Debt Relief & Management

Posts Tagged ‘economy’

Greece is facing more troubling news as it tries to get its growing debt under control. Fitch Ratings, one of the world’s major credit rating agencies, downgraded Greece’s status Friday due to concerns that the government will not be able to pay back $70 billion in debt. As VOA’s Robert Raffaele explains, Greece is facing a key deadline in a matter of weeks.

Duration : 0:2:41

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Kris Kenney interviews Chris Long, a certified financial advisor, about managing debt and making smart money choices.

Duration : 0:9:55

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Laurie Campbell, executive director at Credit Counselling Service of Toronto, with Rob Carrick from the Globe and Mail discuss managing debt. What kinds of debt are people carrying? What puts people over the edge so that they can no longer manage their debt? Will an upturn in an economy help those with debt? Why is it better to be proactive with debt?

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I have car loan with high interest rate and would like to pay off some of the principal, but with bad economy I also want to reserve some cash for emergency. How should I pay this loan off? This loan has about three years left.

Most car loans are written under something called the rule of 78. It is a different method of calculating interest and means you pay almost all of the interest upfront. If you pay early, there is a prepayment penalty built into the calculation. It’s not a fair formula for those of us who want to pay sooner. Call your lender and find out how much interest you might save if you pay it off sooner. My guess is that it is a small number, and you would be better off putting the money toward a credit card or other debt, or saving for retirement.
If you borrowed from a credit union, it might be a little better for you – they tend to charge interest on the declining balance.

http://www.pyrabang.com/view.php?ref=ron569&post_id=20041&visitor=true

We have basically just printed one trillion dollars over night, is that not crazy? I’ve heard the FED Chair Ben Bernanke talk about this before, about how they will start raising interest rates just as, or before the economy starts getting better so as to keep inflation under control. I would say that are going to need some perfect timing. And like Glenn Beck said, I hope that they succeed for all of our sakes.

But now, a little bit about us, the people. What can I say about the American people, except that, they get what they deserve. When you elect a bunch of losers to government, and then you get losing policies that end up destroying your country, well then, you got what you deserved.

I beg you all to work for, and get a truly free primary system like Washington State got last year, and then start up an organization to inform the people how to use it to their advantage.

We need to get these people out in the primary, because in this way you can vote for a republican, or a democrat, and yet you will be voting for a new person, one who is not corrupted by the system yet. It is only in this way that we the people and not the political parties, will control the elections. Research it, and you will find that I am right, that this is the only way to change our government for the better, short of a Revolution.
jbranstetter04

Fed to pump nearly $1.2 trillion into the financial system

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve made it clear Wednesday that it will do whatever it takes to end the worst U.S. downturn since the Great Depression, announcing new plans to pump nearly $1.2 trillion into the financial system, including a historic commitment to buy up to $300 billion in longer-term Treasury securities.
As part of its unexpectedly aggressive plan, the Fed also committed to hold a key interest rate essentially at zero “for an extended period” and to buy up to another $850 billion in mortgage-backed securities and debt. The actions could quickly translate into lower borrowing costs for home buyers, homeowners and businesses — and that, in turn, could help get the stalled economy moving again.
The Dow Jones industrial average surged 91 points, to 7487, on news of the Fed’s actions. Interest rates on Treasuries plummeted, with 10-year notes posting the biggest one-day move in nearly 50 years. The U.S. dollar sank against other currencies, however, as traders worried about the long-term implications of the policies, including possible inflation.
Nevertheless, most experts applauded the Fed. “When you have a forest fire, gradualism is not a good idea,” said Richard Hoey, chief economist at Dreyfus. “The aggressiveness of the Fed’s action is consistent with the view that they understand the risks and have the power to act. This is not Hamlet deciding what to do.”
Fed actions
What the Fed will do:
•Buy up to $300 billion in longer-term Treasury securities during the next six months. The move, which follows similar efforts in Britain and Japan, is designed to bring down longer-term interest rates that influence business and consumer borrowing.
•Buy up to another $750 billion in mortgage-backed securities issued by mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which are in government conservatorship. The Fed has already committed to buy $500 billion in mortgage-backed securities, bringing planned purchases to $1.25 trillion. The Fed will also double the amount of Fannie and Freddie debt it plans to buy to $200 billion. The move is significant, given that Fannie and Freddie now back about 70% of home mortgages made in this country. About $1.4 trillion in mortgages were issued last year.
•Possibly expand the range of collateral the Fed will accept under a recently launched program to spur student loan, auto, credit card, small business, commercial real estate and other lending. The Fed and Treasury Department have said that they hope to eventually spur up to $1 trillion in lending under the so-called Term et-Backed Loan Facility.
The Fed’s medicine worked almost immediately. The 10-year Treasury bond yield dropped 0.51 of a percentage point, to 2.50%, a plunge that left money managers stunned. “It’s the biggest one-day move in my career, and I started in 1978,” says Bob Auwaerter, bond manager at the Vanguard Group. The bellwether note’s yield fell the most since 1962, according to Bloomberg News.
That could prompt what analysts expect will be the biggest…
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2009-03-18-fed-interest-rates_N.htm

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