College is a critical time in the life of a college student. It is a period of transition from adolescence and dependency to independence and young adulthood. The ability to come out of college as an accomplished student ready for a career often begins with adequate preparation for your college experience. Understanding and preparing for several key aspects of college life can make a huge difference in success during and after school.
Dates are mainly produced in North Africa and the Middle East, and are a staple in the cuisine of those regions. They can be eaten dry or soft, on their own or stuffed with fillings, such as nuts or soft cheeses. Dates are high in potassium, as well as fiber, antioxidants, and Vitamin A.
Pay-per-view DirecTV content remains in memory on your DirecTV access card until erased. This process is typically done at a DirecTV facility after a decoder box is returned, but you can also do it yourself. DirecTV decoders allow you to reset and restore these cards whether or not the unit has a reset button.
The basis of a solid financial plan is good cash flow management. You need to be able to manage your spending so you do not hurt your long-term goals. While you're still working, if you spend more than you earn before retirement, you do not accumulate any savings. Once you retire, if you spend too much, you risk running out of money. Learning how to categorize and track how you spend money on a monthly basis is crucial for putting together a budget. Fortunately, this task isn't difficult if you plan correctly.
As a preliminary matter, collection companies are under no legal or ethical obligation to remove negative marks from your credit if those negative marks are accurate. This is true regardless of whether you eventually pay off the debt owed. If, however, you pay the debt and the collection company continues to make negative reports, there's something you can do about it.
If a credit company fails to collect a debt that you owe, it may issue a charge-off. However, a creditor's charge-off doesn't release your obligation to pay the debt. To eliminate the debt from your record, you must pay the amount in full plus any penalties or late fees that you owe.
Payroll overpayment occurs when an employer pays an employee higher wages than owed. Overpayment usually happens due to clerical errors but also can result from an employee defrauding his employer by entering false information on time sheets or time clocks. The statute of limitations by which the employer must legally collect an overpayment varies by state. Under certain circumstances, the employee is responsible for returning payroll overpayments indefinitely, a limitation that commonly applies to government employees and those who defrauded their employer.
A charge-off is a delinquent debt that the creditor writes off as a loss on its taxes. A charge-off on a debt you owe does not remove your obligation to pay the bill. Each state has a statute of limitations on debt. Once this time period expires, you're no longer legally responsible for paying the debt. During the statutory period, though, the creditor can pursue you for payment, so it's a good idea to understand how your decision to pay a charged-off debt or not pay it can affect you.
The radio frequency identification device, or RFID, U.S. passport card is an alternative passport that resembles the state drivers’ license card. Although the RFID doesn't contain personal information, the chip enhances the Customs and Border Protection’s security procedures by allowing custom officials to quickly retrieve your passport holder information within the security systems as you approach. If you choose to get rid of your U.S. passport card, take steps to ensure its proper disposal so it doesn't interfere with your future passport applications.
It might sound counterintuitive, but collection agencies frequently refuse payments. Debt collectors usually do this as a matter of company policy and to ensure that you pay the full amount with a method the agency accepts. Refusal to accept a payment does not absolve you of the liability to pay the debt, and the creditor usually cannot change the amount you owe.
The decisions made by the federal government on budgets and funding have an effect on states and local levels of government. As a result, members of boards or unions may need to ratify revised budgets of states or districts. Members take into consideration the cuts, new services and any alternatives if the revised budget is not ratified. With a majority approving the changes, members can ratify the new budget in accordance with government funding.
Employers who offer buyouts to their employees provide them with financial incentives to voluntarily sever their employment relationships. An employee who accepts a buyout may not be able to collect unemployment insurance benefits depending on state laws. If your employer offers you a company buyout package, you should consider the effects that accepting the package would have on collecting unemployment insurance benefits.
Millions of people get into trouble with mounting credit card debt every year. With unemployment rising, many people find it hard to pay monthly balances. The credit card company may contact you after becoming severely delinquent on your account offering a settlement offer. If you have not paid your balance and the credit card company charges off your account, it may sell the debt to a third party collection company to try to recover its losses.
There are three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Each bureau maintains its own database of credit information on consumers. If you're late paying a credit obligation more than 150 days, the creditor usually charges off the debt. This means the creditor writes the debt off as a loss on its taxes. The creditor reports the charge-off to the credit bureaus, where it remains on your report for up to seven years. After a charge-off, the creditor still retains the right to collect the charged-off debt. If you have a charge-off on your report, it's wise to understand how…
The principal on a loan is the amount borrowed, or the balance on the loan. Forbearance is a special program offered by lenders allowing a debtor to skip payments on a loan, including the principal. Finance charges continue to accrue during forbearance, but the option to skip payments for a few months may prevent foreclosure or repossession for some people. Lenders usually consider forbearance only when a debtor is suffering from a temporary hardship, such as a job loss or illness.
A charge card works similar to a credit card except it generally does not have a set credit limit and requires the card user to pay the balance in full at the end of the month. There isn't a minimum payment on the account; the balance represents the required payment. Some charge card issuers, like American Express, have certain cards that allow the cardholder to revolve a portion of the balance. This balance will accrue interest. If you are unable to pay the balance on a charge card, it isn't necessary to hire anyone to settle the debt for you.…
Many individuals panic when they begin receiving collection letters and phone calls. For many, they're not used to the aggressive debt collection tactics that are used by these agencies to collect on overdue debts. The important thing to realize is that you also have rights, and understanding these rights will help you to negotiate better terms so you can settle your debt. In many cases, you can successfully settle your debt for significantly less than what you actually owe.
For tax purposes, your income and taxable gains generally decrease when you can claim a financial loss or take advantage of a credit on your tax return. The Internal Revenue Service calls these losses and credits tax attributes. When you're insolvent and your creditor, due to your bankruptcy or other cause, cancels your debt, the IRS requires you to reduce your tax attribute.
Charge-offs are either debts gone bad, which may include provision for bad debts, or one-off charges representing extraordinary losses due to one-off events. Trial balances are documents that contain all the final account balances obtained from the general ledger and other ledgers. Preparers use trial balances to ensure that the amounts on the debit and credit sides of accounts are mathematically correct when preparing the income statement and statement of financial position. You cannot use a trial balance directly to calculate charge-offs for the year, but you can use the ledger accounts and general journal, from which you gather balances…
SIMPLE Individual Retirement Accounts are tax-qualified retirement plans that businesses with no more than 100 employees can create for employees. Under federal tax rules, employers can include loan provisions in 401(k)s and in many other types of pension plans. However, SIMPLE IRAs are subject to the same rules as regular IRAs, which means that you cannot take out a SIMPLE IRA loan. Nevertheless, while SIMPLE IRA plans do not include provisions for loans, you can still borrow money from the plan and use the money to pay off your debts.
Even though a mortgage payment might be a homeowner’s largest recurring expense, many borrowers have no idea what is in their mortgage loan documents. The technical language and legalese contained in these documents keeps some borrowers from reading and understanding them. A forensic loan audit (FLA), also known as a forensic mortgage audit, critically reviews loan documents to find lender violations of the federal Truth in Landing Act (TILA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA).
An executor is the person named in the will of the deceased who has the responsibility of overseeing the deceased's estate and finalizing his financial affairs. If the deceased died intestate, meaning without a will in place, the court will appoint a person, called an administrator, to handle the deceased's estate. An administrator is also appointed if the executor named in the will is unwilling or unable to act or if the will does not name an executor. If the deceased left behind credit card debt, the executor or administrator may be able to negotiate a settlement of that debt…
A collection agency acting on behalf of a credit card company to collect a delinquent debt may sue you if repeated attempts to recoup the debt fail. The consequences you face if the court decides in the agency's favor could cause you to lose some of your income, savings or property.
The Internal Revenue Service generally taxes all forms of income. While this is the general principal behind federal taxation, there are numerous exceptions to this rule. The Internal Revenue Service considers debt forgiveness to be a form of income; however, there are exceptions to this rule. Whether credit card debt forgiveness is considered taxable income depends on the circumstances of the situation.
If you are injured and unable to continue working, you may start to receive temporary or long-term unemployment benefits from your employer's insurance policies. When this happens, you may also wish to receive unemployment benefits from your state's unemployment office. It is possible to receive both at the same time, but it may be difficult to meet the requirements for both programs.
SGH-A177 is the model number for the Samsung Captivate cellphone, available exclusively with mobile phone service through AT&T. Like all cellphones, the account owner's phone number and other personal settings are actually stored on the small SIM card, located inside the phone. The user can usually access it by opening the phone's battery compartment. Different cellphone models' battery compartments open different ways, so therein can lie some confusion about how to get the SIM card out or put a new one in.
Hamigo cards are similar to standard playing cards except that the characters displayed on them are hamster versions of the in-game cast. These cards are spread throughout the game-world and number 52 in total. The name "Hamigo" is a play on words which marries "hamster" and "amigo," the Spanish word for "friend."
A charge-off is debt the creditor considers uncollectible and writes off as a loss on its taxable earnings. Although the creditor charges off the debt, the debtor is still responsible for the debt, and the creditor retains the right to seek payment on it. If you live in Maryland and have a charged-off debt, it's important to understand what the statute of limitation is on that debt.
Failure to repay an outstanding debt doesn't mean that it goes away. At some point, your creditor may choose to write off the debt as a business loss, otherwise known as a charge-off. Charging off a debt does not necessarily release the debtor from his responsibility to pay. If you have one or more debts that have been charged-off, you need to understand what the potential consequences are and how it can affect your credit.
Having a debt canceled or forgiven by a lender can ease your financial worries. Some people owe more than they can afford to pay. Bankruptcy is an effective solution to this problem. But because a bankruptcy remains on a credit report for 10 years and drastically lowers scores, some debtors consider other alternatives for dealing with high balances.
When you have debt and little savings, you face the dilemma of whether to build up your savings or pay down debt. Saving gives you the security of knowing you can handle unexpected expenses, but you are paying far more interest on your debt than you get from your savings. Paying off debt leaves you vulnerable if you face job loss or major expenses. Financial advisers vary on their recommendations for the best strategy, but they agree on a few points.
One of the first steps in the financial planning process is to record your household's current balance sheet. By understanding how the balance sheet works, you can record the financial impact of a transaction. Buying a new asset can either increase your total liabilities or decrease your total assets, depending on how you finance the transaction.
When debts overwhelm your income, you have a decision to make: settle debts or declare bankruptcy. Consumers often think that settling debts does less damage than declaring bankruptcy, but bankruptcy usually is the better choice. As with any huge financial decision, you should talk to a counselor before making any decision.
The way you pay your bills accounts for 35 percent of your FICO credit score. It is the single largest factor in determining how high or low your score will be. On-time payments increase your score, while late payments can lower it. A charge-off is a serious delinquency. If you have an account that's been charged off, it's beneficial to understand whether a creditor can reopen that account.
The interest rate on a credit card determines how much interest you will pay on any debt carried on that card. Reducing credit-card debt can be a wise financial move since the less debt you have, the higher your credit score, according to FICO. If your goal is to pay off a credit card, it's wise to understand how to handle accrued interest that occurs after a payoff.
Whether a company restructuring results in automation, downsizing or outsourcing, the result may be loss of jobs. If you have recently been the victim of a company restructuring and now find yourself out of work, you may be entitled to receive unemployment insurance benefits.
Recordkeeping poses two questions for taxpayers: "What should I keep, and how long should I keep it?" Keeping tax records for too long creates unnecessary clutter, but disposing of them too early creates a risk that a taxpayer won't have the records he needs to prove that his return was accurate. The federal statute of limitations on tax records helps taxpayers decide how long to keep their federal tax documents.
Debt forgiveness releases a business partnership from its obligation to repay a loan. However, the Internal Revenue Service counts cancelled debts as income for the partnership. This means the company must report, and pay taxes on, forgiven debt on form 1065, also known as a partnership tax return. The lender that cancelled the debt will usually send a 1099-C form by February 15 detailing the amount of debt that was forgiven, but you must still report the forgiven debt if the lender does not send a 1099-C.
If you allow a debt account to become severely delinquent and do not make payments on the account for about 180 days, the creditor may charge-off the account, according to Steve Bucci, author for Bankrate.com. You may assume that you are no longer obligated to pay the debt after a charge-off. However, a charge-off does not mean debt forgiveness -- it only means that the creditor considers your account bad debt for tax purposes.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act sets limitations on the acts of debt collectors when enforcing a collection judgment. The Act protects debtors from harassment by debt collectors and also preserves the privacy of the debtor. Although an employer may cooperate and speak to a debt collector, the employer must consider an employee’s personal privacy. Preservation of the employee’s personal information protects him from issues such as identity theft.
A reaffirmation of debt is simply the debtor’s agreement to pay, even though he could discharge the debt through bankruptcy. In many cases, reaffirmation of a loan is on the family home or automobile. Occasionally, the bankruptcy court or the lender will not reaffirm the loan even if you kept the payments current. In those cases, you must look at the reason why the court or lender refused to reaffirm. It might be in your best interest.
Credit cards are a convenient form of payment for many consumers. The use of credit cards, however, can often lead to the accumulation of debt. This can be especially troubling if the existing credit card debt is at a high interest rate. A balance transfer can offer some relief by allowing a debtor to consolidate debt from multiple credit cards onto fewer cards or in some cases, onto one single card.
A summons is the notification of a lawsuit. In debt matters, a summons is a final attempt to force a debtor to pay an unpaid debt. Debt collection agencies can file lawsuits at any time, but usually it takes months or even more than a year before bill collectors resort to such extreme tactics. A bill collecting company is usually a debt collection agency. Creditors often sell or assign delinquent accounts to debt collectors. A debt collector initiates a summons by filing a lawsuit, but a civil court actually issues the summons. The court arranges for delivery by a courier…
Focusing only on paying off debt could leave you strapped for cash in emergencies, but saving for emergencies could leave you stuck with high-interest debts that take several years to pay off. There are different opinions on whether people should pay off debts first or build cash reserves for emergencies. You might consider an affordable option for handling both simultaneously instead of focusing on one while neglecting the other.
When you research a company to invest in, the balance sheet gives you an idea of how much equity is available for the current shareholders. This figure can give you an idea of what the company has to offer investors. It can be impacted by many events in the life of the company.
When your parents have debts when they die, bill collectors may start calling you to try to get you to pay what they owed. While the collection agents may be very persuasive, you typically will not have to pay the debts that are left behind by your parents. In this situation, it is important to know your rights so that you are not pressured into paying what you do not owe.
An unpaid debt can follow you around for many years. Once a debt is delinquent for 150 days or more, the original creditor may decide to charge-off, or write off, that debt as a loss. It may then hire a collection agency to obtain payment from you. If you have outstanding debt, it's wise to understand if a collection agency can place that account on your credit report more than once.
Most individuals have some debt, whether it's in the form of car loans, credit cards, payday loans or mortgages. If you’re married, you may have more debt than you realize. Your spouse might have accounts that you’re not even aware of. If he opened them while you were married, and depending on the laws of your state, you might be responsible for paying back a portion of them if you divorce.
Though everyone deals with the world of finance on a daily basis, very few people possess a thorough understanding of it. The term “sub-grace period “ constitutes one of the many lesser-known financial concepts you may encounter if you use student loans to pay for your college education. A type of grace period, sub-grace period describes a predetermined period of time after which you must begin meeting certain loan obligations.
Debt feels heavy when the bills keep coming and you struggle to pay them every month. You can lift that weight with a budget geared toward paying off your debts effectively. A sound repayment plan means cutting back in other areas, but temporary sacrifices pay big dividends in money saved on interest charges, a smaller debt load and a better credit rating. Your balances will eventually dwindle to zero if you make and stick to a realistic budget aimed at getting you out of debt.