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2012年8月27日 星期一

Certificate of Deposit Vs Savings Account: What Fits You?


For most people, the idea of investing is basically the same as saving up money. However, there are other ways for you to invest your money without really having to undergo a lot of risk. One such way is through certificates of deposit.

First, what is a certificate of deposit? You can consider a certificate of deposit as a time deposit, basically like your usual savings account except that you cannot really withdraw it as you see fit. A certificate of deposit usually allows you to earn a higher interest on your money but at the same time, you are discouraged to alter or withdraw that money before the fixed period of time.

If you are thinking of investing your money, and don't know whether you should go and open a savings account or if it will be better to invest in a CD, then here are some of the pros and cons of the two.

Pros and Cons

Savings accounts and certificates of deposits are all relatively risk-free, meaning if the bank collapses, you don't collapse with it as well and that your money is protected up to a certain degree. These are probably the only risk-free or minimal risk investment strategies that you can find.

One of the biggest difference between a savings account and a CD however is that there is a fixed period of time, between three months to five years, before you can really access the money you invested in a CD compared to the unlimited access that you may have with your savings account. However, banks and other institutions encourage you to invest your money longer by offering higher interest rates, meaning your money will be earning more in the longer period. The same way, a savings account may give you quick access to your money but then you might not be earning as much as you would have wanted compared to in a CD.

So how do you choose?

Your choice will basically depend on two factors: whether you need quick access to your funds or whether you want your money to earn a lot. If you think that you might need the money in the near future, then it may not be a good idea for you to invest in a CD. However, if you won't be using that money and you want your money to earn more while it 'sleeps', then investing in a CD might be the best way for you to go.




Jane Sanders at Certificate of Deposit Rates about getting the best CD rates. Learn more about Certificate of Deposit here.





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張貼者： 於 上午11:23 0 意見
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2012年8月21日 星期二

When Will Online Savings Account And Certificate of Deposit (CD) Rates Go Up?


For many money-savvy Americans, the current interest-rate environment is very frustrating. Imagine spending years being frugal and responsible with your money, spending as little as you can and saving as much as you can, only to be rewarded with a savings account rate of 1.25%. Very frustrating indeed. Even online savings accounts, which typically offer better yields than traditional savings accounts, are offering less than 2%.

The situation with Certificates of Deposit (CD's) is no better.

The reason for the lousy rates is quite simple: the Federal Reserve is currently letting banks borrow at no more than 0.25%. So, if a bank can borrow at 0.25% -- which is the current fed funds target rate -- why would it borrow money from you at 5% via a savings account or a CD? That's the gist of it. This is why CD and savings-account rates rise as fall in tandem with the target fed funds rate, the Fed's most important monetary policy tool.

So the big question is: when will savings rates start to rise?

The answer, unfortunately, is not any time soon. Any experienced rate watcher will tell you that the Fed is going to keep the benchmark fed funds target rate at 0%-0.25% for the rest of the year, and probably well into 2011. The fed funds futures market, a very good predictor of where interest rates are headed, is currently 100% certain that the Fed will keep short-term rates at record low levels for the rest of 2010.

Who's to blame? Why, the Great Recession, of course. The Fed can't raise rates while unemployment is high, economic growth is weak and the very real threat of deflation persists. Moreover, many seasoned economists believe that the very recent Great Recession will soon become the Great Double-Dip Recession.

The Fed is just as frustrated as the unnumbered folks around the country trying to find stronger yields for their hard-earned savings. The Federal Reserve is currently dealing with what's called a liquidity trap. It has lowered rates as much as it can, and has pumped massive amounts of new cash into the economy. Despite these actions, the economy is still not expanding in a sustainable way. That's the trap. It's the same trap that has kept Japanese central bankers scratching their heads in frustration since the 1990's.

And if you think you might do better with US Treasury securities, think again. The Fed has been pumping many billions into Treasury securities, thus driving the yields associated with these super-safe investments down. This not only keeps mortgage rates low, which is good for the languishing housing market, but it also makes Treasuries less appealing to investors. To help bolster the anemic US economy, the Fed would much rather prod Wall Street to put its money into riskier investments like stocks and corporate securities, which aren't as safe as Treasuries but do offer higher yields. The Fed wants your 401K to look like it did back in 2006, which would certainly help to make you and millions of other American feels prosperous again.

So what is the responsible saver to do?

The best course of action a money-savvy American can take is to simply continue to scan the Internet for the best available rates on CD's and online savings accounts. Definitely not a good idea to lock up a significant amount of cash for 3 or 5 years. Best to stick with 6 to 12 month CD's while yields are low. There are lots of easy-to-find blogs out there that report on the latest and greatest from around the country.




The US Prime Rate website at FedPrimeRate.com recommends some of the best Certificate of Deposit and online savings accounts available.

The website at BalanceTransfer.cc offers advice on how to use credit card balance transfer checks to earn money via 0% credit card offers.





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2012年7月25日 星期三

I Need to Estate Plan My Gmail Account


I'm going to date myself, but I still vividly remember signing up for my first "electronic" mail account in the early 90's when I was a freshman in college. I guess it was memorable because it required traveling down into a dark basement underneath one of the buildings. I picked a really strange address name at the time instead of my name, but I have learned to keep my email identity simple since. Email has been joined by a myriad of other internet services. Everyday someone can upload videos onto the net, pay bills online, connect with others via social media websites like Facebook and LinkedIn or just provide your thoughts for the world to see via a blog. Fast forward almost 20 years; the internet has become fully integrated in our lives.

Integration has given birth to a person's "virtual life." With a virtual life comes the need for virtual planning just like a real life needs an estate plan; be it a voluntary one or intestate. Many fail to see how their email account would even be part of their estate. But not taking the appropriate steps in your life - be it virtual or not - can create issues down the road. For example, a few years ago, Justin Ellsworth, a U.S. Marine, was killed in Iraq and his family requested access to his Yahoo email account to retrieve pictures, emails, etc. residing in Justin's account. Yahoo, citing its privacy policy, did not relinquish access to Ellsworth's family. Eventually, Ellsworth's parents successfully sued forcing Yahoo to turn Justin's emails over though only in hard copy format. While this had a positive ending, it cost the Ellsworth's untold hardship along with a great deal of money in legal fees to gain access to something that normally is only clicks away on a keyboard.

To appropriately plan your virtual life, it is important to understand internet providers' privacy policies. Here is a quick rundown of the major providers:



Google: Google mail requires a copy of a death certificate, copy of a power of attorney or birth certificate and a copy of an email sent from the account you are trying to close. A Google account will stay open forever barring a request to delete it.
Yahoo: Has not changed their policy since the Ellsworth case and there is no right of survivorship and non-transferability. Upon receipt of a death certificate, Yahoo will terminate the account and delete all of the contents. Yahoo accounts only have a ninety (90) day window before deleting an account based on inactivity.
Hotmail: Falls in between Yahoo and Google. They will grant access to the account after being provided similar information as Google but will eventually delete the account after a year of inactivity.
MySpace: Will not grant access to anyone to edit or delete any of the content or change the settings but you can request an account to be removed if deemed appropriate.
Facebook: The account is turned "off" and made into a memorial for the person upon request. Facebook grants no ability to edit, limits access to the site but will remove the "person" based on request from next of kin after being provided similar information as Google.
Twitter: Has what appears to be no official policy but states they cannot disclose account information or passwords to anyone, even post-death. Twitter will remove an account after given notice with a death certificate and may remove an account based on 6 months of inactivity.

A simple glance reveals that each provider has a slightly different privacy policy with respect to their willingness to open up a user's account to a non-user. This can mean a number of hurdles someone will need to jump through to access the account because, if you are like me, you have a couple of virtual accounts with several providers, meaning there is no uniform approach.

Well, there has to be a solution. You could simply have a slip of paper listing all your information and store it in your house somewhere readily available. Though, the lack of security sounds like the start of a bad movie.

One practical solution is to keep a list of passwords and similar information on a flash drive or stored on your computer somewhere but name the file something unique - i.e., not "passwords" - and informing a person you trust about the file. Or you could put the flash drive in a safety deposit box making sure someone knows where it is. However, many providers require periodic updating of your password, which means a trip to the bank every time you update a password. Another possibility is to create a power of attorney. That might grant access to some email accounts but would not be a complete solution to trump every provider's policy.

Where there is a demand for services, new companies will appear to meet those demands including several commercial providers to address this very issue. One commercial service, Legacy Locker, acts like a safe deposit box for your log-ins, account information, etc. Legacy Locker also provides personalized instructions to survivors as to how you want your online identity handled. As this market develops, I would guess more commercial services will open. As I have never used any of these services, I cannot vouch for them personally, but they are options to consider.

With estate planning, most people think about creating a will or trust or protecting their home and do not think about their virtual life. As our lives have become intertwined with technology, the need to plan an "electronic" estate has grown such that ignoring your virtual life can trigger estate issues down the road.




Christopher Guest invites you to learn about atypical estate planning or would like more information on wills and trusts, please click on his newsletter http://www.guestlawllc.com/newsletter.html. If you would like to contact Mr. Guest or interested in more information about him please click http://www.guestlawllc.com.





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2012年6月30日 星期六

Individual Retirement Account (IRA) Investment - Mutual Funds


You are invested in Individual Retirement Account (IRA) certificates of deposits and bonds for your retirement. These are excellent investments; but you do not want all of your IRA investments in these type of savings because you can get locked in with low annual percentage yields. It was just a few years ago that you were fortunate to get a certificate of deposit with 2.75% yield.

You are looking for another type of retirement investment that provides a higher annual return and you want to exercise caution. Your goal is to maintain a comfortable life style whether the market goes up or the market goes down.

A excellent IRA investment option is a Mutual Fund -- the common name for an open-end investment company. Like other types of investment companies, mutual funds pool money from many investors and invest the money in stocks, bonds, short-term money-market instruments, or other securities. Mutual funds issue redeemable shares that investors purchase directly from the fund or through a broker for the fund. As an IRA investment in your portfolio, you want a mutual fund to meet certain conditions such as:

1) Return over long-term (5 years) should be above the average certificate of deposit yields. An example would be a mutual fund that provided 35% or 7% average for 2002 through 2006. There is no guarantee of past performance but it can help you assess the fund's volatility.

2) Risk has to be minimal. The risk ratings of mutual funds ranges are low, below- average, average, above-average, or high. Risk is a standard deviation of the return on total investment.

3) Distribution the mutual fund gives its shareholders income and/or capital gains. All distribution should be reinvested and thereby increasing the number of shares owned. Taking this action enables you not to be taxed for the income or capital gains received. You acquire shares of the mutual fund at a lower net asset value price (the share price is reduced by the amount of distribution).

4) Total Expense ratio should be low or should not exceed the average of other mutual funds serving the investment classification. The total expense ratio is the fund's total annual operating expenses which includes management fees, distribution (12b-1) fees, and other expenses is expressed as a percentage of average net assets.

On September 15, 2006, Mutual Interest Data Service created a mutual funds model and hypothetically invested $10,000 four mutual funds.

The objective for the investment was: 1) achieve performance growth, 2) increase the shares owned, 3) minimize the risk, and 4) maintain a comfortable lifestyle in all market conditions whether the markets up or the markets down.

o $2,000.00 (114.92 shares) Balanced

o $2,500.00 (89.22 shares) Equity Income

o $2,500.00 (139.60 shares) Multi-Cap Core

o $3,000.00 (20.19shares) Specialty Health

o $9,843.08 (-1.56%)total portfolio investment purchased after initial fees.

As of March 30, 2007, the total accumulated (distribution of income and capital gains and performance) return on these funds is $10,657.67 +6.58%. If distribution was not received and reinvested, the total return would be $10,144.85 +1.44%.

Mutual funds are not guaranteed or insured by the FDIC or any other government agency -- even if you buy through a bank and the fund carries the bank's name. There is no guarantee for past performance. Always contact the mutual fund and read the prospectus before making any investment.




Mutual Interest Data Service http://www.largedividends.com was created September 26, 1999. The purpose of the website is to be a unique resource based on finding top mutual funds that 1) distribute large income/capital gains and 2) maintain performance growth for a 5 year period. Thousands of mutual funds are screened and analyzed every year and a new data base of more than 900 mutual funds is created based on 5 year performance. Within the data base, the best 44 stock mutual funds serving 22 investment classifications are than selected. To validate our niche, a mutual funds model was created.





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張貼者： 於 清晨7:22 0 意見
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2012年5月11日 星期五

When Will Online Savings Account And Certificate of Deposit (CD) Rates Go Up?


For many money-savvy Americans, the current interest-rate environment is very frustrating. Imagine spending years being frugal and responsible with your money, spending as little as you can and saving as much as you can, only to be rewarded with a savings account rate of 1.25%. Very frustrating indeed. Even online savings accounts, which typically offer better yields than traditional savings accounts, are offering less than 2%.

The situation with Certificates of Deposit (CD's) is no better.

The reason for the lousy rates is quite simple: the Federal Reserve is currently letting banks borrow at no more than 0.25%. So, if a bank can borrow at 0.25% -- which is the current fed funds target rate -- why would it borrow money from you at 5% via a savings account or a CD? That's the gist of it. This is why CD and savings-account rates rise as fall in tandem with the target fed funds rate, the Fed's most important monetary policy tool.

So the big question is: when will savings rates start to rise?

The answer, unfortunately, is not any time soon. Any experienced rate watcher will tell you that the Fed is going to keep the benchmark fed funds target rate at 0%-0.25% for the rest of the year, and probably well into 2011. The fed funds futures market, a very good predictor of where interest rates are headed, is currently 100% certain that the Fed will keep short-term rates at record low levels for the rest of 2010.

Who's to blame? Why, the Great Recession, of course. The Fed can't raise rates while unemployment is high, economic growth is weak and the very real threat of deflation persists. Moreover, many seasoned economists believe that the very recent Great Recession will soon become the Great Double-Dip Recession.

The Fed is just as frustrated as the unnumbered folks around the country trying to find stronger yields for their hard-earned savings. The Federal Reserve is currently dealing with what's called a liquidity trap. It has lowered rates as much as it can, and has pumped massive amounts of new cash into the economy. Despite these actions, the economy is still not expanding in a sustainable way. That's the trap. It's the same trap that has kept Japanese central bankers scratching their heads in frustration since the 1990's.

And if you think you might do better with US Treasury securities, think again. The Fed has been pumping many billions into Treasury securities, thus driving the yields associated with these super-safe investments down. This not only keeps mortgage rates low, which is good for the languishing housing market, but it also makes Treasuries less appealing to investors. To help bolster the anemic US economy, the Fed would much rather prod Wall Street to put its money into riskier investments like stocks and corporate securities, which aren't as safe as Treasuries but do offer higher yields. The Fed wants your 401K to look like it did back in 2006, which would certainly help to make you and millions of other American feels prosperous again.

So what is the responsible saver to do?

The best course of action a money-savvy American can take is to simply continue to scan the Internet for the best available rates on CD's and online savings accounts. Definitely not a good idea to lock up a significant amount of cash for 3 or 5 years. Best to stick with 6 to 12 month CD's while yields are low. There are lots of easy-to-find blogs out there that report on the latest and greatest from around the country.




The US Prime Rate website at FedPrimeRate.com recommends some of the best Certificate of Deposit and online savings accounts available.

The website at BalanceTransfer.cc offers advice on how to use credit card balance transfer checks to earn money via 0% credit card offers.





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張貼者： 於 清晨7:29 0 意見
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2012年5月7日 星期一

Certificate of Deposit Vs Savings Account: What Fits You?


For most people, the idea of investing is basically the same as saving up money. However, there are other ways for you to invest your money without really having to undergo a lot of risk. One such way is through certificates of deposit.

First, what is a certificate of deposit? You can consider a certificate of deposit as a time deposit, basically like your usual savings account except that you cannot really withdraw it as you see fit. A certificate of deposit usually allows you to earn a higher interest on your money but at the same time, you are discouraged to alter or withdraw that money before the fixed period of time.

If you are thinking of investing your money, and don't know whether you should go and open a savings account or if it will be better to invest in a CD, then here are some of the pros and cons of the two.

Pros and Cons

Savings accounts and certificates of deposits are all relatively risk-free, meaning if the bank collapses, you don't collapse with it as well and that your money is protected up to a certain degree. These are probably the only risk-free or minimal risk investment strategies that you can find.

One of the biggest difference between a savings account and a CD however is that there is a fixed period of time, between three months to five years, before you can really access the money you invested in a CD compared to the unlimited access that you may have with your savings account. However, banks and other institutions encourage you to invest your money longer by offering higher interest rates, meaning your money will be earning more in the longer period. The same way, a savings account may give you quick access to your money but then you might not be earning as much as you would have wanted compared to in a CD.

So how do you choose?

Your choice will basically depend on two factors: whether you need quick access to your funds or whether you want your money to earn a lot. If you think that you might need the money in the near future, then it may not be a good idea for you to invest in a CD. However, if you won't be using that money and you want your money to earn more while it 'sleeps', then investing in a CD might be the best way for you to go.




Jane Sanders at Certificate of Deposit Rates about getting the best CD rates. Learn more about Certificate of Deposit here.





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張貼者： 於 晚上9:55 0 意見
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2012年3月10日 星期六

The Advantages of Investing in a CD Account


Certificates of deposit or CD's are extremely well-liked by personal traders. These are much like bonds, however they possess a couple of unique benefits over that fixed investment. CDs have just 1 structural distinction to the typical bond, and that is that interest is paid out on maturity instead of sporadically through the existence of the account. But you can find other distinctions to retain in thoughts, such as that interest on CDs are completely taxable and that CDs are obtainable only via banks and thus carry FDIC protection. A well-liked use of certificates of deposit is by the exercise of making laddered CD investment portfolios, which offer an extremely tailored and risk-free way to create income streams.

You can find two methods to start buying CDs. A simple way is immediately via a financial institution, which can be fairly simple and you will find no commissions. Typically speaking, banks provide various estimates of return based on their individual demand to draw consumer deposits. Furthermore, FDIC insurance policy only safeguards a limited quantity of cash per lender. Which means you might have to shop all over to obtain the most effective rate and completely guard your assets.

In these types of situations, investors frequently work with a brokerage house instead of looking from financial institution to financial institution so that you are able to conserve time. Simply because brokerage houses don't sell CDs, only dealer them, any CD bought via a broker can be traded just like a bond and commissions tend to be included. By itself, this exercise is harmless, but when you offer using a commissioned merchant or investments markets, warning is justified.

You have to be on the watch for all points when working with brokerage houses, the very first of which can be how commissions can have an effect on the yield to maturity (YTM). Even though a CD might pay out a stated quantity of interest, the precise YTM might be reduced based on fees. Next, you also have to be mindful of what may occur might you have to liquidate your CD prior to maturity. This really is a thing brokers frequently don't mention until right after the purchase is concluded, or never in any way, and it may charge you.




Get started with a CD account and earn higher rates of interest. Learn more about CD accounts at http://CDAccounts.net.





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2012年2月26日 星期日

Opening Up a Bank Account


Opening up a bank account primarily depends upon a customer's choice where he or she can open a current account or may be student account. Savings and Money market accounts are next to follow; however, on a long-term basis Certificate of Deposits are the best deal.

What type of bank account one needs to open? How one can open a bank account? The answer relies upon how an individual chalks out his plans to use the respective bank account. Opening up of a bank account solely depends what kind of account a person needs. If someone wants to assemble up all the savings and there is no consideration of using the money in the near future than the Certificate of Deposits are the best option to go for.

If someone needs his money at hand then saving and checking accounts are the best options. In Opening a regular cheque account, one will not incur any interest, where a person has to write several cheques for instance payment of bills etc. fees are likely in these accounts however, there is no limitations on withdrawals from such a bank account. It's better to go for Interest checking accounts which will pay you interest as well and you have no limitations of withdrawal. Yet the factor of fees and writing cheques all the time do come. These are most common types of bank accounts also known as Current Account. A current account or cheque account is usually that type of account the by and large comes with a cash-card which can be used for the withdrawal of money ATMs up to a maximum limit on daily basis. Different banks have different charges if a person uses one bank's ATM machine to draw money from another bank's account. As said earlier, a current account plays an important part as it allows a customer to set up a mode of regular payments, usually known as a Direct Debit. The tuition fees, rent and other accommodation fees like hostel fees are paid as Direct Debits. Besides that, phone and mobile bill payment are debited directly from the current account.

If someone needs to keep a lot of money in an account, which is not used regularly than saving account is the next best option to go for. In this type of account one receive a better return from the bank where the accessibility of the funds from the saving account is not that convenient as with that of the current account so one should be clear enough in his mind before opening a saving account as to what is the modus operandi. A customer will not be able to formulate a Direct Debit from a savings account.

But if an individual does not write many cheques and stick on two or three cheques every month then opening a money market account would be a better deal than cheque accounts. Money market accounts generally pay a higher rate of return than other bank accounts, but minimum balance conditions are usually on the higher side as well.

Away from the normal bank accounts, some bank accounts are especially created for the convenience of the customers. For instance, a student account is the most common account seen now days. Student accounts can be without a doubt is a top priority if someone is a university or college student. There are clusters of banks, which offer student accounts, which have all the characteristics of a normal current account; however, they come with various terms and conditions. In today's world, most of the students have easy access to the internet, so they can manage their funds very conveniently on a real time basis. Mostly in UK, banks provides a basic overdraft facility, however, with student accounts this can differ significantly.

No matter what kind of bank account you are using, it is important to check out as what are the charges and conditions to avoid any problems as these things can bring financial comfort into financial hardship.




Humaira





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張貼者： 於 清晨6:31 0 意見
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2012年1月18日 星期三

What is a Money Market Deposit Account?


A money market deposit account is mainly opened with the aim of investing your savings in the money market world. These accounts are also called as deposit accounts which are almost similar to savings accounts. But unlike a savings account, these accounts have certain restrictions with regard to writing of checks are concerned. Just as other saving accounts are insured, money market deposit account is also insured. These accounts are usually managed by the bank or you also have the brokers handling it too. This account is an easy way to deposit money which is used for upcoming investments.

These accounts are totally safe though the interest rate is also low. You can find similarities in a money market deposit account when you compare it with a saving account. Yet I must say that both of them still differ with respect to certain features. Only few withdrawal transactions are allowed per month, when it comes to dealing with third parties. Banks try to discourage customers from going beyond their limit while their withdrawal transaction is concerned. If banks find the account holder to exceed the number of withdrawal transaction, then in such a case, the bank might impose high fees. Also it may go to the extent of closing their accounts. Actually, banks are using this above mentioned system in order to limit the customers transactions. This may not include ATM transactions. All this technique helps the bank to invest the money in a more appropriate way and thus open doors for higher return.

Money markets can easily be compared to a mutual fund, whereby the share price is kept constant. The manager's who manage their funds in these accounts, will invest them in financial product, such as saving bonds, Certificates of deposit etc. The money earned is then paid out to the money market account holders. In a money market deposit account, cash can be easily made available for other investment plans. The rate of interest in this case depends on how much assets have been deposited by the investor. It does not depend on the maturity date, unlike in h the case of Bank certificate of deposit. So the rich investors may enjoy the benefits, depending upon their investment plan.

The main feature of this account is that, it has restrictions as far as writing a check is concerned. In the case of money market deposit account, you can save money and at the same time you can have access to your funds.




Amit Bhawani writes a Tech Blog and also offers How To Tutorials. You can check out his website at AmitBhawani.com





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2012年1月12日 星期四

Selling Online With a Merchant Account and an SSL Certificate


So you have a product or idea and are ready to start selling online? You need to think about how you will get paid. With the simplicity of buying online, you need to reciprocate with the simplicity of paying online with a credit card. You can start simply by accepting PayPal, but as much as PayPal has grown, it is still not the preferred form of payment for most buyers.

To maximize your sales, you will need to accept credit cards. The easiest way for most people to accept credit cards through a web store is to use an existing shopping cart software package. All of the popular shopping carts are preconfigured for a variety of popular credit card payment gateways. If you go the custom route, it means hiring a programmer to handle setting up your site to process and send payment details to the payment gateway. As a budding entrepreneur with limited funds, using an off the shelf product saves money and time and can allow you to be up and running in a few days.

If you are going to accept credit cards, all payment processors require that your website be encrypted for all financial transactions. This can be accomplished by purchasing a secure socket layer or SSL encryption certificate. It is necessary to protect your customers' financial information. Ideally you will want to use 256-bit encryption although the industry standard is current 128-bit. An SSL certificate authenticates that the certificate has been issued to the business or individual that requested the certificate and that said individual or company controls the domain on which the certificate was issued. An SSL certificate will typically cost you anywhere from $20 to $200 depending on the level of verification performed by the certificate issuer. Often an SSL certificate can be issued in a few hours if all of the documentation is readily available.

Once you have purchased the certificate and installed it on your domain, you can then shop around for a merchant account and payment gateway to process your credit card payments. When shopping for a merchant account, you need to ensure that they utilize a payment gateway that will work with your shopping cart software. Pay attention to the discount rate charged on purchases. It can be as high as 4 or 5% if you aren't careful, but you should be able to find a reasonable merchant account with a reputable provider for less than 3%. You will also want to pay attention to transaction fees and monthly charges. These can add up quickly.

Once you have selected a merchant account, you will need to apply to the program. The approval process normally takes a day or two. You will want to know how charges are settled. Typically online transactions are approved at the time that a buyer places the order. When the merchant packs and ships the order, the authorization is captured. Typically captured transactions are batched once per day and processed for deposit to the merchant's bank account. Make sure to reconcile your deposits to the orders received less fees on a regular basis to make sure that all payments are received.

While there are a number of steps involved in getting your website set up to accept credit card payments, the process usually only takes a day or two before you can accept payments and then another two days before payments begin showing up in your checking account. Accepting credit cards is a safe, secure and popular means to receiving payments and maximizing your online sales.




Tim Knight is a work from home dad who specializes in internet marketing and investments. He runs a website at http://www.cashresidual.com where he provides assistance to those looking to establish an online business or presence.





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張貼者： 於 凌晨12:50 0 意見
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2011年12月10日 星期六

When Will Online Savings Account And Certificate of Deposit (CD) Rates Go Up?


For many money-savvy Americans, the current interest-rate environment is very frustrating. Imagine spending years being frugal and responsible with your money, spending as little as you can and saving as much as you can, only to be rewarded with a savings account rate of 1.25%. Very frustrating indeed. Even online savings accounts, which typically offer better yields than traditional savings accounts, are offering less than 2%.

The situation with Certificates of Deposit (CD's) is no better.

The reason for the lousy rates is quite simple: the Federal Reserve is currently letting banks borrow at no more than 0.25%. So, if a bank can borrow at 0.25% -- which is the current fed funds target rate -- why would it borrow money from you at 5% via a savings account or a CD? That's the gist of it. This is why CD and savings-account rates rise as fall in tandem with the target fed funds rate, the Fed's most important monetary policy tool.

So the big question is: when will savings rates start to rise?

The answer, unfortunately, is not any time soon. Any experienced rate watcher will tell you that the Fed is going to keep the benchmark fed funds target rate at 0%-0.25% for the rest of the year, and probably well into 2011. The fed funds futures market, a very good predictor of where interest rates are headed, is currently 100% certain that the Fed will keep short-term rates at record low levels for the rest of 2010.

Who's to blame? Why, the Great Recession, of course. The Fed can't raise rates while unemployment is high, economic growth is weak and the very real threat of deflation persists. Moreover, many seasoned economists believe that the very recent Great Recession will soon become the Great Double-Dip Recession.

The Fed is just as frustrated as the unnumbered folks around the country trying to find stronger yields for their hard-earned savings. The Federal Reserve is currently dealing with what's called a liquidity trap. It has lowered rates as much as it can, and has pumped massive amounts of new cash into the economy. Despite these actions, the economy is still not expanding in a sustainable way. That's the trap. It's the same trap that has kept Japanese central bankers scratching their heads in frustration since the 1990's.

And if you think you might do better with US Treasury securities, think again. The Fed has been pumping many billions into Treasury securities, thus driving the yields associated with these super-safe investments down. This not only keeps mortgage rates low, which is good for the languishing housing market, but it also makes Treasuries less appealing to investors. To help bolster the anemic US economy, the Fed would much rather prod Wall Street to put its money into riskier investments like stocks and corporate securities, which aren't as safe as Treasuries but do offer higher yields. The Fed wants your 401K to look like it did back in 2006, which would certainly help to make you and millions of other American feels prosperous again.

So what is the responsible saver to do?

The best course of action a money-savvy American can take is to simply continue to scan the Internet for the best available rates on CD's and online savings accounts. Definitely not a good idea to lock up a significant amount of cash for 3 or 5 years. Best to stick with 6 to 12 month CD's while yields are low. There are lots of easy-to-find blogs out there that report on the latest and greatest from around the country.




The US Prime Rate website at FedPrimeRate.com recommends some of the best Certificate of Deposit and online savings accounts available.

The website at BalanceTransfer.cc offers advice on how to use credit card balance transfer checks to earn money via 0% credit card offers.





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張貼者： 於 凌晨2:06 0 意見
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2011年11月25日 星期五

Certificate of Deposit Vs Savings Account: What Fits You?


For most people, the idea of investing is basically the same as saving up money. However, there are other ways for you to invest your money without really having to undergo a lot of risk. One such way is through certificates of deposit.

First, what is a certificate of deposit? You can consider a certificate of deposit as a time deposit, basically like your usual savings account except that you cannot really withdraw it as you see fit. A certificate of deposit usually allows you to earn a higher interest on your money but at the same time, you are discouraged to alter or withdraw that money before the fixed period of time.

If you are thinking of investing your money, and don't know whether you should go and open a savings account or if it will be better to invest in a CD, then here are some of the pros and cons of the two.

Pros and Cons

Savings accounts and certificates of deposits are all relatively risk-free, meaning if the bank collapses, you don't collapse with it as well and that your money is protected up to a certain degree. These are probably the only risk-free or minimal risk investment strategies that you can find.

One of the biggest difference between a savings account and a CD however is that there is a fixed period of time, between three months to five years, before you can really access the money you invested in a CD compared to the unlimited access that you may have with your savings account. However, banks and other institutions encourage you to invest your money longer by offering higher interest rates, meaning your money will be earning more in the longer period. The same way, a savings account may give you quick access to your money but then you might not be earning as much as you would have wanted compared to in a CD.

So how do you choose?

Your choice will basically depend on two factors: whether you need quick access to your funds or whether you want your money to earn a lot. If you think that you might need the money in the near future, then it may not be a good idea for you to invest in a CD. However, if you won't be using that money and you want your money to earn more while it 'sleeps', then investing in a CD might be the best way for you to go.




Jane Sanders at Certificate of Deposit Rates about getting the best CD rates. Learn more about Certificate of Deposit here.





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張貼者： 於 凌晨2:11 0 意見
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