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Claiming The $8,000 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Extension Approved and Expanded with $6,500 For Existing Home Owners

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[April 2011] See an update to this post here and claiming it in your 2010-2011 tax returns ____________ [Update July 2010] Approved! First-time home buyers now have until Sept. 30 2010 to close on their home purchases and qualify for the $8,000/$6500 tax credit under a new extension bill passed by Congress and signed into [...]

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Saving Money on Your Home Electric Bill with a Power Monitor

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After moving into my new house from a relatively small apartment, the one thing I noticed (and expected) was a large jump in my utility bills. Since my home AC and heating system were electric, I expected my energy bill to be two to three times larger than the one I was used to getting. [...]

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Free Money From The Government – More Stimulus Checks, Social Security Payments and Tax Credits in 2010, 2011 and Beyond

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[Updated] : Is a 2012 jobs and stimulus package on the cards? As discussed in this article, President Obama has indicated that his new economic recovery plan will be released soon; which will aim to provide benefits for a number of groups struggling under tough economic conditions. No New Taxes with Tax Extensions Approved. President Obama has now signed into law [...]

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Setting up My Small Business Home Office

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I recently incorporated my first company. It has one employee – me – and its only asset is this blog. But it was a great feeling to officially become a small business owner, thereby joining 15 million other Americans. The reason for incorporation was primarily driven by the taxation benefits as I detailed below, but [...]

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$8,000 First Time and $6,500 Existing Home Buyer Tax Credit Expiry. 2011 Extensions Available For Certain Groups

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[Updated September 2011] While President Obama has not proposed a new 2012 homebuyer tax credit in his latest economic stimulus (The American Jobs Act), he has included a great new provision for existing homeowners. Basically home owners who meet certain criteria (still to be defined) can refinance to the ultra-low rates available in today’s market. [...]

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Should I Refinance My Mortgage and Do I Qualify

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With interest rates on 30 year fixed-rate mortgage loans falling below 4%, the lowest level since the 1950s, many borrowers are keen to refinance their home loans and other mortgages. By any long-term measure, current rates are a great deal and could result in tens of thousands of dollars in savings over the life of [...]

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A look at the Pros and Cons of Reverse Mortgages

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Reverse mortgages are becoming an increasingly popular financing offering with our aging baby boomer population, looking for ways to unlock the value from their homes. Simply defined, reverse mortgages are a special type of home loan that lets a homeowner convert a portion of the equity in his or her home into cash. The equity [...]

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Frugal Ways to Keep Your Home Safe

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Recently there has been a spate of minor burglaries in my apartment complex, which prompted my wife and I to consider getting an alarm system for our apartment. We looked into this via various on-line sites and calls to security companies in our local area and found that the costs would be about $500 to [...]

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Repay your Mortgage up to 7 years earlier (& forget those extra 401K payments)

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This is a guest post by Tony Parker, an experienced and succesful investor across various asset classes. We all want to get out from under our massive mortgage debt. So what is the best way to pay off the mortgage quicker – and not significantly impact your ability to retire? The answer is a variation [...]

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