July 22, 2009
In an effort to boost sales of its 2009 fleet, Chrysler has announced it will offer up to $4,500 cash on most 2009 model vehicles. This incentive is valid through Aug. 31, 2009. This is double what is offered by the Cash for Clunkers program, which starts Friday July 24th.
Here’s how it works:
When you trade in your vehicle that averages less than 18 MPG in city AND highway driving and is not more than 25 years old, you will get a voucher for either $3,500 or $4,500 . The amount of the credit is determined based on the incremental fuel-economy improvement between the old and new vehicles. Read the rest of this entry »
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July 15, 2009
The State of California is in financial trouble, that’s a fact. One of the ways they are trying to help the State budget is to increase our annual car registration fees.
Here is a press release I just received from DMV with more information:
If you recently received a renewal letter for your vehicle registration, you might have noticed a slight increase in the amount over prior years. The Legislature authorized the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to increase the Vehicle License Fee (VLF) from .65 percent to 1.15 percent of the price of the vehicle – a change which went into effect May 19, 2009. The DMV wants to help you understand what this new change means, and how it will impact your pocketbook for the next few years.
Read the rest of this entry »
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July 13, 2009
Like it or not, your kids are part of a huge consumer group. They influence billions of dollars in purchasing power each year, and advertisers spend billions of dollars marketing directly to them. If your toddler is already singing, “I’m lovin’ it”, that’s no coincidence.
How can you teach your children to be smart shoppers? Read the rest of this entry »
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June 25, 2009
On June 24th President Obama signed into law the “Cash for Clunkers” bill in yet another effort to hopefully encourage, and help, more consumers purchase a new car. However, the signature kicks off a 30-day period in which the Transportation Department will prepare regulations for the program. The National Automobile Dealers Association is advising dealers to wait until the rules are out late next month before participating.
As I understand now, under this new law, if a consumer has an older car that gets poor mileage - but not more than 25 years old - and they have owned said car for at least one year, they can drive it to the Dealership and maybe get a $4,500 credit towards a new, more fuel-efficient car. I say maybe because it is the Dealers’ discretion who they give the credit to. Sound fair? Read the rest of this entry »
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June 17, 2009
If you’re like me, when it’s time to do your taxes you are searching for any possible deductions allowed by law. Handing our hard-earned money over to the IRS is not something any of us is really fond of doing. MCCU may have a solution for you.
Do you have an auto loan? Are you thinking about buying a new car and financing it? Okay…here’s the fun part. Did you know that if you own a home, you may be eligible for a tax-deductible auto loan, and you may be able to deduct the interest you pay on that car loan? Read the rest of this entry »
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June 10, 2009
Budgeting. We all know what it means, but do we do it? Maybe we think we are, or maybe we intend to, but never get around to implementing it. Or, maybe, we don’t know how to budget at all.
Budgeting is especially important in this economy. Making each dollar count and ensuring all of our bills are paid, on time, is crucial. So how do you do it if you’ve been laid off or are just having hard times? According to a recent Money poll, in light of the financial crisis, 89% of us are changing the way we manage our finances, and 88% plan to be more frugal. Read the rest of this entry »
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May 29, 2009
The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009, signed into law by President Obama on May 20, 2009, includes a provision extending $250,000 share insurance coverage provided by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund through December 31, 2013. FDIC insurance will also be extended under this new law.
This is good news, considering many consumers may have purchased CDs, or Share Certificates, that expire in 2010, and they may not have been insured, depending how their accounts are vested, had the limits gone back to $100,000. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General, Savings 1 Comment »
May 22, 2009
On Thursday I was fortunate to have the opportunity to speak to a group of graduating Seniors from Champs Charter High School in Van Nuys about money management and how to maintain good credit once you get into college and life after High School.
I am a huge advocate of financial literacy in the classroom, and was even a past Board Member for the California Jumpstart Coalition. I truly believe that if kids are taught how to responsibly manage their money and know what to look for when applying for credit, they will grow into responsible and informed consumers and hopefully won’t get into any credit trouble in the future. Read the rest of this entry »
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May 18, 2009
Think about your passwords for a minute. How many do you have? Are they all pretty similar? And how hard would it be for someone to guess what they are?
You may have passwords for your debit card, your credit card, your online banking, and your favorite web sites. It probably only took you a few seconds to choose each one. Unfortunately, if you weren’t careful (“My birth date! Perfect”) it may not take long for a clever hacker to guess them. Read the rest of this entry »
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April 29, 2009
I was watching Clark Howard - one of my favorite Financial Gurus – today on CNN and his segment was on Indian Online Payday Lenders. Payday lenders offer short-term loans with extremely high fees typically to consumers who live paycheck to paycheck. The consumer will write a post-dated check to the lender and the lender will collect that money once it has been deposited to the consumer’s bank account. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Alerts & Scams 1 Comment »
