| Rein in spending and avoid credit-card debt
Question: I have credit-card debt at high interest rates on several cards, as well as student loans. Going into my last year in college and being wary of the future, carrying this debt scares me. I have been wondering if I should consider a debt-consolidation loan. What do you think? Answer: I am not a fan of consolidation loans. What attracts most people to consolidation loans is the potentially lower monthly payments. However, the main drawback of such loans is that they usually raise a person's average interest rate on his debt. .
Student loan options are baffling to family
Karen Wons of Maryland finds herself in a quandary that is confronting many parents right now. She is struggling with how best to advise her daughter -- a recent college graduate -- on paying down her $25,000 in student loans. Wons did what any wise parent would do. She asked for help. Wons's daughter works as a project manager at a medical software company. She has an annual salary of more than $50,000. Her employer provides a 401(k). She has about $13,000 in cash from recently redeemed Series EE savings bonds. She has no credit card debt. She has no payments on a reliable car with low mileage. She's sharing an apartment and other living expenses with an older sister in Madison, Wis. Her portion of the rent is a little more than $500 a month. Wons is unsure about the course her daughter should take: Should the daughter consolidate her college loans during her six-month grace period? (She has federally backed Stafford and Perkins loans.) Should she use the entire $13,000 to pay down the loans or keep making monthly payments to take advantage of the interest deduction? Should she invest all of the $13,000? While paying on the loans, should she contribute to her 401(k)? Let's take the consolidation question first.
Wonder Auto Technology, Inc. Reports Record Second Quarter 2007 Results
JINZHOU CITY, China, Aug. 7, 2007; Wonder Auto Technology, Inc., (BULLETIN BOARD: WATG) ("Wonder Auto" or the "Company"), a China- based manufacturer of automotive electrical parts, today announced its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2007. Revenue for the second quarter of 2007 increased to a record $23.6 million, up 25.2% from $18.8 million in the second quarter of 2006. The quarter was favorably impacted by the Company's April acquisition of the remaining 79.6% of Jinzhou Wanyou Mechanical Parts Co., Ltd. ("Wanyou") and its subsequent consolidation with Wonder Auto's financial results, which contributed $1.6 million to revenues during the quarter. Gross profit for the quarter was $5.7 million, up 69.6% from gross profit of $3.3 million in the comparable quarter a year ago.
A nation in debt
The financial chickens are coming home to roost. Two sets of figures released yesterday should act as warning signals to Scots planning to head off for their customary weekend retail-therapy session. With personal debt in Scotland already standing at an average of nearly £9000 per person (excluding mortgage debt), more and more people are sliding into insolvency, according to government figures. While second-quarter personal bankruptcies in England and Wales appear to have levelled off, the figure for sequestrations (the Scottish equivalent) was up by more than 23% on the corresponding period of 2006. That translates as a record 38 Scots going bust every single day, the equivalent of nearly 14,000 a year, compared with fewer than 5000 in 1998. At the same time, statistics from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show a 30% rise in repossessions in the six months to June.
Ask the Biz Brain
I purchased a house three months ago and have been using credit cards to help pay for renovating the property. My plan initially was to refinance and consolidate all the debt after I was done with the construction. However, my credit score has fallen and I am afraid I won't be able to get the best rate. What should I do? -- To the hiltYou're right, a credit score of 660 won't qualify you for a lender's best rate. Since your credit score is based on the information in your credit report, these balance run-ups are showing something's changing about your use of debt. Credit cards are unsecured debt, so increased balances means increased risk to the lender. That increased risk is showing up in your credit score. I'm going to assume you haven't missed any payments along the way.
Poll: Spitzer Wrong on Bruno, Right on Albany
This is interesting. In a Siena poll out today, 51 percent of respondents said they believe Eliot Spitzer knew what his aides were up to when they tried getting state police to gather information about Joe Bruno. But even more of them - 58 percent - say Spitzer “is committed to reforming Albany." .
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