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Category: Finance

  • The A to Z of paying your taxes – An integral part of your personal finance management

    The A to Z of paying your taxes – An integral part of your personal finance management

    When thinking about your personal finances, paying your taxes is an obligation that everyone must ensure. Needless to say this is a part which is always neglected and which can result in serious crimes.

    From funding the development of public roads to building public infrastructures, and being used for the country’s defense, tax money does many things. This is why the authority is incredibly strict once it involves watching people’s tax reports.

    Once you are defendant of evading your tax obligations, the authority will scrutinize the minutest details of your personal life, or worse, take all your money from your checking account as the payment for your tax dues. This is the reason why focusing on your timely tax filing and payment is an integral part of your personal finance management.

    Evading tax is a crime

    The authority is very harsh in its judgments owing to the belief that every single person who misses a tax payment is purposefully avoiding their obligations. What your attorney has to do now could be to prove that you just did not mean to evade the taxes knowingly. You were just unable to satisfy your tax obligations because of money instability or bankruptcy, emotional instability or being unaware of the law, if the law was freshly amended.

    Of course, the authority will gather all the information about you to disprove your claims; however it is also your lawyer’s duty to ensure that no matter what is brought in court, it works in your favor rather than the opposite party’s.

    Why you should hire a professional?

    If your issues with taxes are already this serious, you need to undoubtedly search around for a decent professional who will defend your case. Most attorneys cannot get their client’s totally free of their penalties; they can only try for the penalties to be decreased. Hiring a professional to handle the proceedings of the audit will defend you from showing emotion in tight situations under pressure.

    With a professional taking care of everything for you, everything is settled accurately and rationally. The attorney will believe that you are less guilty of tax evasion than what the authority report says. Apart from that to pay taxes on time, you also need a professional to keep track and file your forms on time to avoid penalties.

    Prevention is better than cure

    You have to look for the assistance of a tax professional or a comptroller when you feel the situation is getting out of hand. You have to undoubtedly have a professional at your side to assist you with taxes if you own a business, as business tax is totally different from personal taxes. Albeit you may think that you apprehended everything there’s to understand regarding personal taxation, the nuances of business taxes would possibly rattle you.

    Also, tax policies carry on dynamically. It’s extremely troublesome for the normal individual to maintain track of those changes. If you hire a tax professional, you can still keep track of all the required updates needed.

    Choosing the appropriate professional

    Make sure you scour the Internet or the classifieds ads in the newspaper to hire the best. Referrals from friends or colleagues can give you information about the lawyer’s work ethics, their temperament, their rates and therefore the real deal behind his specialties. You can also refer to the testimonials from the lawyer’s websites to get an idea and make sure you are hiring the absolute best.

    You may have come across many ads and commercials for tax relief firms. Many tax relief firms boast of their services and make big promises but in reality they are nothing but frauds waiting to pay on desperate and innocent customers. They justify and proclaim themselves to be the best in business but it is on you to identify the right firm that will benefit you. There are many listed popular companies but are not trustworthy. But people generally realize this when they are duped out of their money.

    Unfortunately, this business has attracted many frauds that just wait to kill those that are weakened by the threat of tax penalties and problems. Even if you can’t stop these unscrupulous firms from succumbing to their greed, you can arm yourself with the tools necessary to defend against their cheating. It is crucial that you understand the different types of frauds that are trademarks of a fake.

    Avoid non-refundable direct payments

    The most common fraud that is seen among these firms is to charge direct payments that have absolutely no guarantees and are non-refundable in nature.  While they promise to yield result, they are very unpredictable and very difficult to achieve. That means there is high chance of loss of money and your personal finance management can take a hit. Committing a huge amount without any research and guarantees can be risky. These frauds are not concerned about your money or about your tax problems; they are just bent on making money by preying on you.

    Never judge the potential outcomes

    There are some aggressive companies that reel in the customers on their tax troubles and take advantage of their compromise settlements. The truth is that only a few taxpayers qualify for a compromise. Most of us don’t know this so the frauds just string us along and make us assume that our problem is being taken care of, when in reality, we didn’t even qualify for the compromise.

    There are many factors that are considered by IRS in compromise application like the taxpayer’s ability to pay, income, expenses and plus equity. Choose a relief firm that answers your queries and tells you from the start that a compromise is very difficult to obtain. The company should have your best interests in mind.

    Identify the real service providers

    There are some fraud companies that boast of their tax relief services, but are nothing but fakes. Such companies just make bi promises and then turn to other companies that provide the actual service. It is very important to stay away from such outright frauds. Often we are led to believe that the company we have hired is doing the entire job but the truth is they have hired other service providers for the job or outsourced freelance contractors.

    Conclusion

    Some unscrupulous firms register many customers into their program and collect their money without providing adequate services. When there are several complaints or upset customers, they just merely change their name and begin preying on customers in a different place. So, beware, choose the best company and file your taxes on time.

     

  • How To Make Money from Travel Blogging

    How To Make Money from Travel Blogging

    Imagine getting paid lots of money to travel around the world and write about your experiences. It might seem like a pipe dream, but it is a reality for many travel bloggers. You can join their ranks if you are willing to put in the time and effort required to become a professional travel blogger.

    To make money travel blogging, you first need to have readers. Lots of them. This is what will drive advertising revenue and what will attract corporate sponsors to your site. It will also give you an audience to sell products such as books.

    But how do you get people to read your blog? Here are some tips for driving traffic to your travel blog:

    Passion

    The most important thing you need to succeed as a travel blogger is a passion for travel and new experiences. People can read passion and they enjoy getting swept up into it. Passion is contagious. You will only succeed at travel blogging if you really enjoy traveling and writing about it. Passion isn’t something you can acquire. You either have it or you don’t.

    Find Interesting Places To Visit and Write About

    No one wants to read about places everybody has seen or heard about. They want to read about exotic and out of the way places they can only dream about visiting. When choosing where to visit and what to write about, ask yourself this basic question: would you read an article about visiting this place? If the answer isn’t a resounding yes, find a different place to visit and write about.

    Use Social Media To Drive Website Traffic

    If this were a perfect world, people would come to your blog just because it was good. Unfortunately, this isn’t a perfect world, so you need to drive them to your site. Social media, such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter can help do this. Whenever you post an article onto your blog, post a link to it on your social media accounts, along with the best and the most stunning imagery you can provide. Then, ask all your friends and family to repost these links on their own accounts.

    Create an Email Newsletter

    An email newsletter is a great way to build a dedicated audience that will read your content on a regular basis. The way to do this is by collecting email addresses from visitors to your site using a service such as MailChimp. Then, you can periodically send them an overview of recent articles you have posted to your blog. The trick is getting people to give you their email address. You can do this in two ways: by creating consistently interesting content and by offering a small gift if they subscribe, such as premium content or an eBook you might write.

    Advertising

    Advertising on sites such as Facebook and Twitter can be very useful for driving traffic to your travel blog, as you can reach people based on specific interests. For example, if you have just written a killer post about traveling to a far off temple in Tibet, you can advertise it to people who have shown that they are interested in Tibet.

    Kelsey is the editor at LuxAuthority and is trying to balance both her budget and her credit card balance. She likes to live lavish and treat herself when the opportunity allows it. She loves the newest tech, old cars and the smell of rich mahogany and leather bound books as well!

  • 10 Common Mistakes Property Investment Beginners Make

    10 Common Mistakes Property Investment Beginners Make

    Property investment is not easy. It involves risks, but it can also be very rewarding. However, as great as property investment is, beginners often enter the hype with much excitement only to end up not really thriving. You don’t want to be one of those, do you? Here are 10 of the most common mistakes beginners make in property investment.

    • Excitement over making the First Purchase

    Most first-time property investors often get excited about making their first investment. And without further ado, they buy the first thing that catches their attention. We can’t help but be excited over the prospects of long-term investments. However, we need to be very cautious and careful about what we should invest in.

    How To Avoid: In real property investment, you speculate first before making any decisions. Never jump on the first opportunity you get. Instead, you look around, weigh your options and see what works best for you.

    1. Lack of Research and Information

    One of the primary mistakes beginners make is simply doing things spontaneously, without actually doing any, or not much research. Beginners often think that it is all about the action. It’s simply looking for properties to buy and sell. But in truth, property investment is a science of its own.

    When you buy a property, you should choose not with your own preferences and taste in mind but what would appeal to most people.  Just because we like a property doesn’t mean that it would be a good investment. Buying without checking the potential for resale or the type of renters you want is a common mistake most beginners must avoid.

    How To Avoid: It needs a lot of analysis. It’s a business after all. You are buying land to make a profit out of renters and not for yourself. No matter how appealing a property is, it’s not meant for you to live in but for you to gain maximum profits. So always check the property and do your research. There is more to property investment than just buying land and having a house built on it.

    1. Failure to Create an Exit Strategy

    Every business has its risks. Property investment is not an exception. It requires a lot of attention and care and devotion just as much as other forms of investment do.

    How To Avoid: Every time you acquire a property make sure that you can do multiple things with it. You can flip it, improve to sell or rent it out. An exit strategy means that you should always have a plan B, C, and D in case plan A doesn’t work out.

    1. Not Planning a Strict Budget

    Properties are necessary commodities. You’re bound to find an available property you can make a profit from. But buying properties or acquiring properties come at a price. Real property mistakes beginners make often start with going beyond budget or buying a property that fits your budget exactly. You have to remember that you need to allow for repairs and regular maintenance on your property.

    How To Avoid: Set a strict budget. Set aside money to acquire one and fix a budget as well as emergency funds for every property. Never go beyond budget but instead always aim to go lower than the budget that you have, so you can use it again for another investment, or to maintain the one you have.

    1. Being Overly Cautious

    Some beginners have the tendency to overthink. They think that maybe there is a better property out there until they finally have gone through every available one in the market.

    How To Avoid: We become over cautious when we don’t know what we are doing and when we literally don’t have any confidence in ourselves. Be brave and choose a property that you think you can make money from. Even if it’s a humble start, you still win even if you just earn a little bit from it.

    1. Relying on a Partner

    Beginners are often insecure and often fear failure. Hence, they become dependent on a partner. This is a good start but not a good learning curve. You may rely on your partner to make decisions and this can lead to conflict and losses. Choose partners, especially if they are family members carefully as tough decisions often have to be made.

    How To Avoid: Learn from your partner and make decisions together. If it is a family member then discuss everything before changes or decisions are made.

    1. Stingy Micromanagement

    As starting property investors you want to make all things work out the way you hope it will so you become hands-on on every single thing. You want all the details to happen under your supervision. This over-tightening becomes stressful.

    How To Avoid: Hire professionals to do the legal stuff for you. Your task is to delegate and supervise. Don’t do it all yourself or you are bound to become weary and careless.

    1. Thinking You Know It All

    We think we can do it all by ourselves based on business studies and research. Well, that’s not the case. We’re always faced with business issues and dramas as well as scenarios that no business school ever teaches.

    How To Avoid: Stick to a veteran and learn the trade well before doing it by yourself.

    1. Forgetting Government Liabilities

    You get overly excited in making sure your project goes as planned but have you thought about the permits, inspections, and other legal processes?

    How To Avoid: Every property you deal with requires proper documentation and legal processes. You need to find out what must be done and how much it would cost you to buy a property. Due diligence is very important.

    1. Not Learning from Your Mistakes

    This is a mistake not just beginners do but everyone. We often end up doing the same mistakes over and over again.

    How to Avoid: Accept the fact that you made a mistake and don’t blame it on others. Accepting your mistake is one way for you to understand the fact that you really have done something wrong that cost you. In business, it is vital to learn from your mistakes or else you will be stuck in a circle of costly faults that will never end. Understand your failure and the rest will go on from there.

  • 7 Reasons Why Colored Diamonds Are Considered For Long-Term Investment

    7 Reasons Why Colored Diamonds Are Considered For Long-Term Investment

    Identifying a lucrative and stable opportunity is truly important for all global investors as the market prices continue to fluctuate within a diverse economy. The outcomes of investing in colored diamonds have often surprised a vast majority of business analysts, financial organizations, and bankers that investigate various investment classes. Colored diamonds possess a few unique features that most investment classes lack.

    Reasons to consider colored diamonds as powerful investment options have been discussed below:

    1. Global Recognition

    Colored diamonds have succeeded in claiming their niche in the commodities market due to their global recognition. A small section of the public has only been able to gain access to this rare variety as they possessed by the royal families till late. These diamonds have projected a steady increase in pricing following an upward swing through the last 30 years or so.

    1. Portability

    The fact that diamonds weigh less and appear smaller than many other commodities, make them portable. Even under emergency circumstances, these diamonds can be transported in large amounts. You may keep the whole portfolio in safe deposit, keep it in a pocket, or place it in certain jewelry creation.

    1. Market Value

    Demand and supply are factors that help determine the true worth of an asset through thick and thin. Fancy colored natural diamonds constitute about 0.01% of the rarest of Earthly gemstones as they have a limited supply. The market pricing of these diamonds has been increasing at a uniform pace as more and more Hollywood Celebrities adorned their fancy diamonds in public shows.

    1. Growth Prospects

    The diamond market has been dominated by the price appreciated colored gemstones like fancy diamonds during the last 30 years. Their strength has been projected in the auction outcomes; this goes without saying that these diamonds have broken past records at the auction house several times of late. The pricing per carat has often been recorded to be the highest at any jewel auction.

    1. Durability

    The durability of colored diamonds is known all over the world. Diamonds are capable of withstanding most environmental conditions even after they’re cultivated beneath the Earth’s surface and under unforeseen circumstances.

    1. Rare Production

    You won’t come across commodities like colored diamonds in the global market very frequently. Only a few diamond mines possess these diamonds and even a smaller percentage of their entire production constitutes this variety. The shades of few colored diamonds are actually visible to the diamond cultivating companies.

    1. Stunning Beauty

    The breathtaking beauty of colored diamonds has long been appreciated the world over. A colored stone exhibits sheer brilliance that keeps a large section of global buyers mesmerized regardless of their line of work. These gemstones have proven their worth to be considered among the most potentially strong investment options of our times. The extraction of diamonds has gained more pace as mining procedures improved with the latest advent of technology.

    Buyers are collecting colored diamonds much faster as they find lesser chances of procuring these stones in the near future. This, in turn, has created a huge opportunity for investors as a large section of them are flocking to secure their portfolio within the commodities market. You may check out the trendiest of colored diamonds with an eminent diamond Trading platform of our times just to add variety to your portfolio.

  • Tips To Get The Best Home Loan Deal

    Tips To Get The Best Home Loan Deal

    The process of applying for a home loan may seem scary if you get into it unprepared, but if you have braced yourself up in advance and follow the required steps then it may sound easy to get your home loan application approved.

    Well, applying for the loan in a right way is not all that is needed. You are also required to act smart and apply for a home loan deal that suits you best.

    Under this article, we will talk about the tips that will help you lock the best home loan deal for yourself.

    So, before you apply for a home loan, take into consideration these key tips:

    Negotiate Rate Of Interest

    Those who lend the money usually define the rate of interest in a minimum or maximum range and the actual rate they charge depends on your eligibility criterion. Being a borrower, you have the advantage to negotiate a better rate of interest.

    According to financial advisers, you can do this not only by comparing the loan options available for you but also by improving your chances of becoming eligible by adding a co-borrower and combining the income of the co-borrower with your own.

    Go For A Loan Only After Comparing

    Before you choose to buy any particular loan, indulge in an intensive research work and compare all the options of the different types of loans available in the market. Know about the equated monthly instalments, available interest rates, processing fee, and other related charges.

    The emergence and development of technology have made the process of comparing much easier for you. Now you can compare between different types of loans available by accessing the internet at the ease of your comfort zone.

    So, always look at the base rate, margin offered, maximum tenure offered, how eligibility is calculated and most importantly if the lender has earlier funded the property similar to yours.

    Rate Of Interest

    Home loans are available in return for the rate of interest. So, before applying for a loan always finds out the type of rate of interest you will be required to pay.

    If a home loan is based on the fixed rate of interest then the interest rate will not change during the entire loan tenure and the borrower is required to pay the same EMI throughout the loan term.

    Under the floating rate, bank loans are linked to the MCLR whose rate of interest automatically changes after a fixed period of time.

    If the interest rate is expected to fall in the near future then you should go for floating rate and if it is expected to rise in near future then you should opt for a fixed rate loan.

    You can pre-close the loan ahead of its actual tenure. If your loan is based on a floating rate, no charges will be applicable but if you are on a fixed rate loan, there may be charges applicable.

    Know Your Borrowing Capacity

    Most of the time people decide to pay high EMIs thinking that the loan amount will come down with time due to increase in their income. It is important to understand that this does not happen all the time. Your income may or may not increase with time. Therefore, understand your borrowing capacity and borrow under your limit where paying the EMIs will not stretch your finances.

    Additional Costs

    When you decide to apply for and take a home loan, never forget that interest is not the only cost which you have to bear. There are certainly other costs too.

    Each time you apply for a loan with a bank or any other non-banking financial institution you are charged a certain percentage of the loan amount that you wish to borrow. The percentage charged is known as the processing fee. This amount may vary from 0.5 percent to 1 percent of your total amount of loan.

    Banks or NBFCs also charge legal fees to ascertain the legal status of the property. Usually, the legal fees are applicable on either a loan against property or on a home loan.

    In fact, depending on the type of loan you wish to borrow, you will be charged a fixed amount for the pre-payment of your loan. In case you do not repay your loan EMIs on time, a late payment fee is charged. The late payment fee depends on the financial institution that has lent you the money and the type of loan you have borrowed.

    Ankita is a freelance writer who writes about finance, loans, credit cards and insurance.

  • 7 Essential Reasons Why More and More People are Opting for VA Loans in Texas

    7 Essential Reasons Why More and More People are Opting for VA Loans in Texas

    There is a loan program for every mortgage borrower if you resort to the right real-estate lending service but for many, the VA loan stands out for a number of factors. Further supported by the U.S Department of Veteran Affairs, VA loans are formulated to assist the active-duty military personnel, veterans, and a few other people to turn their dream home projects into a reality at an affordable cost.

    Here, we have put forth a few vital reasons why the VA loans for low credit scores in Houston appear to be lucrative for so many people. Take a look.

    1. Low Down Payment

    The VA loans have the lucrative benefit of the very low amount of down payment. You just have to make 20% of the down payment but you will get a waiver of $453,100 and pay 20% of the amount more than this benchmark.

    1. Flexible Credit Score

    Compared to the conventional Jumbo loans, where one is required to have a credit score of more than 710, the VA Jumbo loans in Texas can be a convenient option. These require a credit score of just 620 or above to qualify for such a loan. Therefore, it will definitely open many news doors to achieving your dream home.

    1. Zero PMI

    Usually, in order to decrease their own risk on the Jumbo loans, the lenders make it compulsory to purchase the private mortgage insurance or PMI when you are making a down payment of less than 20%. This PMI can prove to be significantly expensive for loans worth hundreds or thousands of dollars. But now you can save thousands of dollars with VA Jumbo loans as these don’t require purchasing any PMI.

    1. Lower Rates of Interest

    When compared to the traditional loan programs, the interest rates for the VA Jumbo loans are significantly lower. In fact, these are even more cost-effective than the government aided programs like the FHA or USDA loans. So, refrain from paying excessive interests by opting for the VA loans.

    1. Government Guarantee

    VA Loans have such favorable terms and clauses because these come with a federal guarantee whereby a part of the loan will be repaid to the lender regardless of whether you can make the monthly installment or not. This kind of an assurance always motivates the lenders to provide the VA loans at the attractive terms as desired by the borrowers.

    1. Multiple Options

    There are various kinds of VA loans available in the market, right from fixed to adjustable rate ones which can be used for buying a newly built home, a house, duplex, manufactured home, or even a condo. You can also use it for refinancing your existing mortgage and repairing or home improvement projects etc. And since these mortgage rates are set by the U.S Banks, credit unions, savings & loan institutions, or the mortgage lenders, each of them will have their set rates and fees. So, this allows you to choose from a variety of options and compare them according to your budget and requirements.

    1. Low Closing Costs

    VA poses a limit to the closing costs charged by the lenders from the VA loan seekers. This is another amazing way in which VA loans can save your money. You can save your money and allocate it to the other expenses involving a new home including moving costs, home decor, repair projects etc.

    VA loans are extremely easy to qualify. Just like other conventional loan programs, a proper documentation, a considerable credit history, and adequate income are necessary for the monthly payments. But these guidelines are more flexible for the VA loans. So, without any further delay, you should immediately apply for a VA Jumbo loan now.

    Author Bio: Joan Gallardo, has 18+ years of experience as Senior Loan Officer, and here tells you why the VA Jumbo loans in Texas are a popular choice. Learn more about loan programs such as the VA loans for low credit scores in Houston by following his blogs.