Finance Globe

Your identity, it's who you are. It's your name, your date of birth, your Social Security number. You are the only one with that individual set of personal identifying information. Unfortunately, there are crooks out there who want to become you, at least on paper. They want to use your name to take out a loan, get credit cards, or even a driver's license. They may want to use your identity because they're running from the...

We've all become accustomed to the fact that credit card companies charge us interest fees for the use of credit. That's just how it works. The average American consumer has anywhere from five to nine thousand dollars in credit card debt, depending on which source you get the number from.If we're lucky enough to get an offer for a card with a 0% introductory APR, we often jump at the chance to transfer existing credit card...

When I'm on the clock, earning my paycheck, the time sometimes seems to drag on and on. When I'm coming up with the formula to amass my fortune, I've figured out it will take years and years to accomplish my financial goals. I know that, sometimes, it's better to pay for a service than to waste my precious time doing it, when I could be doing more important things. We've all heard it many times before,...

We are all aware of the threat of identity theft. Those ruthless scammers will stop at nothing to get your personal information, including digging through your garbage, lying about who they are, or stealing your wallet. We know to shred all of our receipts and statements. We know to never give out our Social Security number, unless we know who we are giving it to. We know to safeguard credit card and loan information. We study...

Ready to open your IRA?So, you've reduced your debts to a level you can pay off every month. You've saved a few month's worth of living expenses for emergencies. You've done a little research and learned the benefits of opening your IRA as soon as possible. Okay, you're ready to open your IRA. So, now what? First of all, I want you understand that an IRA is not a type of investment; it is a type...

If you are thinking about opening your IRA, you may wonder if it's better for you to go with the Traditional or Roth IRA.Both require that you earn at least as much income as the amount you contribute to an IRA. Both allow the same maximum annual contribution of $4000 for 2007, and $5000 for 2008. If you are age 50 or over, you may make an additional $1000 contribution annually to play "catch up". Both...

If you're young and just starting out, you may be anxious to become independent and move your life forward. You are in the early stages of a prosperous life, as long as you make smart decisions, starting now. It's easy to feel as if you have to accomplish all your goals immediately, but being in a hurry can backfire if you charge full speed ahead, without fully weighing the consequences of every action.The potential damage from...

Citigroup has become the next major institution troubled by bad mortgage-related investments to receive a taxpayer bailout.The New York-based mega-bank is yet another financial giant to be considered "too big to fail"; the company has its hand in so many deals around the world that its failure would be catastrophic to the global economy, according to experts.A joint announcement was made on Sunday by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve, and the Federal...

If you've thought about opening an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), good for you. The hardest thing about saving for your future is making the decision to do it and following through. Your retirement may be many years away, but it's never too early to start preparing for it. As a matter of fact, the sooner you start, the less you have to work at it; you will have the magic of compounding working for you. If...

W-4 forms should be updated when your tax situation changes.When you were hired at your current job, your employer had you fill out a W-4 form. This form helps the employer take the right amount of taxes out of each paycheck, based on your current filing status and number of personal allowances. It's important to fill this form out as accurately as possible. If too little is taken out for taxes, you could be hit with...