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Effective Ways To Cut Off Credit Card Debt By: Anne Nev
This article will give you effective ways on how to pay off credit card.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-08)
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Short Refinance Plan By: Wade Frazier
In the year 2010, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development made an effort to assist dependable house owners who have a loan that is more on the mortgage than the value of the property.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-08)
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Avail Instant Loans And Sail Through Your Tough Money Crisis Instantly By: Joseph John
With the ease and convenience of availing instant loans, you can rest assured of availing them to tide through your financial crisis as smoothly as possible. The next time you face a money tight situation, do make it a point to visit a couple on online moneylender websites and get the instant cash loan in no time.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-07)
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Solve Your Financial Troubles In A Jiffy – Avail Instant Cash Loans By: Joseph John
Make sure you solve you financial troubles as soon as possible for there is no point delaying them further. With easily available instant cash loans online, they prove to viable source of funds when you require them the most.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-07)
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A Glimpse Of Annuity Tax Benefit And Death Benefit By: Simon Cronje
What is an Annuity?
Most people have no idea what the word "Annuity" means. Because you do not know what an annuity is, you may not consider investing in an annuity contract. Reading annuity sales brochures, deciding if you will purchase one, and knowing what type to buy is no easy task. Let’s cut through the complexity of annuities to help you determine whether they are the right long-term product for your future.
Annuities are retirement planning tools that have two phases--accumulation and annuitization. During the accumulation phase, you pay a specified amount to an insurance or investment company over a period of time or in a lump sum. Your money earns a rate of return called interest. During the annuitization phase, you can begin withdrawing regular payments (such as monthly or annually) from your annuity contract until you die.
Annuity Death Benefit
The annuity has a death benefit. This benefit is not like one in a life insurance policy. Upon your death before you have begun the annuitization phase, your beneficiary will receive either the current value of your annuity or the amount you have paid into it, whichever amount is higher. For instance, if your investments are performing poorly when you die and your account value is less than what you have paid in, your beneficiary would receive the amount you paid in.
When you annuitize (begin receiving payments), the death benefit is no longer available on your contract. If you annuitize at age 65 and die at age 67, the insurance company keeps your money. If you want your beneficiary to continue receiving payments after your death, you can buy "term certain" annuities. These annuities guarantee that either you or your beneficiary will receive payments for a certain period of time, such as 10 to 15 years. For example, if you died three years after you began receiving payments from a 10-year term certain annuity, your beneficiary would still receive payments for the next seven years.
Annuity Tax Benefits
The money that you pay into your annuity grows tax-deferred. This means that your money is not taxable until you begin to receive payments from your annuity. Once you receive payments, your gains are assessed taxes at your ordinary income tax rate. If you die before you annuitize, your beneficiary pays taxes on the death benefit. In either case, the person who receives the money (the annuity holder or your beneficiary) is taxed at his or her ordinary income tax rate.
Who Should Buy Annuities?
An ideal annuity candidate is 55 or older. Younger investors find the ten percent tax penalty for early withdrawal unappealing. Unless withdrawal occurs for death or disability, a penalty must be paid for withdrawing before age 59 ½. If you have already retired and need annuity income right away, consider buying immediate annuities. Immediate annuities skip the accumulation phase and begin to issue payments as soon as you invest in the contract.
Exchange Your Annuity
Another option you may want to consider is switching one annuity for another. You can do this without paying taxes. Exchanging one contract for another is a 1035 exchange (named after Section 1035 of the federal tax code). In a 1035 exchange, you can exchange one life insurance policy for a completely different life insurance policy, an annuity for another annuity, or a life insurance policy for an annuity without paying taxes; however, you cannot exchange an annuity for a life insurance policy without paying taxes on the gains in your annuity contract.
Do you need to tap into your money before the surrender period? Some insurers will allow you to access a small percentage of your investment, about 10 to 15 percent, under certain circumstances such as serious illness or disability. After the surrender period, you can withdraw as much money from your annuity as you want. Just remember that any money you withdraw before age 59½ is subject to a ten percent penalty tax.
If you made your maximum contribution to your existing tax-deferred retirement plan (401(k), 403(b), or IRA), you are the ideal annuity buyer. That's because you are already building up tax-deferred money in those plans, and the fees associated with those savings vehicles usually are much lower than those of Annuities.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-06)
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Taking The Confusion Out Of Annuities By: Simon Cronje
What are Annuities?
Annuities are contracts between the insurance company and a person investing in a retirement income plan. They come in all shapes and sizes to fit the divergent types of consumers whose needs they serve. Having the right information about annuities in an understandable format will help you decide which annuity you may want to purchase.
Annuities can be purchased in two different ways. An investor can pay one large sum of money to purchase a single-premium annuity. Once this type of annuity is chosen, further contributions are not possible. The investor will have to purchase a new annuity.
Flexible-payment annuities can receive ongoing investment of funds. The investor is free to decide the time intervals between contributions to their annuity.
Fixed Annuities
A guaranteed interest rate offers conservative investors the stability they want in a fixed rate annuity. The guaranteed rate lasts for a specified period. Once the first period is over, a rate adjustment occurs for the next period. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) backs some forms of investments. Unfortunately, The FDIC does not guarantee annuities. Instead, the strength of annuities lies in the financial stability of the issuing insurance company. Before purchasing your annuity, speak with your broker about the financial rating of the insurance company providing your annuity contract.
Variable Annuities
Variable annuities have fluctuating rates of return based on investments in stocks, bonds, or money market accounts. Somewhat similar to mutual funds, variable annuities offer a high rate of return if the fund your money is in performs well. A downturn in the market will bring a decrease in the principal and interest amounts of your annuity. These investments are higher risk because you can lose ground not only on your interest, but also on your original investment.
Variable annuities offer a wide range of investment options. Some have a fixed account option. Similar to a fixed annuity, fixed account option variable annuities guarantee principal and interest. You can take some of your money and put it in a higher risk account while saving the rest in a more stable low risk account. Asset allocation programs are available in some variable annuities. These programs help you decide where you should place your money based on your circumstances.
With variable annuities, you can move your money between funds while maintaining your tax deferred status. In other words, you can take your money out of a high-risk account, and transfer it to a low-risk account within the same annuity while avoiding a tax payment on that money. This allows you to switch your money to take advantage of market trends without the worry of additional taxes.
Expenses of Variable and Fixed Annuities
There are higher fees associated with variable annuities than with fixed annuities. Some companies take the cost of annuity expenses and fees into consideration when they decide the periodic interest rates they will pay investors for their fixed annuities.
Fees for variable annuities are more complicated. Companies may have an annual contract charge for administrative and surrender fees along with a mortality and risk expense charge. The risk expense charge helps cover the death benefit, expense level, and available payment options. Variable annuities also charge fees to pay for management and operating expenses. These fees may pay the fund manager’s salary or printing costs for the fund prospectus.
A variable fund prospectus will be given to you prior to purchasing this annuity. Make sure to read it carefully before making your decision. The prospectus contains valuable information about applicable fees and other annuity details. (read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-06)
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Self Help Credit Repair By: autor
Sometimes self help credit repair is the only option, and can be the credit services option that works best for you. It may be that you cannot afford professional help, or it could be that you are not sure how genuine this help may be. The later is more possible if you have had a bad experience in the past with professionals claiming to be effective in improving your credit report, but in the end delivering little to no result.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-06)
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Credit Dispute Letter Templates By: autor
Having bad credit does not mean you will be automatically turned down for credit or a loan! There are ways to get past your bad credit history and turn it around so that you not only can get a loan, you can get favorable interest rates as well. It all starts with you applying for reports from the three major reporting agencies, TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Once a year, and each time you might be turned down for credit, you are entitled to a copy of your credit report for free.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-05)
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Where To Get Loan Modification Help Online By: Loan Modification
The current economic environment is enabling homeowners to take advantage of federal loan modification programs in order to lower the monthly payments, and in some case the interest rate, of their existing home mortgage loans. If you are in the process of losing your home to a foreclosure then there are loan modification services out there that will enable you to get the loan modification help you need.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-04)
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Consequences Faced Due To Student Loans In Default By: Steve Warner
Failure in paying monthly or weekly installment for loan repayment leads the loan amount towards the defaulted loans status. In case of the students, this problem has been observed to be quite common. Student loans in default lead to several negative consequences that can be overcome by consolidation programs available.(read entire article)(posted on: 2010-11-04)
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