What’s the Difference Between a HELOC and a Personal Loan? The main difference between a HELOC and a personal loan is the collateral the financial institution will require for the loan. HELOCs use the borrower’s home as backup in case the borrower defaults. Personal loans often don’t need collateral, and this fact affects the way the two loan types are structured, including interest rates, repayment terms, loan amounts, and fees charged....
Some factors, such as property maintenance and improvements, are in your control. Other times, factors outside your control, such as the property market, natural disasters, and changes in your neighborhood, might be bringing down the value of your home. Understanding Property Valuation Before you can work out which factors are bringing down the value of your property, it’s important to understand a little about how property valuation works. If you’ve never looked into this subject before, you might be surprised to learn just how subjective property valuation is....
In the first quarter of 2021, only 2.7% of all home sales were flips—deals in which an investor buys a house and then aims to sell it for a higher price to make a profit—according to ATTOM Data, a property data company. That’s compared to 7.5% in the first quarter of 2020 and 8.8% at the beginning of 2006, the height of the housing bubble. The latest data shows the lowest rate of home flipping since at least 2000....
Examples of Adverse Selection in Insurance Examples of adverse selection in life insurance include situations where someone with a high-risk job, such as a race car driver or someone who works with explosives, obtain a life insurance policy without the insurance company knowing that they have a dangerous occupation. Another life insurance example of adverse selection would be a smoker who either does not disclose the fact that he smokes on his life insurance application or lies and says he is not a smoker....
When Can Businesses Request Your Credit The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires businesses to have an acceptable reason for accessing your credit report. Acceptable reasons include: To grant credit. If you’ve applied for a credit card, loan, or other credit-based services, the business has permission to access your credit report to determine whether you qualify.To collect a debt. Debt collectors can use your credit report to obtain information, like your address or place of employment, that would help them collect a debt....
Many believe that high-yield savings accounts are even better than traditional savings accounts because they offer you more in return. But what’s the catch? These accounts offer mostly upsides in most cases, but that’s not to say that there aren’t a couple of drawbacks. What Is a High-Yield Savings Account? A high-yield savings account is one that pays you more interest than a traditional savings account. These traditional accounts offered an average annual percentage yield (APY) of about 0....
Westend61/Getty Images There are several types of financial statement analysis ranging from the most general to very specific. Business owners can choose the level of detail they need in order to make good decisions for the business. If a business is publicly held, or if it is for sale, external parties, like investors, use the results of financial statement analysis to make their investing decisions. What Is a Financial Statement?...
If you’ve recently lost your job—and haven’t been on the payroll for very long—you might be wondering whether you’re eligible for unemployment. While the rules vary by state, here are general guidelines for unemployment eligibility and information about how to find specifics for your case. Unemployment Eligibility Guidelines The emotional fallout can take some time to process, but your first priority is to make a plan to survive financially until you secure your next position....
While the specific calculations used to determine premium prices vary from one insurance company to another, it may be helpful for drivers to know how long accidents generally can stay on their insurance. Here’s how accidents can affect what you pay for car insurance, so you can make the best decisions for your driving needs. How Does an Accident Affect Your Insurance? Auto insurance providers are in the business of calculating risk....
There have been decades where stocks provided outstanding returns and decades where the returns were about the same as what you would get if you had stuck with safe investments. There is no way to know exactly what rate of return you will earn on your money in retirement. Basing the success of your plan only on average returns is not a good idea. An average means half the time you would have earned something below average....
You may find sufficient diversification in only one fund. But you may need many funds to diversify your assets. Your Investment Objective Your investment objective is your goal for how your portfolio will serve your financial needs. This is long-term growth to fund retirement for many people. But others may already be retired, and this would change their objective. They’re looking for current income and long-term growth. Still, others may want to simply preserve the asset level they have at the present time....
How Tax Brackets Impact Rates The 24% bracket applies only to income from $89,075 through $170,150, at least for single taxpayers. These income thresholds vary by filing status. Here’s how the brackets for the single filing status break down for tax year 2022: ‘Median’ Might Be a Better Term It might be easier to understand the median tax burden of American taxpayers instead. The median is the number that falls in the middle of a data set....
“They said, ‘you can eat a seed, yes. But if you put that seed in the ground and invest in it, you can get a pumpkin. Then, there’s much more of it, you can eat a lot more of it, but you have to be patient,’” Ochiai said. “And framing it that way, that really stuck in my head and made me get the value of saving.” Today at 18 years old, the value of that story shines through in Ochiai’s day-to-day life....
Temporary work can be an excellent way for unemployed individuals to make a positive impression upon an employer and consequently, be hired for a more permanent job in the future. However, many unemployed workers are financially strapped and fear the loss of their unemployment benefits if they take on temporary or contract positions. Here’s information on how temporary jobs impact unemployment benefits, how unemployment compensation is affected, and reporting requirements....
You should get your money within 21 days or so if you file your taxes electronically and use direct deposit for your refund. Now, with recent technological advances within banks and the integrated tax filing data between tax preparation companies and the IRS, refunds can take only a few days to land in your bank account. In the past, refund anticipation loans were expensive—similar to payday loans. Those loans may still be out there, although the major tax preparation services have moved away from them....
Before You Accept the Offer When you receive the offer, you don’t have to accept it immediately. It’s acceptable to ask for time (typically 24 hours to consider it) even if you think you’d like to accept. That way, you’ll have time to make sure the terms of the offer are what you expected, and get a response to any questions you may have. How to Accept a Job Offer The best way to accept a job offer is to confirm the details in writing....
While the process is extensive (you’re not just borrowing money to buy a weedwacker, after all), rest assured—there are lots of things you can do to smooth out the process. Preparing for a Mortgage Application Getting a mortgage can be a long process. One of the best things you can do to make it as painless as possible is to get everything ready in advance. Here’s how you can prepare for the mortgage application process....
Companies want to keep good employees, and if you’re interested in a job change but don’t want to switch employers, checking out what internal job options are available can make good sense. The Benefits of Internal Hiring For the employer, posting jobs internally first establishes a fair and transparent hiring process because all employees have the opportunity to apply for available positions. Advertising positions internally gives employers a mechanism to offer advancement, an opportunity to gain referrals from managers, and a means to provide a career path for employees....
How Mutual Funds Are Taxed Mutual funds are not the same as other investment securities, such as stocks, because they’re single portfolios. They’re called pooled investments, and they hold dozens or hundreds of other securities. The taxable activity that takes place as part of mutual fund management passes along tax liability to you, the mutual fund investor. You’ll owe tax on two levels if a stock holding in your mutual fund pays dividends, then the fund manager later sells the stock at a higher value than they paid for it:...
Commodities brokers make a very good living. Brokers with less than three years of experience made a base salary of between $100,000 and $150,000 as of 2013. Those with five or more years of experience made an average base salary of between $200,00 and $350,000, but you have to be willing to put in the time and effort to become good at it, and you need to pass a tough licensing application process....
