Canadian Finance Minister Reproves IRS
Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty issued a strong reproof of the IRS in his response to the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Washington Post, blasting a new IRS tax crackdown that could ensnare tens of thousands of innocent Americans living in Canada. Flaherty’s irate statement called for the IRS to stop badgering “innocent and law-abiding people” who live in Canada and do not owe the US any taxes. According to him, the US requirement for taxes to be paid by those holding dual US and Canadian citizenship is spreading “unnecessary stress and fear.”
The US has a worldwide taxation policy that requires US citizens to declare all their income for taxation regardless of where they live or where their income is drawn from. The Toronto Globe and Mail reports that there are up to one million US citizens living in Canada, and the majority of them do not know of this policy. The conse
Biggest losers of debt: Michigan couple honored for paying $92,000 credit card debt
The U.S. government can learn a lot about shedding debt from Jerry and Sue Bailey.
The Jackson, Mich., couple paid off $92,000 in credit card debt in 5-1/2 years. “I still can’t believe it when I hear the amount. I don’t wish this on anybody,” Sue Bailey says.
The couple’s massive debt reduction earned them the Clients of the Year award from the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a nonprofit association of credit counseling agencies that help consumers manage their finances and get out of debt. The winners were announced this week at the group’s annual meeting in San Francisco.
17 credit cards
How did the Baileys end up in such a predicament? From 1992 to 2005, they ran up bills on 17 different credit cards. During that time, they paid for two weddings for their daughters (at a cost of $5,000 each), replaced the transmission in their car when it blew out, made numerous repairs on their home and replaced the roof when it started to leak.
Bad Credit Score – What Happens When You Have A Bad Credit Score?
Maxing out your credit cards and ignoring your bills can give you a bad credit score in the long run. Payments through credit cards and debts that have been unpaid for a long time can have the most detrimental effects on your credit score among other consequential factors.
While the ill effects of a bad credit score might not be evident to you now, it will occur to you that most financial institutions and organizations consider your credit score before interacting with you. Listed below are some of the consequences of a bad credit score.
- Higher Rates Of Interest – Most creditors and lenders will see your application as a risk in comparison to other applicants who have better credit as compared to you. In order to compensate for this risk, they will make you pay a rate of interest much higher than the others. I
The Federal Debt: When Compound Interest Is Crushing
The showdown over increasing the federal debt limit got me thinking about the power of compound interest. It’s always been one of the most powerful forces in the financial universe. And in the case of the debt ceiling, it appears that compound interest has the potential to become a crushing enemy.
Some people fear that the United States will lose its AAA credit-rating or even default temporarily, potentially increasing how much it costs the government to borrow money. According to the Congressional Budget Office, a 4-percentage-point across-the-board increase in interest rates would raise federal interest payments next year by about $100 billion; if those higher rates persisted, net interest costs in 2015 would be nearly double the roughly $460 billion that the C.B.O. currently projects for that year.
Think about that for a minute. If those worst-case-scenario interest rates came to pass and persisted, we’d be approaching a trillion dollars in interest payments per year. Tha
Creditworthiness and Character: Illustrating Responsibility
Clean credit offers a plethora of rewards: willing lenders, competitive interest rates, advanced buying options, and more. Why do such doors open? Responsibility, of course. Not only do clean credit scores inspire lender confidence, ones journey getting there is worth consideration as well. Read on to discover how achieving a record of clean credit illustrates your character strengths in addition to your financial fortitude.
Strength #1: You stick to a schedule. Clean credit means paying bills on time, and sticking to a schedule conveys consistency. When you are able to keep track of multiple payments, lenders take comfort in your continued diligence. Your level of responsibility will shine through with a clean payment history.
Strength #2: You understand limits. Clean credit is about balance; if you borrow too much, the scale will tip. No matter your income, it is important to understand how much you can afford to borrow and the risks involved.
Is a Payday Loan Legal?
A payday loan, also called a paycheck advance, is a small short-term loan that is intended to cover a borrowers expenses until his or her next payday. Depending on which state you live in the United States, some payday loans are restricted by the amount of interest they can charge and others are illegal altogether.
With current pressure mounting from Washington DC, many states are clamping down on payday loans and their usurious applications. Banks across the country have been making millions on these type of loans for years.Opposition on payday loans make some of these assertions against the practice:
- They drain money from low-income communities. Although many normal-income people take out these kinds of loans, the most people who use them are from low-income groups.