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I have heard of the 'Fair Tax' as a proposed system of federal taxation in the US.
I am not 100% sure what it is, other than a Sales tax.
What are the challenges presented with said system? |
What is the US Fair Tax? |
Over at Dealbook, Sorkin writes in reference to Facebook:
> Once more than 500 individuals or institutions own shares in Facebook, securities laws mandate that the company go public. Google staged an I.P.O. in part because it hit that same threshold.
To buy shares on [Sharespost][1], you likely have to be "wealth... |
Can a bunch of wealthy people force Facebook to go public? |
I am thinking about investing in the renewable energy sector (there should be growth potential, right??), and have heard of a few specific stocks like Vestas wind energy.
Since I am just beginning to educate myself in this area, can anyone point me in a general direction about how to find a few, more well establishe... |
How do I find quality Wind power / renewable energy mutual funds? |
As part of [introducing the HST this July 1st, 2010][1], the government of Ontario promised to issue special HST rebates to people meeting certain criteria, in order to ease the transition to the new tax.
- Who will receive the special HST rebates?
- How much are the special HST rebates worth?
- When will the s... |
I have a credit card from 1st Financial Bank. I got it when I was 18 years old, and have kept up with it 100%.
After the recent US legislation on credit cards, they have started hiking various fees. There is now a yearly membership fee, late payment fees have almost doubled, etc.
I have decided to drop this card... |
Will replacing a credit card with a better one hurt my FICO score? |
The fair tax is a proposal to replace the US income tax with a sales tax.
Pros of Fair Tax:
* Allows less manipulation of tax code for political reasons (For good or bad, why is mortgage interest tax deductible?)
* It's voluntary. Buy something, pay tax. Don't buy something, don't pay tax.
* Bigger p... |
I have heard a few people say that "a house is not an investment" as an argument to stay in an apartment. (To me, this seems like a stupid reason, but that is not my question.)
Of course, this is not the only place I have seen this argument. I've seen some scammy TV commercials trying to sell financial advice clai... |
Why is a house "not an investment"? |
The truth is that with the exception of a housing bubble, the value of a house might outpace inflation by one or two percent. On the other hand your down payment money and the interest towards owning that home might be in a mutual fund earning you north of eight percent. If you don't put down enough of a down payment... |
How to calculate the total return on buying a home? |
> Why do I need to put her information into these quotes?
Because you are getting your quote through a website instead of via a human being. They likely programmed their system for the most likely scenarios.
> Doesn't her insurance cover her driving other people's cars?
Yes, it should. The big questions: fo... |
This isn't so much a legal issue, the prohibition on giving discounts was written into the merchant agreements that most of the major credit card companies enforced on businesses that accepted their credit cards.
That is, until the recent Financial Reform Bill (2010) passed Congress. It changes everything. (The logi... |
I am beginning to build credit and got a credit card a few months ago, I am a little confused about when a payment should be made in order to avoid any late fees/penalties/interest. Here is a situation with made up numbers/dates:
**Statement 1:**
Statement Date: 09/05/2010
Payment Due: 10/02/2010
... |
When to pay a credit card in order to avoid fees/penalties/interest? |
To get the factors you want, start with a complete [amortization calculator][2] and a [tax deduction calculator][3], filling in values for your down payment, purchase price, tax rates, and mortgage rate. If you are talking about a specific property, you should be able to get taxes for the current year, and perhaps usi... |
I live in an apartment with my girlfriend and when I request a quote on the car insurance websites it asks me if I'm the only driver in my household. It's my car but she would likely drive it occasionally. She has her own car and insurance that she would drive normally.
Why do I need to put her information into thes... |
Do I need to add my girlfriend as a driver on my car insurance? |
I sense in your question that you're asking "how much credit can I get for free and for how long?".
I feel that this is a dangerous path to tread if you don't already understand what debts you're incurring. If you only pay off the minimum amount, **you will never pay off your debts**. A credit card company has *no i... |
I am beginning to build credit and got a credit card a few months ago, I am a little confused about when a payment should be made in order to avoid any late fees/penalties/interest. Here is a situation with made up numbers/dates:
**Statement 1:**
Statement Date: 09/05/2010
Payment Due: 10/02/2010
... |
Why do online retailers ask for the type of card before you enter the number?
This information is coded into the card number itself, so it is redundant.
For example, any card that starts with a `4` is a Visa.
`51` through `55` is MasterCard
`34` or `37` is American Express.
There are quite a few longer o... |
It is always a good idea if you are worried about customer service and hidden gotchas to visit http://getsatisfaction.com - they operate as an independent complaint board for many companies.
http://getsatisfaction.com/bankofamerica for example alerts you to many problems with using BofA.
In addition, googling for... |
You're hearing alot of talk about housing (and by implication property) not being an investment today because on the downside of a market, the conventional wisdom is to be negative about buying things that have lost value. Just as it was dumb to listen to your coworker about hot .Com IPOs in 1999, it's dumb to listen t... |
For example, why did Microsoft take on debt to create shareholder value?
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-13/microsoft-is-said-to-plan-debt-sale-to-pay-for-dividends-buy-back-shares.html |
Why would a company sell debt in order to buy back shares and/or pay dividends? |
I have excellent credit, and pay off my balances in full every month. I also do a lot of international traveling (5 to 6 times a year) but always fly different airlines (I look for the best value).
Is it worth it to get an airline mileage card? If so, which ones are pretty decent? |
Are airline reward mile credit cards worth it? |
What is a good asset allocation for a 25 year old? |
Is the Yale Portfolio by David Swenson:
http://www.etftopics.com/yale-etf-portfolio/
Too conservative for a twenty-something with a mid-sized portfolio (under $100K)? What are some of the pro's and con's? |
Is the Yale/Swenson Asset Allocation Too Conservative for a 20 Something? |
Skype will be going IPO soon. How can I purchase their IPO stock? |
How can I purchase Skype stock during the IPO? |
They're worth it if you do a lot of flying and a lot of buying. Otherwise, no.
You may get bonus miles for signing up for the card. Beyond that, it boils down to two things:
- **What is the equivalent percentage rebate for the card?** This is a big hard to figure out because you're buying a ticket with the mi... |
Those are all predictions. To the core.
With anything, I'd consider the source carefully before taking any kind of advice. If it's from a financial magazine, who advertises with them? What are they selling? How well do they recognize which side of the bread is buttered?
That, and I'd get a lot of advice, see ... |
* Sign up with a broker that is participating in the IPO. (I don't think that the date is even set yet, so it's probably a little early to check.)
* Read and follow their instructions. [Here's E*Trade's IPO center HowTo][1] as a sample.
[1]: https://us.etrade.com/e/t/ipo/IPOCenter?Message=IPOHowto:1 |
I imagine you would need a lot of money to enter, and tbh I thought the shares are already allocated, thus ruling out members of the public purchasing any until after the ipo The IPO is the **public** offering, obviously, and you being a member of the public will have to wait until they are listed ... ?
My answer w... |
It's a tax shelter. Foreign affiliates hold most of Microsoft's cash and investments. The cost of borrowing is much cheaper than repatriating the money and paying taxes. Those bonds are selling at rates similar to US Treasury Debt.
Also, many people and organizations with lots of assets still borrow money for day to... |
As a longtime hoarder of frequent flier miles and owner of one such card, I am increasingly thinking they are NOT worth it. I've started to shift over to a card that does cash-back into my investment account.
**My reasoning:**
The airlines are still scrapping for ways to stay profitable. Tweaking FF mile program... |
Suppose Adam owns a house and rents a room to Bill for $300 a month, and pays Bill $300 a month to mow the lawn, clean the rooms and do other maintenance. Assume U.S. law in a no-income-tax state like Texas or Florida or New Hampshire. Bill must pay Federal income tax on $300 a month. Adam must give Bill a Form 1099... |
IMO, airline cards suck. Hotel cards, on the other hand are awesome. Why?
- You earn rewards quicker.
- Hotels sorta care about customers, and they treat their cardholders well.
- You'll get room upgrades if you focus on one of the major brands and build up enough points.
- You can usually transfer airline mi... |
I currently have a mortgage with a bank.
Two months ago, they had an offer to fix our home loan interest rate for a year. We accepted this offer, we signed a document and they signed it too.
In addition to the written confirmation, we also got verbal confirmation from both the branch manager and his superior, tha... |
What actions can I take against a bank for lack of customer service? |
I don't think the verbal confirmation from the branch manager is worth anything, unless you got it in writing it basically never happened.
That said, what *did* you sign exactly? An application? I'd think they would be well within their rights to deny that, no matter what the branch manager said. If you actually sig... |
The below assessment is for primary residences as opposed to income properties.
The truth is that with the exception of a housing bubble, the value of a house might outpace inflation by one or two percent. According to the US Census, the price of a new home per square foot only went up 4.42% between 1963 and 2008, ... |
The [Texas Ratio][1] attempts to measure how well a bank can cover its losses on nonperforming loans. A ratio over 100 indicates the bank is in trouble.
I cross referenced the texas ratio for banks obtained from [here][2] (last updated 10/2009) with the latest list of bank failures from the [FDIC][3] (last updated ... |
how would one find floreclosures in canada, Newfoundland? |
How would one find foreclosures in Canada, Newfoundland? |
I suppose you can calculate the rate of return on buying a home in terms of appreciation, expenses, inflation, taxes, etc. Nothing wrong with that.
The method justkt came up with is accurate, but when you get the number out I wouldn't worry if the return is negative.
Why? Because you've lived there and enjoyed ... |
I have budgeted to the point where i can close all credit cards i have in close to three years from now.
My question is, should I simply pay 1/3 to each card (will be over minimum payment on all)
OR
should i pay the most i can to one card and minimum to the remaining? Essentially taking out the cards one at ... |
Will be debt Free in 3 years -- What order should i pay off my cards? |
I only have 4 payments left on my loan and have recently sold an asset so now have enough cash to pay the remaining balance.
Is there any benefit to paying off the loan fully or as I've only got a few payments left should I just continue to pay it off as normal? |
Is it worth paying off my loan early with only 4 payments left? |
I've done this before, to me if you have the money making two more installment payments just feels annoying.
Is there any real benefit? Probably not. |
To get the factors you want, start with a complete [amortization calculator][2] and a [tax deduction calculator][3], filling in values for your down payment, purchase price, tax rates, and mortgage rate. If you are talking about a specific property, you should be able to get taxes for the current year, and perhaps usi... |
Background:
* Current Rent: 710/mo or roughly 20% of my 3700 salary take-home pay.
* Wife is currently in school and will graduate in two years, at which point she will likely be making a teacher's salary. Currently does babysitting and other jobs to contribute, which I don't take into account as "guaranteed month... |
Background:
* Current Rent: 710/mo or roughly 20% of my 3700 salary take-home pay.
* Wife is currently in school and will graduate in two years, at which point she will likely be making a teacher's salary. Currently does babysitting and other jobs to contribute, which I don't take into account as "guaranteed month... |
Not really money related, but: how long are you going to be staying there? Once your wife graduates, would you be potentially moving to another area, or needing to move to be closer to where she works?
If so, you might want to wait until after she graduates and you know where you'll be, before putting down money on ... |
So I have roughly $5000 in student loans at 5% and about $65000 on my mortgage at 3.875% (5/1ARM). Should I put extra payments towards the student loan or the mortgage?
5% is higher, so if it's really a matter of playing off the higher interest rate that would be it, but it seems like the mortgage is a lot more "... |
Extra payments toward mortgage or student loans? |
Not to state the obvious, but you realize this can only be done in hindsight?
Sure, you can project out to get a range of expected return, but the tax laws can change every year, your own income changes so your marginal rate will change. You may have started with a 7% mortgage, and refinanced now to 4.5%, so you are f... |
I know the question seems confusing, but this is a real life event. My friend lived beyond his means for a few years, combined with half year of unemployment his Credit Card Debt went to the roof. His credit score got a hit. When he got a job again, he put all his credit cards in good terms and he is paying off the ... |
What to do when institutions stopped lending you money? |
So I have roughly $5000 in student loans at 5% and about $65000 on my mortgage at 3.875% (5/1ARM). Should I put extra payments towards the student loan or the mortgage?
5% is higher, so if it's really a matter of playing off the higher interest rate that would be it, but it seems like the mortgage is a lot more "... |
Preamble - I'm not interested in debit cards, because I want the security that credit cards provide if a naughty hacker steals my credit card number. That said...
Which credit cards would merchants prefer to take? I.e., which ones have the lowest rate the merchant is charged, which are "nicest" for the merchant, etc... |
Which credit card is friendliest to merchants? |
So I have roughly $5000 in student loans at 5% and about $65000 on my mortgage at 3.875% (5/1ARM). Should I put extra payments towards the student loan or the mortgage?
5% is higher, so if it's really a matter of playing off the higher interest rate that would be it, but it seems like the mortgage is a lot more "... |
*What to do when institutions stop lending you money, or lend at high rates?*
Live within your means!
Your friend has shown financial behavior that indicates he's a bad credit risk.
If he cleans up his act, banks will lend to him at reasonable rates again. Not a whole lot he can do except build his credit aga... |
I keep a spreadsheet with my personal financial statements (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow) that generally follows the corporate approach. I omit considerations of depreciation, etc. There's one nit picky detail that doesn't sit well with this approach. I took money out of my RRSP under the LLP to fund my g... |
Nit picky personal accounting question: What is the right way to record borrowing from yourself? |
The resolution of this debt is up to you. Do you intend to pay the financial entity back?
If you intend to repay, one way is to treat yourself as an "employee" and the financial entity then lends this employee the money. The debt becomes an asset for the financial entity and a liability for the employee.
If y... |
How does applying for credit affect your credit score?
I was answering a [question about getting a loan](http://money.stackexchange.com/questions/3941/what-to-do-when-institutions-stopped-lending-you-money/3944#3944) and realized I don't have detailed information on how applying for credit (even if you do not get th... |
How does applying for credit affect your credit score? |
As other's have said, paying off the student loan first makes the most sense because of
- the higher interest rate
- the unsecured debt
- it cannot be wiped out by bankruptcy
That said, are you planning on staying in your house for a particularly long time? If so, refinancing your mortgage into a fixed-rat... |
Cash is king. PIN-based debit transactions are cheap.
In terms of credit cards, a regular (ie. not a gold card) with no rewards has the lowest rates.
Bigger merchants with lots of card volume likely have better deals that make the differences less pronounced.
EDIT:
For whomever voted my post down, here's an ... |
Cash is king. PIN-based debit transactions are cheap.
In terms of credit cards, a regular (ie. not a gold card) with no rewards has the lowest rates.
Bigger merchants with lots of card volume likely have better deals that make the differences less pronounced.
EDIT:
For whoever voted my post down, here's an [... |
I have decided to get a new credit card.
However, when looking through the various options for cards, it seems like all of them are variable rate cards.
What's the downside to using fixed- vs variable-rate interest credit cards.
Is the bank going to decide to hike my rate, if they've been having a bad year? |
How important is Fixed vs. Variable rate? |
How important is Fixed vs. Variable rate for credit cards? |
My knowledge of how interest rates work (please correct me if I'm wrong) is that it is set by the Central Bank of a country.
They're supposed to be apolitical and independent and their decision should solely based on the CPI, which is determined by the changing costs of a basket of goods.
My question is why is C... |
When the Reserve Bank determines the interest rates, do they take the house prices into account? |
The setting of interest rates (or "[repurchase rates][1]") varies from country to country, as well as with the independence of the central bank.
There are a number of measurements and indices that central bankers can take into account:
- **Consumer Price Inflation (CPI):** An official "basket" of consumer items i... |
I've seen 'debt consolidation' advised for people who have a lot of debt (from different credit cards, etc). What does that involve, exactly, and why is it a good idea?
Say I have:
-$1000 at 5% from A
-$5000 at 10% from B
-$5000 at 5% from C
As I understand it, debt consolidation would mean that you woul... |
What is 'consolidating' debt and why do people do it? |
I think the right question you should ask yourself about is:
Can i work at home? is it possible? do i have a calm, private place at home to work from? what will be the motivation while working from?
If you got answers to these questions, you will find if you can get money from home or not, because any place you c... |
My tax situation for tax year 2009 is somewhat complicated. I was a resident of Louisiana all of my life until November 27, 2009, which is when I became a Texas resident. I continued working for the same company in Louisiana, a state with an income tax, when I moved. I now work from home in Texas, a state without an in... |
When Working at Home for a Company In a State with Income Taxes, Do I Have to Pay? |
I am wanting to know the real benefits or pros/cons of a HSA in the USA. I have now been given the option of signing up for one due to healthcare changes. I understand some of the basics, but after reading some of the limitations and restrictions, I am not sure if it is the best option for me. What is the advantage ... |
Pros/Cons of a Health Savings Account (HSA) in the USA? |
My company is paying me with large amounts of equity pay. *Theoretically**, I could delay realizing some of the taxes on this money and move to a place which, unlike California, does not charge 9.3% on long-term capital gains (maybe, say, Texas) and save myself several thousand dollars (depending on how much company st... |
How long do you have to live somewhere to be a resident for tax purposes? |
My company is paying me with large amounts of equity pay. *Theoretically**, I could delay realizing some of the gains on this equity and move to a place which, unlike California, does not charge 9.3% on long-term capital gains (maybe, say, Texas) and save myself several thousand dollars (depending on how much company s... |
The standard employment contracts of many large companies state that any intellectual property (IP) developed by an employee while in employment - even outside of working hours - belongs to the company.
This is fine if said employee has limited experience or hobbies/interests that are entirely divorced from their jo... |
How does a new employee maintain their existing intellectual property when taking a job with a large company? |
I had always thought that life insurance proceeds were not treated as taxable income. From [IRS publication 525][1]:
> Life insurance proceeds paid to you
> because of the death of the insured
> person are not taxable unless the
> policy was turned over to you for a
> price. This is true even if the
> proceeds ... |
Unfortunately it is not uncommon for a company to own everything you create while an employee. So if you have existing IP prior to signing an employment agreement it needs to be documented. In my experience companies that require this sort of thing are used to excluding items. If your request for documenting your exclu... |
So I have about $50 in pennies, dimes and nickels. What would you do with it? I'm asking because I don't think spending hours rolling up the change and taking it to the bank is the best/most creative thing. |
How do you get rid of your spare change? |
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