i.e. Property Scheme

Since I started working part time (nine days a month) on my current company and freelancing with the rest of my days, I have learned the value of money by experiencing the rollercoaster days – the up days and the low days. Up as in having wads of spending money, and low as in I could barely make ends meet and I have to make use of my credit card.

I hate using credit cards though because of the finance charge and interest rates. Consequently, I thank God profusely for payday loans. In case you don’t know, a payday loan (also known as cash advance), according to Personal Cash Advance is “a small, short-term loan that is intended to bridge the borrower’s cash flow gap between pay days”.

Do keep in mind though that this is not for repeated use. That is, payday loans are only for short-term use and you should only avail of it whenever an urgent and important need arises. Remember the rule of moderation.

The best way, of course, is still to spend only with what you have. But if you are still having difficulty in budgeting, do seek help from the National Foundation for Credit Counseling at 1-800-388-2227.

My friend and college batchmate, Twyla, recently checked in a posh Berlin hotel to follow up on her MBA applications at the Institute of Management Berlin (IMB). She’s currently eyeing their MBA European-Asian Programme. However, due to her schedule and her tight budget, she might end up taking one of IMB’s MBA Part-time Programmes.

This reminded me… I have also been planning to get an MBA degree with my upcoming promotion as general manager in our company. Although experience in a certain field is enough to give you an authority or a say on your subordinates, having an MBA makes you more credible and respectable. Plus, not only will having an MBA enhance and boost your career, you will be able to serve your company better if you know are equipped with fundamental skills to make you a more strategic thinker.

Anyhow, do take note that most MBA programs require you to have at least two years of work experience and be in the managerial position at your current job. So grab any opportunity to be in that level, and then take an MBA.

Nowadays it is easy to search for rent to own homes or homes for rent via the internet. That is, with the help of real estate directories, you now have the ability to search by price range, location, and even amenities that will suit your need, including pictures of those properties. Here are some tips when doing the “real” home hunt:

• For couples, take your partner when surveying the actual place. What may be a dream house to you may not be so dreamy with your partner.
• For singles, feel free to take a friend with you during the actual survey. He/she might be able to point out some things you may have overlooked. The final decision is yours of course.
• Never bring a parent with you (unless they’re paying of course and they insist on tagging along).
• Be sure to visit the place with an experienced AND friendly real estate agent.
• During house hunting, check first is its “curb appeal” or “the view from the street”. If it doesn’t pass your taste, move on immediately to the next house. Time is gold and you sure wouldn’t want to spend your gold on something that doesn’t even pass your curb appeal.
• Once you see a house that passes your curb appeal, have a quick initial look around to check if it suits your wants and needs in a home. If you don’t like it, move on to the next house.
• When you find a house that you really like, check if there is something wrong or out of place in the house that needs to be fixed and ask yourself these: Is it worth fixing? Can you fix it?
• Once you find a house that passes all those tests, plus your taste, and then go for a second, detailed look at the house.
• When you’re satisfied, you can then start the negotiation of the selling price until you reach a good deal.

Keep in mind that searching for homes online only provides a context for what comes next. Even though your dream rental house is several clicks away, and you can put your inquiries via email or telephone, it is still better to consult real estate agents before making your final decision. After all, their forte is real estate and your hard earned money is at stake.

Lester, my college adviser, is moving to Phoenix, Arizona because he got a great teaching offer in Collins College. Although his salary rate pretty much doubled from his current job, he’s still not sure if he’ll just avail of the school faculty housing or buy a house in Arizona.

He asked one of his future co-faculty from Phoenix about the great places where he could buy a house. She suggested Carefree, Cave Creek, Paradise Valley, Pinnacle Peak, Rio Verde and Scottsdale. I advised him to think about it twice. Just because one’s salary doubled doesn’t mean you ought to splurge at whim. The places his future colleague suggested were more of luxury real estate. I didn’t want him to end up broke with paying off a luxury house should something happen with his future job.

He ended up consulting a dedicated Phoenix real estate agent and realtor who gave him several options and suggested some other places with stylish but not posh houses that will suit his budget. Should this happen to you, I hope you do the same – seek professional advice first.

People always say that home is where the heart is. I have to agree with them. But then again, during times like financial crisis, I cannot help but wish that I am a UK resident.

“Why in UK of all places?” you might ask. It’s simple, really. UK residents are privileged enough to have Payday Loans like the RobertsBridgeFinancial.com wherein you can easily get a Cash Advance ranging from £80 up to a substantial value of £750 to help you bridge the gap in between salary days. What makes it really cool is that it saves you the hassle from falling in line or waiting just to collect and pay your loan – you can do both electronically! To cap it off, according to their website, “Roberts Bridge Financial is a financial matching service”. That is, it matches prospective borrowers with prospective lenders and your information may be forwarded to one of several independent loan companies. How convenient can a Salary Advance get?

Oh, and did I mention that it would only take you about 10 minutes to complete an application form online? Impressive, huh? If only I was a UK resident, I do not have to worry about making ends meet whenever an emergency arises in between paydays. Oh well, I’ll just keep my fingers crossed and hope that there will be offers like that here.

When I saw the website “National Relocation” I thought it was some government or NGO project, and was on the brink of ignoring it completely until I saw the words “real estate information”.

The website basically offers relocation services such as home inspectors and realtors, and mortgage calculators and tools as well. It also provides insightful information on the schools and neighborhoods of your target relocation area. What’s more is that it has maps which can help you pinpoint how far a school is from your target relocation area plus essential school information such as, address, contact information, enrollment figures, and even the student to teacher ratio.

Anyhow, I haven’t had much time to really go through the website. It sounds promising though. Do visit it if you have time and let me know what you think.

Three graduates from the State University are determined to do business as insurance brokers. They are young professionals not that they came from a well-known university, but because they have the knowledge, right attitude, skills and good habits or virtues. In addition, they have the competence that earned them the respect of their companions in their field of work. With their qualifications, there’s no doubt, they will be successful in their business.

These young gentlemen know that if you are able to do business in the government or even in one very stable private company, you are sure of success in the business. However, if you really mean business, you should be aware of the importance of Surety Bonds in doing business with the government or private entity. As insurance brokers, these young businessmen are required to get commercial bonds, specifically the Insurance Broker Bond. This bond protects individuals who may be harmed by the actions of a licensed insurance broker. Thus, even though their business is insurance brokers, they too need Surety Bond. The bond ensures they will follow the guidelines, for it is a guarantee. It is a form of credit, not insurance that the insurance brokers provide to their clients.

Bonds are required to legally operate the business of these young men. As such, it is important that when they get the Surety Bonds, there is an assurance that this will be accepted by whoever is requiring it from them. These businessmen will be confident of the integrity of the surety bonds they got, only if they got it properly. Nobody should take the risk by getting surety bonds, through the “fly by night” agents who promise or offers discounted rates. You will be able to get the right quotes for your surety bonds. This is the advice given to the future millionaires by their elders, “Be careful in your decision making, it is good to learn from your experience, but it is best to learn from the experience of others. You will not live long enough to experience everything, just to learn it. More so, it is difficult to learn from a bad experience, like getting a surety bond that is not accepted and honored.”

Not everyone is aware of the importance of surety bonds. It is high time for everybody in the business to be informed about it. It is never too late to know, so as to better serve our fellowmen.

While going over some real estate reviews with my colleagues during brunch, I encountered a fascinating question, “When looking for apartment or homes for rent, what do you do first?” Below are some of their interesting answers:

• “I search Google with the specific keywords of the location where I’m planning to move in and the type of place I’m looking for (e.g. apartment or condo).”
• “I call up some friends who are knowledgeable about the area and ask for recommendation.”
• “I count and recount my budget to know what my limitations will be before hunting for a place.”

Each answer shows what type of person they are and what they value. That is, the first person goes for tangible data, the second goes for other’s opinion, and the third is very prudent.

My point? They are all great answers for a first step. But do make sure that you do all three, plus consult an experienced real estate agent before finalizing your deal in buying or renting a place.

For those who have been planning to visit Barcelona, now’s a good time to start searching for long term and short term apartments for rent there.

Why bother renting a short term property there now? Because this 2007 to 2008, you will get to see authentic Spanish dancing performed by the stars of Spanish dance such as Akram Khan, Sara Baras, and Nacho Duato. Also, according to one website, “The Palau de la Virreina and Teatre Lliure is now selling the joint dance season ticket known as the Abonament Conjunt de Dansa for the 2007-2008 dance season.” The great thing about this is that, when you purchase this joint dance season ticket, you will be able to avail of a 30% discount and see seven dance shows in all during the dance season. Do hurry because the ticket is available only until January 4, 2008.

But if I were you, I’d go for long term rent or even buy a choice of villas for sale in the city of Barcelona. With the very favorable climate of that city and its seven beaches (which occupy 4.5 kilometers of coastline all in all), you’re sure to have great summers and have fun visiting Barcelona’s 68 municipal parks.

The news about recession certainly scared most of the investors and has affected the real estate business. Some companies had to bring down their prices just to keep their business on-going. For some this may be their downfall, but for others it’s a shopping spree.

While CNN is always talking about thinking twice before investing, wise investors take advantage to get the best deals at the lowest price. Especially now that banks are offering pretty low add on interests. They buy low, and later on sell high. To all investors especially families out there don’t hesitate to spend your money on great home deals. This is really the best time to get your dream house. The economic slowdown in the market is a normal and usual phenomenon. It happens all the time. Think of this as an inventory sale of the best weight loss pill in the mall. So what are you waiting for?!