Finance Globe

Getting fit can cost a fortune, at least if you attempt to follow in the steps of the rich and famous.You may not be able to afford a personal trainer and diet counselor, and even the cost of a gym membership may be pushing it. Home gym equipment can also be expensive - and may become another piece of clutter to collect dust if you get bored with it.But it isn’t hard to get fit without...

The Internal revenue Service made an announcement today that there are processing issues that may cause a delay in some taxpayers receiving their refunds. The delay is primarily affecting a small percentage of taxpayers who bought a home in 2008 and qualified for the First Time Homebuyer Credit, the IRS said.The credit was actually an interest-free loan for 10% of the home’s purchase price, up to a maximum of $8000. The credit is to be repaid,...

The pace of existing home sales fell last month after increasing for three months in a row, the National Association of Realtors reported today.February’s sales of single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops dropped to a seasonally-adjusted rate of 4.88 million home sales per year - a decrease of 9.6% from the previous month, and a decrease of 2.8% from the same month a year ago.Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, continues to express that the housing recovery will...

Imposter scams are growing in popularity among crooks.For the first time, these scams made the top ten list of consumer complaints, according to the 2010 annual report released by the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC warns consumers to be alert to scammers posing as people or organization they know and trust. They may use phone calls, emails, letters, faxes or even text messages in their attempt to trick you out of your money.To avoid falling victim,...

Despite all the education on the importance of protecting our sensitive personal information - identity theft must to be paying off for crooks because the crime remains at the top of the list of consumer complaints for 2010. Identity theft continues to be the most reported complaint for the 11th year in a row, according to an annual report released by the Federal Trade Commission. Out of the over 1.3 million complaints received by the FTC...

Savvy taxpayers often put a lot of thought into ways to legally reduce their tax bill. But taxpayers thinking about arguing to the Internal Revenue Service about whether they are truly obligated to pay their fair share of taxes should think again. The IRS released a public announcement advising individuals and groups to avoid wasting time and money with frivolous tax arguments that will only result in penalties for the taxpayer. Arguments heard by the IRS...

Time is running out for over one million people who haven’t claimed their refunds for the tax year 2007.According to the Internal Revenue Service, refunds totaling $1.1 billion owed to people who did not file a federal income tax return in that year.The law provides a three-year window of opportunity for most taxpayers to claim federal refunds from prior tax years - the 2007 return must be properly addressed, mailed and postmarked by the April 18th...

The housing market continues to stabilize even though the pace of pending home sales slipped by more than analysts had expected in January, according to an industry report released on Monday. The pending home sales index declined 2.8% last month, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported. Market analysts had predicted a decline of 2.2%. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said, “The housing market is healing with sales fluctuating at times, depending on the flow of...

Many taxpayers can easily do their own tax returns, and tax software can help make preparing your tax return go even more smoothly.Have you heard of Free-File?Free-File is available for low and moderate-income taxpayers through cooperation with the Internal Revenue Service and a large number of tax software providers. Free-File programs are available for taxpayers with an adjusted gross income that is less than $58,000.Each tax company has its own taxpayer qualifications to use their Free-File...

While getting back a tax refund can be exciting, it’s not always bad to owe a little money when you file your taxes. If you are due a big refund, that means that you’ve let the federal government hang on to your money all year long. And depending on your financial situation, that money could have been used to pay off a credit card balance, for investments and retirement savings, or even for those little luxuries...