Tips on Managing Your Debt Load

Credit-card debt isn't all bad. A little can get you out of a tight financial jam -- but a lot can lead to its own money emergency.

How can you tell if your debt load is nearing a critical level? Look for these symptoms:

1.You're unable to make the minimum payments on your credit cards

2.You borrow from one card to pay another

3.You're frequently charged fees for late payments or going over your credit limit

4.You use plastic out of necessity rather than convenience

5.You forgo contributions to savings and retirement plans because of your debt

6.You devote more than 20% of your take-home pay to making payments on credit cards and loans other than your mortgage.visit:-http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/103652/Don%27t-Let-Debt-Get-You-Down;_ylt=AsUTBBilGUZK8mY5cfpr2HNfrdIF

Credit Deals for the Creditworthy

The credit crisis has given Scott Briggs and his wife, Catherine, unusual leverage in their search for a new home. In October, to get the best deal on a 30-year fixed mortgage for a home in Austin, Tex., the couple persuaded the seller to agree to an unusual contingency clause in the contract of sale that let them back out, without penalty, if they couldn't get a mortgage carrying a 5.875% interest rate and no more than one point in closing fees.

The couple -- he is a partner at Ascend, a jet hangar manufacturer, and she is a pharmaceutical sales rep -- have near-perfect credit scores. Adding to their bargaining power, they plan to put 20% down on the four-bedroom, two-bath home in downtown Austin that they covet. They're also pitting two lenders against each other. "With rates bouncing around, we want to get the lowest rate possible," Scott says. Keith T. Gumbinger, vice-president of HSH, a mortgage market analyst, says that's smart: "There are a lot of hungry mortgage originators, so great credit-quality borrowers are in the driver's seat."read more http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/106027/Credit-Deals-for-the-Creditworthy;_ylt=Aoe1IF0s9EHeqUvHuuAjAVgJo9IF

A new cop for global finance

If an ounce of optimism exists in the market meltdown, it is this: Europe and the US have agreed to make the world safe again for capitalism by rethinking global rules for the financial system. One thing is for sure: The old rules, largely set in 1944, are as good as a rusted-out speed-limit sign.

Too much of the new world of international finance, such as hedge funds, derivatives, and mortgage securities, now operates in the shadows. US credit-rating agencies badly underestimated the real risks of subprime mortgages. Big banks have become too big to fail. And most of all, when Wall Street crumbles, the rocks ricochet from Shanghai to Stockholm.

Reining in the excesses of this complex, 24/7 business won't be easy – even within each country. But hope for reform is strong after recent joint action by Europe and the US to prop up banks and grease money flows. Read more..http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1017/p08s01-comv.html

Amendment 47 are fined for finance violation

The Colorado Right to Work Committee violated the state's campaign-finance law in failing to disclose all of the contributions made to its effort to put Amendment 47 on the November ballot, according to a court ruling.

Administrative Law Judge Michelle Norcross ruled that the committee be fined almost $10,000.

The finance complaint was filed last spring by AFL-CIO executive director Mike Cerbo and the union coalition in an effort to force disclosure of the initial financial backers of the measure.

Amendment 47 would do away with compulsory union fees for workers covered by collective bargaining contracts. Current state law requires that at least 75 percent of workers vote to establish such "all-union" agreements.
Wants to know more visit http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/oct/17/creators-of-amendment-47-fined-for-finance/?partner=yahoo_headlines