Some of the best books on personal finance

There have been enough postings and articles on several tips about personal finance, for it provides the much required motivation and the impetus that is frequently needed by people to get their ideas into work. The recent financial crunch which have devastated the financial hold of numerous citizens across US and pulled them down to the mercy of the credit card debt management services, have now prompted them to gather the necessary financial knowhow and the hidden tactics in order to manage their finances. Fortunately books can offer the best insight and a comprehensive view when it is a question of putting the hard earned bucks in the right practice. These books which are written by some of the top honchos of finance can be used to refurbish the old and invalid ideas with newer and innovative methodologies to save money or various aspects of financial handling.

Though it is not possible to gain knowledge overnight, but reading these books over a period of time and can prove to be a great resource and collection of useful materials. The following are the list of some of those great books which can help you to improve your financial knowledge as well:
•    The Intelligent Investor which is a classic in its own terms.
•    The Millionaire Next Door written by Thomas Stanley and William Danko which can change your              perspective on spending or making money.
•    Rich dad, Poor dad by Robert Kiyosaki which focuses on various investment strategies and the principles of entrepreneurship.
•    Multiple Streams of Income by Robert Allen which provides knowledge and importance of having several options of income.
•    The Snowball which emphasizes on the life of Warren Buffet and what has made him the man that he is today.
•    The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason which talks about managing money and building wealth.
•    The 4 Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss, a challenging book which drifted away from the normal tenets of money management.
There are hundreds of suggestions about personal finance which have been highlighted in these books. These collections could help you in bringing about a change in the way you have been looking at your finances till now, and could help you to move forward with the correct financial knowledge.

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Which credit cards should you never close?

The US consumers have been relying too much on the aid of credit cards, either because they are opposed to using cash amounts or simply that they may not have too much cash in hand. At least this is what the recent economic downturn has established, when people had incurred huge debts and were obliterated with overextended credits which on the other hand had led people to rely on the best debt management programs to recover from their debt burdens. However in spite of all the negative things that have been spoken about the credit cards, canceling them may not be the right thing to do always, and let us have a look at those credit card accounts which we should never close:

•    Those cards which has some balance left should never be discarded simply because the total balance that is available is lowered to zero amounts or rather those credit cards with no credit limits have still been left with some balance it can also be said that the card has been maxed out which has a negative implication on the credit score.

•    If you have intended to close the only credit card that you owe it will lower the total credit that is available or it can also rob you of the power of utilizing your credit which is highly disagreeable.

•    A portion of your credit score is controlled by the total number of credits that you actually use therefore maintaining a credit card can also imply that it can be used towards building a higher credit score. Furthermore you can have problems to secure a credit card in future for the creditor may think of you as ineligible.

•    The old credit cards should never be canceled as these accounts are considered to be of more worth when the creditor will assess your credit report as borrowers with short credit history are termed as riskier than others.

•    Those credit cards with good terms of contract should not be canceled for cards with lesser rates of interest and annual fees will be of more use in the long run because they will charge you much less than others.
Consumers are often confounded with the idea of whether to close a credit card account or not, because there are too many of the accounts which have turned delinquent however they should remember that even closing a delinquent account can damage the credit score more than helping it to get settled.

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Would Your Debts Die With You?

The last question that comes to a debtor’s mind would certainly be, ‘Would I take my debts to my grave’? Thoughts of haunting debts coming after the near ones of the deceased debtor are more dreadful than a living nightmare. Once the debts spread its fangs around someone, it takes ages to loosen its grip, despite the efforts of various debt cure solutions and debt management plans. Answer to this question is based on few factors like your place of residence, the person who applied for it, the clauses and conditions one signed it under. The simplest part is, if the credit card was held just by you or was yours alone, with no joint account holders, the debt too would belong to only you and nobody else would share it. Thus primarily after death, the responsibilities to pay off debts die with the debtor, but in certain conditions it depends upon his estates as well, wherein the balances and debts may get  paid off with the help of law from one’s estates, with the remaining assets being distributed among the heirs, following the will statement or state law.

Those assets that go under probate, the state law provides for an executor or an administrator to pay off the estate or the credit card bills and debts. Some items of the assets such as your IRAs, 401(k) s, brokerage accounts, and insurance, which pass to the beneficiary’s name, are not considered as probate or payable for debts and bills. Thus it is important to keep the accounts and designations up-to-date regarding these factors. A pension and retirement fund too does not fall under the assets which can be probated, thus safeguarding the family of the deceased debtor.

In other cases if the estates do not cover the bills, or it does not cover enough money to pay off, the debt payment will get nullified and the creditors are notified that the estate is insolvent followed by writing off the debts and finally ending up the whole debt.

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Is It Advisable To Use Your Retirement Funds To Pay Off Debts?

A disturbing trend that has been recorded by a recent report from ‘Fidelity’ depicts that a growing number of people are making hardship withdrawals from their retirement accounts to pay off their various outstanding. This saddening and frustrating fact proves the increasing helplessness of people to pay their debts, in spite of a gamut of debt relief plans and debt cure options like debt settlement, debt consolidation etc. This phenomenon is not only breaking down the future financial assurance of people, but is also enabling the creditors to reach and enjoy funds that they otherwise cannot claim or touch. Economic disasters like recessions, bankruptcies, salary decreases, unemployment, wage garnishments, crash of housing market etc are leading many people to liquidate or borrow from their retirement funds to pay off debts partially and totally. According to debt lawyers and financial experts, it is not at all advisable to take out money from one’s retirement funds; or rather one should avoid it by any means, by opting for other alternatives to pay off their outstanding bills, loans or debts. In most states of US, retirement accounts is exempted if someone files for bankruptcy, which means the creditors, collection agencies or court of law cannot sue the debtor for keeping these funds, which acts as a valuable asset for the debtor in later life and future.
Thus one should always consider all other substitute methods of paying off debts, before considering using of their retirement funds, which should be a last resort to them. According to bankruptcy and debt attorneys, one should keep two points in mind while dealing with debts, which may provoke him/her to use the retirement accounts:

    In case you are facing difficulties to make ends meet, it is better to stop paying for the unsecured debts like credit card and medical bills and to file for bankruptcy against these, rather than touching and discharging your retirement funds to pay these off.

    One should stop paying for the secured debts in case the assets are charging you more than their worth in the market. For example one can think about selling one’s house or car to get rid of the unnecessary debt payments against these, when the debtor can mange with a smaller home or a much economic vehicle than the former ones.

Remember the fact that your retirement money is an imperative and requisite source of financial reliance for your future, which one should not sacrifice for anything.

 

 

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