Help I Need A Student Loan

Help I Need A Student Loan
Well even if you have little credit or no credit rating at
all, you can still get a student loan. Student loans are a
good way to build credit as well, so once you obtain one,
be sure to repay it.

Student loans for those with little or no credit are
government-backed loans or loans offered through your
university. One such option is the Stafford loan. When the
student borrows these loans, most lenders do not look at
the student's credit history. You can apply for a Perkins
loan as well, which also does not look at your credit
history. The government supplies the money for this type of
loan, but it is reserved those who are most in need, so
this option is not available for everyone.

Federal student loans are based on both income and
availability. What happens if you can't afford college yet
don't qualify? An alternative choice for you or your
parents is a private student loan. These are loans done
through private lenders instead of the government. The
advantage of these types of direct student loans is that
they have many of the same kinds of benefits as federal
loans. These loans can be used for any and all college
expenses. Things like tuition, books, supplies, computers,
and living expenses are all things that qualify for private
student loan funds. These loans are unsecured, meaning that
no collateral is needed. The loans are credit-based
instead. This can mean that you might need a co-signer if
you have not established a credit history.

A private education loan is usually a low-interest loan.
The money can be delivered in as little as five days, and
the money is given to you instead of the school. You are
then responsible for paying for their various educational
expenses. Once you graduate and find a job, the reality of
paying back your student loans hits. Below are some steps
you can take to help keep the payments from causing you
heartache.

The first rule is to stick to a payment plan. Set aside a
certain amount every month for your loan payment. Making a
larger payment than required each month can help you pay
back the loan sooner, thereby saving you a great deal of
money on interest. If you think you may forget, set it so
the payment is electronically transferred each month. If
you're simply can't come up with your monthly payment,
there are options. Since your salary is only going to grow
as you climb the corporate ladder, you can schedule
graduated repayment plans with your lender. You start with
a low monthly payment that will gradually get larger over
the term of your loan.

If you're absolutely out of options, you might be able to
temporarily suspend your payments. If you lose your job or
go back to school for an advanced degree, you can request a
deferment of your loan payments. If your request is granted
and you have a Stafford loan, the government will actually
take care of the interest that accrues during your
deferment. If you can't get a deferment, try forbearance.
You can suspend payments for up to a year, though you'll
still be responsible for the built up interest.

This kind of loan has other advantages similar to federal
loans. The interest and principal payments can be deferred
until you graduate from school. For most of these loans,
you are required to be attending school at least halftime
for the deferral of payments and interest.

----------------------------------------------------
If you need a student loan, please visit this informative
blog about student loans and college scholarships. Please
visit http://www.studentaides.com

Stock Options Trading: The 'Lean'

Stock Options Trading: The 'Lean'
Professional traders use the term "lean" to refer to one's
perception about the directional strength of the stock.
When you own a stock and intend to hold it for a period of
time, you are aware that you will probably be holding it
while it goes up and while it goes down.

This means that at any given moment in time, you might have
a different opinion of the potential movement of that
stock. Knowing this, there is a way to address your present
level of confidence or "lean." You do this by your choice
of which option you sell.

While it is true that the at-the-money option has the most
amount of extrinsic value, it might not always be the ideal
option to sell in every situation.

For instance, if you feel that the stock itself has a very
high chance of producing capital appreciation above the
potential amount of premium you could receive from selling
an at-the-money call, then sell an out-of-the-money-call so
you can allow yourself a little more room to the upside on
the stock.

For example, let's say the stock is trading at $27.00.
Normally, you would sell the 27.5 calls at say $1.00. If
the stock were to rise quickly and eclipse the $28.50 mark,
then with the buy-write strategy, your position would have
maxed out at $28.50, and you would have a $1.50 one month
gain. Not bad, but if the stock went to $29.50 then you
would have missed out on another $1.00 profit. However, if
we had sold the 30 calls for $.30 then we would have
another outcome. You bought the stock at $27.00 and sold
the 30 calls for $.30 and the stock goes to $29.50.

You would have made $2.50 in capital appreciation and $.30
in option premium for a total of a $2.80 return.

So, if you feel the stock has a real good shot at taking a
run up, you can lean your position long by selling an
out-of-the-money call.

If you have a more neutral view on your stock you would
sell an at-the-money-call in order to receive a bigger
premium which allows for greater downside protection if the
stock trades down and higher potential profit if the stock
becomes stagnant.

This strategy also works on the downside. If, by chance,
you feel that the stock may trade down a bit during the
life of the option, then you can sell an in-the-money-call.
The effect of this would be to provide you with a little
extra premium to cover more downside risk.

Remember when you sell an option you seek to capture
extrinsic value. An in-the-money option not only has
extrinsic value but also some intrinsic value.

When you feel that you want to lean your covered call
strategy (buy-write) a little short, choose to sell an
in-the-money call so you can also have some intrinsic value
to cover your downside.

As an example, say your stock is trading at $29.00 and you
feel that your stock may trade down a little but still
remain in an uptrend cycle. You don't want to get rid of
the stock but you also don't want to lose any money so you
sell the 27.5 call at $2.00.

The stock starts to trade down and finishes at $26.00. If
you had owned the stock naked, then you would have lost
three dollars since you owned the stock at $29.00 and it
closed at $26.00 on expiration.

However, because you sold the 27.5 calls at $2.00, you
would only realize a $1.00 loss in the stock. The premium
received will offset the loss due to the fact that you
identified and adjusted for a likely move.

As you can see, the buy-write strategy can be altered to
fit any directional view you have on your selected stock.

Finally, if you intend to use the buy-write strategy
successfully, you generally need to sell the calls against
your stock on a consistent, recurring interval, over a
period of time.

This means that you will have to be prepared to "roll" your
calls out to the next month come expiration. Sometimes, all
you'll need to do is to sell the next month out call.

----------------------------------------------------
Options University is the leading source for options
education for safer investing and better profits. Brett
Fogle, along with Ron Ianieri who was a floor trader for 15
years on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. Leveraging his
experience, the educational company is uniquely qualified
to teach investors how to make consistent profits while
limiting risk. For more information on Options University
training, visit http://www.OptionsUniversity.com .

Real Estate Investors - #1 Advertising Tip

Real Estate Investors - #1 Advertising Tip
Are you a Real Estate Investor always on the lookout for
deals? Are you ready for a really cheap and easy way to
advertise? Better yet, are you ready to cheap and easy way
to get people to start calling you?

Advertise on your vehicle! Lettering that you can put on
your windows or magnets for your doors are a low cost way
to spread the word that you buy houses.

Don't want your day job to see the advertising? Use
magnets and take them off before you pull into the office
parking lot. But, always make sure the magnets are on for
your commute. For many people this is an hour or more of
time where lots of people can see your advertising.

Driving the kids to one of his/her sporting events...make
sure the magnets are on. Going to the mall to do some
shopping? How about the grocery store? Leave the magnets
on! Vehicle advertising for Real Estate Investors is a
really easy way to get your message out to a lot of people
for a low one-time cost.

And it's not only for buying homes...one of my best
contacts came on a Sunday morning at a Coffee & Donut Shop.

I have big white I BUY HOUSES lettering with my phone
number and web address attached to the back windshield of
my vehicle. It was a Sunday morning and I ran out to the
local Donut Shop to pick up breakfast.

I walked out of the store coffee in hand and eating,
(probably even had powdered sugar on my face) not paying
attention to the person parked next to me when he says, Is
that your car? I replied Yes it is and we started talking
about the house buying business.

He then told me that he had IRA/401k money to lend and
asked me if I would be interested in talking about teaming
up. Um...let me think for a 1/2 a second - YES!

You see he went on to explain that he lost money in the
stock market and now he only lends his money out to Real
Estate Investors because it's a much better (and quicker)
return on his investment.

I gave him a business card (ALWAYS have cards on you!) and
we hooked up again shortly thereafter.

As Real Estate Investors it is important to tell the world
what you want so the world will bend over backwards to help
you get it!

----------------------------------------------------
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

How Filing Can Change Your Life

How Filing Can Change Your Life
Goal setting plays a powerful role in helping individuals
achieve what they want out of life. Research suggests that
setting goals increases the probability of achieving
objectives from 5% to 70% and increases productivity by an
average of 19%. In order to set realistic financial goals,
you first need to understand your current financial
picture. Filing enables you to organize your finances and
give you real confidence when making financial decisions.

There are three steps to determining your financial picture:

1. Filing
2. Completing a Profit and Loss Statement
3. Completing a Balance Sheet

At this point it is easy to say that doing this type of
work is just too boring - who can get excited about filing
and bookkeeping, right? However, stop and think about why
it is you are saying this. Is it really because it is too
boring or is it because you are reluctant to see the
reality of your current financial situation? Remember, as
Brian Tracy says, "Every minute you spend in planning saves
10 minutes in execution; this gives you a 1000 percent
return on energy!".

1. Filing

Create a filing system to track all of your monthly income
and expenses. This will form the basis of your profit and
loss statement and balance sheet. Within income set up a
separate file for each area of income you receive:

Pay slips Interest payments Dividends Rental income
Royalties Other

Similarly, for expenses set up a file for each regular
expense item:

Mortgage
Credit Card
Utilities
Car Food

As we organize many of our day to day expenses by direct
debit it is useful to have our bank statements listed
alongside our income and expenses.

You will also need files for
Important personal information (birth certificate, marriage
certificate, passports)
Insurance policies
Legal Documents (wills)
Pension
Tax

2. Completing a Profit and Loss statement

Profit and Loss statements are also known as "income
statements". When you track your income and expenses every
month, right down to the cash you take out of the cash
machine, you can instantly see whether you are making or
losing money each month. This is incredibly empowering yet
so few people undertake this.

Profit and Loss statements list all of the income you earn
and all the expense you incur each month. Include as much
details as possible. The amount in your income column
should balance with that in the expense column. What
you're left with is your profit or loss.

Analyse the profit and loss statement:

Are you living within your means (income greater than
expenses) or are you getting further and further into debt
(expenses greater than income)?
What are you investing in? What are you throwing your
money away on? Where is your income coming in from? Are
you totally reliant upon one form of income?
Do you know what you're spending your cash on each month?
Finally, what should you be spending your money on to
achieve your life goals?

3. Completing the Balance Sheet

Unlike the Profit and Loss statement, a balance sheet
provides a snapshot of your worth at a particular time. As
such it reflects your past financial habits.

A balance sheet includes everything you own - your assets -
and everything you owe - your liabilities.

In the liability column, learn what constitutes good and
bad debt. Good debt is attached to an asset and you
acquire good debt as you grow wealthy. An example might be
a mortgage on an investment property which is producing
positive cash flow through rent. 'Bad debt' is consumer
debt and it's attached to your lifestyle choices. For
instance, an outstanding balance on a credit card which has
been used to purchase a nice pair of shoes or an expensive
night out would be considered 'bad debt'.

Subtract the total amount of your liabilities from the
total amount of your assets to determine your net worth.

Analyse your balance sheet:

Where is your money tied up? What major assets do you own
besides your residential home?
What percentage of your liabilities is made up of bad debt
and what percentage is made up of good debt?
Finally, what should be the sum of your net assets to
provide you with the income you desire in retirement?

Only once you've prepared your balance sheet and income
statement is it then possible to set some financial goals
and targets which are both realistic and meaningful.
Filing, as the first step, may indeed be boring but it is a
critical first step in this process.

----------------------------------------------------
Pam Kennett is Founder and CEO of WealthBeing. WealthBeing
is a wealth education and coaching company which helps
individuals develop practical skills and knowledge in
wealth building. Pam has trained with Loral Langemeier, the
Millionaire Maker in the US and is based in London, UK. For
free resources and downloads visit
http://www.wealthbeing.co.uk or contact Pam direct at
pam@wealthbeing.co.uk

Critical Issues for Women and Financial Planning

Critical Issues for Women and Financial Planning
Women Face Unique Financial Challenges. If you were to
guess which issue women worry about most, would you guess
family, health, time, stress, or maybe equal rights?
According to a March 2000 gallop poll, the answer is their
finances. This response may surprise you now, but consider
the following list of financial issues unique to women.

Consider these results from a women-and-money incubator,
and research by Bruce W. Most and William L. Anthes:
- "Women are more intimidated than men about financial
issues
- Women earn less money than men
- Women are less prepared for retirement
- Women receive smaller retirement benefits
- Women live longer than men
- Women are poorer in retirement than men
- Women are more conservative investors than men"

We would also add
- Special difficulties for single mothers
- Women caring for elderly parents
- High-deductible health insurance plans cost women more
- Women may defer to men regarding financial decisions
- More women manage daily family finances
- Retirement issues because of divorce agreements
- Male-dominated financial services industry

Earnings Differences
It is a well-documented fact that women earn less than men
do. A study by the American Association of University Women
Educational Foundation as reported by Ellen Simon
{AP}:"Women make only 80 percent of the salaries their male
peers do one year after college...10 years after college,
women earn only 69 percent of what men earn...Even after
controlling for hours, occupation, parenthood, and other
factors known to affect earnings," the study found that
one-quarter of the pay gap remains unexplained.

Most and Anthes report that "According to the U.S.
Department of Labor, women working full-time, year-round,
earn roughly 74 percent of what men earn... (and) workers
in the age category of 45-54-the prime earning years for
most people-women earned $516 a week while men earned
$732." It gets even worse for single mothers with young
children whose "median income in 1998...was $14,248. This
figure is the lowest among all family types, representing
roughly one-fourth the median income of married-couples
with children...and approximately three-fifths that of
females with no children."

Retirement Differences
Women are often less prepared for retirement than men. Most
and Anthes also noted that a study that found 58 percent of
baby boomer women had saved less than $10,000 in a pension
or 401(k) plan, while baby boomer men had saved three times
that. In addition, the fact that women live longer than men
means that they need more money in their retirement than
men do.

Investment Differences
Also, a 1997 study by Dryfus and the National Center for
Women and Retirement Research showed that women investors
were more worried than men about running out of money in
old age, preferred more conservative investments, wanted
fixed/steady returns, were more unnerved by stock
fluctuations and worried more about investment decisions.

Social Security Retirement Differences
Of course, less money earned by women, means less money
saved for retirement or contributed to Social Security
benefits, and because women live 79 years on average while
men live 72, women retirees are poorer in retirement than
men. Most and Anthes note that according to the
Administration on Aging "...half the elderly widows now
living in poverty were not living in poverty before their
husbands died. The picture is even worse for older women in
many minority groups".

Decision Making
The next generation of retirees may have been raised in an
environment in which men handled the money decisions. More
women actually pay the weekly bills, but they may have
little knowledge of the larger family finances such as
retirement plans, Social Security, IRAs, insurance,
annuities, etc. because they may have deferred to their
spouse's decisions.

It is essential for women to understand the 'big picture'
of their finances, especially for retirement, divorce, or
death of their spouse. Because women make less than men,
are less prepared for retirement, and receive smaller
retirement benefits, they need to make sure that their
husband's retirement benefits will pass to them if their
husband dies first. Because women may be more intimidated
about asking questions of their attorney or financial
advisor, they may miss crucial details (such as single-life
annuity which may bring higher levels during the husband's
life but that ends when the husband dies first), or
incorrect beneficiaries on life insurance policies.

Divorce
During a divorce, women may be more concerned about custody
issues and keeping the house than their future retirement
and may agree to forgo the 401(k). Single parenting brings
a whole host of financial challenges, including lost wages
from parenting responsibilities and childcare and
babysitters. If the extra expenses and possibly lower
income are not included in the divorce settlement, the
single mother may find that she is unable to keep the house
and she loses the two most valuable assets: the house and
the 401(k).

Health Insurance
Women not only make less money than men, their health plan
may cost more reports Mike Stobbe {AP}. When an employer
changes to a high-deductible plan, it costs on average
$1000/year more for women than for men due to mammograms,
the cervical-cancer vaccine, Pap tests and pregnancy
related services. This is unfair, but while the inequity
exists, women must make an extra effort to contribute the
difference to a Health Savings Account or savings program
to avoid using credit to pay for the added medical bills.
We have personally experienced the $4,000 deductible per
year health insurance plan and, although it is better than
no insurance, it can certainly make a dent in the family
budget.

Care Giving
Another huge drain on women's finances is caring for their
aging parents. More women care for aging parents than men.
However distasteful it may be to condense a daughter's love
for her parents into a discussion of money, this issue must
be addressed so that women can prepare. Because of the
aging baby-boomer population, these numbers will soon
become staggering. If you add caring for young children
into the mix at the same time, the financial results can be
devastating.

What Should Women Do?
Because of the special issues facing women, it is crucial
that women educate themselves about finances and the
realities of financial gender inequity and plan for their
future. The male-dominated financial services industry is
just beginning to realize the unique financial planning
issues for women. Make sure that your trusted advisors
understand these issues and are helping you plan
accordingly. Don't be afraid to ask your advisors questions.

Summary Now is the time to begin planning for the future:
- Have a plan
- Increase your knowledge and understanding of financial
matters
- Utilize trusted professional advisors to implement your
plans
- Regularly monitor your progress.

----------------------------------------------------
Kent E. Irwin, ChFC, CLU, CAP, co-founder and CEO of
eFinplan.com. eFinPLAN is the first and only web-based
comprehensive consumer financial planning software designed
for people who are trying to do a lot of their own
financial planning. Find out more about how do-your-self
financial planning and how to reach your goals at: =>
http://www.efinplan.com/

Nationwide Home Mortgage Loan Company

Nationwide Home Mortgage Loan Company
If you are one of the lucky people now looking for a second
home in the mountains or at the beach, it makes sense to
use a nationwide home mortgage and put both your mortgages
with the same company.

The approval process is faster as the nationwide mortgage
company already has all your information and also the
credit score lookup is only done by one company. A lot of
people make the mistake of using a local in state company
for their mortgage needs, this is no problem for their
primary residents but for a second home the problems
becomes that the mortgage company can normally not help you
when your second home is located in another state.

Here it is important to use a mortgage company that will do
nationwide mortgages and home loans. As a general rule the
more states your mortgage company has sister companies in
the more help they will be to you when you need that new
mortgage in a different state. To find the perfect
nationwide mortgage company just contact a few of them a
get the a paper copy of your most resent credit report they
should be able to give you a fair quote based on that. This
way you don't have 3 different mortgage companies pulling
your credit because this will damage your credit score.
When looking for a second mortgage in a different state you
need to look at the mortgage company you are dealing with
look at how many states they have offices and look to see
that they can supply you with a mortgage in the state of
your need house.

The second thing you want to look at is the mortgage rate
the company can offer you. Let the mortgage companies
compete against each other for a better rate for you and a
lower payment each month. Also keep in mind that you now
will have two mortgages with the same company maybe it
makes sense to combine the two mortgages into one and that
will give you lower payments. You can in most cases apply
for the loan online or call the company 1-800 number an
talk to a representative. This will give you the most
answers and the representative can guide you though the
process.

Just remember to get competing quotes and let the
representative know that you are getting quotes from 3
different other mortgage companies this will sometimes make
them sharpen the pencil a bit on your mortgage rate.

So for a second home mortgage in another state it is
important to find a nationwide mortgage company that can
take care of both your mortgages. Never get two mortgages
by two different mortgage companies you will end up loosing
money doing that. Also when getting a second mortgage
remember to get quotes from at least 3 different nationwide
mortgage companies to check the best rate and letting the
companies compete against each other.

Getting in contact with a nationwide mortgage company is
not as hard as you might think as their business is to
attract you to them, you business is getting the best rate
from them.

----------------------------------------------------
Jim Power is a writer for the home mortgage information
site http://www.mortgagesave.com if you want more
information about mortgages please visit
http://www.mortagesave.com