Insurance Loan & Finance

Identity theft is a growing concern among Americans, and rates among the top five complaints received by states’ Attorney General’s offices. A stolen identity can lead to tens of thousands of dollars worth of debt in the victim’s name and it can take years to completely undo the damage done to the victim’s credit report. Identity thieves can successfully commit crime with as little as a driver’s license number or credit card number, but the ideal target of such criminals is the Social Security number. With that number in hand, the identity thief can pass themselves off as the victim and open credit card accounts, bank accounts, and even obtain home equity loans. As more Americans become aware of the problems posed by identity theft, consumers are doing more to protect themselves. This has inspired thieves to look to a new source of identities to steal, and they have found one. They are now stealing the identities of children.

Established in the 1930’s the Social Security Administration was set up to provide benefits for retired Americans. Taxes are withdrawn from the paychecks of eligible workers, and each worker is issued a Social Security number in order to keep track of his or her benefits. Over the years, and despite the intentions of those who created the system, the Social Security number has become a de facto national identity number. It is difficult, if not impossible, to engage in most financial transactions without providing that number to the other party in the transaction. In fact, the number itself has become as important as the name of the person who holds it. Over the years, criminals have discovered that by obtaining the Social Security number of someone else, all kinds of illegal activities are possible, including obtaining loans in the names of the owner’s of the stolen numbers.

With more people now aware of the potential of identity theft, consumers are more carefully protecting their personal information. As a result, thieves are now targeting the Social Security numbers of children. A law passed in 1989 requires parents of newborn infants to register for a Social Security number for their child. That child will probably not need that number until he or she is a teenager, when the number might be necessary to obtain a driver’s license, open a bank account, or get a job. In the meantime, the number is not only unused, but the theft of it may go unnoticed. Thieves who obtain a Social Security number of a child know that they can probably use it for a decade without being caught.
How can you protect your child from identity theft? Treat your child’s personal information as if it were your own, and guard it carefully. Don’t give out the Social Security number of your child unless it is absolutely necessary, and if you aren’t sure if it’s necessary, ask. Some doctors and hospitals, for instance, request the number as a matter of course, but they may not actually need it.

Check to see if your child has a credit report. You can obtain one for free at the free credit report Website. Your child, if not working, shouldn’t have a credit report, so if the credit bureaus have one on file, you may have a problem. A child’s personal information is as useful to an identity thief as that of an adult. Guard yours and your children’s identification carefully.

©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing.

Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to personal bankruptcy, debt consolidation and credit counseling, and HomeEquityHelp.com, a site devoted to information regarding mortgages and home equity loans.

Once upon a time in the world of finance there were three kingdoms the most widely recognized was also the most snobbish and wealthiest its subjects were affluent and known worldwide. Its king was NYSE (New York Stock exchange) the king ruled proudly over his subjects.

Every brokerage firm had a stock ticker to provide their customer with trade information on NYSE listed stocks.

The second kingdom was not so well off, it had less subjects and the inhabitants were much poorer than those ruled by NYSE, the king was named AMEX (American Stock Exchange). They could be classified as low middle class.

Now the third kingdom was the largest of all, it’s subjects range from middle class to very poor, this kingdom was ruled by OTC (Over The Counter Market). Some of the subjects of OTC were always looking to migrate to NYSE or Amex to escape the stigma attached to being a resident of OTC.

Some of the stock that at one time traded in the Pink Sheets are well known today such as EDS and many new IPO, as well as bank and insurance companies, but you also had stocks trading for a fraction of a penny.

If you wanted a price on a OTC stock you would call your broker who looked in the pink sheets to see who the market makers were, he would get on the phone to a market maker and ask the person answering the phone for a quote, the person answering the phone then gets the price from a blackboard in the front of the room and give it to the broker making the inquiry, this would take some time.

Market makers had a quote boy in the front of the trading room changing the blackboard every time a trader yelled a different price, this markets were good for 100 shares,

In those days it was possible to buy from one market maker at a price and turn around and sell to another market maker at higher price because the one market maker had no idea what the market was unless he made a phone call. So you always found disparities in the price of a stock.

Along came a knight in shining armor named NASDAQ the NASD Automatic Quotation System, which allow brokers to see the price by computer, it gave the mean market (average market) not the best price, but it was a giant step forward.

These NASDAQ machine did not provide live quotes you had to keep on pressing the enter key in order to see the updated quote.

And eventually all the better stocks were gradually included on the NASDAQ systems leaving the more obscure and unprofitable companies to trade on the pink sheet. And again the NASD decided to sink the pink sheets even further into the land of obscurity by creating the OTC Bulletin Board.

The OTC Bulletin Board started out not requiring much information from the issuer but gradually started requesting more information and now they must have audited financial and must be reporting.

All this left the pink as the only market in total disclosure darkness being the only ones not requiring the issuer to disclose its financial reports.

But on February 15, 2005 a little daylight came into the pinks, on this day a new policy was implemented, this policy requires issuers of newly traded securities to disclose adequate current information to the investing public.

This is only required of those companies which have securities quoted on an unsolicited basis on the pink sheets, and have never been listed on an exchange or quoted on the OTCBB.

If an issuer is quoted on an unsolicited basis, this means that the NASD has not cleared a market maker to enter a quote in the security pursuant to SEC Rule 15c2-11. Instead, a broker is relying on an exemption to the rule in order to display a quotation representing an unsolicited customer order. This exception has been used to trade securities of new issuers without any disclosure to the investing public. To address this situation, in October 2004, Pink Sheets revised their policy for brokers entering unsolicited quotes in a new security that has never been listed on an exchange or quoted on the OTCBB. They now require that prior to publication of an unsolicited quote in the Pink Sheets for such securities; the broker must ascertain that the issuer has made adequate current information publicly available on the pink sheets website. The disclosure policy has been a good attempt at creating transparency of the basic information that investors trading in public markets deserve.

Pink Sheets is now extending this requirement to companies that were previously quoted on an unsolicited basis. If the companies did not make the required disclosure by February 15, 2005, they removed their displayed quotation from the website.

This new policy is a big step forward for the Pink Sheets and they should be applauded for it, but I Personally would like to see all companies being required to make complete disclosure.

If a company is unable for whatever reason to disclose their finances and corporate updates to the investing public then they should not be allow to trade on any public market.

These companies operating in total darkness are the vehicles being used by stock manipulators to scam the investing public, even though the Pink Sheets have taken this giant step they must remove all non-disclosing companies from the public market place.

I am not sure the pink Sheets have the authority to do so but SEC does, and the SEC is the agency responsible for protecting the investing public.

Lets congratulate the Pink sheet for this change in policy and hope that they will continue to upgrade their standards, as a direct result of this policy we at Genesis Corporate Advisors are changing our policy of not bringing any company public to the Pink sheets.

Effective immediately we will begin considering candidate for the Pink sheets but our preference will continue to be The OTC Bulletin Board because we want as much transparency as possible.

In order to have viable healthy market you must have willing investors with access to current and accurate information.

For additional information visit: www.genesiscorporateadvisors.com

Email questions to: josephquinones@genesiscorporateadvisors.com

Joseph Quinones, President of Genesis Corporate Advisors has spent over 25 years in the securities industry. In 1992 he founded JDQ Financial Group, Inc. and proceeded to build it up from a one man operation to the point where it employed many traders, advised numerous client, and generated millions in revenues.

If you are overwhelmed by debt, there are options you can take that will help you pay off what you owe without the stigma of filing for bankruptcy. We’ll examine four ways you can get your debt under control and start working back on the road to financial recovery.

1. Contact your credit card companies. Ask each credit card company for help. They aren’t likely to forgive you your loan, but they may be willing to reduce your interest rate. If your interest rate is currently 12% or more, ask if they would be willing to cut their rate in half. Why would they consider doing this? Well, creditors do not want you to default on your loan and they want their principle back. Sure, a nice fat interest charge would be ideal too, but if they sense you are ready to default on your loan, you can expect that a lower rate will be offered instead.

2. Consider a debt consolidation loan. You can pull all of your debt together into one account, preferably one featuring a fixed, low interest rate. You can use the proceeds from the loan to pay back your other creditors and then make monthly payments back to the loan consolidator.

3. Home refinancing. Refinancing your loan may be just the debt reduction help you need as the funds saved by you each month with lower mortgage payments could be used to pay off other debt. Caution: you are placing your home “at risk” if you opt for this choice.

4. Visit a credit counselor. There are credit counseling companies who help consumers by offering debt reduction plans to tackle debt. Essentially the way this works is that you will meet with an advisor and lay out a plan to repay your loans. The counselor will negotiate with lenders on your behalf for the lower rate which, in turn, will reduce your monthly payments as well as keep your credit rating intact. Credit counselors work for private companies as well as for government agencies or nonprofit firms. Be careful: a lot of what these people do you can do on your own. Read the fine print to make sure you understand any fees involved; make sure that your credit rating is not adversely affected too.

Don’t despair if you are well over your head in debt. Recent changes in U.S. bankruptcy laws have made filing for personal bankruptcy a less attractive option for consumers. Still, if it is your only resort visit an attorney specializing in personal bankruptcy to learn what your options are. Do not be bullied by anyone to make a decision that you will regret later.

Matthew Keegan is the owner of a successful article writing, web design, and marketing business based in North Carolina, USA. He manages several sites including the Corporate Flight Attendant Community and the Aviation Employment Board. Please visit The Article Writer to review selections from his portfolio.

Zero down? Why would a seller want to walk away from closing with nothing? Well, they wouldn’t, and that brings up the most important point about real estate investing with no downpayment: The seller almost always needs cash at closing, but it doesn’t have to be YOUR cash.

A Zero Down Example

I’m selling a small rental property right now, with payments of $400/month. The buyer has a good credit report, and the $5,000 downpayment covers closing costs and even a foreclosure, if necessary. So at this point, I don’t care where he gets the downpayment. A $6000 cash advance on a low-interest credit card for example, would cost him about $135 per month, and give him enough for the downpayment and his closing costs.

In this case, with rent around $600 per month, he would be okay. In some cases, however, that extra $135 might cause negative cash-flow. So be sure that however you do it, the numbers work. By the way, I would have set the payments at $350, if he had asked, because it’s the price and the interest rate that are important to me.

Other Zero Downpayment Methods

While there are sellers (like myself) that are able to offer terms and low downpayments, usually you have to find a way to get at least 70% of the price to them in cash. Think in terms of how to get a primary loan, then how to raise the money for the remainder. A couple examples follow.

Some banks still do “no doc” loans, meaning they don’t require verification of income, source of downpayment, etc. They generally loan only 70% to 80% of the property value, but if the seller is willing to take a second mortgage from you for the other 20% to 30%, you are in with no money down. The seller gets 70% or 80% in cash, plus payments for years to come. You’ll have two payments, of course, so be sure the numbers work.

You can borrow against your home or other property to come up with downpayment money. If you borrow for a “vacation,” and leave whatever you don’t spend in your checking account for a while, you can use it without violating bankers rules about borrowing for a downpayment.

Even if you live in a small town, there are usually a few “note buyers.” These are investors that buy land contracts, mortgage loans and other “notes” at a discount. If a seller takes a purchase money mortgage from you for $100,000, for example, a note buyer might pay him $85,000 for it. So how does that help you or him?

An example: A seller prices his property at $195,000, and expects to sell it for $180,000. You offer $205,000 in the form of a mortgage for $160,000, and another for $50,000. You have arranged for the sale of the first mortgage at closing for $136,000 to a note buyer. The seller gets that cash now, plus payments from you on the second loan for $50,000. Notice that this adds up to $186,000, which is more than he expected to get out of the deal.

These are just some of the ways you can buy with zero down. Real estate investing is about making the deal work for all parties. Find a way to get what you want, and get the seller what he wants. That is more important than having big cash on hand.

Steve Gillman has invested real estate for years. To learn more, and to see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com