Finance Globe

Starting your own business can be fun, exciting, and scary. There are a lot of unknowns when you venture into self-employment. Many business owners of the past have made an attempt at self-employment, but half of those businesses fail within the first five years, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Increase your chance of running a successful, profitable business with thorough research about the type of business you want to go into, as well as...

The big question many entrepreneurs have is, "How much will it cost to start my own business?" Some have started their own successful business with nearly nothing, and some have needed to use up their life savings or take out huge loans. It all depends on the type of business you plan to run. You may already know what kind of business you want to start, or you may just know you want to become self...

You may have considered starting your own business, and if you have, you are probably excited about the prospect of being your own boss. It's the other American dream; self-employment can provide good to excellent income, while you write your own schedule, and make all the decisions involving the operation of your business. But, if you are smartly cautious, you may also be fearful about what the future will hold; being your own boss means that...

Understanding how mortgages workWhen you choose to finance a home, the property loan is called the mortgage. The amount of the mortgage, also known as the principal, will be determined by the price of the property, minus the down payment. A larger down payment will reduce the amount of the mortgage, and will result in smaller monthly payments. The principal is reduced gradually with each monthly payment. Your monthly payments will be mostly interest in the...

It's just an unfortunate fact that health care costs are on the rise, and the cost of health insuranceis rising along with it. Millions of families currently go without any type of health care coverage, and health care costs are often at least partially responsible for about half of all bankruptcies. The leading reason for these families to go uninsured is simply the high cost of the insurance premium. When you don't have much expendable cash,...

Contributions to your HSAA Health Savings Account (HSA) can be a great health coverage option for the right person. In combination with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), an HSA can offer flexibility, tax benefits, and catastrophic coverage. Once you have enrolled in an HSA-qualified HDHP, you can set up your HSA with the financial institution of your choice. Your health plan provider is required to have a trustee available for you to set up an HSA,...

Health Savings Accounts were signed into law by President Bush on December 8, 2003, as an effort to put consumers back in charge of their health care, and to make health coverage more affordable for the uninsured. The HSA provides a way to save for future medical expenses, or can be used to pay for current health care needs. Contributions to an HSA are tax-deductible, and so HSAs are commonly thought of as a health IRA....

It would be great if we had the security of knowing that we would never lose our job, never require major medical care, and never let our debts get the best of us. But life throws a curve ball every once in a while, and sometimes debts become out of control. It can be very stressful to worry about how to pay the bills when you don't know how you're going to maintain the life you...

There's been a lot of heated discussion about the mortgage bailout. And why shouldn't the discussion be heated? Predatory lenders and gullible borrowers got together, and somehow the borrowers became convinced that they could afford a house they didn't have the income to pay for. Thinking the boom in real estate would never end and that housing prices would continue to climb, they gambled on the biggest purchase of their lifetime. Rather than play on the...

So, have you received the friendly little reminder the IRS sent to you? Many taxpayers will receive a rebate of $600, $1200 for joint filers, and an additional $300 for each qualifying child. Even those with no tax liability may receive $300; all you have to do to be eligible is to file your 2007 tax return. High-income filers may receive reduced payments or no payment. The IRS will start sending these out in May, separately...