Archives for August 2021

There are all sorts of loans, but let’s talk about personal loans. These are loans that come complete with a schedule of repayment. They can get you a little bit or a lot of money depending on the lender, your credit, and your income. They’re quite versatile and you can do nearly anything with the money.

Here’s a look at just a few of the things you might do.

Pay Taxes

You might not want to do this, but we all have to pay taxes. If you owe more than what you can afford to pay, a loan company might be able to help. You might owe interest and penalties for not paying your taxes. If so, the IRS might begin collections for their money and may even put liens on anything you own. That means that even if you want that big new TV, it might be a better idea to spend the money from that loan paying the IRS.

Home Improvements

Making upgrades or repairs to your home is always a good investment because it’ll increase or preserve the value of the property. You might create more of a comfortable space in which to live or even improve your home’s curb appeal. Home improvements can be rather pricey and you might not have all of the cash on hand to pay for what’s necessary. A loan can help you out with that.

Debt Consolidation

Consolidating debt is also a great use for a loan. If you have a lot of different bills, consolidating your debt can make things much simpler. For one thing, instead of paying multiple bills on multiple days, you can just pay one bill – the loan repayment. Of course, the first step in this is in making sure you qualify for the loan in the first place.

Medical Debt/Care

If a loved one or you yourself need medical care, there are times when having money ASAP is a necessity. Personal loans can help you get the money you need to pay for that medical care. While you always have the option to look for personal loans that are marketed specifically with medical care or debt in mind, there isn’t any reason to limit your search just to those lenders offering loans of this nature. Any type of personal loan can be utilized to pay existing medical debt or to pay for medical care.

Using your personal loan to pay for medical bills means that you’ll know exactly when that debt is paid for. Typically, you’ll be able to get funding for a personal loan rather quickly, so if you’re holding off treatment until you can lay for it, you won’t need to wait long.

Large Purchases

When you need to pay for a special event or pay for a large purchase, it’s always best to save your money until you can afford it. However, that isn’t always practical and, in those instances, a loan might be the answer.

The Right Decision?

This is just a small sample of the very great number of things you can decide to do with a loan. If you’re in need of money and are looking for a set schedule to pay it back, and don’t want to go the route of credit cards, maybe a personal loan is the right decision for you – or at least worth looking further into. Make sure that you find the right lender for you and that you understand what the terms of repayment are. You should also keep in mind that it’s always best to borrow only what you need in order to accomplish whatever your goals might be.

Have you been paying attention to the recent economic news? If so, you know that inflation is making a comeback. It’s been years since investors and traders have had to worry about rising general price levels taking a significant bite out of profits. But, since early 2021, the cost of everything has been going up. That includes the price tags of just about every good and service at retail, wholesale, and producer levels.

The weakening national economy is hitting people in all industries and income levels. What if you’re an investor who wants to protect a portfolio from the pernicious effects of climbing prices? Well, there’s plenty you can do, so it’s not all bad news. For instance, whether your preference includes stocks, forex, commodities, good old cash, or precious metals, there are realistic, commonsense strategies for lessening the inflationary sting. Here are some of them.

Stocks

People who own large stock portfolios, either as speculative tools or for retirement purposes, have a lot to fear from inflation. For example, say you hold a portfolio of varied stocks that’s currently worthwhile and that it’s growing at an average annual rate of 12 percent. That’s a nice return, but if the inflation rate is seven percent, you’re automatically losing more than half of your yearly stock market income. You can minimize that hit by considering stocks that do well during inflationary times, like consumer durable shares and exchange traded funds that track commodities.

Forex

Inflation rates in the various national economies have a profound effect on forex trading and often dictate which currencies traders value the most. While there are no hard and fast rules for those who trade forex regularly, inflation is generally considered a key indicator of the strength, and overall health, of a country’s economy. For active traders, comparative inflation numbers can be highly instructive. For example, if Country A’s inflation rate is at 10 percent and rising, while Country B’s rate is at 9 percent and decreasing, there’s a good chance that the currency of Country A will weaken against that of Country B.
That’s because high and rising inflation rates tend to harm a national currency’s value. And, even though there are many other factors in play, inflation is one that has a significant impact on the relative strength of foreign exchange rates. Some of what traders use to estimate inflationary pressures include the CPI (consumer price index), PPI (producer price index), and interest rate changes.

Commodities

In difficult times, many investors turn to the commodities markets. Instead of owning an intangible piece of a corporation, investors who put their capital into a commodity are buying a piece of something real, like wheat, oil, cattle, copper, or any of hundreds of tangible assets that often experience value increases in otherwise troubling economic climates.

Cash

When the going gets rough, millions of investors get spooked and pull out of all the markets. They decide to park their money in cold, hard cash, often in bank or credit union savings accounts. While it seems like a wise move, holding cash during a spate of inflation can bring large losses. This is especially true for those who simply plunk all their money into low-interest passbook accounts, CDs, or money market funds.

Precious Metals

For hundreds of years, working people have purchased gold and silver as a hedge against inflation. It’s easy to track the popularity of these precious metals simply by tracking the inflation rate. When the rate goes up, the demand for gold and silver usually follows within a short period of time.

Remodeling can be a great way to increase the value of your home while also making it more livable for you and your family, especially if you have spaces that are in dire need of repairs. But it can also be quite costly. Even relatively small remodels like a bathroom remodel averages anywhere from nearly $13,700 to well over $21,000, according to Remodeling magazine. 

Of course, with homes going at record-high prices combined with the housing shortage, many homeowners are choosing to stay put and remodel what they have rather than buy a new one. But how do you come up with such a big chunk of money? There are hundreds of programs that can help homeowners upgrade their home, whether the goal is a bathroom remodel, roofing, energy efficiency, insulation, an addition, a heating system, siding, and more. 

The National Residential Improvement Association (NRIA) is one of those programs, an organization that can help you find grants and other means to help pay for home repairs. Here’s what you need to know about it if you’d like to get assistance through the NRIA for funding your remodel. 

What the NRIA Is

The NRIA is a non-government association, a private sector of prescreened contractors with a goal to help consumers get home improvements through a variety of programs that most aren’t aware of. Through those programs, homeowners can get access to government backed and low-interest loans, grants, tax credits, and other incentives. They provide the funding for the necessary remodels. The NRIA itself doesn’t arrange for home improvement loans, receive commissions, or sell home improvement products.

Home Improvement Grants

While the NRIA can help you receive funding through the programs mentioned, if you’re able to get a grant, it’s a kind of financial aid that you won’t have to repay. They are issued by local, state and federal governments. Of course, these have strict rules, a lot of competition, and there are auditing procedures too. Still it’s well-worth applying for and the NRIA can assist with the process with multiple types of grants available. 

Do keep in mind that if you don’t qualify for a grant, there are still many other options that may be available. You’ll work with a local NRIA Program Specialist who will help you understand the programs you might qualify for and their eligibility requirements.

How NRIA Contractors Work

The NRIA is sponsored by various contractors which allows the program to provide home improvement services for free. These contractors have all been screened to ensure they can be trusted. All must be NRIA certified and in order to achieve that contractors have to provide proof of their contractors license, business license, and proof of insurance. Only when those documents are approved by the NRIA will they be deemed credible. This proves to consumers that the contractors are able to maintain a satisfactory rating with local consumer reporting agencies. 

The goal for an NRIA contractor is to help homeowners make the necessary changes while sticking within their financial boundaries. It can be essential for many who need expensive remodels and/or repairs whether it’s to improve the home’s value or for safety reasons. 

Keeping up with the latest TV series nowadays seems like you need subscriptions to all the streaming platforms. But you don’t have to spend a fortune to watch all your favorite shows and movies. If all your money’s going down the tube, you’ll want to read this.

Why You Should Get a Handle on Your Streaming

Spending all your cash and maxing out credit cards is hard on your budget. It leaves you with zero wiggle room, which can be a big problem in an emergency.

With your money tied up, you may not have any leftover to pay for unexpected doctor’s fees when you need to see a physician about a nasty cough.

If you can’t postpone your expense until the next payday, you may apply for a loan online. There are easy online loans that let you know if you qualify in a matter of minutes, making them ideal when you need money urgently.

The online loans specialists at MoneyKey recommend comparing the rates and terms thoroughly to ensure you’re getting the best possible option for your needs. But no matter what deal you get on interest or finance charges, you’re still paying these fees on top of the purchase you apply to your line of credit.

At the end of the day, you’re paying more for an emergency than if you could pay for it out of pocket.

How to Save Money Without Pulling the Plug

Does this mean you should forget about watching Loki as it rolls out on Disney+ and kiss watching the latest blockbusters goodbye? Not necessarily! Here are four tips for keeping up with your favorite streaming shows movies without spending money.

1. Share Streaming Accounts

Ask around, and you’ll find most of your friends and family have accounts for the same streaming services as you do. Talk to them about sharing these services. If you pay for Prime while they cover Netflix, you gain access to both streaming catalogues for the price of one!

2. Consolidate Your Accounts

Although you may have all the streaming services, you might not need all the streaming services. Take an honest look at your viewing history to see if you genuinely use every account consistently every week. If you watch movies and tv primarily through Hulu, saying goodbye to Netflix may be less painful than you think.

3. Replace Them with Free (and Totally Legal) Streaming Services

Amazon, Hulu, Netflix, and HBO want you to think their streaming services are the only way you can watch TV without cable. But that’s simply false. There are a lot of streaming services that broadcast tv shows and movies, at zero cost. At most, some require you to input your zip code to make sure you can access their catalogue.

• IMDB TV
• Peacock TV
• PlutoTV
• Sony Crackle
• Tubi

4. Visit Your Library

Your nearest library branch isn’t just a source of books and public computers. Depending on your city, it may also have partnerships with media apps. Plenty of libraries across the country allow their patrons access to streaming apps below.

• Hoopla
• Kanopy
• Overdrive

Bottom Line

You don’t have to stream all your money away. Follow these tips before you start up the popcorn and settle onto the couch for some guilt-free watching.