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Continue reading Raise cash in a hurry #3: Scalp some tickets

27 07 2008

Raise cash in a hurry #3: Scalp some tickets

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Entrepreneurship

Late on rent? Loan shark breathing down your neck? Can’t fill your automobile with gas to get to work on Monday? Assuming all available funds and traditional sources of credit are tapped out, here are 25 (legal) ways to
raise cash in a few days. We list them in order from least to most desperate.

So you’re broke, and you need money, and it suddenly occurs to you that you are sitting on concert tickets to High School Musical: The Ice Show, or Hannah Montana. If the water dept. is threatening to cut you off for non-payment, scapling those tickets could save you from a dirty, smelly fate.

In circumstances such as this, a rational person will consider scalping the tickets to recoup their investment, or perhaps even realize some profit. However, proceed with caution. While it is generally legal to resell tickets for what you paid for them or less, some says frown on selling them for more. Check you state laws for scalping restrictions.

You could go the internet route to sell your ducats, on sites such as StubHub.com. If you’re thinking of selling them on eBay, you can fill out a form to learn if your say allows or disallows it by clicking here.

All 25 ways to raise quick cash.

27 07 2008

Raising cash in a hurry #6: Sell your plasma, hair

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Health

Late on rent? Loan shark breathing down your neck? Can’t fill your car with gas to get to work on Monday? Assuming all available funds and traditional sources of credit are tapped out, here are 25 (legal) ways to raise cash in a few days. We list them in order from least to most desperate.

In a truly free market economy, you’d be worth a lot of money in organs alone — selling a kidney or lung could solve your money woes. However, the government and our sense of propriety permit you to only cash in on plasma, hair and (maybe) breast milk.

You can legally trade plasma for cash in the U.S., the fluid in which your blood corpuscles and other tiny bits circulate through your blood system. In most larger cities, there are clinics that’ll pay you up to $35 or so for some of your plasma, which you can donate twice a week. The process, which involves taking blood, draining off the plasma and returning the remains to your system, takes around half an hour to an hour. To donate, you’ll need to be relatively healthy and drug free.

The hirsute can also make some swift cash by selling off their hair. Hair must be at least ten inches long, and uncolored. Well tended (not over-shampooed or sun damaged) hair is worth more. Web sites such as The Hair Trader serve as a market for those looking to sell or purchase hair. Sales announced on the site range from several hundred to over a thousand dollars for a generous length of tresses.

Finally, some moms who find themselves with an overabundance of breast milk have taken to offering the extra for sale on the Internet. However, the trade, of questionable legality and fraught with health issues, remains rather clandestine and I can’t advocate it, even in a pinch.

Continue reading Raising cash in a hurry #8: Raid your IRA

27 07 2008

Raising cash in a hurry #8: Raid your IRA

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Borrowing, Debt, Retire

Late on rent? Loan shark breathing down your neck? Can’t fill your car with gas to get to work on Monday? Assuming all available funds and traditional sources of credit are tapped out, here are 25 (legal) ways to raise cash in a few days. We list them in order from least to most desperate.

If you need quick cash, your retirement savings can look like a great place to find the lump sum you need, but tread carefully. There are several rules and if you don’t qualify for an eligible withdrawal you’ll have to pay a 10% penalty plus taxes on the money at your current income tax rate.

So suppose you need about $10,000 and are in the 25% tax bracket: in order to get that net amount you would need to withdraw $15,500. Of that amount 10% ($1,550) would go toward paying the penalty and 25% ($3,875) would go toward taxes, which totals $5.425. From that $15,500, you would be able to use $10,075. Let’s state you think you will have enough to repay that money in a couple of years. Forget about it. You can’t replace retirement funds you withdraw. You’ve lost the savings opportunity forever.

Now let’s suppose you kept the money in the account and invested it for 20 years at a return rate of 8%. That $15,500 would be worth about $75,000. You must think about whether it Is really worth it to you to lose that savings opportunity or do you want to find another solution for getting the funds together.

Continue reading Raising cash in a hurry #9: Get a payday loan

27 07 2008

Raising cash in a hurry #9: Get a payday loan

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Banks, Debt

Late on rent? Loan shark breathing down your neck? Can’t fill your vehicle with gas to get to work on Monday? Assuming all available funds and traditional sources of credit are tapped out, here are 25 (legal) ways to
raise cash in a few days. We list them in order from least to most desperate.

Somehow I’ve managed to become WalletPop’s poster child for payday loans. I wrote about my experiences with them a few months ago, and then quickly wound up being asked to write a little series about payday loans (the series is at the bottom of the page of just aforementioned post). And now that we’re doing a “raising cash in a hurry” series, what does my editor recommend I write about? You guessed it.

It is true, though, that earlier this year I went to a payday loan store. Not once. Not twice. But three times. And in those cases, I was able to get cash in a hurry — faster than most of these other ideas we have, I’ll bet. But that doesn’t make it the ideal of the ideas.

I’d call it one of those last-last-last resort methods, but I’ve to give the payday lending industry its due, it is quick. Once I made my decision, it took me about 14 hours and 20 minutes to get my money.

All 25 ways to raise swift cash.

27 07 2008

Raising cash in a hurry #11: Take in a boarder

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Home

Late on rent? Loan shark breathing down your neck? Can’t fill your automobile with gas to get to work on Monday? Assuming all available funds and traditional sources of credit are tapped out, here are 25 (legal) ways to raise cash in a few days. We list them in order from least to most desperate.

When my friend Michael, an inveterate sofa surfer, turned up on my doorstep a few years ago, my boyfriend had just moved out, and I was wanting company and needing extra rent money. Thus Michael took up residence on the sofa my ex had recently vacated, and I went about adapting to having a roommate who I didn’t want to see me naked.

Aside from having to shut doors and don a bathrobe more often than I was used to, my new living arrangement worked pretty well–for a while. Michael was paying rent and lending me a supportive shoulder. We had concurred when he moved in to check in with each other after a few months to make sure there were no major problems, and when we did so, there weren’t. So Michael stayed on … and on … and on, and I commenced to kicking myself on a daily basis for not having set another check-in (or would that be check-out?) date. When he finally did move out after about a year, our friendship had been sorely tested.

The biggest lesson I learned? Sharing living expenses can put more cash in your pocket. However, If you ask someone to move into your spare room–or onto your couch–draw up a lease agreement, even/especially if your prospective boarder is someone you know. Have conversations about how to share living space, particularly if, as in my case, you only have one lavatory. Make sure to outline kitchen privileges, including whether or not you want to share food.

I was unprepared to be a landlady, and I wouldn’t do it again in my current living space. If I ever move into a home with a granny unit, I might think about renting it out–as long as the unit has its own kitchen and water closet.

Help your credit score by adding your statement

27 07 2008

Lenders working overtime to evaluate credit risks

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Cards, Debt

Fair Isaac didn’t start working on the idea of a quantitative credit scoring system until 1958, and didn’t introduce its credit bureau scores until 1981.

That’s right: banks used to lend people money without FICO scores. Instead they relied on stuff like employment history and, gasp, character. To get a loan, you used to have to meet with an officer or even a committee face to face, and they’d assess your reliability

As the foreclosure crisis has shown, relying solely on the quantitative can lead to disaster. The old-fashioned bankers might have been on to something. The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that credit card issuers are now expanding their underwriting standards to include a focus on the applicant’s line of work and where they live. If you work in construction in Nevada right now, you might have a tough time getting a loan.

This newfound prudence can be tough for some business owners who are seeing their lines of credit slashed for no reason other than that they’re in a certain industry — even if they happen to be faring quite well. But for most individual borrowers, I would say that a slash in your credit availability should be a warning sign that you’re skating too close to the financial edge. The bank’s metrics that tag you ask risky may be dead on, whether you realize it or not.

More about credit scoring:

Credit scoring myths

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26 07 2008

Will Hollywood end up homeless? Another celebrity foreclosure

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Real Estate, Wealth, Recession

You’d think a guy pictured often with the likes of Paris Hilton would keep a hand on his wallet. But Scott Storch, a 34-year-old hip-hop music producer who helped launched the career of Christina Aguilera and Beyonce, and is seen around town with socialites like HIlton, is the latest entertainment name to fall into foreclosure.

Storch, who Palm Beach Post columnist Jose Lambiet estimates was worth $70 million as late as last year, is losing his $10 million Miami Beach home to SunTrust Bank. Besides owing a year’s back mortgage on the 10-bedroom, 16-bath mansion, Storch also owes the electric company and a security company. Storch also had his Ferrari Scaglietti and his prized motorcycle, a Bones Bike, repossessed. So much for the high life.

Continue reading Money is the #1 Issue to Discuss Before Saying “I do”

26 07 2008

Money is the #1 Issue to Discuss Before Saying “I do”

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Saving, Wealth, Relationships

According a recent article from Reuters, how couples handle money early in their marriage can have a profound impact on the rest of their lives. Now, I don’t disagree but couples better not wait until after the honeymoon to talk about the BIG issue. Money is the number one problem that couples fight about and a major factor in most divorces. Yet surprisingly, many couples don’t discuss cash until there are problems. Some key issues that you must discuss before you walk down the aisle with anyone.

How much money do you both have in savings, checking, IRS’s, 401K’s and other assets?
What liabilities do you or your partner have? Include mortgages, car payments, school loans, personal loans, and credit cards?
What is the current status for you and your partner with the IRS? Beware of marrying anyone who owes the IRS money. It can cause havoc for both of you.
How do you both feel about money? For some money represents control, others view it simply for fun. Some folks are savers. Identify what your attitude is about money.

Continue reading As goes the economy, so go divorces!

26 07 2008

As goes the economy, so go divorces!

Posted by: in Money General Talk

Filed under: Debt, Relationships

divorce on the cheap The economy is pulling marital bliss right down the crapper along with it and due to fewer assets raising the temperature of already emotional and heated divorces to boiling level. Many divorcees are already fighting over money and with the economy doing so poorly are now dividing up debts rather than fighting over summer homes and frequent flier miles. MSNBC reported on a case in which a freshly divorced husband and wife had to remain living in the same home because they couldn’t afford to live elsewhere and another case in which the income of the involved celebrations had to be adjusted down from $15 million to under $1 million causing even more bitterness!

Historically divorces and the economy have had an interesting relationship, in the last 3 recessions the divorce rates have risen and peaked within a year of the end of the recession. In the early eighties the divorce rate peaked at 5.3 per 1,000 during the recession caused by the Iranian revolution after which it tapered off until the early nineties where it again capped off at 4.8 during a downturn in the industrial and manufacturing industry. Finally the divorce rate climbed back up to its most current high as the tech bubble popped and dot coms began failing.

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