How to use your hard earned money to quickly reach your goals

So you have a few dollars to save, payoff debts, or invest for the future. What do you do with the money, so you can reach your goals in the quickest and easiest way possible - and not waste time or money on poor decisions?

Step One: Your Emergency Fund

You have received an inheritance of $50,000. What do you do with the money? Yes, you could buy that big screen TV and sound system, and take a major vacation - but what if you wanted to make huge progress on your goals, and not let the money waste away, bit by bit?

You have $500 left after your monthly bills and other fixed expenses are paid, and you set aside money for gas, food, clothing, and other necessary expenses. You could spend this money on little luxuries, pay extra on your mortgage, or save for retirement. How do you make the decision?

The first priority should be setting aside money in your Emergency Fund. Yes, even before you pay off your credit card debt (unless you are in default or delinquent on your bills - then first pay them enough to bring them up to date).

Regardless of how much credit card debt you have, the first step in creating a prosperous future is to change your habits. When the unexpected bill comes (and it always does), you should have money in your Emergency Fund to pay that bill, to avoid racking up additional credit card debt. If you have spent every extra dollar attempting to pay off your debt & have no money set aside, when something unexpected happens, you will rack up even more debt and be right back where you started.

Your Emergency Fund should contain three to six months of your actual bottom-line living expenses. Or more ... I have some clients with up to one year of cash set aside; typically, they are generally risk adverse, are self-employed, or have a fluctuating income stream. Your amount is not three to six months of your salary - it is the bills and necessarily expenses you would have if you were unable to earn income. These funds should be maintained in a cash account, typically a savings or money market account. The Weinstein family Emergency Fund is in an ING Direct Orange Savings Account.

A home equity line of credit (HELOC) does not count. Yes, you could use a home equity line, or take out a loan on your house, if you were unable to earn income or had emergency expenses. But, it would just rack up your monthly expenses and debt even further. And, since interest rates have risen, even the tax deduction does not compensate for the high expense of using the HELOC.

Once you have a well-established habit of saving money each month, and have your Emergency Fund set aside, we can move to the next step - prioritizing debt and your life goals.

Action Step One:

Open up a dedicated savings or money market Emergency Fund account. Set aside a fixed amount of money each month - whether it is $50, $500, or $5,000 - until your fund is at three to six months of your living expenses.

Step Two: Pay Off "Bad" Debt

You've set up your Emergency Fund, and created a wonderful habit of saving $50, $500, or $5000 each month. We don't want to let that habit disappear ... so where do we put your money next?

Step 2 is to pay off any "bad" debt. What that means really depends upon the person, and your tolerance for debt. Some people are not particularly bothered by debt, so their only "bad" debt are those with high interest rates, or minimal tax advantages (non-mortgage and non-student loan debts).

There are two situations where I may ignore the interest rate, and recommend the client pay off the debt ASAP.

(1) Loans from family or friends. These loans, while low interest, may be eating away at the relationship, without you even knowing it. They may reduce the relationship to a formal, strained, money-based transaction, instead of a loving, friendly, supportive bond. You may know the debt is a problem, or ask other relatives to see if the debt is a problem in culture of the family - if so, pay it off quick.

(2) Debt that is keeping your up at night, or making you feel unsuccessful. Debt may be the new "American way" - but it is not right for everyone, or even most people. Monthly payments, or even the idea that you could be repossessed or foreclosed upon, may be eating you up at night. You may feel venerable, or like you have never achieved any of your goals until that debt is paid off.

If this is you, then your debts may become a high priority, even over other goals, like college funding or purchasing a new home. Whether your debt should be paid off as a high priority, depends not just upon the interest rate, but upon the mental and emotional interest rate you are burdened with each month you are making loan payments.

Action Step Two:

Take a personal inventory of your debts, and how much they are costing you in mental and emotional energy. Do they bother you? How much? If so, regardless of how low the interest rate is, paying them off should be a high priority. Start today - pay an extra $10, $100, or $1000 on the principal each month. Even better, set up automatic bill payments in your online bank account bill-pay system to make automatic regular extra payments each month or quarter.

Step Three: Goals Funding - Base Level

Now you have set up your Emergency Fund, and paid off your "Bad" Debt, including a loan from a family member, a high-rate credit card, and an old debt from college that was really bothering you.

You have a bunch of goals - retirement, paying off your mortgage, buying your next house, launching a new business, and sending the kids to college.

Which comes first? Retirement? The kids? Paying off your debts? How do you decide?

Step 3 of Where to Put Your Next $1 is to fund your goals, in order of priority, at the base levels - the amount of money you need to satisfy the minimum requirement of your goal.

For example, how much money do you need to pay your bills in retirement - not live an extravagant lifestyle, or play golf every day for 20 years, or travel the world - but how much to keep out of a cardboard box and live comfortably?

How much money do you need to save to send the kids to State College, as opposed to Ivy League? How much would it cost for the house you need, as opposed to the house you want?

Then fund the minimum, base level of those goals in order of priority. This may mean you start by contributing to your retirement plan or IRA, then contribute to a 529 Plan for the kid's college education, then set aside money in a CD to start a business in 3 years, and then, finally, invest to raise funds for a bigger house.

How do you decide the order of priority? First, determine if there is another way to pay for the goal, besides your own savings - if so, then it is probably a lower priority than goals for which you have no other alternative. For instance, there are loans easily available for college education, but not for retirement (with the exception of a reverse mortgage). Also, you could obtain investors or take out a loan to fund a new business, and pay them off with the new income stream.

Second, evaluate if you are giving up "free money" by not utilizing pre-tax or matching savings or retirement plans. If you can save pre-tax, the federal government is contributing to your goal (since you don't have to pay those taxes), and if you don't take advantage of this each year, you are leaving money sitting on the table. Similarly, if you are lucky to be employed by a company who matches a 401(k) plan, you may want to contribute at least the match, to "let" your employer help fund your retirement.

Action Step Three:

Make a List of Your Goals, in order of priority. Look at your #1 Goal - is it really your most important, or is it just first in order of time? Any special types of accounts or matching available for this goal? How much will your goal cost? What's the base level for that goal?

Set aside money each month to fund the base level of your #1 Goal - use your automatic savings or investment plan help you execute this week's Action Step.

Step Four: Above and Beyond ...

You've maxed out your Emergency Fund, paid off your "bad" debts, and funded the minimum levels of your most important life goals. Great job! What's next?

Step 4 is to fully fund your goals, in order of priority. For example ...

* Max out your Roth IRA, if you are eligible.

* Max out your 401(k) and IRAs (yes, you can do both, the IRA just might not be deductible).

* Purchase ESPP stock (and don't forget to regularly sell and diversify).

* Contribute to a 529 Plan and/or taxable investment account for college education.

* Invest in taxable or tax-advantage accounts for miscellaneous future goals, or additional retirement funds.

* Buy investment real estate and/or rental property.

* Pay off your mortgage.

* Purchase CDs or Bonds for specific, time dated goals.

* Leave money sitting in your Health Savings Account, invested and tax-deferred, until you can roll it over to an IRA in your retirement.

Wow, do you still have money sitting on the table? Wonderful! If your goals are already funded, then don't forget to enjoy your money now. Take a first-class vacation, hire a errand service for a few hours each week, buy a new sound system, or make a significant donation to your favorite charity. Balance saving for your future goals with living life now.

Action Step Four:

Choose your highest priority goal from Step 3. Have you fully funded this goal, to achieve your ultimate dream? Evaluate whether you have funded the minimal level of your other goals. If you have, then choose an action step from the list above ... and enjoy your prosperity!

The unfortunate epidemic sexual abuse in the autistic world

The Unfortunate Epidemic: Sexual Abuse in the Autistic World

One of the most perverse problems in an autistic individual's life is the threat of sexual abuse. This can come in the form of rape or simply be in an abusive relationship. Because autistic people spend much of their lives feeling different and left out, they often enjoy sexual experiences for one reason: it puts then on a playing field equal to others. It is very easy for this to become a controlling part of a relationship. The most important thing to remember is that autistic people experience sexuality in much of the same way that others do, no matter how highly functioning they may be. Parents should teach their child about sexuality from an early age in order to prevent sexual abuse from happening.

The most valuable command that anyone can learn in relationship to sexuality is "No." Teaching this to even children can be very useful. In this respect, treat your autistic child as no different than you would another child-teach him or her the parts of the body from a young age and be very clear, as the child matures, about what happens during puberty and what kinds of behaviors are appropriate and inappropriate. Be sure that your child understands the differences between good touches and bad touches. This can be extremely difficult for autistic children who are sensitive to touch in general. It may be helpful to label "zones" on the body where no one should touch without permission.

Also make sure that as your autistic child grows into an adult, he or she understands what rape is and what to do if this happens. As many autistic children are hands-on learners, it may be best to role-play some potentially dangerous situations. If your child communicates non-verbally, teach him or her clear signs to show a person to stop what they are doing. Autistic people can often not understand that others have their own thoughts and emotions-they believe that everyone thinks and feels what they do. Because of this, many are shocked to find that "bad" people in the world will take advantage of sexual situations. You may need to explain to an autistic individual what kinds of dress and conduct are appropriate in public so that he or she is not unknowingly attracting sexual attention.

You child should learn to respect his or her body and understand that others need to respect it as well. This is only possible if parents and educators teach autistic children about their bodies from a young age. By learning how to stop sexual abuse, you can keep you children, autistic or not, safe from predators.

Keep out of debt by avoiding overdrafts

Avoiding overdrafts, bounced checks, should be a number one priority to all those who have checking accounts. The amount of money that you can be charged by the bank and by the merchant who takes the bounced check can be staggering. If too many of these overdrafts show up at one time, you can find yourself several hundreds of dollars (or more) in arrears just in penalties and fees. You may even have to go to court to get things back to normal, and lastly, your bank may cancel your account. There is nothing good about overdrafts.

So, how can you avoid bounced checks and overdrafts?

The answer to that is good management. If you know what funds are in your account, you are less likely to make a mistake which can cause an overdraft.

The first step to preventing overdrafts is to use your checkbook register when you write a check or make an electronic transfer from your checking account. The register is the fastest way to keep track of what you have outstanding and what your current balance is in your checking account. An important issue with keeping the register up to date is to make sure that you also include any service fees that are automatically deducted from your account. This might include such things as your monthly fee for the account, if there is one.

Modern technology has allowed us to use many forms of electronic money transfers and these can cause bookkeeping problems for those who do not maintain good records. Some of the electronic methods that we use that affect our checking account balance include debit cards, ATM withdrawals and deposits, online money transfers and deposits, as well as online purchases.

Many of these methods result in very fast transactions with our checking accounts. In some cases, the transactions can be almost instantaneous and it is very important that we know that we have the funds in our account when we make these transactions. Electronic transactions where there is not enough money in your account can result in non-sufficient funds penalties just like written checks, and those fees can add up very quickly.

You may want to ask your bank about overdraft protection systems that they may offer to their customers. These allow you some leeway in the event you write a check and do not have the funds to cover it. There are usually overdraft fees that you have to pay if you write a check that is short, but these fees are less than what you would normally have to pay if you did not have the overdraft protection.

Some banks will allow you to link your savings account to your checking account. If overdraw your checking account, the bank will automatically move money from your savings account to your checking account in order to cover the check. You should ask your bank about transfer fees for this service as this is not always a free service.

Another option is to link your checking account to your credit card. Not all banks will do this, but some will. With this type of linkage, the amount of the overdraft will be covered by the bank but it will result in a cash advance off the credit card. You will normally have to pay the cash advance fees, but, again, it can keep you out of trouble by honoring the check.

The best advice is to always keep a close eye on your checking account balance and to make sure you account for all charges and fees that will affect your balance.

Business and the staffing challenge

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Business in the UK face many challenges as the economy tightens but recruiting the right staff is one hassle that can be solved by working with good external recruitment consultants.
The search for suitable, motivated staff is one of the greatest challenges a business faces as this can change the dynamics of how the business performs.
Employee referral schemes
Many companies are now finding Employee Referral Schemes can successfully work and currently 38% of UK employers used employee referral schemes as a way of finding staff. Prospective candidates will generally tell their friends when they are thinking of a change. They could be friends of the staff members. Therefore, the staff members should know about the vacancies and be encouraged for referrals. They should be offered with good incentives for the same. If staff members are happily working with the organization, and are getting paid for introducing their friends, they would be eager to suggest the good candidates for recruitment.
Candidates who are familiar with the job market scene will be aware that not all recruitment agencies are equal. The intense competition that exists within the job market in general suggests that there are a large number of recruitment firms and many of them provide sub-standard services. This means that there are a limited amount of recruitment agencies which have what it takes to provide candidates with the recruitment solutions and results which they desire
Head Hunters
Finding the people you need to run your business is not an easy task and his is why many more businesses are turning to specialist recruitment companies to find the right staff.
Another challenge that businesses face are head hunters. Because in many industries there is such a skills shortage head hunters are recruited to find suitable staff in existing work from competitors companies. Head Hunter then matches these with available jobs.
The recruitment staff will then search their database of applications to identify suitable candidates for the position. Left uncontrolled, this can lead to successful companies bleeding staff and finding it difficult to deliver projects. As any manager or Director knows, finding the right staff for your business is essential.
The Internet
The internet is being used by more and more people for almost anything imaginable. Whereas some individuals use the internet for play and games, many are finding it very useful for work-related things. One site that is being used by many individuals and businesses is online recruitment. Example after example can be given showing how effective this is for helping someone find suitable employment.
There are many online recruitment companies on the web. Each of them offers you some unique feature to entice you into purchasing a membership and using their site. Often, there are review sites where you can do reviews on the online recruitment sites to see which one is used more and which one is rated higher. As with anything you purchase, it is always a smart idea to not sign up for the first thing you see. Some of them will show you an online recruitment example of what they can do to help you find employment or employee if you are a business that is seeking workers.
Summary
Whatever your decision about finding the right staff for your business you decide one thing you can be assured is that all business in most sectors are facing the same problem. Once you have recruited the staff then keeping them happy and retaining their services is for another time!
Temporary and Permanent staff in London

Builders suffer due to mortgage crisis

During last month the existing home sales fell down again and it is reported that a large number of homebuilders are facing the worst ever quarterly earning. These homebuilders believe that the main reason behind this mess in the stressed housing sector is the continuous sub prime mortgage crisis.

The National Association of Realtors mentioned that during the month of August it was noted that the purchases of the previously owned homes fell down by 4.3 percent from what is was in the month of July, i. e. sending sales slipping to five years low. In the month of July, the annual sales rate was 5.75 million that dropped down to 5.50 million. Statistic says that the existing home sales have fallen almost 13 percent over the period of last 12 months.

On the other hand, the Lennar Corporation declared their biggest quarterly loss in its history after it wrote down $848 million in the value of real estate. The company's net loss was $513.9 million, or we can say $3.25 per share, compared to the profit of $206.7 million, or $1.30 per share, during the same time of the previous year. The shares of Lennar Corporation were down by 4 percent in midday trading, at $23.20.

The shocking news in the housing sector was joined with a disappointing report on customer confidence from the Conference Board, whose index dropped down to 99.8 during September from 105.6 in the month of August. This fall was much more than what was forecasted. Its index is now at its lowest level in the past two years. A group of analyst believes that the reason behind the concern among the consumers is the weak job market and stagnant salary that has probably created declines in the consumer spending and job creation during the period of coming months.

Joshua Shapiro, the chief United States economist of a New York research firm believes that fall in the housing sector is just because of the negative environment over the residential real estate, affects and creates the changes in the consumer's attitude and consumer's spending ability.

Lennar has reported a drop of 44 percent in its revenue during the last quarter and has reduced 35 percent of its work force. It turned out to be another sufferer of the high inventory levels and credit market disorder that have created many troubles for the home builders in the period of last few months. The company's chief executive, Stuart Miller, said in a statement today that due to the continuous decline of our net margin and for that reason, higher injuries to our inventory. He also added that the staff reductions were in store for the fourth quarter.

On the other hand the Darlene Williams, assistant secretary of US Housing and Urban Development hopes that even though the current crisis in the credit market the sub prime mortgages must stay as they play a very important role in increasing home ownership in United States. She hoped that the US congress would pass Federal Housing Administration, reforms to expand federal backing of mortgages.

Condominiums advantages of ownership

Condominiums tend to be a love it or hate it subject with property owners. Here are the advantages of owning a condominium.

Condominium – Advantages

Condominiums provide a unique living opportunity in the United States, one that many people have jumped on in this hot real estate market. Although not for everyone, condominium ownership does have some distinct advantages over stand alone homes.

1. Condominiums are cheaper than stand alone homes. Universally, you will find the lack of a yard makes condominiums a cheaper buying option when compared to the rest of the real estate market. This makes condominiums a good real estate option for first time buyers, as they are often able to get into one when they otherwise would not qualify for a loan for a tradition home.

2. Condominiums are also excellent options after the kids are gone. Once kids are out of the home, you’ll find the space in your home is no longer necessary. Many parents will downsize to a condominium and use the cash windfall from a home to take early retirement. This trend is occurring with greater frequency as the baby boom generation begins to retire.

3. Condominiums are also excellent options for people that travel a lot. If you have to travel for work, you know the problems that can arise from having a home sitting empty for weeks or months on end. Burglaries, graffiti and so on are natural results of leaving a home empty. With condominiums, it is much harder for someone to tell if a person is home or not. This makes condominiums very popular with pilots and certain sales people.

4. A detached home requires a lot of maintenance to keep it in good shape. A condominium also requires maintenance, but the homeowners’ association is responsible for the upkeep. Generally, the constant attention provided through the homeowners’ association makes condos a better long term maintenance option.

Condominiums are not for everyone, but they have definite advantages over detached homes in certain situations. While guidelines are a solid method of determining if a condo is a good option, you really need to consider your personal circumstances to determine the best choice for you.

Is business credit card helpful

Business credit card

Is business credit card helpful?

‘Yes’ – is the answer that’s comes out almost immediately. That is true at least for most businesses (especially small businesses). Before we delve deeper into how business credit cards are helpful, let’s try and understand what a business credit card is.

Put simply, a business credit card is a credit card that is owned by a business and not an individual. To understand this better, you can simply draw an analogy between the business credit cards and business bank accounts, which are in the name of the business as well. Other than that, business credit cards work in pretty much the same fashion as the personal credit cards; with a few exceptions. These exceptions are in the form of flexibility in credit limit, low APRs and some other additional benefits that are available to business credit cards only.

Even from just that, business credit cards seem a good proposition. However, business credit cards would be attractive even without those benefits because the main benefit lies elsewhere. The big-big benefit from a business credit card is realised in terms of business expense accounting. For most small businesses, business expense accounting is a big overhead. With business credit cards, this is handled very easily – you just have to ensure that you make all your business expenses on your business credit card and let the personal expenses be on the personal credit card i. e. segregation of business and personal expenses is all you need to do. So the bill for your business credit card will have all the business expenses on it and you wouldn’t need to collate all the various bills or sort out the items from your personal credit card bill. The key here is to make sure that you use your business credit card for all your business expenses (or as much as you can). Moreover, a lot of business credit card suppliers realise this need of small business and even organise the business credit card bills in a way that meets the accounting requirements of these businesses. So mostly, they will appropriately group the expenses on the business credit card bill so as to facilitate business expense accounting. In fact, some of the business credit card suppliers go to an extent of providing the bills in a format that can be downloaded and exported to an accounting system i. e. you don’t need to enter the data manually in your accounting system. In case the format is not suitable for your accounting system, you can hire a software professional to write a small quick program to convert it into a suitable format.

Thus just one reason - ‘facilitation of business expense accounting’, is enough to support the case of small business credit cards.