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Property Buyers Guide

2008-07-30T11:09:00.002+07:00

By: Iru

Buying a home is an important investment decision you need a lot of thought. To be sure make an informed decision, it is preferable to refer to a buyers guide. It will guide you through various considerations that you need to see before going ahead (or not) in this property purchase. It also guides you through the different options that are available for this purchase decision as simple as possible.

The acquisition of the property can be easy if you know how and you follow appropriate measures. Some of the most important steps in acquiring this piece of property that has been yearning for:

1. Among the first steps for the acquisition of property is to decide what their needs in terms of ownership. To help make this decision, make a wish list in the best location, type of property (single, clear-foot), the number of rooms, etc. Once you've done this for a real estate agent. You can do this by looking in the telephone directory, call and make an appointment to discuss their needs.

2.Alternatively, you can use the Internet to look for properties that meet their requirements, a list that resemble those of interest to you and to contact the estate agent under which the properties are listed for an appointment and organizing the exhibition of the property.

3. At this point, you probably already know that the price of the property you are looking at this and it's time to determine what we can afford to pay the fee. Rarely will be able to afford to give full effect to the payment of goods, and even if you can and if there is a large discount for cash payments, this option is generally not desirable, because the cost of money .
What we must do is determine the payment that is willing and capable of doing and what the periodic payments that you can afford it. A good rule of thumb is that for periodic payments, in combination with its other payment obligations should not exceed forty percent of their net monthly income.

4. After making his offer. You may have already organized their mortgage by a lender to finance the purchase, but otherwise it's time to pick the right mortgage for you. There are many companies offering mortgages, but be sure to research these companies before making their choice (see mortgage guide for more details). Choose the best offer which will apply to their ability to pay.

5. Typically, the lender will determine their ability to pay, either by references to previous months payroll or in the case of self-employed, the accounts last year. It will take into account assets and liabilities, as well as determining the ownership and value of the property to be mortgaged. To go through the legal process of a mortgage is facilitated by a conveyancer (lawyer) and the lender. At the end of requirements, legal documents shall be prepared by the conveyancer and will be signed by both mortgages and mortgagee and duly notarized. This usually includes a promissory note, a loan agreement and mortgage information.

6. Once you find your house, have a mortgage and began to make payments over a reasonable period of time, it is the right time to start thinking about ways to make your mortgage work for you.

• One way is remortgaging, which is the process to pay a mortgage to another in order to free up capital or take advantage of low mortgage interest rates at a given time.
• Another way is to make the mortgage whenever possible overpayments to reduce the total interest you pay the mortgage because the rate will apply to a lower amount.
• The outflow of capital (borrowing more money from your mortgage on the increase in the value of their property) is a means to generate cash, although their property is still under way d 'mortgage.
• If you have more than a mortgage, the value of a property sufficient to cover the remaining capital of any or all mortgages, you want May to consider debt consolidation, which is defined simply as the process of placing all its mortgage bonds several properties within the properties.

Buying a home is not an easy task after all. However, with a good guide for buyers, and understanding of management concepts of mortgages, as well as remortgaging, mortgage overpayments, the release of equity and debt consolidation, experience n 'has no why be painful, could be profitable, too.

Article Source: http://www.superfeature.com/

Marketing your house

2008-07-26T14:02:00.002+07:00

Written by ForSaleByOwner.com

The Internet is becoming the main vehicle for the sale of real estate. The National Association of Realtors reported that more than 84% of all online shoppers to find housing (against only 2% in 1997). The Internet is a quick and cost-effective way to reach millions of buyers, and it is for these reasons that his house must be online.

When selling a house to choose a website is very important, must find a site that receives an enormous amount of traffic, because it serves no purpose to have your home online if someone will see it. ForSaleByOwner.com americas North is the main "for sale by owner site, on the basis of monthly traffic on the site and, in fact, attracts more visitors than most residential brokerages. When you put your house available with ForSaleByOwner.com his house was also added to the list of real estate sections of Yahoo, Google Base, USAToday.com, and many other partner sites. hence, your house ready for sale on ForSaleByOwner.com ensures that your home receives maximum exposure. ForSaleByOwner.com Plus offers a wide range of free services to help you home throughout the sales process.

Attracting potential buyers to your house need not be a difficult task. It will always be people who are looking to move. It is their job to spread the word that you have a beautiful house on the market. It is imperative that you differentiate your home from others for sale in your area. Over all, its mission is to publish their homes as quickly and efficiently as possible.

One of the things that are easiest to sell your own home is a place "for sale by owner" on the front of his property. This will enable all members of the area know that his house is for sale. Make sure that your signal can be easily visible at a distance (after all, wants drivers to be able to write his phone number on the car). If you want to kill two birds with one stone, you can put your property on ForSaleByOwner.com and choose a package that includes professionals yard signs. One advantage of using signs ForSaleByOwner.com court is that the potential to achieve housing, they can visit ForSaleByOwner.com to see photos and a detailed description of your home. This will deter people from its bell rings at all hours. It is also important to an answering machine or voice message when you're not around. This message should understand the fact that his house is for sale, whether or not it is still available, price, and size. It May also include any additional information it deems appropriate, but be sure not to overwhelm the listener, May you want to give your list ID # for your ad on the Internet so that even if you're not home buyers receive the information request. Obviously, the tone should remain cordial and friendly to attract people to come see the house.

Another good marketing tool is a "good form" outlining the various outlets of your home. It May include features such as square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and just like an indoor pool, spa, etc. always include a photo, a color if possible. Once again used ForSaleByOwner.com if you have a printer circular feature that makes online advertising in a brochure that you can easily print and distribute them to buyers who visit, as well as shopping malls, libraries, grocery stores, and bulletin boards . In addition, make sure you have a brochure of its signature table so you can leave a copy in front of the house. Do not forget tp rebuild if necessary. So when potential buyers see your sign, they can take a sheet with them. After seeing a number of houses, your stand! Make a point to keep these sheets with you at all times because you never know when he could find a buyer.

Holding an open day in selling their own homes is another good way to show your property. It provides a non-threatening situation in which buyers can take a look and see if your house fits their needs. Try to keep a register of the sheet to keep track of everyone who passes through. In this way, you have the opportunity to follow up with potential buyers at a later date. Best of all, this type of advertising is completely free! Nice touches include the provision of moving the house rather than a simple stroll through the preparation or even some baked goods or hors d'oeuvres for people to taste. Be sure to keep the hand leaflets to prospective buyers will have something to refer when considering your home. You want to maybe even get the status of mortgages as forms that can find interested buyers eager to begin the process. For the pre-qualification forms or guidelines on the mortgage process can visit www.forsalebyowner.com / mortgage.

It is a good idea to think about all the people who come into contact with it for a week - the window, the girl buy at the supermarket, your dentist, to name a few. By spreading the word that his house is for sale, automatically broaden its base of potential purchase. Each of these people know and other people you can go a step further to find the buyer.

When it comes to sell another house common form of advertising is effective through local publications. The most obvious example is placing a small advertisement in his local newspaper. Other options include real estate specialty magazines or direct mail circulars. The disadvantage of this option is that it can be prohibitively expensive. However, it offers a wide exposure. Your ad should include the fact that you sell for sale by the owner, asking price, location, size (number of bedrooms and bathrooms), and phone number. Depending on the size of your ad and how much they are willing to spend, you can also include special features like a swimming pool or incentives such as "Motivated seller." Be sure to take the most positive of your home. For example, if the location is ideal (within walking distance of stores and / or located in a prestigious district), its ad must highlight.
Location, location, location!
4BR, 2 ½ bathrooms, located in the beautiful region of Alpharetta. Suitable for all, requires only $ 235,000.
Contact John (555) 555-1212.

A word of caution: Make sure you have a number of ads in turn. If a buyer sees the same ad over a long period of time, gives the impression that there must be a reason why your house is not for sale. You want to constantly maintain and generate interest in your house and keep it "fresh".

With the prevalence of the Internet is to their advantage to advertise on the Internet. The Internet is a quick way to reach millions of people. For a fee, you can ForSaleByOwner.com announce your house for sale on the Internet, May and include color photos and even floor plans. This cost-effective and comprehensive advertising is an excellent option to sell his house. Do not forget to mention your site in their list of ads and leaflet seriously so that buyers can continue to investigate his house.

8 Steps to Pricing Your House

2008-07-25T13:41:00.011+07:00

Written by Eric Mangan, ForSaleByOwner.com

Your house in the desired price is one of the first pieces of information that the buyer will want to know about their property. The price is too high and that you are afraid of them away. If it is too low, the risk of losing money. In order to price your home properly, you have to be aware of their local real estate market. This will allow you to set the selling price, which will compete favourably in comparison with other similar dwellings. Do not worry, it's easy if you follow these steps:

1st Know Contest: Visit real estate services and management through your area in the search for houses for sale that are comparable to those on your size, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, lot size and square footage. Educating themselves questions about their prices, and in particular Condos, calculated the price per square metre. Trulia.com is best for this work for you and you can print out a list of comparable houses, but you may also want to visit Realtor.com and ForSaleByOwner.com to more complete list is available on the housing market.

2nd Visit the open days: Now that you know what is on the market, visit as many doors open as possible, to find out how your house, compared to the other. Your task is to learn as much as possible about these houses as possible, such as improvements and renovations to the kitchen, bathroom and bedroom.

3rd More information about the recently sold Description: The next step is to educate themselves on the local market is to learn how many homes are sold in recent years. Home sales information is publicly available information and can be found in many ways. Your county clerk of the office and / or local town hall to you to say the information but the Internet has the task even easier. Trulia.com and Zillow.com have "recently been sold, which will present all the information on the properties that were sold in close proximity to a specified address.

4th Get a starting point: For a simple, cost-effective way to estimate how much your property is worth considering an automated valuation model (AVM). As a real estate agent for the comparative market, AVM will compare your home to similar properties sold recently vicinity. The AVM does not know whether your house has its own kitchen, finished basement or a new roof, etc., but it gives you a proposal for a series of the price of your house. The AVM will list in the vicinity of the newly sold properties. An AVM tool is available at http://www.forsalebyowner.com/appraisal.

5th Evaluate your research: Now you information on homes currently on the market, the latest data on the properties sold and the price range, you'll have all the information you need for your house to others in your area and its surroundings. Evaluating the information you have learned and ask yourself how your house stacks with the other. Be sincere. What is it and how, in comparison with the location, characteristics and functions as the master remodeled bathroom?

6th Now living in: One of the biggest mistakes sellers to the current market price of their house for the price of one, two or three years. The national median home price fell from more than 15% in April 2007 to April 2008 (in the markets in California, FL AZ and medium-sized home price fell by more than 20 percent!) And that the prices of their homes a long time will see to sit on the market. Houses that sold today, there are competitive prices for other houses on the market, so buyers in the sense that "good business."

7th Take adventage from "For sale by owner": Owners of houses, which are sold through a broker in real estate will have to typeset costly measures equivalent to 5-6% of their country of origin of the purchase price (or $ 18000 to 300000 U.S. dollars house). In other words, the seller of $ 300000 home will only "in pockets" 282000 dollars. As smart "for sale owner" home seller, you will not be that the costs and - depending on how quickly you want to sell - you have a unique opportunity to price your house anywhere in the $ 282000 - $ 300000 range and still be eligible for financial comparison with vendors who have similar apartments. In addition, you can treat more buyers, because it will attract to your home price required.

8th Set the price: The time has come. Now you have a complete picture of the real estate market. Set up the price over all the information you've learned through the above steps.

Congratulations! Do you have an important milestone in his house in the sale. Not only does it cost you, and you are an expert in the local property market. Potential buyers will be impressed by their knowledge and sense of fair assessment of the value of your house and you'll be able to communicate the strengths and weaknesses compared to other homes in your area, city and region.

Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump interview

2008-07-24T12:15:00.005+07:00

Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump speak are interviewed regarding a new book they co-authored "Why We Want You to Be Rich".

Why We Want You to Be Rich: Two Men - One Message
By Donald Trump, Robert T. Kiyosaki, Meredith McIver, Sharon L. Lechter

List Price:	$18.95
Price:	$12.89 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.

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Oil prices Factor

2008-07-22T14:46:00.001+07:00

High prices of crude oil may be due to a shortage of crude oil. The high prices of oil products - bought by consumers, as drivers - more inclined to other factors, such as taxes.

Crude oil prices react to the balance between supply and demand in the short term, and the pace of investment in the longer term. If investments are not sufficiently in advance, oil supplies could be reduced in the longer term, thereby increasing prices. Emotions are also an important factor: If entrepreneurs in the oil market believe there will be a shortage of oil supply, in May, the prices for a deficit actually occurs. Other factors affecting the prices of petroleum accidents, bad weather, an increase in demand, the judgement of the transport of oil by producers, labour disputes (strikes) and other ailments production, including war and natural disasters.

Crude oil is now less than one fourth the price of oil products in many countries. Accordingly, taxes have more influence on the prices of petroleum products. When the oil taxes are high, end users often wrongly blame the oil producers, but it is really their own governments are responsible for.

OPEC oil is directed against a stable market, without sudden changes in prices or too high or too low prices. OPEC to meet regularly with other oil producers and consumers in an attempt to increase understanding and confidence in the oil industry and seek policies and measures that are not economic problems for oil producers or consumers.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money--That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! (Paperback)

2008-07-09T11:58:00.003+07:00

Product Details

Paperback: 207 pages
Publisher: Business Plus; 1 edition (April 1, 2000)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0446677450
ISBN-13: 978-0446677455
Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

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Customer Reviews
How the rich become rich,

May 25, 2003

By	Carl Matthews (Traveling The USA) - See all my reviews

Rich Dad Poor Dad has been around long enough now so that everyone should know it's the true story of Robert Kiyosaki's 2 fathers; one rich, one poor and how Kiyosaki developed financial literacy.

This book will tell you some things that you don't want to hear like a house is not an asset. That financial literacy is different from educational literacy. That your income is not your wealth. Investors are different from savers and so on.

Easy to understand why some people fail to understand the concepts taught by Robert Kiyosaki.

The real question is: How are doing financially? I mean really?
You can live in a big house, have 3 cars, a nice job and a big income, but if you are living on 125% of your income, you are still a poor person.

It's cash flow that determines your wealth. If you spend all you make, plus some, you are in a negative cash flow.

As Kiyosaki explains, "assets feed you, liabilites bleed you." Too many people have too many liabilities and too few assets.
Unfortunately, some people feel this is normal because everyone else does it as well. ENT!

401 (k) plans are savings plans according to Kiyosaki and nothing wrong with that as long as you understand that you have a savings plan. Never call these programs investments. Unfortunately, most people do. Investers get in and get out and understand the risk. Investors also make money whether the market goes up or goes down.

Savers since March 2000 look at their 401 (k), mutual fund statements, brokerage accounts which they mispronounce "investments" and all they see is red. Typical "Poor Dad" mentality.

Kiyosaki also enlightens on income vs expence ratio. The role that taxes plays on slowing wealth accumulation. "It's not what you make, it's what you keep" says Kiyosaki.

Rich Dad Poor Dad teaches you to act like, be like and think like a Rich person instead of a poor person.

13 years ago was the first time I recieved training from a truly rich person. This guys net worth was in excess of 1/4 of a billion dollars. I had the gall to tell this guy that his advice was interesting but my concern was that it did not coincide with with I had been taught by parents, relatives and other family members (Poor Dad mentality).

This man was kind, smiled and asked me politely and seriously; "How many of those people who taught you were rich?"

Good question and I got it right away. The fact is, no one in my family was rich. There were sincere and meant well, but not rich. This guy was. I wanted wealth, not just security.

Robert Kiyosaki is offering the same advice. If you want to be rich, listen to a rich person.

Rich Dad Poor Dad is a excellent book to get you started on the road to wealth. I highly recommend it.

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The Pursuit of Happyness (Paperback)

2008-06-30T01:43:00.004+07:00

Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Gardner chronicles his long, painful, ultimately rewarding journey from inner-city Milwaukee to the pinnacle of Wall Street. Born in 1954, he grew up like too many young blacks: poor and fatherless, with a mother strong on children and church, yet soft on men. His violent, hateful stepfather refused to accept Gardner as a stepson and thwarted him at every turn. By his own account, Gardner was a good kid who got into trouble occasionally, but stayed on a steady, upward track. After a stint in the navy, he set his sights on a medical career, but a foray into sales led him to the stock and bond market. Gardner's own weakness was women, and when one of them left him with a son, it led to a period of homelessness on the San Francisco streets. Determination and resourcefulness brought father and son not merely to safety but to the top. Gardner is honest and thorough as he solidly depicts growing up black and male in late 20th-century urban America. His story isn't especially fresh, but his voice is likable, resulting in a quality African-American/business memoir deserving a wider audience than its niche-market elements might suggest. Photos. Ad/promo to coincide with the major motion picture starring Will Smith.(On sale May 23)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Amistad; Film Tie-in Ed edition (October 24, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0060744871
ISBN-13: 978-0060744878
Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Incredible and Inspirational!,

December 23, 2006

By	Erin Esposito "esposito" (Rochester, New York) - See all my reviews

This book is a true story of an individual believing in himself and chronicles the journey he took to reach his dreams.

Chris Gardner's life experiences exemplify courage, strength and willpower. He never gave up on his dreams for a better life for him and his son - even though he struggled to find a place to live, food to provide for his growing boy, and a stable job. Gardner lived in the Oakland BART station bathroom, among other places, and just kept getting right back up every time something knocked him down.

What I personally find to be admirable about this story is the incredible and inspirational journey Gardner trekked down in an amazing turn from rags to riches. He is now an extremely successful businessman and a mighty wealthy one too!

The power of the American dream still lives on. One only needs to think that they can do it. Gardner is an example for us to follow - to have a dream and to find ways to reach it, regardless of the hurdles and obstacles which are put in our way.

Congratulations, Chris, on your magnificent success in life!!

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Chris Gardner

2008-06-24T00:51:00.003+07:00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Early Years

Chris Gardner was born on February 9, 1954 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He did not have any positive male role models, since his absentee father, Thomas Turner, was living in Louisiana and his stepfather, Freddie Triplett, was a violent man. Despite her unhappy marriage, Gardner's mother, Bettye Jean Triplett, was a source of inspiration and strength. She encouraged Gardner to believe in himself and sowed the seeds of self-reliance in him. Gardner quotes her as saying, "You can only depend on yourself. The cavalry ain't coming."^[6] Gardner was Bettye Jean's second child. He had three sisters: Ophelia (the eldest half-sister from a previous union), Sharon, and Kim (his younger half-sisters from Bettye Jean's marriage to Freddie Triplett).

Freddie Triplett's violent outbursts often left Bettye Jean beaten and nearly fatally injured. Those rages left Gardner and his three sisters constantly afraid.^[3] Bettye Jean was imprisoned when Triplett reported her to the authorities for working while collecting welfare. As a result, her children were raised in foster care during her incarceration. They were put into foster homes once again when Gardner's mother re-entered incarceration for attempting to burn down the house with Triplett inside.^[3] From those experiences, Gardner determined that alcoholism, domestic abuse, child abuse, illiteracy, fear, and powerlessness were all things he wanted to avoid in the future.^[3]

Sense of movement

Gardner re-entered foster care for the second time when he was eight years old. During this period he became acquainted with his mother's three brothers Archie, Willie and Henry. Of the three, Henry had the most profound influence, entering Gardner's world at a time when he most needed a father figure. Tragically, "Uncle" Henry drowned in the Mississippi River while Chris' mother was in prison.^[2]

The late 1960s and early 1970s were a time of political and musical awakening for Gardner. He developed a deep sense of black pride as he became familiar with the works of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and Eldridge Cleaver. During that time Gardner's world view became increasingly narrow. That is after he attended Proviso East High School. He ignored historical events such as the Sharpeville Massacre and apartheid in South Africa and international racial issues.^[2] Gardner learned to play the trumpet and he enjoyed listening to music by Sly Stone, Buddy Miles, the Reverend James Brown and his all-time favorite, Miles Davis. Gardner was also known to enjoy the music of Billy Joel, and his favorite song by Joel is said to be "Man in the Mirror".

Although he was disgusted by his "Uncle" Henry's worldwide adventures in the United States Navy, Gardner decided to enlist in the Navy shortly after graduating high school, because he really had no other options. While in the Navy, Gardner became a Hospital corpsman and became acquainted with a top San Francisco cardiac surgeon, Dr. Robert Ellis, who offered Gardner a position assisting him with innovative clinical research at the University of California Medical Center and Veterans Administration Hospital in San Francisco, California. Gardner accepted the job and moved to San Francisco upon his discharge from the Navy in 1974. Over the next two years, he learned how to manage a laboratory and to perform various card tricks. By 1976, he had full responsibilities in a laboratory of his own and had co-authored with Dr. Ellis various articles published in medical journals.^[2]

Matrimony and parenthood

On June 18, 1977, Chris Gardner married Sherry Dyson, an educational expert in mathematics, from Virginia. With his knowledge, experience and contacts within the medical field, it appeared Gardner had his medical career plans laid out before him. However, with ten years of medical training ahead of him and with the changes in health care (such as HMOs) just on the horizon, he realized that the medical profession would be vastly different by the time he could practice medicine. Gardner was advised to consider other more lucrative career options; just before Gardner's 26th birthday, he informed his wife, Sherry, of his plans to abandon his dreams of becoming a doctor.^[2]

His relationship with Sherry was strained, in part because of his decision to forgo a medical career and also due to differences in their attitudes, and, according to him, a lack of passion in their sex life. While still living with Sherry, he began a passionate affair with a dental student named Jackie Medina, and she soon became pregnant with his child. After three years of marriage to Sherry, he left her to move in with Jackie and to prepare for fatherhood. Nine years elapsed before he and Sherry were legally divorced.^[2]

Gardner's son, Christopher Jarrett Medina Gardner was born on January 28, 1981. During the first year of his son's life, Gardner struggled to make ends meet by working at the VA hospital and supplementing his income with other jobs. He was hired as a sales representative for CMS, a medical equipment and supply company that offered him a yearly income of less than $30,000. Soon thereafter, Gardner left CMS to work at a more lucrative sales position at Van Waters and Rogers, a more established medical supply company.^[2]

Prompted by his child's inquiries about his own father, Gardner had previously been able to track down his biological father, Thomas Turner, over the telephone. With the higher income that he was earning at his new job, Gardner was able to save enough money to travel to Monroe, Louisiana. There, he and his son met Turner for the first time.^[2]

Gardner returned to San Francisco determined to succeed at business. A pivotal moment in his life occurred, after a sales call to a San Francisco General Hospital, when he encountered an impeccably-dressed man in a red Ferrari. Curious, Gardner asked the man what he did for a living. The man told him he was a stock broker and, from that moment on, Gardner's career path was decided.^[6] Eventually, Gardner bought a Ferrari of his own from the famous basketball player, Michael Jordan.^[3] The Illinois license plate of Gardner's black Ferrari reads "NOT MJ."

The stockbroker in the red Ferrari was a man by the name of Bob Bridges. He met with Gardner and gave him an introduction to the world of finance. Bridges set up meetings between Gardner and branch managers at the major stock brokerage firms that offered training programs — such as Merrill Lynch, Paine Webber, E.F. Hutton, Dean Witter Reynolds, and Smith Barney. For the next two months, Gardner cancelled or postponed his sales appointments and his car amassed parking tickets while he met with managers.^[2]

It appeared that Gardner got his "break" when he was accepted into a training program at E.F. Hutton. He subsequently quit his sales job so that he could dedicate his time exclusively to training as a stock broker. Then he appeared at the office ready to work, only to discover that his hiring manager had been fired the week before. To make matters worse, Gardner's relationship with Jackie was falling apart. She accused him of beating her — an accusation that Gardner denies to this day — and left him, taking their son with her to the east coast. He was taken to jail and a judge ordered that he stay there, for ten days, as punishment for being unable to pay $1,200 in parking tickets.^[4]

Gardner returned home from jail to find his apartment empty. His girlfriend and his son, along with all of his possessions (including his suits, shoes and business apparel), had disappeared. With no experience, no college education, virtually no connections, and with the same casual outfit he had been wearing on the day he was taken into custody, Gardner gained a position in Dean Witter Reynolds’ stock brokerage training program. However, with a monthly stipend of $1,000 and no savings, he was unable to meet his living expenses.^[6]

Fatherhood amidst homelessness

Gardner worked to become a top trainee at Dean Witter Reynolds. He arrived at the office early and stayed late each day, persistently making calls to prospective clients with his goal being 200 calls/day. His perseverance paid off when, in 1982, Gardner passed his licensing exam on the first try and he came into the full employ of the firm. Eventually, Gardner was recruited away from Dean Witter to Bear Stearns in San Francisco.

About four months after Jackie disappeared with their son, she returned and left him with Gardner. By then, he was able to afford a small rent and was rooming in a flophouse. He willingly accepted sole custody of his child; however, the rooming house where he lived did not allow children. Although he was gainfully employed, Gardner and his son secretly struggled with homelessness while he saved money for a rental house in Berkeley, California.

Meanwhile, none of Gardner's coworkers knew that he and his son were homeless in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco for nearly a year. Gardner often scrambled to place his child in daycare, stood in soup lines and slept wherever he and his son could find safety — in his office after hours, at flophouses, at parks, and even in a locked bathroom at the Bay Area Rapid Transit station.^[1]

Concerned for Chris Jr.’s well-being, Gardner asked Reverend Cecil Williams to allow them to stay at the Glide Memorial United Methodist Church’s shelter for homeless women, now known as The Cecil Williams Glide Community House. The Reverend agreed without hesitation.^[2] Today, when asked what he remembers about being homeless, Christopher Gardner, Jr. recalls "I couldn't tell you that we were homeless, I just knew that we were always having to go. So, if anything, I remember us just moving, always moving." ^[3]

Business ventures

In 1987, Chris Gardner established the brokerage firm, Gardner Rich & Co, in Chicago, Illinois, an "institutional brokerage firm specializing in the execution of debt, equity and derivative products transactions for some of the nation’s largest institutions, public pension plans and unions."^[4] His new company was started in his small Presidential Towers apartment, with start-up capital of US$10,000 and a single piece of furniture: a wooden desk that doubled as the family dinner table.^[7] Gardner reportedly owns 75 percent of his stock brokerage firm with the rest owned by a hedge fund. He chose the name "Gardner Rich" for the company because he considers Marc Rich, the commodities trader pardoned by President Bill Clinton in 2001, "one of the most successful futures traders in the world.^[6]

After Gardner sold his small stake in Gardner Rich in a multi-million dollar deal in 2006, he became CEO and founder of Christopher Gardner International Holdings, with offices in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco.^[4] During a visit to South Africa to observe elections around the time of 10th anniversary of the end of apartheid, Gardner met with Nelson Mandela to discuss possible investment in South African emerging markets as indicated in his 2006 autobiography. Gardner is reportedly developing an investment venture with South Africa that will create hundreds of jobs and introduce millions in foreign currency into the nation. Gardner has declined to disclose details of the project citing securities laws.^[8]

Philanthropic initiatives

Chris Gardner is a philanthropist who sponsors charitable organizations, primarily the Cara Program and the Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in San Francisco, where he and his son received desperately-needed shelter.^[4] He has helped fund a US$50 million project in San Francisco that creates low-income housing and opportunities for employment in the area of the city where he was once homeless.^[1]As well as offering monetary support, Gardner donates clothing and shoes. He makes himself available for permanent job placement assistance, career counseling and comprehensive job training for the homeless population and at-risk communities in Chicago.^[4]

Dedicated to the well-being of children through positive paternal involvement, Gardner serves on the board of the National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI).^[4] He is also a board member of the National Education Foundation and sponsors two annual education awards: the National Education Association's National Educational Support Personnel Award and the American Federation of Teachers' Paraprofessionals and School-Related Personnel Award.^[4]

In 2002, Gardner received the Father of the Year Award from the NFI. Since then, Gardner also had the honor of receiving the 25th Annual Humanitarian Award and the 2006 Friends of Africa Award, presented by the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women (LACAAW) and by the Continental Africa Chamber of Commerce, respectively.^[4]

In 2008, He spoke at his daughter's graduation from Hampton University

By	K. Corn "reviewer" (Indianapolis,, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pursuit of Happyness (Hardcover)

I hear Will Smith is in the lead role in the movie based on this book. It is truly an incredible story of one man's rise from homelessness to being a millionaire! Not only that but he is forced to show up for his first important job interview on Wall Street in paint-spattered shoes, having been evicted - and he still manages to talk himself into the job!
This is one of those stories that is so incredible, so "making it against all odds". The author has a strong, passionate voice and he doesn't flinch from telling the truth, including the fact that when he lived in hotels with his young son, they played a game called, "Shhh..." which involved keeping quiet when people knocked on the door or tried to find out if they were there (to evict them). But he didn't let the trauma, the hard times, defeat him. He simply faced up to the fact that he'd have to dig himself out of a hole, hard as it was....and, miraculously, he did.
If you're feeling down, this book ought to inspire you!

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The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich (Hardcover)

2008-06-24T00:28:00.008+07:00

by Timothy Ferriss (Author)

Product Description
What do you do? Tim Ferriss has trouble answering the question. Depending on when you ask this
controversial Princeton University guest lecturer, he might answer:

“I race motorcycles in Europe.”
“I ski in the Andes.”
“I scuba dive in Panama.”
“I dance tango in Buenos Aires.”

He has spent more than five years learning the secrets of the New Rich, a fast-growing subculture who has abandoned the “deferred-life plan” and instead mastered the new currencies—time and mobility—to create luxury lifestyles in the here and now.

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By	J. Harr - See all my reviews

I don't often write reviews on Amazon.com but I felt compelled to write one for this book because the author has convinced me to change my assumptions about worklife and personal goals. This is an easy read. Althought I am a slooooow and easily distracted reader, I finished the book from cover-to-cover in a few sittings. I even spent some time researching the weblinks but didn't do all the challenges because I was eager to absorb all the ideas first.

It is probably best to read the book one time through quickly to grasp his point of view (the author even gives a brief blurb on how to speed read). Then after you "get it" take some time doing the challenges if you feel so compelled.

I have already implemented one of the author's recommendations in my daily life....check email only twice per day: right before lunch then again an hour before the end of the day. Process every email at the time you read it. Seems a simple challenge but I did suffer "withdrawal symptoms" from not constantly checking email. And you know what? Because I stayed focus on the task at hand and not constantly checking email I left work last Thursday (April 27) feeling less stressed and more accomplished. This is only a brief part of the book but to me was impactful.

Ferriss gives some great ideas about starting your own business even if you don't have or desire an MBA (like me). He provides lists of free and paid resources to help you along the way.

There is a simple roadmap for freeing yourself from the 9-5 grind. Is it attainable? I hope so. Maybe I'm just being an optimist but yesterday I took the day off from my "cube job" and spent part of my day setting up an online business following his "case studies".

The downside is that the book is provides a cursory glance at some topics that need to be expanded. However, I think he did a good job at presenting his view of how life can be. He's also opened himself up to "The 4 Hour Workweek 2.0" when he can go in more depth.

In all I found it an enjoyable read. I plan to follow his "roadmap" and see where it takes me. I already recommended it to two other friends.

Now, to the naysayers writing "reviews" about this book. First, Read the book. Second, write a review of the book not a review about other reviews. You are undermining your "cause" as Review Police by giving a 1-star without first reading the book and "just to balance the scales". In short you're being hypocritical. I think if you take your own advice and read the book you will "get it". Is there marketing going on here? DUH! Of course there is marketing! Ferriss is selling a product. Simply put, he practices what he preaches!

Read the book and find out!

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Gas prices hit another record

2008-06-15T18:55:00.001+07:00

Gas prices hit another record

National average price keeps climbing, with more than half the states paying $4 a gallon or more.

June 14, 2008: 8:42 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Gasoline prices as measured in the daily AAA survey hit yet another record Saturday.

The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline edged up slightly to $4.073 a gallon, according to the motorist group's Web site.

The average topped $4 for the first time last week after crude oil prices surged to a trading record above $139 per barrel. The price has swung back and forth in a $10 band since then.

Gas is most expensive in California, according to the survey, averaging $4.587, followed by Alaska at $4.416. The average price is $4 a gallon or more in more than half the states and the District of Columbia.

Missouri has the lowest average price at $3.839, followed by Oklahoma at $3.849.

Gasoline prices in the survey have risen 34 percent from a year ago when they averaged $3.029.

On its Web site, AAA says the information is gathered by Oil Price Information Service based on credit card swipes at 85,000 gasoline stations across the nation.

Robert Kiyosaki Bio

2008-06-15T00:32:00.000+07:00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Robert Toru Kiyosaki (born April 8, 1947) is an investor, businessman, self-help author and motivational speaker. Kiyosaki is best known for his Rich Dad, Poor Dad series of motivational books and other material. He has written 18 books which combined have sold over 26 million copies.[1] Although beginning as a self-publisher, he was subsequently published by Warner Books, a division of Hachette Book Group USA, currently his new books appear under the Rich Dad Press imprint. Three of his books, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Rich Dad's CASHFLOW Quadrant, and Rich Dad's Guide to Investing, have been on the top 10 best-seller lists simultaneously on The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the New York Times. The book Rich Kid Smart Kid was published in 2001, with the intent to help parents teach their children financial concepts. He has created three "Cashflow" board and software games for adults and children and has a series of "Rich Dad" audio cassettes and disks. He also publishes a monthly newsletter.

A fourth-generation Japanese American, Kiyosaki was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii. He is the son of the late educator Ralph H. Kiyosaki (1919-1991). After graduating from Hilo High School, he attended the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in New York, graduating with the class of 1969 as a deck officer. He later served in the Marine Corps as a helicopter gunship pilot during the Vietnam War, where he was awarded the Air Medal. Kiyosaki left the Marine Corps in 1974 and got a job selling copy machines for the Xerox Corporation. In 1977, Kiyosaki started a company that brought to market the first nylon and Velcro "surfer" wallets. The company garnered moderate success at first but would eventually go bankrupt. In the early 1980s, Kiyosaki started a business that licensed T-shirts for Heavy Metal rock bands.[2] Kiyosaki's foray into the motivational speaking business began with "Money & You", a seminar company started by Marshall Thurber. These 3-1/2 day personal growth seminars focused on teaching people financial strategies and helping them achieve financial freedom. In 1985, Kiyosaki took over the seminar business with Thurber's former partner, D.C. Cordova. They promptly shifted the market to Australia and New Zealand. In 1994, he withdrew from the business and "retired", leaving D.C. Cordova running the business alone. Around 1996–1997 he launched Cashflow Technologies, Inc. which operates and owns the Rich Dad (and Cashflow) brand. He is married to Kim Kiyosaki.

Teachings

A large part of Kiyosaki's teachings focus on generating passive income by means of investment opportunities, such as real estate and small businesses, with the ultimate goal of being able to support oneself by such investments alone. In tandem with this, Kiyosaki defines "assets" as things that generate cash inflow, such as rental properties or businesses—and "liabilities" as things that generate cash outflow, such as house payments, cars, and so on. Such definitions are somewhat based on the concept of negative gearing. Kiyosaki also argues that financial leverage to be critically important in becoming rich.

Kiyosaki stresses what he calls "financial literacy" as the means to obtaining wealth. He says that life skills are often best learned through experience and that there are important lessons not taught in school. He says that formal education is primarily for those seeking to be employees or self-employed individuals, and that this is an "Industrial Age idea". And according to Kiyosaki, in order to obtain financial freedom, one must be either a business owner or an investor, generating passive income.

Kiyosaki speaks often of what he calls "The Cashflow Quadrant," a conceptual tool that aims to describe how all the money in the world is earned. Depicted in a diagram, this concept entails four groupings, split with two lines (one vertical and one horizontal). In each of the four groups there is a letter representing a way in which an individual may earn income. The letters are as follows.

* E: Employee — Working for someone else
* S: Self-employed or Small business owner — Where a person owns his own job and is his own boss.
* B: Business owner — Where a person owns a "system" of making money, rather than a job to make money.
* I: Investor — Spending money in order to receive a larger payout in return.

In late 2006 Kiyosaki teamed up with the business tycoon Jared Houston.[3] Houston and Kiyosaki have had similar experiences with "left vs right side of the quadrant" mindsets. While Kiyosaki received much of his "B" and "I" from "Rich Dad", Houston obtained a lot of his from Rich Dad like characters like Fox Magee, Christian David, And Gengarellas. They have been refining some of the basic principles that Kiyosaki teaches. Both of these multi-millionaires share a passion in teaching, and both also are solid on their beliefs that the right side of the quadrant is freedom. These two are still working together, and are expected to come out with a book together late 2008 that will challenge the foundation of Trump's work.

For those on the left side of the divide ("E" and "S"), Kiyosaki says that they may never obtain true wealth. Conversely, those on the right side of the divide ("B" and "I") are supposedly following the only road to true wealth.

Books

Kiyosaki is best known for his book Rich Dad, Poor Dad, the #1 New York Times bestseller. Kiyosaki followed with Rich Dad's CASHFLOW Quadrant and Rich Dad's Guide to Investing. He has now had at least a dozen books published. A partial list of his books is included below.[4]

Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money—That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! (1997)
Main article: Rich Dad, Poor Dad

Originally self-published before being picked up commercially to become a best seller, the central concept of the book is an anecdotal comparison of his "two fathers." His "poor dad" was his biological father, who became Superintendent of the Hawaii State Department of Education but had very little real net worth. Contrasted with this is his (arguably fictitious, see "Criticism and controversy" section of this article) "rich dad," his best friend's father who became "the richest man in Hawaii" by investing his smaller income into income-producing investments. Its main purpose as a self-help book is to help people rethink their idea of money and especially their concept of themselves as employees who will gain financial rewards from conformity and education.

Kiyosaki uses the "rich dad, poor dad" comparison to illustrate his view that the majority of people are stuck in what he refers to as "the rat race"—living paycheck to paycheck and spending all of their time working to pay bills. In his books, Kiyosaki advocates tax-advantaged investment vehicles, such as real estate or businesses, rather than ownership of securities. This idea is further developed in his later books and "Rich Dad" became Kiyosaki's personal brand for various publishing ventures.

Cashflow Quadrant: Rich Dad's Guide to Financial Freedom (2000)

Cashflow Quadrant is a personal finance and investing book written with Sharon Lechter, C.P.A. as the sequel to Rich Dad, Poor Dad. In it, Kiyosaki discusses what he calls the cashflow quadrant: a grid consisting of the letters "E", "S", "B", and "I". The cashflow quadrant itself is just an illustrative tool to show the difference between Employees, Self Employed/Small Business owners, Business owners (not directly involved in the day-to-day operation of the company), and Investors. Kiyosaki discusses the differences between concepts and ideas characteristic of each quadrant, particularly as they relate to passive income and tax advantages. Again, as a self-help author, he invites readers to consider their own ideas about money.

Rich Dad's Guide to Investing: What the Rich Invest in, That the Poor and the Middle Class Do Not! (2000)

Rich Dad's Guide to Investing gives the reader a roadmap to becoming the Ultimate Investor, one who uses other peoples' money to create investments that people want to buy into. While the first two books use broad strokes, this one goes into much more detail about actually implementing some of the strategies heretofore discussed.

Rich Kid, Smart Kid (2001)

Rich Kid, Smart Kid is a retelling of Kiyosaki's views, condensed and clarified to try and help parents better understand and teach their children key financial concepts. It includes a series of activities that a parent can do with their child to make them aware of property, finance and the various ways and places businesses make money.

Rich Dad's Prophecy (2002)

Rich Dad's Prophecy predicts that the market will crash around 2016 when the oldest Baby Boomers start cashing out their 401(k) plans. Individuals whose savings are locked into 401(k) plans will suffer because these retirement plans are not flexible and do not do well in a bear market.[5] Robert Kiyosaki believes this may be his most important book yet.

Why We Want You To Be Rich coauthored by Donald Trump (2007)

Why We Want You To Be Rich is a book written by both Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump. It encourages individuals to become financially literate to combat the upcoming problems facing America, such as the shrinking middle class and the entitlement mentality.[6]

Other Books:

* If you want to be Rich & Happy don't go to School? (1992)
* The Business School for People Who Like Helping People (2001) - endorses multi-level marketing.
* Retire Young, Retire Rich (2001)
* Rich Dad's The Business School (2003)
* Who Took My Money (2004)
* Rich Dad, Poor Dad for Teens (2004)
* Before You Quit Your Job (2005)
* Rich Dad's Escape from the Rat Race - Comic for children (2005)

Didactic games

Kiyosaki stresses the value of games, particularly Monopoly, as tools for learning basic financial strategies such as "trade four green houses for one red hotel". Kiyosaki has created several games to reinforce the information in his books.

Cashflow 101
Main article: Cashflow 101

"Cashflow 101" is a board game designed by Kiyosaki, which aims to teach the players concepts of investing and making money, it costs $195.

There are two stages to the game. In the first, "the rat race", the player aims to raise his or her character's passive income level to where it exceeds the character's expenses. The winner is determined in the second stage, "the fast track". To win, a player must get his character to buy his "dream" or accumulate $50,000 in monthly cash flow.

The game forces the players to do the accounts by themselves. In place of "score cards", there are financial statements. Therefore, players can see more clearly what is happening with their money. It generally shows how assets generate incomes and liabilities and 'doodads' affect expenses.

Cashflow 202

"Cashflow 202" is a more advanced game than Cashflow 101. It is designed to help players learn about more sophisticated investing strategies. Cashflow 101 was generally meant to teach investing techniques that would work best in an "up market" where property values steadily increase, whereas Cashflow 202 is supposed to teach investment strategies for a fluctuating market where property values depreciate as well as rise.

Cashflow for Kids

"Cashflow for Kids" is basically a children's version of Cashflow 101, good for ages 5 through 9. There is also a Cashflow for Kids e-game available for free.[7]

Cashflow The E-Game

"Cashflow The E-Game" is a computer software version of the Cashflow 101 board game. It is not necessary to have the board game in order to play the computer game.

Cashflow 202 The E-Game

"Cashflow 202 The E-Game" is a software expansion of the computer game "Cashflow The E-Game". Its counterpart is the "Cashflow 202" board game described earlier in this article.

The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crash of 2008 and What It Means (Hardcover)

2008-06-08T00:58:00.000+07:00

The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crash of 2008 and What It Means (Hardcover)

by George Soros (Author)

Editorial Reviews
Product Description

In the midst of the most serious financial upheaval since the Great Depression, legendary financier George Soros explores the origins of the crisis and its implications for the future. Soros, whose breadth of experience in financial markets is unrivaled, places the current crisis in the context of decades of study of how individuals and institutions handle the boom and bust cycles that now dominate global economic activity. “This is the worst financial crisis since the 1930s,” writes Soros in characterizing the scale of financial distress spreading across Wall Street and other financial centers around the world. In a concise essay that combines practical insight with philosophical depth, Soros makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the great credit crisis and its implications for our nation and the world.

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The Essays of Warren Buffett

2008-06-03T00:46:00.000+07:00

The Essays of Warren Buffett : Lessons for Corporate America (Paperback)

by Warren E. Buffett (Author), Lawrence A. Cunningham (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Buffett, the Bard of Omaha, is a genuine American folk hero, if folk heroes are allowed to build fortunes worth upward of $15 billion. He's great at homespun metaphor, but behind those catchy phrases is a reservoir of financial acumen that's generally considered the best of his generation. For example, in an essay on CEO stock options, he writes, "Negotiating with one's self seldom produces a barroom brawl." This is his way of saying that an executive who can give himself compensation totally disproportionate to his performance surely will. There are uncountable gems of financial wisdom to be harvested from these essays, taken from the annual reports he writes for Berkshire Hathaway, his holding company. Just to pick one more, here's a now-famous line about those he competes with when making stock-market investments: "What could be more advantageous in an intellectual contest--whether it be chess, bridge, or stock selection--than to have opponents who have been taught that thinking is a waste of energy?"

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While America Aged

2008-06-03T00:39:00.000+07:00

While America Aged: How Pension Debts Ruined General Motors, Stopped the NYC Subways, Bankrupted San Diego, and Loom as the Next Financial Crisis (Hardcover)

by Roger Lowenstein (Author)Product Description
From the bestselling author of Buffett, When Genius Failed, and Origins of the Crash, a wake-up call to the pension and retirement crisis facing America and the road map for a way out

In While America Aged, bestselling author Roger Lowenstein explains how corporations and governments ran up ruinous pension and health-care promises to workers—promises that are now coming due and that will hit America like a tsunami if nothing is done.

Negotiating high benefits means gambling with future finances—and when the farm gets sold out from underneath major corporations or public institutions, it affects all of us, and in ways we might not imagine. With his trademark narrative panache, Lowenstein unravels the truth about how pensions work in America and illuminates the impending crisis. While America Aged is comprised of three fascinating case studies— each an object lesson and a compelling historical saga. The first goes back to the early days of the United Auto Workers and its crusading leader, Walter Reuther, to tell the story of how pensions and health-care obligations destroyed the American auto industry, in particular General Motors.

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Robert Kiyosaki 2008 Predictions Part 2

2008-05-08T16:22:00.000+07:00

Robert Kiyosaki 2008 Predictions Part 2

Robert Kiyosaki 2008 Predictions Part 1

2008-05-08T16:17:00.000+07:00

Robert Kiyosaki 2008 Predictions Part 1

Financial Strategies Robert Kiyosaki

2008-05-08T15:48:00.000+07:00

Financial Strategies Robert Kiyosaki
Robert Kiyosaki in broad strokes about strategies to attain financial freedom

Amid Record Losses, Wall Street Awarded Itself $39 Billion

2008-01-26T15:19:00.001+07:00

The five largest Wall Street banks doled out a record $39 billion in bonuses last year, after driving hundreds of thousands of families into foreclosure, causing a financial crisis affecting hundreds of millions, and pushing the US and world economies closer to recession, it appears Wall Street is rewarding itself for a job well done.

read more | digg story

What Is “The Secret” To Finding Real Wealth?

2008-01-21T17:02:00.000+07:00

Did you know that less than one percent of the people currently living on this planet account for almost twenty-five percent of ALL the wealth? These powerful people certainly don’t want you to know this...they want you to stay as mindless drones whose sole objective is to keep THEM wealthy. What is the secret this small fraction of the population knows that the rest do not?

If you haven't seen the movie "The Secret", I implore you to watch it! The Secret is the most powerful law in the universe! If you have already seen it, watch it again. To watch "The Secret" online, copy and paste this url into your browser; http://www.thesecret.tv/home.html

Or you can watch "The Secret" On Demand via cable and satellite for audiences in the United States and Canada.

This small minority of people who are currently pulling the strings on world politics and world economics have mastered The Secret. These are the same people who want The Secret banned like it was once banned hundreds of years ago. Now The Secret has been un-earthed for all to discover its tremendous power once again!

There also have been great leaders who have mastered The Secret and made positive contributions to all of humanity. Leaders like Albert Einstein, Abe Lincoln, and Mother Teresa to name a few.

We are now living in an exciting new age of technology where humanity can do incredible things. The brick and mortar corporations who once ruled our economy unequivocally over the little guy are slowly losing their death grip due to the astonishing power of the internet!

So what is this secret you ask? In a sentence; "The Secret Is The Law Of Attraction". Simply stated, you get what you wish for...or your thoughts dictate what you get in life. Your health is dictated by your thoughts as well as your wealth.

Think of your thoughts as little tiny magnets...the intensity of these tiny magnets or thoughts are in direct proportion to the emotions you attach to it. The stronger the magnet, the stronger the attraction. This explains why a lot of people don't get what they wish for. They have not attached a strong enough emotion to their dream. Or they feel they don’t deserve their dream so they don’t bother pursuing it.

Let me give you an example of how the law of attraction works in a negative way. Think of the days when you got started off the wrong foot, then said to yourself "this is gonna be a long and terrible day". What happened? A long and terrible day...you got what you wished for! The degree of how terrible your day turned out was proportional to the intensity of the negative emotion you attached to the thought, right?

So how do these little "magnets" or thoughts attract what we want or don't want in our lives you ask? Well, and this is based on quantum physics that scientists have just learned in the last 10 or 15 years. There is an invisible universal mind if you will that contains all the dreams and thoughts of everyone who has ever lived or will live...past...present...future. This is quite the paradox you may think, how can this be?

The "time" element in this universal mind has been negated or altered. Quantum physics has recently shown us that a single electron can occupy two different spaces in an electro-magnetic field at the same exact point in time, once thought impossible. This goes against the laws of physics unless time has been negated or altered some how, the only possible explanation. So you may be able to connect with the dreams of someone who hasn't been born yet. Are you getting excited yet?

The Universal Mind is a sort of collective consciousness. The place where dreams are born. These dreams are invisible and waiting to take physical form.

How do you convert your dreams from the universal mind to the physical realm? By constantly thinking about your dreams with strong emotions and just as importantly - taking action! I am NOT talking about wishful thinking here...you must take action on your dreams!

It helps to have pictures of your dreams and look at them every day. Write your dreams down. Formulate a plan that is specific and with deadlines that will bring your dreams to fruition...and stay the course! “Don’t die with your dreams still inside you” as Dr. Wayne Dyer likes to say.

That is why I firmly believe you should pursue ventures you have a passion for...then you will find it easier to attach strong positive emotions to your thoughts and dreams.

This is the most powerful law in the universe, use it wisely my liege...

Good Luck and Stay the Course!

John Lynch

Reading Your Financial Statements: What Every Entrepreneur Must Know

2008-01-21T16:20:00.000+07:00

As you consider which legal entity or entities--corporation, limited liability company, or limited partnership--you want to use for your business structure, the decisions you make will depend heavily on your current financial situation, both personal and professional. But do you know how to read a financial statement on your own? Do you know how to read your own personal and business financial statements?

Knowing how to do this is an essential skill not just for entrepreneurs but for everyone. However, for the entrepreneur having this skill can mean the difference between having a thriving business that continues to thrive and winding up in bankruptcy. The annals of the bankruptcy courts are strewn with cases of entrepreneurs who entrusted their accounting to others and, not knowing how to read the financial statements of their own businesses, were surprised when they found that the business was ultimately unsustainable. The purpose of this article is to help prevent this from happening to you--and to arm you with the skills you need to structure your business to your benefit from the outset.

Your Two Major Financial Statements

There are two major financial statements that every entrepreneur should know how to read and (ideally) prepare or have prepared in their financial software (we recommend QuickBooks):

The Income Statement

The Income Statement (also known as the P&L or Profit and Loss Statement) offers a dynamic picture of the ebb and flow of your finances. Briefly, income statement shows first: A. Your various sources of income Then subtracts from that, B. Your expenses To give you the net result: Net Profit or Loss Typically, it is the result shown on this statement that is the basis for your taxation by state and federal authorities at the end of the year. The net income or loss (revenue outgo) is carried over onto your second major financial statement: The Balance Sheet.

The Balance Sheet

Offers you a snapshot of cumulative results of your financial activities. It is made up of two columns: On the left side you have your Assets

On the right are listed your Liabilities and Owners/Shareholders Equity (or ownership in the business). The two columns must be in balance, which is why this is called a Balance Sheet.

Assets=Liabilities + Equity

It's really quite logical how the Income Statement and Balance Sheet relate to one another.

If you have to use current or long-term assets to pay ongoing expenses during the current year, at the end of the year, the amount of your assets will be reduced by the amount of net loss. On the right hand side, your Equity has gone down too. If you borrowed, say $10,000 to pay current operating expenses, at year end, your assets remain the same, but your liabilities have increased by $10,000, lowering your net Equity or ownership in the company by that same $10,000.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that if you continue on this path, you will quickly be in a very painful situation, because Liabilities carry their own cost. The cost of borrowing money is Interest, and if you are fortunate enough to borrow at only 10% interest (on unsecured debt) today, a year from now, you will have to pay $11,000 to pay off the original $10,000 debt. This reduces your equity still further--unless you have used the borrowed funds to create more assets that increase in value at the same rate as the interest on your debt or, better yet--at a higher rate.

More to the point for deciding which business entities to use is that you need to work out both your personal financial statements and those of your business(es). If you find, for example, that that you have significant salary or wage income in your personal financial statements that is causing you to pay out high taxes (as reflected in your balance sheet), and you expect that your business will generate some significant losses for the first several years, it would be advantageous to you to use a business entity that is a flow-through entity. Losses incurred by your S-Corporation (or, if you prefer, your Limited Partnership or your Limited Liability Company) will flow onto your personal balance sheet to offset the salary or wage income and thus reduce your tax liability.

Moreover, in general, if you want to draw up a roadmap to getting where you want to go, you need to know your point of departure. Thus, preparing and understanding your personal and business financial statements is an indispensable first step for your business planning.

The Rich Dad Television Show

2008-01-20T13:47:00.001+07:00

This is a compilation of segments from the recently launched Robert Kiyosaki Show on AZTV in Arizona. You can get every episode via the web by becoming a member of Rich Dad's Online Business School

Loan Modification

2007-10-15T19:30:00.000+07:00

Loan Modification: What You Should Know, Part One

by Jack M. Guttentag

Posted on Tuesday, October 9, 2007, 12:00AM

A loan modification is a change in the loan contract agreed to by the lender and the borrower. The modifications of major concern today are those designed to reduce the payment burden on borrowers faced with impending rate increases that will make the mortgage payment unaffordable to them. Many are subprime borrowers.

Home owners faced with this prospect, whether they are already delinquent or not, should request a modification. They are very unlikely to get one if they don't ask, and they should make the investment required to make their case. The stakes are very high: They can save their house and their credit.

The Decision Process

In most cases, the decision on a modification is not made by the firm that owns the loan. It is made by a firm servicing the loan under contract to the owner. The owner could be a single lender, or it could be a group of investors who own pieces of a mortgage-backed security collateralized by a pool of loans.

Whoever the owner, the servicing firm is contractually obligated to find the solution to payment problems that will minimize loss to the owner. If the lowest-cost solution is a contract modification, great -- everyone involved prefers a modification to a foreclosure. But if a foreclosure would generate lower costs for the owner, the decision will be to foreclose. The cost of foreclosure to the borrower does not enter the decision.

Yet the decision is far from cut and dried, and it can be materially affected by whether and how the borrower presents his case. On this issue, I have benefited from an exchange with Warren Brasch, an attorney who represents borrowers seeking loan modifications.

The Equity Factor

Perhaps the most important factor affecting the modification decision is the amount of equity the borrower has in his property. If the borrower has enough equity in the property to pay any deferred interest plus foreclosure expenses, foreclosure is usually the lower-cost solution.

Equity depends on property value, which the borrower is much better positioned to know than the servicer. The borrower knows or can easily find out how many houses in the neighborhood are for sale and what the trend has been in recent sale prices. In a weakening market, it is easy for the lender to overestimate value, and the borrower must prevent that.

The Moral Hazard

Servicers fear that, if they are liberal in granting modifications, borrowers who don't need a modification will seek one anyway. They protect themselves against this by entertaining modification proposals on a case-by-case basis, while placing the burden of proof on the borrower.

Borrowers must accept the burden of proof. In addition to the data on property value, they need to document that they cannot afford the payment increase that is pending, and they must document exactly what they can afford.

For this purpose, borrowers should calculate their total debt ratio: the sum of mortgage payment, other debt payments, property taxes, and homeowners insurance as a percent of their gross (before tax) income. This number should be calculated for what it is now, what it will be after the rate adjustment, and what they will be able to afford. On the last, Brasch suggests that a servicer may be willing to accept 45 percent as a reasonable maximum.

The Servicing Cost

Servicers have a self-interest in minimizing modifications, because they add to costs. They try to minimize costs by computerizing the servicing process to the maximum degree possible and standardizing customer-support procedures so that low-paid and easily trained employees can perform them.

Modifications must be handled by a special group that is more highly trained and better paid, and the increased costs from expanding their number cuts into the bottom line. Hence, there is a tendency to be non-responsive in the hope that the borrower will go away.

Borrowers have to be persistent. According to Brasch, "If a servicer says they will call you back...forget about it. You need to call them and call them constantly. They will lose your paper-work, fail to return calls, put you on hold, and then hang up. It's what they do. Keep fighting, calling, faxing. This does work!"

In making their decisions about whether a modification would be less costly than a foreclosure, servicers usually ignore an asset possessed by the borrower that could tilt the balance toward modification. This is the right to future appreciation in the value of the borrower's house. In exchange for a modification that might otherwise be more costly to the owner than a foreclosure, the borrower could pledge a percent of the future appreciation, which could shift the balance to modification. This will be discussed in the second article in this series.

Money for life: The hidden costs

2007-09-26T00:27:00.001+07:00

A modest proposal: Make the sellers of variable annuities tell people how much they're really paying for their investment.

By Walter Updegrave, Money Magazine senior editor
September 24 2007: 5:16 PM EDT

NEW YORK (Money Magazine) -- If you'd like to help thousands of people who are saving for retirement (and maybe even yourself), I have a suggestion. Tell the Securities and Exchange Commission to get off its duff and pass rules improving the disclosure investors get about variable-annuity fees.
The SEC has been mulling this issue for more than two years now. But when I called the agency for a status report recently, I got no hint as to when - or, for that matter, if - new rules might see the light of day. That's a shame. Because judging from the e-mails I get, only a tiny fraction of the investors who have some $1.4 trillion sitting in variable annuities know that they're paying more than they would to invest in regular mutual funds.

How much you're paying

A reader e-mailed me a few weeks ago telling me about a wonderful variable annuity he'd bought. It provided great investment choices and an option for guaranteed income, all for just 1.5 percent of his account's value a year. When I wrote back warning him that he was probably overlooking some fees, he replied that his adviser had assured him "a hundred percent" that he was paying 1.5 percent, tops.
Long story short, after several exchanges, I received a note saying that after getting both his adviser and the annuity department on a conference call, he found that he was actually paying 2.5 percent. It could have been worse. Variable-annuity expenses can approach or even exceed 3 percent a year.
Where the money goes
Annuities have four types of fees:
There are "insurance charges" (also known as the mortality and expense fee, or the M&E fee), which insurers claim you pay for various insurance features but which in fact usually go mostly toward sales commissions and marketing costs.
Next, you've got the fees for each of the investment options within the annuity.
Then there's another set of fees for a panoply of optional riders that may sound good - promising future income or guaranteeing that your heirs will get back at least as much as you invested - but in my opinion are typically too pricey to be worthwhile.
And, finally, there are surrender charges, the fee you may owe when you withdraw your money.
True, the prospectus discloses these charges. But that document can run several hundred pages long, and the various fees are laid out in prose that rivals Ambien in its sleep-inducing power.
Besides, the prospectus doesn't tell you what you would pay based on the specific investments and other options you've chosen. You practically need to be an actuary to come away with an accurate sense of what you're shelling out.
An easier way
I'd like to propose my own simplified disclosure checklist (at right). It's not perfect. It doesn't get at all the possible nuances of these complicated investments. But it will let you see how much you're spending each year for a variable annuity - and how much more you might have to pay to get out of it.
Copy my checklist and use it right now. Next time you're at the receiving end of a pitch - or if you already own a variable annuity and aren't sure what you're paying - have the adviser fill in the blanks. I think you'll be surprised at what this investment is really costing you. And I suspect you'll conclude it's not worth it.

source by CNN

Get-started savings plan

2007-09-23T23:19:00.000+07:00

Facing an abundance of financial advice out there, one puzzled young saver asks our expert how to simplify things.

By Walter Updegrave, Money Magazine senior editor
March 8 2007: 10:53 AM EST

NEW YORK (Money) -- Question: I'm a 24-year-old woman looking to start a saving plan. I've cleared all my debt and have started an emergency fund, but I'm unsure how to proceed from there. I've read so many books and articles that I'm more confused than when I started.
I tried talking to a financial adviser, but she told me to come back when I have $10,000. I'm so worried about doing it all wrong that I'm tempted to just open an IRA at my bank and leave the rest of my money in CDs. Can you point me in the right direction? - Ruth, Post Mills, Vermont

Answer: Sure, happy to help.
The first thing I want you to do is take a deep breath and relax. You're putting too much pressure on yourself. Believe me, this isn't rocket science. You don't have to be precise down to the second decimal point to get good results.
If you follow a few simple principles you should be able to build some financial security for yourself fairly easily. And you already seem to have a good head start given that you've pared down your debt, started an emergency fund and have already begun to save.
As for worrying about doing it all wrong, well, I've got news for you. You're going to make mistakes. We all do. But as long as they're not huge blunders you'll do just fine. Those blunders include not saving at all or following the herd into whatever investment has had a recent hot streak (and thus is at greater risk of cooling off).
So resist that urge to go down to the bank and dump all your cash in CDs, and instead follow my simple three-step Starting Out plan:
1. Sign up for your retirement savings plan at work
This is the single most important thing you can do to start building long-term financial security. If your company offers a 401(k) or similar tax-deferred savings plan, sign up for it ASAP.
25 Rules to Grow Rich By
The money you contribute and the investment earnings on that money isn't taxed until you withdraw it. So in addition to improving your financial prospects long-term you also get a nifty little tax break now. Most likely, your employer will also match a portion of what you put in with a 50 percent match of the first 6 percent you put in being the most common arrangement.
Best of all, signing up for an employer's plan makes regular saving so easy. You don't have to write out a check each month; the money goes right from your paycheck into your account before you get your hands on it.
So put as much into the 401(k) as your plan will allow, or as much as you can afford. At the very least, try to contribute enough to get the maximum match from your employer. If your employer's plan has an automatic contribution-increase feature, sign up for that too.
If your employer doesn't offer a 401(k) or similar plan, then contribute as much as you can to an IRA. You can do either a traditional IRA - in which case your contribution may be tax deductible. Or you can do a Roth IRA. Your contributions to a Roth aren't deductible, but you can pull your money out of a Roth tax-free. For reasons too complicated to get into here, you're probably better off doing a Roth when you're young, although it's not as if you're going to sabotage yourself if you do a deductible IRA.
The most important thing, though, is to put money into some form of tax-advantaged savings vehicle. By the way, most mutual fund companies have an automatic investing option that will move money directly from your checking account into your fund account. Like payroll deduction, this is a great way to make saving easy, convenient and more likely to happen.
2. Invest smart, but keep it simple.
Yes, it is possible to do both. In fact, the fancier people try to get about their investing strategy, the more likely they are to mess things up.
You want to put most of your savings into stock mutual funds, since they have the best shot at high long-term returns. On the other hand, it's always wise to hedge your bets a bit. So you'll also want to keep a small part of your stash in bond funds, which can also add a bit of stability just to keep things from getting too wild.
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The easiest way to get a mix of stock and bond funds that works for you is to buy what's known as a target retirement fund. Essentially, these funds are mini portfolios themselves in that they own a mix of stocks and bonds.
You just buy a fund with a date that roughly corresponds to the date you think you'll retire - say, 2050 or so - and you'll get a blend of stocks and bonds that's appropriate for someone your age (probably 80% to 90% stocks and 10% to 20% bonds). What's really neat about these funds, though, is that they gradually shift more assets into bonds each year so the fund becomes more conservative as you age.
Many 401(k)s offer target funds, and they're widely available outside of 401(k)s through well known fund firms like Vanguard and T. Rowe Price.
If a target fund isn't an option in your 401(k), then you might go with an asset allocation fund, which is similar to a target fund except the stocks-bonds mix remains roughly the same over time. If you choose an asset allocation fund, go with one that describes its strategy as "growth" or even "aggressive growth."
If your 401(k) doesn't offer a target or asset allocation fund, then put 70% to 80% of your money in a broadly diversified large-stock fund (a large-company index fund, if possible) and the rest in a broadly diversified bond fund (again, an index fund if possible).
3. Resist the urge to tinker.
Once you've got money flowing into your 401(k) or IRA, you may get the urge to "make improvements." Perhaps you'll hear of other types of funds that are doing well. Or a friend may talk about how well his or her investments are delivering smokin' gains. This is the time when you've got to dare to be dull - that is, just stick to your nice little mix of stocks and bonds and don't try to do anything fancy.
Believe me, simpler works out better in the long run.
Nonetheless, it is a good idea to "rebalance" your holdings every year or so by selling shares of funds that have done well and putting the proceeds into ones that have lagged to bring your mix of stocks and bonds back to the appropriate proportions. (You don't even have to do this if you're in a target or asset allocation fund; the fund does it for you.)
But unless something drastic has happened - like your funds have performed horribly compared with their peers over the course of a few years - that sort of minor maintenance is about all you need to do.
Those three steps should get you started. Is there you more you can do? Sure, although frankly I don't think there's a whole lot more that will dramatically improve your results (other than trying to save even more than what you stash in tax-deferred plans).
I've purposely refrained from giving you lots of links to previous columns of mine and other sources that can provide more detail on various issues I broached above. I did this because you said your head was already spinning from too much information.
But once you've gotten started investing and you've recovered from information overload, I do think it would be a good idea to learn some more about the right way to go about saving and investing, if only to reinforce what I've already said.
So when you feel ready, I recommend you check out our Money 101 library, which has 23 lessons on everything from setting priorities to making a budget to the basics of investing to planning for retirement. They're easy to read and, dare I say it, even border on enjoyable.
So if you take on one lesson a week I can almost guarantee that in less than six months, you'll have an excellent grasp on the fundamentals of personal finance - and a clear head to boot.
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Finance to help SMEs

2007-09-23T21:45:00.000+07:00

Published on Jul 1, 2007

German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) and Thai banks are to jointly offer services to improve financial access for small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) to make them more competitive.

The project, "Services for Improving Financial Access (SIFA)", is being set up by GTZ, the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand, and the Government Savings Bank plus the Thai Bankers' Association (TBA).

Running until the end of 2008, the purpose is to increase financial access for SMEs operating in the oil palm, shrimp, tapioca, fruit and vegetables and saa (mulberry) paper agro-industry sectors.

SIFA is being designed to address many of the support service problems that affect SMEs' ability to obtain financial support. It works with private-sector financial institutions, which can provide the services SMEs need access to.
The project will focus on the core "supply constraint" in the financial services market, namely, the development of new financial products.

lEnhancement of financial institutions' ability to design and deliver more appropriately targeted financial products to SMEs
lAn improvement in the legal and regulatory framework affecting the provision of financial services to SMEs.

source by The nation

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