General Interest
Despite Personal Income Consistently Going Up, Spending is Down
During May of this year, the average American’s personal income rose by 0.4%. Your first inclination might be to say, “Big deal.” However, May marks the fifth month in a row in which there was an increase in personal income. In addition, personal incomes are now rising faster than the rate of inflation. Further hammering…
See Full Article Here ->Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Starts July 1
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) that was passed in 2010 will begin taking effect on July 1, 2014. (The original enforcement date was May 5, but it has been delayed.) Its intention is to make it mandatory for banks across the world to share depositor information with the United States government when it…
See Full Article Here ->Bitcoin to be Taxed as Property, not Currency
Just in case you missed this in the news this week, the Internal Revenue Service made a ruling that will have an effect on the future of Bitcoin (and all virtual currency). They ruled Bitcoin to be “property, not currency,” which thereby makes it subject to regulation in the United States. In case you’re not…
See Full Article Here ->PNC Survey: Brighter Days Ahead for Business Owners
The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. conducts a semi-annual survey of businesses. Since the studies began in 2003, they have gauged the thinking among business owners pertaining to their overall expectations and the way they intend to conduct their business over the next half-year. The April 2014 survey paints a somewhat rosier picture than ones…
See Full Article Here ->Big Bank Stress Tests Provide Positive Results
Each year, the Federal Reserve conducts “stress tests” on banks to gauge their overall health. They want to see if a bank would be able to endure a lengthy, adverse economic scenario while still being able to lend to individuals and businesses. These tests were brought about by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer…
See Full Article Here ->Is the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank an Anti-US Dollar Alliance?
What is common between the U.K., France, Germany, Italy and now South Korea? Can’t think of an answer? Well, they are all U.S. allies who are accepting China’s invitation to become members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). And they are doing this against the advice of the United States. Initiated last October by…
See Full Article Here ->Subprime housing market not what it used to be
Not so long ago, lenders gave out mortgages to potential homeowners without doing their due diligence. Often, no down payments or documentation were needed. As a result, the global economy suffered and the housing market crashed. There was the Adjustable Rate mortgage (ARM) with a low interest rate for a couple of years – then…
See Full Article Here ->You’re Getting Sued. Now What?
In 2012, there were more than 278,000 civil lawsuits filed (source). While many people will manage to escape being sued, you never know when it could happen to you. Unfortunately, those being sued – especially for the first time – are never quite sure how to react. The first thing most think of is the…
See Full Article Here ->Dun & Bradstreet’s Credibility Issues
Credibility Corp is owned by Dun & Bradstreet (D&B), a New Jersey-based credit reporting giant whose annual revenue is more than $1 billion. About four years ago, Credibility was spun off from the parent company. Today, Credibility finds itself in a bit of hot water as a federal court upheld a motion to hear a…
See Full Article Here ->2014 Investing Forecast
The 2014 investing forecast might be best described as “partly cloudy.” Last year was an abnormally good year in anyone’s book. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index showed that US equities advanced by about 30%. (Source) This number is the highest ascent since way back in 1997. Things were so good, in fact, a record…
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