When the topic is about debt relief, it’s typical to hear debtors and creditors talk about credit counseling, debt consolidation, debt management, debt negotiation, and debt settlement. If you don’t owe a large amount of debt but you’re finances are really tight, you might as well negotiate with the creditor. If you are confident enough that you can do this task alone, you need to be clear, calm, and convincing. You have to meet up with the creditor and negotiate your debt professionally and unemotionally. You have to keep in mind that screaming and crying will not be able to secure a favorable response from the creditor because they are not bound to negotiate – it’s YOU who owe them money and not the other way around. An initial negotiation that leads to a negative result should not discourage you. You have to try again, but you need to learn from…

Most of today’s debts come from the excessive use of credit cards. You can seek debt relief if you’re unable to make on-time payments and have incurred late or past due to fees. Aside from that, you will also have to seek relief if you are being charge with very high interest, or if you received collection calls and over-limit fees. There are ways to erase your debts and this may include credit consolidation, concessions, and hiring the services of a debt management firm or agency. If you can find a reputable and experience agency or firm, you can be represented during the negotiation. When you enroll in their program, you can expect that the calls from collection agencies will be diminished if not totally eliminated. This is very important because most debtors become irate when they get a lot of phone calls from the collection agents. Oftentimes…

It is important that you pick a company that is an expert in debt reduction or debt relief. This is necessary if you’re facing a mountain of debts from various creditors. A lot of people are not comfortable to talk about their debt problems, and so you have to conduct a bit of research if you want others to know about your financial situation. Just in case you’re looking for the best service, you have to consider certain things. Instead of working with companies that specialize in debt consolidation, focus your search on a company that can help you in debt reduction. This is a better option for you because the company can help you in reducing your debts rather than increasing it through continued borrowing. When solving your debts with the help of a third party, you will surely have to pay the fees. Some companies charge hefty fees…

Stock picking in the current market requires a renewed focus on corporate economics and balance sheets, said Larry Coats, manager of the Oak Value Fund (OAKVX). “After a low-quality recovery last year, now quality matters, and it’s time for serious stock selection,” he said. Mr. Coats has been part of the fund’s management team since it was launched in 1993 by Oak Value Capital Management Inc. As a portfolio manager, he describes himself as an “opportunistic buyer of advantaged businesses.” The strategy goes beyond the “implicit biases” of a traditional value investing approach, he said. “By concentrating on price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, money managers are spending all their time looking at the cheapest stocks, but they’re missing some valuable opportunities,” he said. “When we look at…

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress on Wednesday that record-low interest rates are still needed to ensure that the economic recovery will last and to help ease the sting of high unemployment. In his twice-a-year report to the House Financial Services Committee, Bernanke struck a confident tone that the recovery should endure. But he also sought to tamp down expectations. The moderate economic growth the Fed expects will lead to only a slow decline in the nation’s nearly double-digit unemployment rate, he said. He offered no new clues about the timing of an interest rate increase. Most economists think it is months away. Bernanke said rates will need to stay at exceptionally low levels for an extended period “as the expansion matures.” Investors seemed buoyed by Bernanke’s commitment to low rates. In afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 87 points. The stock pickup…

Full disclosure: I rarely watch reality television shows. Call me a snob, but I don’t give a flying fandango about would-be rock stars, worm eaters or piranhas-in-training trying to impress a billionaire blow-dried blowhard. But Sunday night, I got caught up in CBS’ “Undercover Boss” and can appreciate why it’s becoming a hit: it’s a morality play for our cynical times. The plot is simple. In the episode I saw, the benevolent chairman of 7-Eleven puts on chinos and drops in on several of the franchise convenience stores, using an alias. As part of a ruse about filming workers in training, he discovers that many of the company’s hard-working employees are terrific. The premise of the show is that CEOs are so removed from their workers that the Big Man hasn’t a clue as to what really goes on. Previous episodes featured…