Financial Miscellaneous 101

Free Money?

2011-12-31T23:59:00.001-05:00

Free Money?

You know you never know just what you are going to find on the Internet! I say that because I have happened upon a site that is in a way just giving away free money!

Actually it is a site that was started by someone who started their own business (fulfilling a dream that they had always had!) and then sold their business for a lot of money!

Now that they are financially free they have started a website for those who are in need and are looking for some financial help!

And you know the oddest thing about this site? IT WORKS! Now I'm not saying that you are going to make millions of dollars but I have seen people on this site receive on an average of $100!

____________________________

Updates!

September 2008! - One disaster relief organization received a $75,000 donation in 5 days!

July 11, 2008

You can also use this site if you would like to start a memorial fund in someone's memory!

July 14, 2008 - here is an excerpt from someone who has received donations of money in the past from this website!

"Thanks to all of you I'm able to pay my back taxes. Wow, what a relief. I'm so blessed by all of you, and will never forget your kind acts. Without your help, I would be homeless soon. Words just can't express my gratitude enough."

A woman who is requesting $500 in donations for her and her family to help them get back on their feet has received $100 in donations so far!

August 10, 2008 - a woman just joined the group and is requesting $12,000 so that she can buy her family a mobile home so that they can have somewhere to live and have a home of their own!

A Government Grant Program That Is Suppose To HELP People?

2011-08-15T13:35:00.001-04:00

I have a blog called Grant Basics 101 where I blog about different grant programs that are available.

Most of my blog posts on the above-mentioned blog are about individual grant programs but there are times when I come across information about grant programs, that while they are not for individuals or for-profit businesses, they will hopefully be of benefit to individuals.

Here is one of those programs:

Some states will get government grant funding to help boost oversight of health insurance premiums. The $1-million grants will help many expand public access to information about rate hikes and hire experts to review proposed charges. The grants will enable many states to expand public access to information about rate hikes and to hire experts to review what insurers want to charge.

More than a dozen states also plan to seek additional authority to block insurance premium increases they deem unjustified, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Fewer than half of state insurance commissioners have comprehensive "prior approval" authority, which gives them the power to review insurance company records and stop proposed rate increases in the individual and small-group markets. Some states do not even require insurers to publicly report proposed rate hikes.

The Obama administration and many consumer advocates had hoped that the new healthcare law would give all states full rate review authority. But, blocked from including such a provision in the final legislation, the administration has urged state leaders to push forward on their own.

Commissioners in several states with a history of minimal oversight such as Alabama, Illinois, Louisiana and Montana are doing just that. And many states that already have prior approval authority — including Florida and Maryland — are taking steps to strengthen their oversight.

The District of Columbia also will receive a grant. Said a spokesperson, "the grants would "restore some basic fairness to the health insurance market."

But expanding government power remains controversial in many states. And the insurance industry, which opposes prior approval authority for regulators, has been a powerful force in many state capitols.

Arizona, Connecticut, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia have no comprehensive authority to block rate hikes and do not plan to seek legislation to bolster their oversight powers, according to the Health and Human Services Department.

Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota and Wyoming did not did not receive grants because they did not seek them.

In California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration specifically ruled out seeking prior approval authority. Consumer Watchdog, a Santa Monica-based advocacy group, urged the administration to reject California's grant application, saying the grant would "prevent, not develop, any effective state regulation of health insurance rates." California nonetheless received its grant, which is to be used to streamline collection of data on proposed rate hikes.

The administration would continue to work with states to enhance their oversight even if they did not apply for grants.

What I take this to mean is that some states will be provided with grant money to help reveiw the cases where there are proposed hikes in healthcare premiums and if they oppose such a hike or receive enough negative feedback from the public (who are the ones that would have to pay such increases!) - hopefully the states (well at least some of them) will be able to step in and do something about it!

I have read and seen (and heard) many comments about how high a price people are paying for their health insurance and hopefully this grant program will be able to help!

People Asking For Help

2011-08-09T17:53:00.000-04:00

Asking For Help

"I am a single mother with her back up against the wall in desparate need of money to help send my son to college this fall. He needs $7400.00 in addition to the loans he has been able to receive.I have did all I know how to do my credit won't allow me to help him. Please help me help him. He promised he would finish school and stay out of trouble. He's done his part, Please help me make my word good."

This seems to have all gotten started when I posted the blog post about asking Oprah for money. It seems that people have mistaken my blog for Oprah's blog but such is not the case.

I surely do hope that you get the help that you are asking for. I also suggest that you take a look at my Grant Basics 101 blog which has blog posts about government grant programs and other ways that you may be able to get money to help you.

2011-06-09T17:55:00.002-04:00

"
I would like to Ask for Help for my Family. My daughter is 1 and has been diagnosed with Microcephaly, she will be disabled for the rest of her life. we currently live with my husbands family in a small house our two sons share a room and me and my husband share the smallest room with our daughter. We have no room to breath or walk. We tried to get a home but have been turned down due to not enough funds. We live paycheck to paycheck. I have been looking for work the last 5 months and no one will hire me.

We are asking if people would please help us get a home of our own. we would like to raise $30,000 I know its a lot to ask for but our family wont even help us. I can not keep going like this it will cause us to split or loose what we have. Even if you live in Powder Springs Ga and would donate a house to us we will take it no matter the condition. Please some one out their help us. And yes I have tried the grant thing its all scams and they do not give money away tried everything and get turned down.

please email me at c~~~~@gmail.com if you would help

As someone that does grant research for a living I can assure that the grant thing is not all scams! I have a blog about grant programs called Grant Basics 101 and I also have a website about grant programs as well.

I have also seen many websites online created by people who are asking for money and donations. I even read an online article about a woman who was able to save her and her family's house - what she did was create a website asking for donations and she got enough money to save her home from foreclosure.

I really do hope that you get the help that you are asking for.

Credit Report Fact!

2011-05-19T11:59:00.002-04:00

You are entitled by law to get one free copy of your credit report per year!

More Restrictions for Missouri Payday Loan Companies « CBS St. Louis

2011-03-17T14:27:00.000-04:00

More Restrictions for Missouri Payday Loan Companies « CBS St. Louis

You should really read this if you are ever considering getting a payday loan!

High School Students - Would You Be Interested In A $40,000 Scholarship Program?

2011-03-17T13:35:00.001-04:00

High School Students - Would You Be Interested In A $40,000 Scholarship Program?

Working From Home! - Rose's Blog: Survey Says That Nearly Half Of People Are Conside...

2011-03-15T17:27:00.000-04:00

Working From Home! - Rose's Blog: Survey Says That Nearly Half Of People Are Conside...: "I found another interesting article online about people who hate their job! Here is an excerpt: 'To no one's surprise, the top reason emp..."

Job Opening - Security Officer

2011-03-03T13:05:00.000-05:00

The Fork Union Military Academy is seeking an evening TAC Officer to provide additional security and the monitoring of dorms in the evening.

The position will not entail training.

Responsibilities include:

performing physical headcounts while patrolling the assigned dorm
reporting any medical emergencies to the Infirmary or other serious incidents as defined to the Commandant and Deputy Commandant
and completing evening journal entries while on shift.

The hours are Monday through Friday from 11:00 PM to 6:00 AM with periodic weekends from 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM.The place of duty for this position is assigned dorm with periodic patrol of the outside area/campus.Please submit resume and qualifications to Al Williamson, Upper School Commandant at williama@fuma.org or fax to 434/842-4242.

The IRS! - Did You Know.........

2011-03-02T18:42:00.001-05:00

Did you know that the IRS has outsourced their work and is putting the public's info into the hands of people who are outside of the US?

To read more about this just click below:

Don't Mess With Taxes!

Do You Have A Bad Credit Score?

2011-02-15T14:52:00.001-05:00

If your credit score is at or below 600, then you are considered as having a bad credit score!

Have You Ever Heard Of Kevin Trudeau?

2010-11-29T17:19:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard of Kevin Trudeau? He's the guy that comes on late-night TV with his infomercials. He has written many books, ie "Debt Cures", "Free Money" and books about weight loss as well as other books relating to financial subjects.

It seems that he is in trouble (again) with the FTC who claims that he is fraudulent. According to the FTC, he has been branded as a snakeoil salesman "who misleads consumers into buying a wide-range of products that he claims can help people beat cancer, fix their finances, improve their memory....basically, fix anything".

Trudeau continues to say that he hasn't done anything wrong. Not one consumer has filed a complaint against Trudeau with the FTC.

He has vowed to continue on with what he is doing.

Want To Start Your Own Business But Are Having Trouble Finding Funding?

2010-11-23T16:42:00.000-05:00

Here is an excerpt:

Bad Credit Small Business Startup Loans : Poor Credit Can’t Stop the Entrepreneur in you

If you want to start a small business but are not able to do so due to lack of finances, go for bad credit small business startup loans. With the help of bad credit small business startup loans you can start your own small business. Bad credit small business startup loans are basically of two types secured and unsecured.

ABOUT BAD CREDIT SMALL BUSINESS STARTUP LOANS

Bad credit small business startup loans are for those people who are suffering from bad credit status and want to start their own small business. A person can be tagged as a bad creditor due to various reasons like arrears, defaults, IVA, CCJ, bankruptcy, late payments etc. Bad credit small business startup loans can be availed by all such persons.

Bad credit small business startup loans are basically of two types, secured and unsecured. To avail a secured bad credit small business startup loan you’ll have to place one of your properties as collateral against the loan amount. This can be any of your personal properties like home, car, bank balance or can be your commercial property. On the other hand you don’t have to place any security to avail an unsecured small business startup loan, but the interest rate is slightly higher compared to secured loan. With secured bad credit small business startup loans you can avail a varied amount with repayment duration ranging from 3 – 25 years. While with unsecured bad credit small business startup loans you can avail varying amounts for a period of 1 – 10 years. The interest rate of bad credit small business startup loans is slightly higher because they are advanced to bad creditors, but with good research you can find a lender with reasonable interest rate.

BAD CREDIT SMALL BUSINESS STARTUP LOANS

Bad credit small business startup loans are very beneficial for people who are suffering for bad credit status. With bad credit business startup loans you can start your own business and regain your position in the market. Also by regular payment of loan installments you can increase you credit score.

Bad credit small business startup loans offer flexible repayment options. If you want to avail a small amount you can opt for unsecured bad credit small business loan. On the other hand if you need a bigger amount go for the secured way.

HOW TO APPLY FOR A BAD CREDIT SMALL BUSINESS LOAN

You can apply for bad credit small business startup loans by visiting banks, financial institutions, lending firms personally or you can apply online also. To apply via Internet you just have to fill up an online application form giving details like the loan amount you wan to avail, period of loan etc. Applying online is hassle free, consumes less time and requires less paperwork.

Job Openings!

2010-11-09T16:15:00.000-05:00

There is an online site that has posted some job openings. The name of the online site is called "Meetup.com".

It is a New York City-based company.

Since these job postings are for jobs within the company itself I have not posted about them on my Working From Home Blog because these are not jobs that you will be able to do working from home.

To find out more about these job openings just click here

Forex - What Does It Mean?

2010-05-07T15:38:00.003-04:00

Of course I have seen this term mentioned again and again and I even looked it up once just to see what it was all about. Personally I wasn't too interested in it but just in case you are.....

here is a definition of forex that I have found online:

An over-the-counter market where buyers and sellers conduct foreign exchange transactions. The Forex market is useful because it helps enable trade and transactions between countries, and it also allows an investment opportunity for risk seeking investors who don't mind engaging in speculation. Individuals who trade in the Forex market typically look carefully at a country's economic and political situation, as these factors can influence the direction of its currency. One of the unique aspects of the Forex market is that the volume of trading is so high, partially because the units exchanged are so small. It is estimated that around $4 trillion goes through the Forex market each day! also called foreign exchange market.

Looking For Work?

2010-02-20T18:49:00.003-05:00

Here's another job opening that I found online.

Every heard of "Dollywood"? Dollywood is an amusement park-type place run by Dolly Parton (I'm sure you know who she is).

Anyway they are looking for summer time workers and there are quite a few job openings available.

Since this is not a work from home kind of position, I posted about it here instead of at my Working From Home Blog.

You can find out more about these job openings by clicking here.

A Tax On Grocery Bags - Part 2!

2010-01-17T17:29:00.002-05:00

This is continued information from a previous post here on this blog.

Well it seems more and more stores are starting to charge their customers for using paper bags. I saw a new post about this subject on one of the forums that I belong to.

I was surprised to see how many more places are charging their customers for using the stores plastic bags. In my own local area I really know of only one store - Aldi's that charges customers for using their bags. They charge something like 25 cents per bag.

It's going to make grocery shopping a more expensive trip.

It certainly is not going to be a good way to help people get out of debt! It is certain going to contribute to a person's credit card debt if they are paying for their groceries with a credit card!

Be Careful When You're At The ATM Machine!

2010-01-14T20:52:00.002-05:00

Online there is yet another article warning people to be careful when they are using their ATM cards!

There are scams going on in which someone can find out what your ATM codes are and they can use that of course to withdraw money from your account - be it your credit card account or your bank account!

The article provides many helpful tips and advice on how you can save your ATM information from being stolen!

If you need credit card help there should be a toll-free number provided on your credit card

To read the article, just click here.

Purchase Structured Settlements! One Way To Get Some Quick Cash Is.......

2009-12-11T09:47:00.000-05:00

If you are receiving structured settlements either from a lawsuit or some other means you may be able to get some "quick" cash by going to a company that will purchase structured settlements!

How this works is that the company will purchase your structured settlement and pay YOU a lump sum in cash. Companies that purchase structured settlements will purchase your structured settlements so that then they receive your structured settlements and YOU will receive a lump sum payment in exchange for your purchase structured settlement.

You do have to be careful though because there are a lot of places with the advertisement of "we purchase structured settlements" and I have even seen a few commercials on TV from lawyers and law firms saying that they also purchase structured settlements. There are also advertisements both online and off saying "we will purchase your structured settlements for cash!

Some places offer to give you a free quote before you make the decision to let them purchase your structured settlement. Some of these companies will also provide you with information on buying and selling structured settlements at not obligation or cost on your part.

There is even an option of you purchasing structured settlements yourself if you are thinking about investing your money. You pay someone cash for their structured settlement and you in turn receive the installment payments of the structured settlement yourself!

So if you're looking for a way to be able to get cash you may want to look into companies that purchase structured settlements. It is a way for you to be able to get some quick cash!

Keep in mind though that some of these companies that purchase structured settlements intend to profit from their purchase, and sometimes their offers may seem quite low so it is a good thing for you to shop around to get the best (free) quotes available from companies that want to purchase your structured settlements.

Tips To Avoid Vehicle Theft!

2009-12-02T19:32:00.003-05:00

Nobody likes to have their car broken into! It has happened to me and it has happened to a lot of people as well! I found an online article that gives some helpful tips to help avoid one's car being broken into.

Some of the tips are obvious like locking all of your car doors but it's surprising how many people don't do this! I know that there are people who want to make a "quick" stop into a store or something and they think that they won't be long but it doesn't take too long to steal a car - especially when you don't lock your doors.

Here is a link to the online article and hopefully it will provide you with some very valuable tips to help avoid your car being stolen!

Tips To Avoid Vehicle Theft!

Here Are Some Job Positions Currently Available

2009-11-25T01:50:00.000-05:00

Since I work from home doing grant research, I have a Working From Home blog. But I have come across some websites that are listing job openings that they have available. Here is another such site!

Liveperson.com has a number of job openings posted on their website. A lot of the job positions are in Israel but they also have some job openings for those that live in the United States. A lot of the positions are for manger-type jobs but there is an interesting position for a content writer as well.

You can find out more about their job openings by clicking here.

Can't Afford To Pay Your Income Tax?

2009-11-24T21:45:00.002-05:00

Did you know that every year, the IRS receives millions of returns from taxpayers who can’t pay what they owe before the April 15th deadline?

Banks Starting To Charge Debit Card Fees!

2009-11-23T21:04:00.004-05:00

The online articles say that you should check your receipts to make sure that you are not being charged a fee for using your debit card!

It seems that since President Obama wants to crack down on the ways that banks charge for credit card fees the banks have found an alternative source of generating some income for themselves and that alternative is to charge people for using their debit cards.

It seems that this year more people used their debit cards than they did their credit cards which has been the first time that this has happened.

It seems that a number of banks are coming up with something called "loyalty" programs for their debit card users. However the terms still require either a fee or that the debit card user meet specific terms to be eligible for the loyalty program.

According to one online site:

"Consumers need to have an eyes wide open perspective when it comes to financial services. Fees are going to be cropping up, but that also gives you a chance to comparison shop. There may be just as many good deals at the other end of the spectrum."

To read more about this and view the article, just click here.

Are You Looking For Work?

2009-11-05T20:29:00.002-05:00

Did you know that despite the news about there not being enough jobs for people, there are some industries that are begging for qualified workers!

One of the biggest industries that need qualified workers now is the health care industry! There are many job openings for nurses and home health care workers and aides. Also according to my Grant Basics 101 Blog, there are many job openings in our own government. Here is a quote from one of the online articles:

"Many of the positions, which require specific skills and offer salaries in the range of $30,000 to $45,000, have been vacant for six months or longer"

Since workers are needed so badly a hiring incentive program was recently announced to help encourage existing employees to refer viable candidates. Those responsible for bringing in new hires are eligible to receive $2,500 to $5,000, depending on the position. Also added in is a signing bonus for the new employees!

There are several online sites that you can go to that post job openings in your area. You should also look into working for the government as well because they have many job openings and government workers receive good benefits in addition to a highly competitive salary.

As far as other kinds of job openings are concerned here is another excerpt from an online article:

Things are even worse on the higher end of the pay scale. At a wireless leasing firm, a position for director of lead generation, which pays $90,000-$140,000, has been open for three months, with no candidates in sight.

Debt Collector Was Sued And Now Has To Pay!

2009-10-10T01:02:00.002-04:00

Here is a very interesting article about someone who sue a debt collector and WON!

The details are kind of complicated but hopefully after you read the article you will understand the whole thing better.

Basically it seems that the article is saying that the debt collector was in fault because they didn't properly review the details of the debtor and a judge ruled in the favor of the debtor.

Outsmarting A Debt Collector

Are You Praying For A Financial Miracle?

2009-09-28T20:12:00.004-04:00

Are you praying for a financial miracle seems to be one of the most popular blog posts on this blog. I'm guessing that that means that people are looking for a financial miracle even if they have to find it on the Internet!

I guess that I really shouldn't be surprised about this because so many people are facing financial crisis of one kind or another!

A lot of people are losing their jobs and they don't seem to be finding any promising prospect soon. If you have ever considered working from home then you should take a look at my Working From Home Blog.

Home foreclosures are on the rise but there is still some hope. Take a look at my The Foreclosure Blog to see how some people have managed to save their homes from foreclosure. There is even one story of a person who got their home back after foreclosure because the person that won the foreclosure bid on their house actually gave the house back to the homeowner!

I hope encouraging stories such as this will show people that there is still some hope!

Are you praying for a financial miracle? You just may get one!

Also be sure to take a look at my blog The Unclaimed Money Blog to find out more about unclaimed money and whether you or someone in your family is eligible to claim some of it!

"Confessions Of A Debt Collector"

2009-09-08T19:10:00.002-04:00

I found a very interesting article online about what it's like to be a debt collector. A real debt collector was interviewed about the various aspects of her job. While this would probably also be a good blog post for my Working From Home Blog because of a salary that a debt collector can make, it is also quite interesting to see how being a debt collector works.

I had my suspicions that these debt collectors got a commission off of the money that they collected but I didn't know that they had high quotas to fill (according to the online article) It also doesn't surprise me too much to know that some of these debt collectors are quite human in that some of them don't like to be harrassed theirselves or talked to in a negative way. And even sometimes they will speak to people who are in such a dire financial situation that the debt collectors "feel" for them but they still have to do their job. I remember one example from the article mentioned one person saying that they lost their job and that the wife lost the baby that she was carrying but still the debt collector asked "so when can you send in a payment.........".

It also seems that a debt collector's salary averages to about $14 per hour. BUT according to the article they have to make a certain quota or they risk losing their jobs.

The article also gives some advice on what debt collectors can and can not do as far as when they can call you and what they can say. There are also some good insights as to how sometimes the people they call can get the best of them by getting them to go "off script" or just by not co-operating.

A very interesting online article indeed!

Confessions Of A Debt Collector

Woman Feeds Her Large Family On $4 A Week!

2009-08-29T14:04:00.003-04:00

I found another interesting article online about how a woman feeds her large family (and pets) on $4 a week!

Of course the secret to this is coupons! The online article calls her the coupon queen! In one example she bought over $200 worth of groceries and paid less than $1 for all of them!

This is definitely something you may want to look into if you are looking for ways to save money - especially on food!

Sunday papers are loaded with coupons and mailing advertisements and circulars also have a lot of coupons in them. You can also even get coupons online as well!

Here is a link to the article:

Woman Feeds Family For Less Money!

Avoiding Those Banking Fees - Tips!

2009-08-11T01:09:00.003-04:00

I'm a very big fan of Selfgrowth.com and I found this article about tips to help one avoid those high banking fees!

I thought that I knew almost everything about how to avoid high banking fees - you know things like not using ATMs that are from another bank, etc.,....... But after reading the article I found some interesting stuff - especially about overdraft protection!

I always thought that overdraft protection was a good idea BUT I didn't know that there was a charge to have it!

It seems that there is a lot that I don't know!

Personally, I, myself, try to avoid banking fees but I have had them! I do have to make it a personal financial goal to stop incurring those banking fees! I have used other ATM's - mostly because I was in a rush and not able to get to an ATM that was with my own bank - so I used the ATM at the store I was at even though the ATM wasn't with my own bank. There was a charge for using that ATM plus there was a charge from my own bank for using that ATM! It does add up!

I realize that there may be instances where emergencies come up and you have to use an ATM that isn't with your bank but now in today's economy you have to try and save all the "pennies" you can - especially when it comes to those (high) banking fees!

I hope the article provides useful information for you all.

Buyer Beware! Especially With Your Credit Card!

2009-07-14T20:26:00.003-04:00

I found another online article showing yet another example of why it is a good idea to read all of the small print when you buy something with your credit card! In this case is the example of a simple rebate check that may cost you over a $100 on your credit card!

To Find out more just click the link below. If you have any comments about this article please feel free to add them here as well.

What do I think about this article? I'm glad that I read it although I personally haven't ordered this particular product. It seems to be that its getting easier and easier for companies to take advantage of peoples' credit cards! I'm even leery of giving my credit card number to the products that offer all those paid survey sites where people get paid to answer surveys (which I talk about more on my Paid Surveys Newbie blog.)

So people, lets be careful out there! - Especially with our credit cards!

That Rebate Check Could End

Up Costing You More!

Looking For A Job?

2009-07-05T23:26:00.003-04:00

I recently posted on my Grant Basics 101 Blog about how there are many job openings in the government! Besides government grants and programs our government also has a lot of job openings as well.

I found another article online about "6 Jobs That Are In High Demand" meaning that there are still job openings out there that are available for people who are looking for jobs and for people who are looking for work.

I won't give away the whole article but one of the jobs on the list that surprised me was that of web designer. I was surprised because I keep reading about web designers out there who are having problems finding clients but according to the article - this is a job that is in high demand!

I hope you enjoy reading the article and the reason that I didn't post this on my Working From Home Blog is because these jobs (for the most part) are jobs where you are working for someone else outside of your home.

6 In Demand Jobs!

College Students & Credit Card Debt!

2009-06-18T09:41:00.000-04:00

Here is an interesting article about college students and credit card debt! As soon as I read it I knew that I would be posting it here!

Paying Bills Online?

2009-05-30T23:29:00.004-04:00

This is something that you may want to consider doing yourself! I just added another bill account to my online banking at this late hour of the night (what the heck! I couldn't sleep!) and it made me realize just how convenient online bill paying can be! Not to mention the fact that you won't use as many stamps and it will definitely help save you money on postage! (Did I mention the fact that the cost of stamps has gone up again!)

I know that people have to be careful about their money and how they handle it but since I do work from home, paying my bills online has become quite convenient for me and it might be the same for you if you give it a try.

I remember the first time I paid a bill online for the first time! When I first opened up my bank account one of the customer service people at the bank showed me how to do this! He was very helpful and he showed me how one pays their bills online. It took me awhile before I actually did it myself because I was worried about something going wrong! Goodness knows that I don't need ANY mistakes with my bank account!

But I finally managed to do it - nervously of course - and I got through it! Now I'm glad that I did do it because it saves a lot of time and it saves me a lot of postage costs!

If you would like to try paying your bills online then you should talk to one of the customer service representatives at your bank and ask them to show you how. You might be very glad that you did!

Be Sure To Keep A Close Eye On Your Bank Account!

2009-05-28T20:37:00.003-04:00

It seems that the banking industry is finding new ways to gouge their account holders! Basically speaking banks are going to start to increase the banking fees that they charge their customers!

For instance some banks are going to double the fees that they charge for overdraft protection and some will even increase the fees that they charge for checking account maintenance.

An online article says that the banks say that consumers are using their debit cards more now than they are using their credit cards and since credit card interest is a big income generating thing for the banks they feel that they have to recoup their money (or should I say profit(s)) from elsewhere.

A good point that the article noted was that even though the banks got a big amount of money from President Obama's stimulus plan, the banks don't seem to be helping the consumers because of it. In fact it seems to be that the opposite is happening in that the banks are looking for yet other ways to profit.

The article didn't say that all of the banks would be doing this but they did give some examples of banks that will be. So if you're concerned and want to see whether or not your bank is on the list then I suggest that you check out the online article.

The Banks Are At It Again!

Want To Read About An Actual Government Grant Recipient?

2009-04-29T21:24:00.002-04:00

If you don't already know, I do grant research as a living.

There are so many people out there who are skeptical about government grants but I'm here to tell you that they do actually exist! As a matter of fact here is a link to someone who actually got 2 government grants to get their power shut back on!

Well I'm In The Process Of Filing My Taxes Online!

2009-04-10T01:08:00.003-04:00

I'm kinda almost finished though!

I must say that this is the first time that I have ever filed my taxes online! And for me - and I don't know why - but it felt like a scary thing to do!

First of all there was my local area tax which is called the Earned Income Tax - EIT for short. This is a tax that my local area has where residents are charged a 1% tax on any income that they have earned. Of course in the previous years I have always filed this tax the old way which was by filling out the form, paying the tax and mailing it in. But this year I decided to try and file online. Well the first time I tried to file this form online it wasn't working for me right and I got frustrated and stopped. Then a few days later I decided to try it again and it went almost 100% smoothly! I was still quite nervous filing it out maybe because it is getting so near the due date to file the income tax forms. But I did manage to get through it in one session and when I saw "your tax return has been filed successfully", I breathed a sigh of relief! *I should note here that while filing a tax return online may be more easier and convenient for some, I noticed that as far as my local tax return is concerned the company that handles it charges a fee for filing online if you owe any tax!

Ok so next comes my state (Pennsylvania) income tax form. Now while I was feeling good about filing my local tax online successfully, I was still a bit nervous about going to the next filing - I don't know why - maybe it was just because I was doing it for the first time! But after a slow start, I did successfully manage to file my state income tax form online as well and as well I got that same "your tax return has been filed successfully".

Goody! I was successfully able to file both returns online and I made it by the due date (which is next week!)

I haven't filed my federal income tax return online yet because doing 2 of them in one day is just too much more than my nerves can stand! So I still have a few days left yet to file my federal return online.

If you have never filed your income tax forms online before I'm here to tell you that it is kind of a scary thing - at least for me it was - but it may be something that you might be interested in doing. Of course you save the cost of a stamp but maybe that is just a small matter.

I'm blogging about this mostly because I don't know why I put myself in such a state of nervousness when I was trying to do this. In fact I think my nervousness and anxiety about doing this made it even worse! But I got through the first 2 forms and I'm feeling good! Now I have the one form - the federal - left to do.

If you're thinking about filing your taxes online you may find out that it isn't as hard as you thought it might be!

If You Have A Credit Card Then You Shoud DEFINITELY READ This Online Article!

2009-03-27T23:49:00.003-04:00

I found this article online and it is about some changes that are going to be happening to credit cards in the near future!

It's bad enough when one has managed to get themselves in to credit card debt and are looking for a way out but now these new changes might be affecting those who are paying their credit card bills on time!

While it has always been suggested that one read the fine print on their credit card applications, not a lot of people do so and they aren't aware of all the charges and fees that they may be subjected to!

There are so many interesting points in this article including information about the fees being charged for credit card cash advances! There are sometimes 2 fees associated with that! Although I'm sure that a lot of people are aware of this anyway because I see so many people at the ATM machines in places like the grocery store and gas stations getting a cash advance and I'm sure that while they may be aware of the fees associated with making such cash advances, I'm sure that they have a very good reason for making such cash withdrawals. They may need the money for some type of financial emergency or something. I believe that there is even one credit card company that is paying some users NOT to use their credit card and to return them!

The article also has some advice for consumers as well.

It is quite a long, interesting and informative article!

Big Credit Card Changes!

It Seems That California Is Having Even More Bad Money Problems!

2009-03-08T01:28:00.003-05:00

Now comes word that tapxpayers won't be receiving any state income tax refunds is there were supposed to get them.

Also some of those that work for the state have found out that they won't get reimbursed for travel expenses ie inspectors of things like nursing homes won't be getting reimbursed for the amount of money it takes them to travel to the nursing homes to inspect them. An online news article has said that some of these workers use their credit cards when paying for these expenses and if they aren't reimbursed that just makes their credit card balances higher! What's odd about it is that the state isn't even required to reimburse their state workers for their job-related expenses.

Also being withheld are college grants to students - government related grant programs.

For more information about government grant programs or college scholarships that you may be eligible to apple for, please visit my Grant Basics 101 Blog)

Some state workers are being mandatorily asked to not work for 2 days a month which of course means that they don't get paid for those 2 days which means they will make less money and will have less money to pay their mortgages and other bills.

Ironically, the lawmakers themselves receive as much as $4500 per month in expense allowances.

In California Taxpayers May Get An IOU Instead Of A Tax Refund!

2009-02-05T15:32:00.000-05:00

Like a lot of states, California is also feeling the "pinch"! Not since 1992 has the state issued IOU's instead of cash payments. In 1992, amid a budget crisis triggered by a deep recession, natural disasters and the Los Angeles riots, California ran short of cash and was forced to send out thousands of IOUs. They resembled checks but included a notice that they could not be paid by California "for want of funds."

In addition to maybe not receiving tax refunds, there is also the possibility that some student grant payments will not be made as well and that vendors may also not be paid! Under the state Constitution, schools and bondholders get first rights to any cash from the state. Among the first to get IOUs instead of payments would be business and individual taxpayers who are expecting refunds, local governments and recipients of grants from that state's student aid organization. Last year, more than 10 million taxpayers received state refunds totaling $8 billion.

Court-appointed lawyers, 1,700 judges, legislators and their staffs would also go unpaid. And officials are preparing to delay a popular program that helps elderly and disabled Californians by paying their property taxes.

Last year, nearly 5,500 homeowners benefited from a 32-year-old Property Tax Program, which was created to help keep low-income elderly people from being forced to sell their homes or lose them to foreclosure.

(For more information about student loans and grants, just click here)

There is a budget gap (projected to reach $41.6 billion dollars by the middle of next year) in California and no agreements between Govenor Schwarzenegger and the democratic legislators so far.

In a letter sent to the Democrats on Tuesday night explaining his veto, Schwarzenegger wrote: "The measures you sent me punish people with increased taxes, but do not make the serious cuts in spending necessary to balance our budget; do nothing to help keep California families working during this recession; and do nothing to help Californians facing foreclosure in this mortgage crisis."

The Top 10 Scams Of 2008!

2009-01-25T16:18:00.000-05:00

Here is a link to the top 10 scams of 2008!

It has been issued by the Chicago Better Business Bureau!

I won't give it all away but as someone that does grant research, I would have to agree that you should investigate places, people and sites that you want to do grant work for you.

Of course also included in the list are a lot of work-from-home scams as well!

Turbo Tax

2009-01-18T11:28:00.004-05:00

Well as you know we are right at the start of tax season! Yes that's right another year has gone by and it's now time to get ready to file one's taxes for 2008!

Personally I have quite a few tax forms that I have to prepare for this year including a local Earned Income Tax that I have to pay in my own local area - LaMott, PA

One of the most popular tax software packages seems to be Turbo Tax! - although I still choose to do my income taxes by hand - the old-fashioned way - LOL!

TurboTax is the #1-rated, best-selling tax software. Free Edition includes free IRS efile. Easily prepare your tax return and file income taxes online. You can find out more about this income tax preparation software by going to the Intuit website.

Comments Received

Hadyn said...

TurboTax provides many different tax software packages...

The IRS Is Giving Some Taxpayers A Break!

2009-01-12T07:26:00.002-05:00

With tax season here (already?) here is at least some good news for some taxpayers!

The IRS is trying to help make it easier for those that owe back taxes. They have relaxed some of their rules for those that owe back taxes.

The IRS Softens Some Of It's Rules!

The First Powerball Lottery Drawing In Florida!

2009-01-08T05:12:00.002-05:00

It seems that the first Powerball Lottery drawing taking place in Florida is big news!

Here is a link to the winning lottery numbers for the Florida lottery drawing!

If you would like to go to the official site of the Florida state lottery, just click here.

Here is a link to a YouTube video about the Florida Lottery.

Florida Lottery Rules

Florida Lottery Drawing Creates 9 New Millionaires!

Also be sure to visit my Unclaimed Money Blog to read my blog posts about the unclaimed money that includes winning lottery tickets that go unclaimed!

Asking For Donations?

2008-12-29T17:24:00.001-05:00

I received the following comment:

I'm in dire needs of a financial miracle to make my life better financially. I would like to enjoy Christmas with my family and be happy. The world is full of unlimited possibilities and I figure that if I ask I shall receive and with this I am asking that if anyone can understand my needs that they render to me any forms of cash financial donations to me to assist me in making my life more bearable.

Send all care finances to ................,

Firstly I'm going to have to tell you that I am not going to take responsibility for having someone's address, name and phone number on this blog unless it is a paid advertisement!

Secondly it can be considered quite dangerous posting such personal information on the Internet for the world to see!

There are quite a few legitimate sites where one can posts and ask for donations and I mention about one here.

Also too I just got finished posting on my Foreclosure Blog about a family that had managed to avoid foreclosure of their home by putting up a website and asking for donations.

There are quite a number of legitimate websites out there where you can post your pleas for donations to help you with your financial difficulties. And like the blog post above that I mentioned, you can also take matters into your own hands and put up a website or blog of your own so that you can ask for donations.

During these hard economical times people are facing many hardships but I have also found that there are those who are fighting for what they want and believe that where there is a will there is a way!

7/27/11 Comment Received:

"I would like to Ask for Help for my Family. My daughter is 1 and has been diagnosed with Microcephaly, she will be disabled for the rest of her life. we currently live with my husbands family in a small house our two sons share a room and me and my husband share the smallest room with our daughter. We have no room to breath or walk. We tried to get a home but have been turned down due to not enough funds. We live paycheck to paycheck. I have been looking for work the last 5 months and no one will hire me. We are asking if people would please help us get a home of our own. we would like to raise $30,000 I know its a lot to ask for but our family wont even help us. I can not keep going like this it will cause us to split or loose what we have. Even if you live in Powder Springs Ga and would donate a house to us we will take it no matter the condition. Please some one out their help us. And yes I have tried the grant thing its all scams and they do not give money away tried everything"

I'm sorry but I have to tell you that the "grant" thing is not all scams! I do grant research for a living and you can take a look at my Grant Basics 101 Blog and you will see that there are plenty of grant programs out there!

Paper Towels!

2008-12-20T20:55:00.002-05:00

I know that there is a big move to going "green" and recycling but there seem to be just some things that I would rather live with than live without!

For example, I was reading an online article about different ways that people "waste" money and one of those ways was buying paper towels. According to the article "there's nothing that can't be done with a re-usable dish cloth that you would need a paper towel for".

Now I'm sure that this is true but I just can't see myself (nor would I want to see myself) without having paper towels! I know that they do cost a lot - I remember a time when you could buy a roll of paper towels for a dollar! - but this is one of those items that I want to have a supply of!

Another Fee That Farmers May Have To Pay?

2008-12-05T21:42:00.003-05:00

As a person that does grant research for a living, there have been times when I have had to defend them but here is a strange story!

It seems that there is a proposed new fee that farmers may have to pay for some of their farm animals! Here is an excerpt:

"An Environmental Protection Agency proposal to combat air pollution from flatulent farm animals would require farms with large number of animals to pay annual fees of about $175 for each dairy cow, $87.50 per head of beef cattle and $20 for each hog."

If this proposed fee becomes law, it is estimated that some farmers could pay as much as $30,000 per year!

Farmers (as well as mostly everybody else) are struggling now as it is and as you can well imagine some farmers are not happy with this proposed fee!

You can read more about this proposed fee by going to the link below:

Making Farmers Pay For "Gassy" Animals?

Do You Have A Bank Account?

2008-11-25T21:49:00.000-05:00

I post this question because I was looking at one of the Adsense-related message forums and I saw that someone had posted that they can't believe that some people are still getting their adsense money by regular check. The person that posted stated that they think that Adsense should stop issuing Adsense earning by check!

Of course I think that this would be a huge mistake because without that option a lot of people would not be able to get their adsense earnings!

Just the fact that one is able to actually have a bank account in the first place is a blessing because not everyone is able to have a bank account. As a matter of fact I remember hearing a teller who worked at the bank saying that she couldn't even HAVE a bank account! There was even a time way back when I didn't have a bank account because I had been seriously overdrawn!

The problem with that is that the bank will actually let you be able to overdraw your account but then you get hit with these huge bank fees and that is what happened to me! In the meantime you can't open another bank account at another bank because you have it on your record that you owe another bank - so you can't open a new bank account somewhere else!

So if you do have a bank account - consider yourself lucky and be grateful that you are able to have it because having one and keeping one has gotten to be more harder - while in the meantime there are those who are not able to have a bank account at all!

Rebates? Question & Answer

2008-10-07T16:49:00.000-04:00

excerpt from online news

On June 19 of last year, we purchased several Fisher & Paykel appliances from University Electric in San Jose. At the time, the manufacturer was promoting a rebate on items bought before June 30. Based on our purchases, we qualified for a rebate of $900. However, because the items were not delivered until July 18, we could not submit the rebate forms before the deadline, as they required serial numbers from each model. The rebate administrator told us to contact University Electric and have them apply for the rebate on our behalf. I did so, and was assured we would receive the rebate. I've contacted the manufacturer several times over the last year and was constantly reassured the rebate would come, but it never has. At this point, my calls aren't being returned.

D~
San Jose

A miscommunication caused your rebate to slip through, says Garth Ship, a manager for DCS, parent company of Fisher & Paykel. There was some confusion as to whether the money was sent to you or University Electric, he says, and the closing of the rebate clearinghouse complicated matters.

Regardless, Ship says he cut a check for $900 and sent it to you via overnight courier. You've been given the package tracking number, just in case.

Your experience illustrates why rebates can be so dicey. Even if buyers jump through all the hoops correctly, they're still at the mercy of the fulfillment houses to hold up their end of the bargain. Getting a lower initial purchase price is immediate, and requires far less work.

Want To See A List Of Billionaires?

2008-09-17T13:38:00.000-04:00

Even though there are many people who are struggling financially, there are some who have managed to thrive in this economy!

The list of Billionaires is growing!

Billionaire Bachelor List

Advice From Someone Who Is Already Rich!

2008-09-15T14:38:00.000-04:00

I am sure that it is a dream of many people to become financially wealthy. Who better to get advice from about how to become wealthy than from someone who is already wealthy - Warren Buffet!

10 Ways To Get Rich!

$2 BILLION Bailout!

2008-09-10T19:21:00.000-04:00

Do you or have you owned Enron stock? If you do then you should take a look at the article link below! It seems that this $2 Billion has accrued interest over time! You should also know that the attorney fees come out to around $600 Million plus!

Billions To Be Shared By Enron Investors!

Paypal - Some Basic Information About......

2008-08-14T13:55:00.000-04:00

If you don't already have a Paypal account, I would highly recommend it! However you will need to have a bank account and / or credit card in order to be eligible to have a Paypal account.

There are some fees involved though. Many people don't realize that Paypal is only free for sending money. There is a fee involved for receiving money - even if the money is from donations.

It's always free to send payments using your PayPal account. Personal accounts can receive a limited number of credit or debit card funded payments per year and are assessed a transaction fee. To view your Personal account limit, log in to your account and click the View Limits link.

PayPal members with a Business or Premier account are charged a low transaction fee for receiving payments. For more information please be sure to visit the Paypal Website.

"25 Ways To Make Quick Cash"

2008-06-17T13:59:00.002-04:00

Below you will find a link to an article that lists 25 ways to make some quick money. I thought that most of them were merited and in fact some of the ways listed were quite good!

Here is an excerpt of one way that I want to include on my Grant Basics 101 Blog:

"Seek Emergency Assistance

Many charities provide services and items that you would otherwise spend money on, freeing up some dollars to apply to your most pressing needs. Among the most common of these are food banks and open-dining opportunities, help or waiver of utility costs, and clothing and other household essentials."

25 Ways To Make Quick Money

Tips To Help Save On Gas Money!

2008-06-13T19:35:00.000-04:00

As soon as I saw this online article I knew that I had to post a link to it from this blog!

Currently gas prices are at an all-time high and average at least $4 a gallon and to make matters even more worse that price is expected to rise to $5 per gallon!

How To Reduce Your Gas Costs!

Flood Insurance?

2008-05-11T18:04:00.000-04:00

As a grant researcher, I find that there is a lot of information (and grant programs too concerning those areas that have been hit by heavy rains, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.,.....When these areas have been hard-hit they can usually be declared as disaster areas and therefore those areas will be eligible for financial aid from the government.

However, the first step always involves what kind of homeowner's insurance one has. The first step is always to see what kind of benefits (financial money) one is entitled to when they have been hard-hit by the weather.

Many people may think that they have flood insurance as part of their home insurance package but that is not always the case! You should check and make sure that your home is covered for flood damage! You don't want to have to wait until you actually get some kind of flood damage and then find out that you are not covered! Here is an excerpt from an online article:

"Only about 1 percent of homeowners outside designated floodplains purchase flood insurance. Home or business owners in flood-prone areas are usually required to purchase flood insurance before they can get a mortgage loan"......

So what should you do if you find out that you don't have flood insurance? You can purchase additional coverage ("rider" policy) to include with your regular homeowner's insurance policy.

A Tax On Grocery Bags!

2008-04-13T12:51:00.001-04:00

I saw this headlined article and couldn't believe it!

There is a mayor who wants to put a 20-cent tax on plastic grocery bags! That means that a customer / shopper would have to pay an additonal 20 cents
for each grocery bag that they use!

I really think that this is so ridiculous! However I am reminded of my local Aldi store where shoppers are charged something like 25-cents to buy their grocery bags.

The tax is being proposed because of the feeling about how plastic bags are not good for the environment and to encourage people to re-use their bags.

Here is a link to the news story!

Paying Income Taxes - A Necessary Evil!

2008-04-05T11:06:00.000-04:00

Well I'm almost finished filing out and completing my income tax forms for this year. I have already completed my local tax form which is called an Earned Income Tax where you are taxed 1 percent of your income.

I have also completed my state income tax forms which was the big holdup because I had to wait until I got a Schedule C form from them - which I got a few days ago. (By the way you can always go to your state website and download tax forms so that you can have them right away.)

I think I have finished my federal income tax form but I want to make copies of that before I seal up the envelope and put a stamp on it. The form(s) are downstairs and I just don't feel like getting them right now - but I should be finished completing them though.

Since I'm self-employed and work from home, filing out my income taxes this year was quite difficult and more complicated. It was a lot more easier when I was working for somebody else!

However on the plus side there were some things that I was able to deduct as far as business expenses were concerned and now I have made a mental note to save my receipts that are related to business because I never really done that before.

Of course when you're self-employed that means more paperwork as far as one's income taxes are concerned but since I have worked for both the IRS and H & R Block, I am familiar with the basic procedure of filing out tax forms. In fact it will be fun to see which business expenses I can legally deduct as far as my business is concerned.

I was also noticing when I was filling out my income tax retunrs just how many things one has to declare as far as income is concerned. Lottery winnings, grants and even the interest you get from banks and the like! Other things like social security and disability income that you get are sometimes not taxable BUT if you want to claim the special tax stimulus refund then you have to fill out an income tax form. I know someone who is doing this and they are expecting a $300 refund!

I also will be getting a refund this year - thanks mainly in part to the business expenses that I was able to claim and deduct.

I started to fill out my income taxes more than a month ago and I'm just now getting to the end of it. But once they are in the mail I will be quite relieved!

You REALLY, REALLY Have To Be Careful About The Email That You Get!

2008-03-06T13:48:00.000-05:00

I just got finished posting to my Spam Blog about how one has to be careful about the email that one receives.

As things get more and more sophisticated so do too the scams!

Email will come to one's box saying that they are from their banks and they need to "check out" your account information. The email wants you to click on a link that is provided so that you can enter your banking or account information.

Like I said in my Spam Blog - DO NOT CLICK ON THOSE LINKS! Call your bank directly and ask if there is something wrong with your financial account.

While you may be clever enough not to fall for this kind of scam a lot of people do and the live to regret it!

Direct TV - Did You Know?

2008-02-17T13:29:00.001-05:00

If you have Direct TV, then as a subscriber you should know

that if you pay your Direct TV bill by phone there is a $5 extra charge for doing this. Direct TV encourages you to pay either by mail or online
if you do not pay your Direct TV bill then they will start to bill you for their equipment - something like $50 per each receiver box that you have installed. Subsequently Direct TV will send you mailing boxes so that you can disconnect your Direct TV boxes and mail them back to Direct TV so that you won't be charged for still having their equipment
if you can not pay your total Direct TV bill - pay at least something - even if it is only $10 because this will show that you are making the effort to pay your bill.

Are You Interested In The Stock Market?

2008-02-13T19:13:00.000-05:00

I was reading some adsense message board postings and someone brought up the subject of since Google seemed to be doing so well they were interested in buying Google stock which I thought wasn't a bad idea. Currently Google stock is at around $500 per share!

The only REAL dealings that I have had with the stock market was when I was in junior high school and we had the assignment of investing (imaginary) money into the stock market. I think I made something like $23 in profit!

Would I invest in the stock market today? I would as long as I had a good amount of security as far as my finances go. I wouldn't invest in the stock market to make a quick buck!

The Cost Of A First Class Stamp Is Going Up One Penny Starting In May!

2008-02-11T18:08:00.000-05:00

I just happened upon the article today!

This is the first that I have heard about it and do you know I still have my stamps from the last postage increase? May is 3 months away and it really doesn't matter because if I want to mail something I'll just have to adjust to the new postage rate.

The cost of stamps is not the only thing that will be increasing.

You can read more about it by clicking here!

Depositing Your Checks Without Having To Go To The Bank?

2008-02-09T23:51:00.000-05:00

Technology is advancing so rapidly today. People can do their banking and pay their bills online. Now comes word that those of us that do our banking online may now be able to deposit checks without having to go to the bank!

Confused? So was I at first but it really seems to be quite simple. The process involves scanning the check but it isn't a sure thing yet. It's currently being experimented on and it will depend on whether or not your bank will allow you to have such an option. A lot of people already have their checks direct deposited so this might be another very good option to have.

I certainly love the convenience of being able to do my banking at all kinds of hours! I especially hate those long lines on Fridays and I'm sure that a lot of other people do too!

Of course I realize that not everyone has a banking account but for those that do there seems to be another convenient option well on it's way!

Here is a link to an article that talks more about being able to deposit checks without having to go to the bank.

"The Curse Of The Lottery"

2008-01-30T21:33:00.000-05:00

I was watching a program called "Curse Of The Lottery" which is about people who have won the lottery. Some have won a few million while others have won over a hundred million dollars!

Some of the stories were good and some of them were so sad! You would think that with winning all of that money a person's problems would be solved but that didn't happen in all of the cases.

First I think that it is a requirement that you appear on television to accept your lottery winnings. (Although I do seem to remember that some people had their lawyers appear.) Once you appear on television then everyone will know that you won the lottery.

Another thing is that a lot of that lottery money will be taken in taxes regardless of whether or not you take your lottery winnings in one big check or if you opt to receive payment installments.

Even though the name of the show was "The Curse Of The Lottery" a few of the people that were featured in the show did go on to lead a relatively productive life. One woman even said that she kept her same phone number.

The rest of the stories were quite sad! One man who won the lottery killed himself! Another became so deep in debt that he spent all of his lottery money in a few years. Actually this man traded his lottery winnings for quick cash from one of those places that do that kind of thing.

It's really just too hard for me to say that winning the lottery is an entirely bad thing because money can solve a lot of problems. Unfortunately it can also bring in a new set of problems as well!

This hasn't stopped me though from buying lottery tickets!

Sometimes Customer Service Represenatives Can Be So Rude!

2008-01-25T13:16:00.000-05:00

Usually when I'm talking to a customer service representative they are usually pleasant and easy-going. But not this particular time! It's just so hard to believe that you could actually get two entirely different personalities when you call the same place!

On one of my previous occassions calling this company the customer service representative and I talked for almost a whole hour! And it was a very pleasant conversation with both me and the representative laughing!

That's why talking to this last one gave me pause for thought. She just seemed like she didn't want to be bothered and I wondered that maybe I knew more than she did and she didn't like it! (In defense of the topic of companies outsourcing to other companies this representative sounded as though she was from the US so I can't complain about not being able to understand her - I understood her quite well!)

There's really no sense in reporting her. Maybe she was just having a bad day?

If she doesn't like her job maybe she should read my Working From Home blog

Praying For A Financial Miracle

2008-01-12T09:26:00.003-05:00

"Question: I pray for a financial miracle, not in greed but for relief and to help so many others both directly and indirectly in the name of JESUS. I'm tired of poverty and really believe that GOD has provision (lottery jackpot) above and beyond here on earth. I can see a great future and GOD in the blood of JESUS does provide. I am not ashamed for this vision of the future that is prayed for. Is this good?

Answer from Jesus:

I can assure you that both God and myself would like to see the abundant life manifest on Earth. It was never God's intention that so many people should live in abject poverty. On the contrary, it was always God’s intention that everyone should share in the abundant life in a universal brother/sisterhood in which people would recognize the truth in my statement that inasmuch as you have done it unto the least of these my little ones, you have done it unto me.

I am not saying that you should not pray for abundance, both in your personal life and in the lives of others. However, a central theme on this website is that people need to change their attitude towards religion and towards their relationship to God. People need to move out of a passive state of mind in which they expect God to change their situation through some kind of financial miracle. Instead, they need to get into an active state of mind in which they begin to see themselves as Co-creators with God.

If you truly read the Bible, you will see that this idea is already incorporated in the teachings I gave 2,000 years ago. Take for example my parable about the talents. The person who buried his talents in the ground was rebuked by God because he had not fulfilled the essential command given by God to “Multiply and take dominion over the Earth.”

When you are sent into this world, God gives you certain gifts and talents, and it is your responsibility to multiply those talents. When you do, God will multiply your multiplication so that to him that has, more shall be added. If you bury your talents in the ground and passively wait for God to do it all for you, you are simply not fulfilling the covenant that God has offered to man.

So instead of praying for a financial miracle, such as a lottery jackpot, it would be more constructive to pray for God to enlighten you as to how you can play an active part in bringing about this new more abundant future. There are two ways for you to do this, and the first is to change your own state of consciousness. It is a universal law of God that if you want to change your outer situation, you must begin by changing yourself, your state of consciousness.

Begin by leaving behind the consciousness of poverty, which truly springs from a sense of being separated from God, and step up to the abundant consciousness. The abundant consciousness is the Christ consciousness in which you see yourself as a son or daughter of God. You will remember my statement that I am come that all might have life and that they may have it more abundantly. As you will see throughout this website, I came to show all people that they can rise out of the lower state of consciousness, the carnal mind, and attain a higher state of consciousness, namely the Christ consciousness.

The Christ consciousness is truly the abundant life, and when you attain that state of consciousness, when you seek first the kingdom of God, all else, including material abundance, will be added unto you in accordance with God's will and your soul’s plan for this life.

When you begin to attain the abundant consciousness in your own life, you can then work for bringing about the abundant life on a larger scale. I earlier said that it is God’s intention that everyone should share in the abundant life. So you need to consider why we currently have a situation on Earth with such an unequal distribution of wealth that a majority of the world's population live in abject poverty while a small elite live in incredible luxury. You will quickly realize that this is a manipulation of the original plan of God.

If the situation is to change, two things must happen. One is that more abundance must be created, and this can be done by using the laws of God. The best way to use the laws of God is to attain Christ consciousness because then you will be in alignment with those laws. So one viable way to change the current situation on Earth is to attain Christ consciousness and then see how you can help bring about more abundance that you share with others.

source
Ask Real Jesus

For more information about additional sources of money please check out my blog about unclaimed money

The Unclaimed Money Blog

Update!

One of my most favorite pieces of advice is to take something that you love and turn it into a business! Please take a look at my Working From Home blog to get some working from home ideas!

If you are looking for money or some sort of financial help you can take a look at my blog Grant Basics 101 which is my blog about government grants and types of free money that is available out there!

Tax Season Is Here!

2008-01-10T11:21:00.000-05:00

With the New Year comes the new tax season. I realize that it is only January but the sooner you face the fact that you have to do your income taxes the better off you will be!

There is the federal income tax, the state income tax and in more local areas (like my own local area I also have what is called an "Earned Income Tax" - yeah it's a bummer but it is a bummer that HAS to be done!

If you are not comfortable with doing your own income tax then by all means hire an income tax preparer to do your income tax. I used to work for both H & R Block and the IRS and believe me if you hire a good income tax preparer then they may be able to help you get a higher tax refund.

Beware Of Credit Scams!

2008-01-05T13:13:00.000-05:00

The Basics - 5 credit-fix scams to avoid

Theres no magical way to fix your credit score. Beware fast-talking crooks selling shortcuts.

Thinking of paying someone else to clean up your credit file? Anything they can do, you can do better. And cheaper.

But it takes time and dedication.

If your report contains genuine errors (read: debts that have been on the report beyond the allowable time or debts that really aren't yours, not just debts you wish weren't yours), you can fix that yourself for free. And with a minimum of hassle.

source
Money Central - MSN

I thought that this was a very good article to point out!

It seems that more and more ways are popping up offering to "help" people with their credit and sometimes people are in such a bad way that they will sometimes let themselves be easily scammed.

So be careful out there!

Be Careful About Those Checks!

2007-12-11T22:03:00.000-05:00

A check is merely an IOU, and IOUs can be written on anything. Someone once wrote a $15 check on an eggshell. The recipient took the eggshell to a bank in Canada, where it was cashed like any other check.

Family Begs For $1 Million Dollars?

2007-12-07T18:13:00.000-05:00

Here is an interesting article that caught my eye! It is about a family that wants $1 Million Dollars so that they can afford an apartment in New York City.

I have seen a lot of "cyberbegging" sites online and even though this wasn't a cyber-begging website it was placed as an ad in a New York magazine. Now I'm not totally surprised by this because I have seen a lot of sites where people are asking (or even begging) for money.

Although I seriously doubt it I wouldn't be too surprised if this family actually got what they were asking for.

I do have some problems with it though. I realize that sometimes once someone becomes used to living a certain lifestyle it is hard to give it up and they will resort to almost anything in order to maintain that lifestyle.

The article is not specifically clear about their situation although it does say that they want the apartment that's in their neighborhood. Where are they living now?

Another "ironic" thing is that the family says that it does have some money and I'm wondering why they are "working" with that money to secure a place.

But you can read the article and decide for yourself.

Have You Ever Heard Of "Eminent Domain"?

2007-10-22T14:11:00.000-04:00

Its really a terrible situation. Basically what it means is that the government can take your land or property. Here is a link to an article where business owners are facing this threat.

The power of eminent domain means that the government can acquire property from landowners whether they want to sell or not.

What is also interesting about this situation is that a proposed proposition was put on the ballot that would decrease the power of eminent domain but the proposition didn't pass - meaning that it didn't get enough votes (from the voters) to pass. Since the proposition to decrease the power of eminent domain wasn't passed then that means that the power of being able to take one's property by eminent domain is still there.

It also seems that a couple of the buildings are on the historic registry but can still be taken away by the eminent domain process.

There is an effort going on now to collect signatures for a ballot initiative that would prohibit governments from using eminent domain to buy property that would be turned over to private companies. Cities under the proposal still would be allowed to use condemnation powers to build hospitals, schools, roads and other public-use projects.

I believe that this is another reason why people have to get more involved in their community and use the power of their "vote". You may think that something like this won't affect you but indirectly it really does!

I do a lot of grant research work and unfortunately this is a darker side of the government and what it can do.

So far the situation is at a standstill. The eminent domain process takes some time to implement and in the meantime the government wants to be able to settle with the landowners but some of them do not want to move!

This is truly a "darker" side of the government - unfortunately!

Free Or Low Cost Dental Care

2007-10-14T14:20:00.000-04:00

There are still a few places around that still provide free or low cost dental care. For instance in my area - Philadelphia - there is the:

Catholic Worker Clinic - free medical and dental care

1826 E Lehigh Ave

Philadelphia, PA, 19125

Phone 215-426-0364

It is best to call first to make sure that they will be able to help you.

Another Big Worker's Strike May Be Happening!

2007-09-24T17:26:00.000-04:00

Here is a link to a blog post about a possible strike by GM Workers. What is interesting to note here is that if they do decide to go on strike they will receive $200 a week in "strike" salary!

This just goes to show that the "workforce" is not what it used to be! I remember that my father worked for the post office and that was the same job that he had until he retired. It's hard to be able to say the same thing today!

Mesothelioma

2007-09-24T03:26:00.000-04:00

What is mesothelioma?

According to Wikipedia mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is almost always caused by previous exposure to asbestos.

If you have seen this term mentioned before it is because the name is very popular! And it is popular becaue there are lawsuits going on where people are suing because they have contracted mesothelioma. For example the W.R. Grace company is up on criminal charges that they released dangerous asbestos fibers throughout a mining town.

The first lawsuits against asbestos manufacturers were in 1929. Since then, many lawsuits have been filed against asbestos manufacturers and employers, for neglecting to implement safety measures after the links between asbestos, asbestosis, and mesothelioma became known (some reports seem to place this as early as 1898). The liability resulting from the sheer number of lawsuits and people affected has reached billions of dollars. The amounts and method of allocating compensation have been the source of many court cases, and government attempts at resolution of existing and future cases.

There have also been instances where the cause of contracting mesothelioma was found with people who worked at shipyards or those who were in the military service.

It may be even possible that you could have a legitimate legal case against a company if you think you contracted mesothelioma. The best thing for you to do would be to either search online for lawyers or law firms that are handling similar cases or check the law firms in your own local area to see if they are handling similar cases.

Unclaimed Money Blog!

2007-09-23T16:08:00.000-04:00

I have started a new blog about "Unclaimed Money".

Even though there is some information about unclaimed money on my grants related page and my Grant Basics 101 Blog, this new blog will focus on unclaimed money and the related information about it.

"I Need A Car To Get To Work"

2007-09-22T17:16:00.000-04:00

Now first off don't get me wrong - having a car is great! I have been through both experiences of having a car and not having a car - and having a car is the better of the two!

However with all the jobs that I have had I would say that a good 20% of them warrented me having a car. These jobs were mostly my radio jobs where the radio stations were located so far away!

The rest of the jobs that I have had I could get to on the bus using public transportation. (Now that I work from home my "commute" is even smaller).

I keep seeing people posting about how they need a car to get to work and I'm wondering if that is necessarily so. I do grant research so I know that there are some programs out there to help people get a car but in order to qualify to apply for these grant programs you have to meet certain requirements.

I also do know that there are some jobs whose location is so abnormal that having a car is a necessity.

But while having a car is a great thing do you REALLY need it to get to work? Can you use public transportation? And what about when your car breaks down - how are you going to get to work then?

Home Equity Line Of Credit - Definition

2007-09-13T15:39:00.000-04:00

What exactly is a home equity line of credit? A home equity line of credit is a form of revolving credit in which your home serves as collateral.

You can also read Wikipedia's definition of what a home equity line of credit is by clicking here

Basically speaking you borrow money against the value of your home. Of course you have to pay that money back but a lot of people have been using this kind of tactic to get money quickly.

Have An Adjustable Rate Mortgage That You Are Having Trouble Paying?

2007-09-12T20:12:00.000-04:00

Here is a link to an article that offers some helpful advice for those that are having trouble making the monthly payments on their adjustable-rate mortgages.

The number of homes that are going into foreclosure are increasing at an alarming rate and something just has to be done to help people from losing their homes!

Sneaky Tactics By Debt Collectors

2007-09-03T08:54:00.000-04:00

Here is a very good article about some of the tactics that debt collectors may try on people that they are trying to collect from.

So many people are in debt nowadays and sometimes it seems as though the only solution to get out of debt is to get into more debt!

The article mentioned above talks about how some of the tactics that some debt collectors may try on on people are really not valid and they are just trying to scare people into paying their debt.

More News On The Ever-Increasing Foreclosure Front

2007-08-31T11:54:00.000-04:00

Here is a current article about Prsident Bush and the current foreclosure problems that are plaguing homeowners who can't afford to meet their monthly mortgage payments.

While the President said that he didn't approve of giving homeowners out and out grants, he did favor programs that would help homeowners with good credit to be able to re-finance their mortgages. However I think that a big problem with this is that there are a lot of homeowners that have bad credit ratings who need help with meeting their monthly mortgage payments. There are a lot of homeowners who have taken mortgages with very high rates and more worse they have taken out adjustable rate mortgages as opposed to fixed-rate mortgages. With adjustable rate mortgages the monthly mortgage payments are not the same every month and will sometimes increase to a lot more than what was paid the previous month.

I was watching one of those infomercials about how there is a lot of money to be made with foreclosures but all I could really think about when I was watching this program was about the people and families that have lost their homes!

Phony AOL Email!

2007-08-29T01:52:00.000-04:00

Here is a copy of a phone AOL email that I got:

Dear AOL Member,

This confirms that your AOL payment method has been updated to reflect the new information you provided. You can make payment method changes at AOL Keyword: My Account throughout your monthly billing cycle if you decide that a different payment method would better suit your needs. Please note however, that the billing method on record at 10:00 AM EST on your billing cycle date will be the one used to process your account charges.

You can access America Online`s secure, self-service Billing Center by going to AOL Keyword: My Account. Here you can review and modify your AOL account information online, anytime.

please use the following link--> AOL Billing Center

Please Remember: If your account information is not updated within 48 hours then your ability to use your AOL account will become restricted!

Sincerely,
Member Services
AOL, LLC.

First of all I can tell that this is a phony email from someplace claiming to be AOL because the link does not go to an official AOL website!

You have to be very careful about email nowadays because if you click on the link you could risk losing very important information. Some of these links will ask you for your log-in information including your password!

In some cases you might get phony email from your bank asking you to "verify" your information by providing important information about your account.

When you come upon an email that asks you to click on a link, put your cursor over the link to see where that link is. If it's not an official site then do not click on that link. If you have an association with the company it is best to call them first as opposed to being involved in some kind of scam email that could possibly ruin you!

Unclaimed Money - It's Looking Mighty Good To Others!

2007-08-21T00:00:00.000-04:00

For more information about "Unclaimed Money", just click here

Most of the unclaimed property is cash from dormant bank accounts, unclaimed utility deposits, insurance benefits, premium refunds, uncashed checks and trust accounts.

One state has returned $546 million to rightful owners over the past five years, but all that cash proved too tempting for Arthur Vincent Coppola, 39, of Kennelon, N.J.

Coppola was sentenced Tuesday in Tallahassee to 30 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $57,000 in restitution for faking the identities of two Floridians to collect more than $290,000 in unclaimed cash.

Is Your Mortgage In Trouble?

2007-08-20T22:44:00.000-04:00

Is Your Mortgage In Trouble?

Here is a very interesting article about a loan company that went bankrupt. Unfortunately a lot of people that had mortgages with this company simply thought that since the company had gone bankrupt that they didn't have to pay on their mortgages anymore.

WRONG!

Have You Ever Considered Donating Your Car?

2007-08-11T10:02:00.000-04:00

Have you ever considered donating your car?

At first glance, donating your car might seem like a worthy thing to do but that is only if you have the car to donate.

Now-a-days people need their cars more than ever!

Need Financial Help With Paying Your Utility Bill Before It Get Shut Off?

2007-08-08T00:16:00.000-04:00

I just posted on my Grants Basic 101 Blog about how you can get help if your utility company is going to shut off your power.

If you have received a shut-off notice then that means that the situation has gone very bad because there are some things that can be done BEFORE you get to this point.

First of all you should call your utility company to see if there are any type of payment arrangement plans that you can make to pay your utility bill. A lot of these utility companies will give you an extension in order to help give you more time to pay your bill. If you are still having problems some of the utility companies will send you information about grant programs that may be able to help you financially with your bill.

There is also another option that will at least help delay your bill for about three months. You still are liable to pay the bill but at least you will have some time to get the money together. This is often an overlooked and not known tactic that can be done if you need more time to pay your utility bill.

Making Money Online

2007-08-05T21:44:00.000-04:00

Make Money Online!
Making Money Online!

So many people are interested in making money online and they keep searching for information to help them make money online. Of course you have to know that a lot of these "make money online" things are just a scam but there are some legitimate ways to make money online.

One way is with Adsense. Adsense is a part of Google. Adsense is basically a program where you add ads to your website or blog and you get paid everytime a visitor to your site clicks on the ads. If you're curious about how much money some people are making using adsense then here is a link to an article about it:

Just How Much Money Can You Make With Adsense?

Now first of course you have to have a website or blog and you have to join Adsense but Adsense is free to join. You submit your site so that it can be reviewed and approved and once your site is approved then you can go through the process of adding the adsense ads to your site. Once your adsense earnings reach $100 for the month then you get paid either by check or bank transfer. If you don't make $100 during the month then your earnings will roll over into the next month until you reach the $100 and then you will get paid.

I want to stress that adsense is one of the legitimate ways to make money online. Although it will involve work with your website or blog there is still the basic thing that you are actually making money online! And some people have earned enough adsense money to make it their major source of income!

Adsense is about one of the only legitimate ways that I know of to make money online but there are others. Some people have managed to start very successful businesses online. They give lessons, the offer tutoring sessions and they sell things. Many people have managed to start businesses buying and selling on Ebay!

So there are some legitimate ways to make money online.

Avoiding Foreclosure - Help

2007-08-01T21:55:00.000-04:00

As the number of foreclosures increases there may be more help available for you then you realize:

Here are some very good tips to follow to help you to try to avoid foreclosure

Do NOT ignore the lender.

Somehow getting behind on a mortgage comes with a built in belief that phoning your lender constitutes a sin or that a call to a lender will result in their ripping your head off right through the chord. In truth, most lenders appreciate knowing why you are having trouble and like updates on how things are going, especially when your problems have justified reasons like health issues or the loss of a job. Treat letters from your lender as wake up call from a concerned neighbor rather than a threat from a bully. Remember – banks want to help get you back on track, they want their payments not your house. If you do not think you can talk to them yourself about a plan there are professional foreclosure negotiators who can help if you have fallen behind.

And this tip I like the best!

Do NOT think you have no options, Do NOT fail to take advantage of
them.

You may believe, or your lender may lead you to believe, that you must pay them in full or lose your home to foreclosure. In fact, many options exist which will allow you to keep your house and stop the foreclosure proceeding without paying all of your arrearage at once. Some choices may even reduce what you owe on your property by tens of thousands of dollars. Almost everyone has some options and the sooner you act the more options you have. As the foreclosure date gets closer, options continue to become unavailable until by the foreclosure date only payment in full or a bankruptcy filing remain. Read more about what foreclosure prevention options you have and take action as fast as you can.

Banks Pull In Over $1 Billion Dollars In Overdraft Fees!

2007-07-29T10:44:00.000-04:00

Another interesting article that I found online!

Banks are certainly making a lot of money!

According to the article most of these overdraft fees come from atm transactions and debit card purchases.

The Federal Minimum Wage Will Increase This Week!

2007-07-22T16:26:00.000-04:00

The federal minimum wage will increase this week from $5.15 an hour to $5.85 an hour.

What is even interesting to note here is that there are some states that have an even higher minimum wage! It's kind of confusing but it is politics.

Now even though some politician gripe about how $5.85 is still a very low wage, we don't see them doing anything to increase the minimum wage.

The article gives an example of a single person who makes minimum wage and if you go by $5.85 and hour that amounts to around $12,000 a year. The poverty level for singles is around $10,000 a year.

I do know this - If companies/businesses are required to pay a higher wage then they are going to look for ways to cut costs - outsourcing, not providing benefits.......

I also have a Working From Home Blog and the reason why I mention this is because a lot of people want to start their own business and be able to work from home. But there are those that want to work from home but they also want to be able to work for a company but they want to be able to work for that company from their home.

I became disillusioned working for someone else a very long time ago. My dream job has always been to work from home and that is exactly what I am doing now!

Real Estate Investing?

2007-07-20T15:46:00.000-04:00

I can see why a lot of people recommend real estate investing as a good way to make money. It's one of the few ways that I know of where you won't have to pay taxes!

But there are some things about it that I'm not too comfortable with. For one there are expenses involved when you buy and sell real estate and the longer you hold on to the property the more in expenses you are going to have to pay. If you put a tenant in your property then you have to make sure that its a good tenant that will pay their rent on time every month because if they don't then that will be more expenses that you may have to incur. It may even get to the point where you will have to legally evict your tenant. I have had some experience with this and though it may be different for each state I can tell you that the process of legally evicting a tenant is not a pleasant process to go through. It also give you that stereotype of being the cruel landlord!

Another thing is foreclosures. While foreclosures may be a good deal for real estate investors I can't help but think about the people who owned the property in the first place. It is not a very pleasant thing to go through when your home is being foreclosed on.

I know that Donald Trump is a big advocate as far as real estate investing is concerned and why wouldn't he be? Real estate investing is where Donald Trump has made a lot of his money.

So if you're thinking about investing in real estate then there is a lot of research that you should do because you do not want to get in way over your head!

AAA

2007-07-19T14:27:00.000-04:00

AAA - Keystone!

Yes I think being a AAA member is well worth the cost if you can afford it. There have been times when my car would stop working and those were times when I was glad that I was a AAA-Keystone member! I have had my car get battery jumps, quick repairs so that I could get home and there was even one time when I was able to get gas from AAA. All in all a very good deal and well worth the price of membership!

I Don't Have A Bank Account

2007-07-14T15:16:00.000-04:00

If you don't have a bank account - don't worry because you are not alone! I remember a time long ago when I had to close my savings account because they were just taking out too much money in fees. It would have got to the point where I would owe THEM money - so I had to close the account.

I do know that there are at least a few banks that let you open a checking account with a minimum deposit. There are no minimums (as long as your balance isn't negative) as to how much money you can have in your checking account. If you can manage it please try to have a bank account - at least a checking account. Manage to save from at least $50 so that you can open a checking account. While you have to be careful that you don't have a negative balance in your account if you can keep that balance above 0 try to at least keep it that way.

I have to tell you that I have talked to a few bank tellers in my time and what gets me is that I actually talked to a woman bank teller who told me that she didn't even have a bank account. I thought that was strange when she told me but I have since come to realize that just because you work at a bank doesn't mean that you are rich.

Waitress Gets $10,000 Tip!

2007-07-13T15:27:00.000-04:00

Well it just goes to show you that you never know where money will come from!

This waitress that worked at a Pizza Hut got a $10,000 gift from someone. It's hard to say whether or not it was a tip or a gift but it doesn't really matter because I'm sure that amount of money will always be welcomed!

You can read the entire story by clicking the link in the title.

CyberBegging For Money

2007-07-12T16:58:00.001-04:00

The only successful cyberbegging website that I have seen so far is the one by the woman who was asking for money so that she could get breast implants. She managed to get enough money sent to her so that she could have the operation.

With that being said I have been to a few sites where people post asking and quite literally begging for money. While missing a few bills can make one feel frustrated and depressed enough to post their financial woes, I'm quite amazed at the people who have actually asked for amounts of $50,000 and above!

Do they really think that someone is actually going to send them that amount of money?

Some people are so desparate that they include their phone number and address in their posts which isn't a very good thing to do. You run the risk of getting scammed, junk mailed and worse. But like I said people are so desparate that they include their personal information with their posts.

I have only really seen a few examples of people who have websites that have begged successfully for money.

Comments Received

msladyrag said...

Yes, there are cyberbegging websites where people are just posting a story on a list...Hoping a kind stranger will actually read it. These same people need know that there are good sites that exist. Cyberbeggars where your story will get the attention it deserves. So if your looking for a better place to seek help them try http://www........com

Paying Your Bills - Loopholes?

2007-07-08T16:21:00.000-04:00

".......Well when you do the kind of work that I do you become "privy" to certain types of information. First of all hopefully your bank is one of those banks that can only charge this fee for a certain # of days - like for one bank it's $6 per day for 5 days for a total of $30 and you have 30 days from the overdraft to get your account back above $0

Now like I said above there are just some things that go on as far as one's utility bills are concerned that the utility companies don't want you to know about. Now your case may be too late but for those who have been threatened with a shut off notice there is at least one thing that you can do to delay your shutoff. Mind you I say DELAY - you are still responsible for paying the balance owed but you won't get shut off for at least 3 months. Hopefully that will give you enough time to either find a way to make a payment arrangement, get some money to pay the back balance owed or to find a grant program to help you with the utility bill.

Of course "rich" people use this method and it is one of those "loophole" things that the utility companies are trying to get rid of but until they do this "loophole" sometimes turns out to be a person's last resort. Ironically enough this information comes in the bill for your utility bill but people don't read it (or they don't notice it).

I don't even think that its ethical for the social services agencies to suggest it but its not illegal and like I said before its usually a person's last hope - but at least it does provide them with some (temporary) time.................

Would You Like To Get Paid Answering Surveys?

2007-07-08T14:25:00.000-04:00

Here is an interesting little site. The name of it is AW Surveys and it pays you to answer surveys. The reasoning is that companies want to be able to test their products and find out what consumers have to say about their products. So that is where YOU come in.

At the time that I found out about this website they had a $6 promotion just for new users to sign up.

You can make $4-$25 per surveys that you answer. Once your account reaches $75 you can cash out. There are 2 ways that you can cash out. One is by regular check which can be sent to you by regular mail - it will take 4 to 6 weeks or the second payment option is via Paypal. However if you choose the Paypal option you should know that $25 will be deducted from your $75 minimum cash out so you will only get $50. That's one of the things that bothered me but if you're still interested in this the click the bottom below to find out more:

One Person CAN Make A Difference!

2007-07-05T15:48:00.000-04:00

A student felt absolutely boggled down with all of the college costs that he had. But then he decided to do something about it - and he did! He managed to get started a new program that provides incentives to students who remain in their state after they finished college. The reasoning behind this is that the students would leave the state after they finished college and the new program that was put in place gives the students the incentive to stay in that state.

Of course getting this law/program passed was not easy and the student said that one of the hardest parts was getting enough signatures to get the initiative passed.

A well noted point in the story was that a lot of people feel that as far as politics is concerned they don't think that they can make a difference. But one student managed to do just that! He made a difference!

Going Into Foreclosure? It Doesn't Necessarily Mean The End!

2007-07-02T09:36:00.000-04:00

Is your home going into foreclosure? It doesn't necessarily have to mean the end!

I have written a lot about foreclosures on this blog. First off there are going to be so many more of them this year and also too I think that going through foreclosure is a terrible thing! I know a neighbor in my area whose family lost their home because of the property taxes not being paid.

If your home is in foreclosure there are some things that you can do that can maybe help your situation. I guess the first piece of advice would be for you to avoid the foreclosure process in the first place by paying your mortgage on time but I realize that that isn't always possible. Sometimes an emergency financial crisis will pop up out of nowhere and you have to choose between the lesser of 2 evils.

If you think that you are going to not be able to make your mortgage payment you should call your mortgage company and discuss it with them. Some mortgage companies may re-negotiate your payments to a smaller amount. It is a common-held belief that a lot of the mortgage companies don't want to have to put your property in foreclosure because they lose out so they may be very willing to work with you to help make your payments more manageable.

Secondly you may be able to qualify for some grant programs to help pay for the mortgage payments that you missed. Beside government grant programs you should also look into other grant programs to help you. There are a number of "financial emergency" grant programs that will provide grant money that you don't have to pay back to help you pay your back mortgage payments.

Lastly every state's foreclosure process is different. Sometimes it can take as much as six months for the foreclosure to take place and in that amount of time you may be able to pay the money that is owed.

Children Don't Want Their Parents To Get Fired!

2007-06-30T11:27:00.000-04:00

Very eye-opening blog post about the workforce today!

Especially moving is the story of a woman whose son got hit by a car but the son didn't tell her because he didn't want her to miss work and get fired. But after the mother found out that her son was hit by a car she wanted to go home to take him to the hospital. Her boss told her if she left then she was fired. She left, got fired but found out that her son had a broken arm!

It's very hard keeping a job now-a-days simply because you just can't be prepared for every emergency that might come up. Things like a sick child, car accident or any number of other emergencies that can come up can make taking too many sick or personal days off a prelude to losing one's job. When I was a cashier I think we had something like 5 sick/personal days a year!

The Number Of Elderly Who Are Losing Their Homes Has Increased By An Alarming Rate!

2007-06-29T15:00:00.000-04:00

I just got finished reading an article about how the number of elderly who are losing their homes is increasing by an alarming rate. I wrote on my LaMott Blog about how I personally knew a neighbor who had lost their home because of the back property taxes that weren't paid. They had lived in their home for a number of years and had accumulated a lot of stuff. But the time came and a notice was put on their door and their house was sold.

Now in my area the property taxes run about $4,000 a year! It comes from 2 different tax bills and one of those is the school tax bill (which is the highest). Some seniors argue that since they don't have any children in the schools that they shouldn't have to pay these taxes. While the issue has been debated there nothing that has been put into law. There is a funding program where seniors can get some money to offset the cost of their property taxes but in my area that amounts to just over 10% of the tax due.

It seems that the counties are going after unpaid property taxes more strongly and I know of at least one area where the due property taxes are sold at auction to the highest bidder. The county gets their money and there is a new holder of the property tax bill that the homeowner has to pay.

By law, the city can seize homes and sell them for back taxes at a treasurer's auction. Homeowners who don't pay the debt within 90 days of the auction will lose their homes.

One person's home was put up for auction because he only owed around $600 in back property taxes.

Food Recall

2007-06-28T08:49:00.000-04:00

Looks like there is another major recall going on. This time it for a popular snack food (although I don't use it).

Click on the link in the title to find out more about this latest food recall.