories of property, real
and personal. Real property is defined as the land and
whatever is attached to it, known as improvements. Personal
property is everything that is not attached to land or
buildings. This is often known as chattel.

A fixture is an item of personal property that has been
converted to real property by permanently attaching it. Two
examples include chandeliers and cabinets. When they were
at the store, they were personal property. Once they are
attached to the property, they become real property.

A listing agreement and an agreement of sale specify what
is considered as a fixture. If you are purchasing a
property, you should carefully inspect this clause to see
what you are getting and what you are not getting.

When you purchase real property, you get what are known as
a "bundle of rights". These are the rights of ownership.
They include the right to occupy, to use, to allow others
to use, to rent, to restrict, to construct buildings, to
keep others off, to leave and abandon, to convey ownership
and to encumber.

A freehold estate refers to an ownership interest in
property for an undetermined period of time. It is a form
of ownership that you get when you purchase a property.
There are various types of freehold estates, with the most
preferred type being called fee simple. It is the highest
and most complete form of ownership possible. It gives you
the full bundle of rights, including the right to pass your
ownership interest on to your heirs when you die.

There are different forms of taking ownership to a
property, and it is a good idea to understand each one and
what it means. They are severalty, tenancy by the entirety,
joint tenancy and tenancy in common.

Ownership of real property can also be held in a trust. A
trust is a legal instrument that is used to protect family
ownership interests. A trust has three parties, a trustor,
a trustee and a beneficiary. The trustor conveys ownership
of the property into the trust, which is then held by the
trustee. Based on some event according to the terms of the
trust the property is eventually conveyed to the
beneficiary.

Title is the right of ownership of property. There are five
basic kinds of title - naked possession, color of title,
right of possession, good title and complete good title.
The purchase of title insurance will insure a "good" title.
A title company, or abstract company, will do a complete
title search to discover if there are any "clouds on the
title".

A deed is a written document that conveys title of real
property to an owner. The person who gives or grants the
deed is called the grantor. The person who receives the
deed is the grantee.

There is a difference between title and deed. Title is the
right of ownership of property. A deed is a written
document that conveys title to the property. Title is a
right. A deed is a document. The two most basic types of
deeds are the quitclaim deed and the warranty deed.

A general warranty deed provides a guarantee of good title
not only by the seller, but back through the chain of title
through all the previous owners of the property. It
provides the strongest title protection to the grantee, or
buyer.

It is important that every Real Estate Owner and Investor
understands these basic principles before purchasing Real
Estate.

----------------------------------------------------
Chris Parks is a Real Estate Investor who has been involved
in Real Estate in one capacity or another since the mid
1980s. As a member of a small group of Real Estate
Investors & Entrepreneurs, and always having the knack for
explaining Real Estate Basics in an easy to understand
manner, Chris created REI for Newbies in order to teach &
assist new Real Estate Investors in a step-by-step,
easy-to-understand manner. http://www.REIforNewbies.com

Time Decay Strategies for Options Trading

Time Decay Strategies for Options Trading
Time decay, also known as theta, is defined as the rate by
which an option’s value erodes into expiration. The
value of the option over parity to the stock is called
extrinsic value.

Since an option is a depreciating asset, meaning it has a
limited life, the extrinsic value in the option will wither
away daily until expiration. This “decay” is
not a linear function meaning it is not equally distributed
between all of the days to expiration.

As the option gets closer to expiration, the daily rate of
decay increases and continues to increase daily until
expiration of the option. At expiration, all options in the
expiration month, calls and puts, in-the-money and
out-of-the-money must be completely devoid of extrinsic
value as noted in the time value decay charts below.

As more time goes by, the options extrinsic value
decreases. Again, it is important to note that the rate of
this decrease is not linear, meaning not smooth and even
throughout the life of the option contract. An option
contract starts feeling the decay curve increasing when the
option has about 45 days to expiration. It increases
rapidly again at about 30 days out and really starts losing
its value in the last two weeks before expiration.

This is like a boulder rolling down a hill. The further it
goes down the hill, the more steam it picks up until the
hill ends.

By selling the option and owning the stock, the covered
call seller captures the extrinsic value in the option by
holding the short call until expiration.

As mentioned earlier, an option’s loss of extrinsic
value over its life is called time decay. In the covered
call strategy the option’s time decay works to the
seller’s advantage in that the more that time goes
by, the more the extrinsic value decreases.

Key Point – The covered call strategy provides the
investor with another opportunity to gain income from a
long stock position. The strategy not only produces gains
when the stock trades up, but also provides above average
gains in a stagnant period, while offsetting losses when
the stock declines in price.

We have now seen how a covered call strategy is constructed
and how it is supposed to work. Keep in mind that the trade
can be entered into in two ways. You can either sell calls
against stock you already own (Covered Call) or you can buy
stock and sell calls against them at the same time (Buy
Write).

Example 1

You own 1000 shares of Oracle at $9.50.

The stock has been stuck around this level for a long time
now and you have grown impatient. You finally give in and
sell the front month (November for example) at-the-money
calls. The at-the-money calls would have a strike price of
$10 if the stock was trading at $9.50.

You sell the calls at a $.50 premium per contract which
creates a $10.50 breakeven point. Remember, in a buy-write,
the breakeven point is the strike price plus the option
premium. Let’s look at what our returns will be in
each of the three scenarios.

----------------------------------------------------
Brett Fogle is the president of Options University. Brett
and his veteran traders teach safe and effective options
trading strategies. Free strategies can be found at
http://www.optionsuniversity.com/blog

Credit Cards - How They Affect Your Insurance Rates

Credit Cards - How They Affect Your Insurance Rates
How do credit cards affect your insurance rates? The idea
sounds absolutely preposterous; doesn’t it? Even the
thought that having too much credit card debt, or possibly
paying your credit card bill late, or even becoming
delinquent on your credit card bill, could affect your
insurance rate is just too far fetched; right? Wrong!

What many consumers don’t know is that in many
states, insurance companies have lobbied, and won the right
from the legislature, to gain access to your credit report.
Laws have been passed that allow insurance companies to
check your credit to determine your insurance premium
rates, or even deny coverage based upon your credit rating.

Supposedly, the argument by insurance companies has been,
that if a consumer pays their bills late, or is delinquent
on their bills, or is irresponsible in accumulating too
much debt, then the consumer is obviously irresponsible in
all aspects of life. This would supposedly include,
driving irresponsibly and paying insurance bills late.
This in turn; as they argue; would make the insured a
high-risk driver.

What’s most interesting about these laws, is that
many states require consumers to have a minimum amount of
liability coverage on their automobiles. Many states can
impound your vehicle, issue hefty fines, or even jail
offenders who refuse to pay for mandatory automobile
insurance.

Okay, so what if you have such a bad credit score, that you
can’t get automobile insurance? Hmm...that’s a
good question. In the states that force consumers to buy
automobile insurance at rates that are determined by the
insurance industry, based upon your credit rating, there
are usually special state-run insurance programs that are
for high-risk drivers and consumers that have bad credit
score. So if a consumer can’t get automobile
insurance because of a bad credit score, then they would be
grouped along with high-risk drivers.

What is a high-risk driver? A high-risk driver, is someone
who has been convicted of driving while intoxicated,
driving under the influence, vehicular manslaughter, drug
possession, or it could just be anyone who has an excessive
amount of traffic tickets or numerous accidents on their
driving record.

Now back to the initial question: “How do credit
cards affect your insurance rates?” Answer: Too much
credit card debt, too many late credit card payments, and
any credit card delinquencies on your credit report, and
you’re looking at a hefty insurance rate.

----------------------------------------------------
Bryan Pringle, Ph.D., has written many articles on the
credit industry, and is the webmaster of websites offering
news and information regarding credit cards. For more
information, please visit:
http://www.apply-forcreditcards-online.com

Business Opportunity Investing Loan - Buy a Business Investment

Business Opportunity Investing Loan - Buy a Business Investment
The success of business opportunity investment strategies
will depend heavily on the quality of business financing
which is arranged. Business finance strategies for business
opportunity investing are more difficult than most
borrowers realize, particularly if prospective business
investors are primarily familiar with residential or
commercial real estate investment property.

Buying a business opportunity is likely to be an extremely
challenging task when arranging the business loan. This is
largely due to the usual lack of commercial property as
collateral for the business financing to buy a business
opportunity. When buying a business that does not include
commercial real estate, business borrowers need to realize
that business loan options will be greatly reduced in
comparison to a business purchase that can be financed with
a commercial mortgage.

Business Opportunity Investment Financing Guidelines -

The guidelines and comments in this article are based upon
business loan terms that are typically available from
respected lenders willing to provide business financing for
buying a business opportunity throughout the United States.
There will always be occasional situations in which the
seller is willing to privately finance the purchase of a
business opportunity, and it is not practical to discuss
those business financing possibilities in this article.

Length of Business Loan to Expect When Buying a Business
Opportunity -

Business loan terms to buy a business will typically
include a shorter amortization period than commercial real
estate financing. A ten-year maximum term is common, and
even that length of business financing is likely to require
a commercial lease of at least ten years.

Likely Interest Rates to Buy a Business Opportunity -

In the current business loan interest rate environment, the
likely range for buying a business opportunity is 11 to 12
percent. To put this in perspective, it is not unusual for
a commercial mortgage to be in the 10 to 11 percent range.
The cost of business financing to buy a business is
routinely higher than the cost of a commercial mortgage due
to the lack of commercial property for lender collateral in
a business opportunity transaction.

Down Payment Requirements for Buying a Business Opportunity
-

Depending on the specific type of business and some other
issues, a normal down payment for a business loan to buy a
business is 20 to 25 percent. Some seller financing (such
as 10 percent) is usually helpful and in some cases might
reduce the down payment required from the buyer to buy a
business.

Buying a Business Opportunity - Refinancing Options -

A related business loan issue to anticipate when buying a
business is that refinancing the business opportunity loan
terms will normally be even more difficult than the
original business financing. There are currently some new
business loan programs in the final stages of development
that could dramatically improve future refinancing options.
But until these new business financing options are
finalized, it is important to arrange the best possible
terms initially and not depend upon refinancing
possibilities.

Lenders to Avoid When Commercial Borrowers Buy a Business
Opportunity -

Perhaps the most important phase of the business loan
process for buying a business opportunity is the selection
of a commercial lender. In our view an even more critical
stage of this process is avoiding certain lenders that are
routinely unsuccessful in finalizing a business loan to buy
a business.

By avoiding such lenders, commercial borrowers are likely
to avoid many other business financing problems frequently
associated with buying a business opportunity. Avoiding
problem lenders will be instrumental to the eventual
success of both the business loan process and the long-term
financial health of the business being acquired.

----------------------------------------------------
Stephen Bush and AEX Commercial Financing Group provide
business opportunity loan and business finance help and AEX
Commercial Real Estate Investment Property Financing and
Business Loan Reports:
http://aexcommercialfinancing.com

Retirement Financial Planning and Retirement Ideas

Retirement Financial Planning and Retirement Ideas
Too soon we get old, and too late we get smart is the old
Yiddish proverb. This applies to most people as they do
retirement planning. Retirement ideas range from
imagining yourself living in a life of luxury, playing
golf, taking 9 month vacations, and enjoying life, down to
living in a retirement community where your basic needs are
taken care of. Failing to plan for your retirement can
have very negative consequences on the quality of your
retired life.

To do proper retirement financial planning, you should
start early - that's the "too late smart" part of the
proverb. You're getting older every day - are you getting
smarter? Fortunately, there are retirement books that can
help you with this. One of the most important is "401(k)
Basics" by Motley Fool publishing. It will steer you into
how to make the most of a company 401(k) plan, while taking
an unsentimental retirement view - telling you that there
is no fast road to riches, only steady, regular savings and
investing will help ensure you against retirement losses.

Your retirement benefits should contain a mix of growth
funds early on, wealth preservation funds and income
generation tools as you age - this can be found online
through a number of retirement calculators, and will help
you plan the day when you can send your company your
retirement letters and say "I'll be on the golf course!"
Most retirement calculators are driven by an investing rule
called the Rule of 72 - take 72 and divide it by your rate
of return in points (for example, getting 6% on a savings
account or CD) and that will tell you how many years it
takes for your investment to double. In this case, 72
divided by 6 is 12, meaning that sitting an investment down
in a 6% account means it will double in 12 years.

Remember that slow and steady contributions win the day;
you can't rush this later in life. Start early, invest
everything you can afford to, and know that your money is
working for you in the long term. If you're eligible for a
401(k) program, you should take it - it benefits you in
multiple ways, from employee matching (which doubles your
investment) to being take out of your paycheck before taxes
(which is fundamentally giving you a 20-35% increase in the
net investment from doing it in post-tax income) to tax
deferral on the interest it accrues. A 401(k) is by far
and away the best retirement investment vehicle possible.

One thing you should not count on is Social Security; due
to changing demographics, we're going to be disbursing more
from Social Security than it takes in in about 5 to 10
years, and the fund will literally run out at the current
rate of contributions in thirty years. Presume that you're
on your own and plan accordingly.

----------------------------------------------------
Find other articles related to Retirement Financial
Planning by Anthony Smith at:
http://retirementinformation4u.com

Does Your Son or Daughter Need a Citi Student Credit Card?

Does Your Son or Daughter Need a Citi Student Credit Card?
If you have a son or daughter in college, you might want to
ask yourself if a Citi student credit card is in order.
After all, a student, no matter where they go to school, is
definitely going to come across more than their fair share
of credit card offers. As a parent, you want to make sure
you lead them on the right path. So ask yourself, is a Citi
student credit card the credit card you want your pride and
joy to carry?

Why a Citi Student Credit Card?

So why should you consider a Citi student credit card over
the other student credit cards on the market? Chances are
you have the best interests of your child in mind and,
let's face it, some of the companies offering student
credit cards do not. Citi, however, seems to be one of the
better student credit card issuers.

What's So Great About Citi?

First and foremost, a Citi student credit card will allow
your child to start their own credit history. Many of
today's credit card companies require students to have a
co-signer. Citi does not. This means your child learns what
it's like to be responsible for his or her own finances,
and your credit isn't on the line if they happen to take a
wrong turn.

Another thing that's great about Citi is that a Citi
student credit card tends to cater to the needs of a
student. Take their Citi mtvU Platinum card for example. It
offers reward points for good grades, paying the bill on
time and not exceeding the credit limit. It literally
rewards students for hard work and good credit card
behavior. Not many student credit cards do that.

They Go The Extra Mile

Another thing that sets a Citi student credit card apart
from the competition is the fact that they offer students
free credit education tools and tips. Some of the
less-ethical credit card companies try to keep students in
the dark, hoping to profit from any potential mistakes.
Citi, however, works to ensure that your child knows
exactly what they're doing when it comes to credit card
management.

Citi provides tools to help your student create monthly
budgets, manage proper spending and even plan future
investments. It's a well-rounded approach to student credit
card use.

In the cut-throat world of student credit cards, it's
important to help your son or daughter choose a card that
works for them, not against them. A Citi student credit
card can be just the tool your child needs to establish his
or her credit future.

----------------------------------------------------
For more tips on student credit cards, saving money and
avoiding getting taken, check out the student credit card
section at CreditCardTipsEtc.com, a website that
specializes in providing credit card tips, advice and
resources.
http://www.creditcardtipsetc.com/student_credit_cards

"5 Simple Rules" - How To Find A Good Quality Credit Card

"5 Simple Rules" - How To Find A Good Quality Credit Card
Just about everybody has some sort of credit card these
days. Whether it’s with a retail store, gas chain,
or with the large credit card companies. The truth is that
there is a large variety of choices when it comes to
interest rates, annual fees, late penalties, balance
transfers, and payment terms. Following these "5 Simple
Rules" when applying for a credit card, can save the
consumer a ton of money and lots of headaches, down the
road.

Rule #1: Always look for a credit card with a low interest
rate, or a 0% balance transfer option. This is extremely
beneficial to the borrower, so that he or she, may have the
ability to transfer their higher interest rate credit cards
to the 0% or low interest credit cards.

Rule #2: Always look for a credit card that has a grace
period on payments that are late. Many credit card holders
have their interest rates boosted automatically after
making a payment late within a certain period of time.
This certain period of time is usually between six months
and a year. Some credit card companies will boost the
interest rates anywhere from 5 to 10 percentage points,
after just one late payment. There are even credit card
companies that reverse the 0% balance transfers to
retroactively charge interest on balances after payments
are made late. So that low interest credit card, now turns
into an out of control debt monster that will devour all of
the borrower’s income.

Rule #3: Always look for a credit card with a little or no
annual fee. If the borrower has good to excellent credit,
say with a credit score of 550-800, then it is extremely
easy to search online to find a little or no annual fee
credit card. Unfortunately, if the borrower has bad,
little, or no credit, then paying an annual fee is almost
impossible. However, the credit borrower with good to
excellent credit should avoid paying any type of annual
fees whatsoever, if at all possible. Obviously, there are
exceptions to this rule such as business, revolving, or
corporate credit cards, which many offer extremely high or
even no credit limits.

Rule # 4: Only apply for a credit card with a company that
has a proven track record with a solid reputation in the
financial industry. Many credit card companies have a
reputation of honesty, fairness, and excellent customer
service. However, there are many credit card companies who
have reputations of changing terms frequently, raising
interest rates often, having bad customer service, and
receiving a large amount of complaints from consumers. It
will save the borrower a lot of time, headaches, and money
to find a credit card company that is reputable.

Rule #5: Never apply for a credit card with a company that
stipulates that they can accelerate your payment of the
debt. Many cardholders don’t know that numerous
credit card companies can, and do, sometimes raise the
minimum monthly payments due by the borrowers to extremely
high amounts. Some raise the minimum monthly payments to
as much as 200% of their regular payments. So beware of
the cardholder terms of agreement. Read the legal terms
and conditions of the credit card very carefully.

If you follow these “5 Simple Rules”, then you
too, will be able to steer away from pitfalls that befall
millions of the credit card holders, and you will be able
to say confidently, that “Yes, I have a good quality
credit card.”

----------------------------------------------------
Bryan Pringle, Ph.D., has written many articles on the
credit industry, and is the webmaster of websites offering
news and information regarding credit cards. For more
information, please visit:
http://www.apply-forcreditcards-online.com

What To Expect During Your French Property Purchase

What To Expect During Your French Property Purchase
Once you have chosen your French property:

Probably after many hours of deliberation and over many
fine French courses you will want to know exactly what the
French buying process is so that there are no nasty
surprises round the corner and so you can plan for the
future. Here we try to explain the different steps to be
taken, what role everyone plays and what is expected from
each person. This article covers negotiation, the survey,
the signing of the "Compromis de vente" (preliminary
contract), the period between this and the signing of the
"Acte de vente" (final deed), and also the role of the
notary and his fees. It is important to take tax and legal
advice before this preliminary contract is signed on how
best to arrange your finances and ownership of the property
to minimise tax expenditure and in the future inheritance
tax issues.

Negotiation:

We are here to guide and assist you through the entire
buying process and this includes helping you get the best
deal possible on the price of your property. The agent in
France may well hint at the lowest price acceptable to the
vendor, as they do in England. It is wise to follow what
they say as they will know roughly what price will clinch
the deal and what would simply annoy the French vendor.
You ought to speak to us before you make an offer to clear
up any issues that you may not have fully understood and to
help with the negotiation but there is nothing wrong with
letting the agent know how interested you are and if you
are about to make a serious offer. It is a fast paced
market out there and you don't want to lose a fantastic
property because you spent too long dithering or trying to
obtain a better deal by playing it cool and not making your
interests clear.

The Survey:

Unlike in England the French do not tend to have surveys
done to their houses and a French chartered surveyor does
not exist. The options available to you are: a British
chartered surveyor based in France or a local established
builder. It is wise to have someone check the property over
and check for any expensive repairs which you can sometimes
use to negotiate the price and forecast upcoming
expenditure. Leapfrog Properties or the agent in France can
help organise this survey for you.

The Compromis de vente:

This is the preliminary contract between the buyer and
vendor which sets out the exact conditions under which the
"Acte de vente" will be completed and how the transfer of
the property will take place. It is a binding contract that
is signed before any conveyancing takes place by the
notary. There is, however, a seven day cooling off period
during which the purchaser may pull out without forfeiting
any of his deposit (usually 10% of the purchase price).
This period begins from the time the buyer receives a
signed copy of the compromise and if he decides to pull out
of the transaction then he must inform the notaire by
written confirmation BEFORE the seven days are over. The
buyer does not have to give any particular reason for this
and should expect his deposit returned to him within 21
days of the notaire receiving the letter. It must be noted
though that if the purchaser pulls out of the deal after
this period then he is liable to losing the deposit unless
any of the "conditions suspensive" (conditional clauses)
are not met. This contract can be signed either at the
estate agency itself or at the notaire's office and can be
one which has been drawn up by the estate agency or by the
notaire although it is always safer to sign one prepared by
a notary as it is more likely to protect you and include
more details on the transaction. At this point the notary
will spend some time with you on the details of the
transaction and outline any "conditions suspensives" such
as the contract being subject to mortgage approval for
example.

What happens after the compromis is signed?

The Notaire now carries out his searches and conveyancing
checking records and documentation concerning the property.
Certain certificates are required by him from the buyer
showing that surveys have been carried out to verify any
existence of Lead, Asbestos or termites. Remember he is
impartial and works for the state, not for the buyer or the
vendor so he will be thorough to the point at which he is
happy that the sale conforms to French law. This could take
up to three months and you should use the target completion
date to base your planning around but do not use it as a
definitive completion date as it is hard to predict exactly
how long it will take the Notaire to complete his work.
Therefore you should keep in constant communication with
the Notaire to find out how it is going and get an exact
completion date nearer the time.

What exactly are the duties of the Notaire?

He must ensure that all the conditional clauses have been
fulfilled and that the vendor has given full and complete
information regarding the property to the buyer. The
following checks are also done by him: Checking that the
title of the property is correct, that any co-ownership
records are up to date and check the exact location within
the commune. Establish the identity of both parties
Mortgages have been approved and the purchase price will be
sufficient to cover the mortgage. Rights of way within the
property Verifying that the property conforms to the
building regulations of the commune The co-ownership
situation Rental situation Public works that may impact the
property Ensure there are no covenants other than those
within the contract that might adversely affect the
property Inform any people entitled to pre-emption rights
of the sale

Notary fees

These can range anywhere between 3% and 13% of the purchase
price of the property- New builds tend to be about 3% while
the average is between 7% and 8%. As these are fixed by law
(much like stamp duty) its does not matter which notary you
appoint as the price will be the same.

And Finally....

When you are finally given a date for the signing of the
Acte Authentique (Final Deed) you can organise your
removals company and your travel arrangements to the
Notaire's office for the final signing. (If you cannot make
it you can give someone power of attorney to sign on your
behalf). NB. It is important that you make sure all the
money required for the transaction including the Notaire's
fees are in the Notaire's bank account BEFORE your
completion date. The final deeds will be read out loud in
the office, deeds signed and the property will become
officially yours!

----------------------------------------------------
Nick Dowlatshahi is Managing Director of Leapfrog
Properties and is an Expert on the French Property Market.
Leapfrog Properties is a French Property agency that
specialises in Property for sale in France.
http://www.leapfrog-properties.com