For the first time since September 2008, oil prices rose to reach levels of over $ 110 a barrel, due to the continuing tensions in the Arab world and after a good indicator in the United States. On the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), a barrel of light sweet crude for May delivery finished 110.30 dollars, which was up $ 1.47 from the previous day. Libya is the 16th largest global producer of oil in the world. This one nation that has been in unrest for weeks now, was responsible for about 2 percent of world oil production, which is about 1,600,000 barrels per day.

Other major oil producers are also in turmoil. Both Yemen and Bahrain are big oil producers — but far smaller; Bahrain pumps approximately 45,000 barrels per day; and Yemen just 260,000.

And according to one gas price expert, Trilby Lundberg, gas prices at the pump could hit five dollars a gallon by Memorial Day. The Lundberg Survey, an independent research marketing group that focuses on the petroleum industry, reported on April 11th, that prices jumped 20 cents during a two week reporting period to a nationwide average of $3.76 a gallon.

Lundberg’s survey, showing gas prices on the increase and the harsh impact prices are having on American households from coast-to-coast, is concerning. Many are worried about how gas prices will influence the economic health of the country. If people pay more at the pump there will be less disposable income for them to share with the national retail community and that has them nervous about sustaining sales that will, in turn, push their earnings and the U.S. economy in a positive direction.

Then there’s the question of future inflation. A weak dollar will affect everything from our exports to how much we, as a population, will be able to spend. A recent report showed grocery prices increasing 6.5 percent in March from early January. In the report, Consumer Growth Partners said the increase in food prices was the “sharpest in a generation.” A 25 percent increase in gas prices this year has joined higher food prices, which pulled $18 billion out of the monthly household spending on discretionary items. If the consumer doesn’t spend, the economy goes nowhere.

On top of all this, claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly increased above the key 400,000 mark recently. Like I said at the beginning, times are still tough and because of a number of issues that are not being resolved, the current situation is likely to remain so for quite a long time. Even though the government announced a few years back that the recession officially ended, it’s evident that millions of people remain out of work and that’s a reality for them and their families. In order to fix the problem, people must directly reconnect themselves to the economy but as long as they continue to lose their homes and are unable to find suitable employment, the possibility of that happening is nearly impossible. Not because they don’t want to, but because they just don’t have the disposable income to do so.

“These rules of the road will help protect the American public in the largest area of retail fraud that the CFTC oversees: retail foreign exchange,” CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler said. “All CFTC registrants involved in soliciting and selling retail forex contracts to consumers will now have to comply with rules to protect the investing public. This is also the first final rule that the Commission has published to implement the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. We look forward to publishing additional rules to protect the American public.”

Let me sum it up for you, As an American, a US citizen you are not allowed to open a Forex account offshore in another country to trade the FOREX. The Government has taken your rights and protected you. GIVE ME A BREAK. To late its law and you will have to choke it down. These people have lost their minds, I appeal to all Americans enough is enough vote these career politicians out of office, there are less than 600 people that as a whole, all Americans can simply send home, send them all home and let’s start fresh. Here is a novel idea, I bet that if we replaces all the US representatives and the US Senators good and bad, an entire new house and senate that they can’t do any worse ruining our country than the old timers. Let’s prove it.

Back to the problem at hand, first and foremost, as you read this just keep thinking that you are not allowed to do something because you are being protected, and you have no choice. The leverage for Forex on major currency pairs is now 50:1 and exotics 20:1, what a joke. You had choices you can trade in another country, BUT not anymore. I have included numerous places to voice your opinion; I would suggest you use the fax machines, if enough people do they will unplug them, and when they do start emailing, or calling, and when they turn all that off, start sending snail mail.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Three Lafayette Centre
1155 21st Street, NW
Washington, DC 20581
202-418-5000 or FAX 202-418-5521
Questions@cftc.gov.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, enacted on July 21, 2010, further modified the CEA in a number of ways. It requires that all off-exchange retail foreign currency transactions be done pursuant to the rules of a Federal regulatory agency. It also requires that unless Federal regulators prepare rules regarding off-exchange retail forex transactions within specified time periods, the transactions are prohibited. If any Federal regulatory agency had already proposed such rules prior to the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act – as had the CFTC – the agency has 90 days following enactment to adopt final rules, or the same prohibition takes effect.

For the CFTC, the Dodd-Frank Act reconfirms the Commission’s authority to regulate off-exchange retail forex transactions and establishes a date – October 19, 2010 – by which final rules must be in place. For other Federal regulators whose regulatees are expressly permitted to serve as counterparties (such as United States financial institutions and broker dealers), it requires the preparation of similar rules or such transactions by their regulatees are prohibited.

The Dodd-Frank Act further modifies the list of eligible counterparties by eliminating insurance companies and investment bank holding companies. Moreover, where the list of eligible counterparties previously included “financial institutions,” the Dodd-Frank Act specifically provides that among financial institutions, only United States financial institutions are permitted to act as counterparties. That’s right you read it correctly, you can now only trade in the US where U.S. Senator Chris Dodd and Congressman Barney Frank Say so. Let’s contact them and tell them what we really think. Don’t be fooled. I wonder if they have any major contributors that will benefit from their invite wisdom to make us trade in the US.

Congressman Barney Frank

http://www.house.gov/frank/contact/index.html

202-225-5931

U.S. Senator Chris Dodd
448 Russell Building | Washington D.C., 20510
Tel: (202) 224-2823 (202) 224-2823 | Fax: (202) 224-1083

30 Lewis St Suite 101 | Hartford, CT 06103
Tel: (860) 258-6940/(800) 334-5341 —CT only
Fax: (860) 258-6958
Happy Investing!

What do you do if you are upside down on your property and the bank is running you around and around? You know…asking you to send in the same documents over and over again. Well you can do a Strategic Foreclosure.

What is a Strategic Foreclosure? Another word for tell the bank come get my property and you are tired of their crap. You have to take a step back first and decide where your moral compass sits. What is the right thing to do, make your payments, as promised? Sure financial responsibility is admirable, but it is hard to maintain that kind of thinking when the very financial institutions you owe money have little to NO financial responsibility. What happened to lead by example?

Hire an attorney and it will take one to three years for a foreclosure to happen.
Now think for a moment about your situation. If you do what all the big corporations do, you put business first. If that is the case, you may want to consider a business decision on your biggest investment, your home. I can better explain this with an example, which happens to be a real life example from someone I know.

Okay, you buy a modest home in 2006, 4 bedrooms two baths, two-car garage about 1600 square feet, relatively new. You pay $225,000.00 put in about $30,000.00 in upgrades. All of a sudden the market starts to pull back, and it did. Next thing you know you are paying way more than you can rent the property for, the house across the street just sold for $112,000 and there are ten more on the street for the same price. What do you do?

Well, you first try and call the bank to see if you can get approved for one of the many home mortgage modification plans. But you are not so lucky since you don’t meet any of the requirements, and it wasn’t from a lack of trying. You were told “sorry” so many times you quit counting. Now all of a sudden your job has reduced your hours and pay. You are lucky enough to still have a job but nonetheless, you are now struggling to make your mortgage payment. You decide enough is enough and can’t make your current mortgage payment. One month turns into three and so on. You are still trying hard to get a modification but to no avail.

Finally you are making headway with the bank and you believe you can see a light is at the end of the tunnel you think, the bank says “no problem, we will lower your payment and you can keep making payments on your original note.” WOW, thanks but no thanks, don’t do me any favors! But why say that?
Let’s look at why.

Even if they lowered your principal you are wasting your time as far as a business decision is concerned. The house is only worth what someone is willing to pay, and right now that’s $112,000.

So you walk away from this house, the one you owe $260,000 on. You live in it for say 3 years total before it is foreclosed on. Yes, your credit will be affected, you will have a foreclosure, along with about 50 percent of the other Americans out there that owned a home and experienced a foreclosure. But you are better off saving your money and renting at a price you can afford for the next few years. Get your feet back under you and then buy when the job and the housing market has improved a bit.

If you end up buying a home similar to yours, let’s say the one next door, for say $112,000 in the next five to seven year, it will probably be back to the levels you currently owe – $260,000.

So, a sound business decision encourages you to walk away, make a deal with bank, turn over the house and owe nothing. Save a little money, put down 20% on a new house in two years. Even if your credit is affected you can do a rent to own or a lease purchase. After 12 months of good payments, you can refinance it as your primary residence.

The $112,000 house you will buy for $120,000. You put down $10,000.00 and owe $110,000 over the next six years. Your house goes up in value to say $200,000 and your mortgage goes down to say $95,000.00 and you have $105,000.00 in equity. Meaning if you stayed in the old house that you owed $260,000, it is now worth $200,000.00 and your mortgage is down to $230,000.00 give or take. Which scenario, as a business decision, seems better, upside down or positive?

You have to weigh the pros and cons the decision to be moral and ethical make your payments or make a sound business decision and be ahead financially. Only you can make that decision. I will tell you that the banks and big companies make these decisions every day and they always choose the business decision. That’s not a reason to condone it, but a reason to seriously sit down and consider your choices.

One thing is for sure, the real estate market will come back, until then look for the opportunities they are always present.

It’s not easy but it is necessary, even expected, of today’s business leader. Your confidence will be observed by those around you and will become quite contagious. If the team moves in a positive direction, the entire organization will have a better chance of succeeding. That’s important in today’s challenging business environment.

In corporate America today, there is a desperate need to do more with less. The stress of trying to create a positive cash flow when sales are down might force you to develop an approach that has never been tried before. Don’t say it can’t be done – try it. You may be surprised at how innovative thinking suddenly develops when a positive attitude is created.

Another personality trait attained when you’re in a positive mental zone is confidence. Without the will and desire to accomplish even the smallest task, there’s really no point in getting up in the morning. Your optimistic approach to the job at hand will take you to the next level of accomplishment. Part of building a respectable level of confidence is developing and attaining a set of goals that you set out for yourself and your organization. Accomplish each goal, step by step, and your confidence will flourish. You’ll start believing you can do whatever you set your mind and heart to do.

Oh, and one other thing – love what you do. That’s extremely important because once you find that your life’s work is actually something you enjoy doing, you’ll want to do it more often. You’ll want to make sure it’s done competently and those around you will also start feeling the same way. It’s often been said that if you love what you do, you’ll never work another day in your life.

But many of us are trapped in positions and in companies that we don’t enjoy because of the current shape of the economy. What can you do if you find yourself in that situation? Maybe it’s time to get out and start searching for that one thing that you are passionate about. Time to start enjoying the day from sunrise to sunset. Let your passion drive you forward and find what it is that will create a solid, confident, and positive attitude within you. It’s in you right now; you just need to do some soul searching to find it.

Your attitude and the way you think are entirely under your personal control. A positive attitude will help you lead your team to victory. So, when you think about it, your future success, even your very health is something that you can control if you literally put your mind to it. Think positively.

Remember, you may be down but you’re certainly not out by a long shot. Time to start the rebuilding process and the sooner the better. The faster you start, the more time you’ll have to put away the cash, the assets, the peace of mind before you really need it. But what to do first?
You might look back and try to remember where you started when you first left home or when you first got married. Chances are you began by putting away what you could in a bank savings account. That is probably a good place to start now.

Recently an economist said that average U.S. household wealth is down almost 20 percent from its pre-recessionary financial crest three years ago. There has been no reduction of U.S. household wealth in the last 50 years that has even come close to touching this loss. Many of those who supposedly know (government officials, economists and the like) are starting to believe that the “Great Recession” has probably seen its worse and investors are beginning to get restless about standing on the sidelines. But, many more are not yet interested in getting back in yet. There are fears that they might run into a second phase of this recession period and take another big hit. And others are getting nervous about the possibility of losing out on something big when things do begin to look clearer economically.

So what should we do? The answer to that question is very personal – it’s your money and that means its entirely your decision. But let me just throw out a few facts that may help you make some very important decisions.

Many people I talk to are ready to jump back into stocks. The negative or positive activity experienced by the stock market is normally guided by the strength or the weakness of the U.S. economy. When our economy begins to expand and the chances of inflation are relatively slim, the stock markets tend to thrive. Today, I don’t think we know the answer to either of those questions because growth and inflationary questions remain persistent today.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been hearing lots of advertisements about investing in commodities these days, specifically gold. During periods of inflationary pressure, the commodity sector has been where many people go to find a financial refuge. Although gold has been showing some considerable strength, it has also shown itself to be rather stagnant over the last few months – not gain or losing much in the process. The Fed has stated this year that if inflation begins to show itself while our national economy continues to be on the mend, they will pull back some of the liquidity they’ve put out there in order to slow it down. This will indeed have a great impact on commodity pricing.

So where to go? Back to that savings account at the bank that hardly pays anything as far as interest is concerned. Or maybe its time to remain on the sidelines and get involved in CD’s or other interest rate vehicles. While these types of investments aren’t very lucrative, you can be sure of one thing…you’re probably not going to lose in the process either.

Are you in a mood to take a chance or are you in preservation mode right now? Remember the old adage – “You pay your money and you take your chances.” But the chances we are experiencing today are not like anything this generation has ever seen. Getting back in or staying on the sidelines is a decision that each one of us must make independently and not by the flipping of a coin. Get educated and make sure the decision you ultimately make is one you can personally live whether your investments go up or whether they go down.

There’s an organization that I’d like to introduce you to whose mission it is to support American business’ challenge of coping with the current mission of our National Guard and Reserve forces. It’s called the Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) and as their mission statement says, they are charged with developing and promoting “employer support for Guard and Reserve service by advocating relevant initiatives, recognizing outstanding support, increasing awareness of applicable laws, and resolving conflict between employers and service members.” In other words, ESGR helps American business to understand how to best support these gallant military members while on active duty while making sure they understand the laws protecting their jobs once they return.

ESGR is a Department of Defense organization and is a staff group within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, which is in itself a part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. In our current economic and wartime environment, the Department of Defense recognizes that civilian employers play a critical role in the defense of the nation by complying with existing employment laws protecting the rights of workers who serve in the Reserve component.

ESGR does this through the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA), which is a federal law that is intended to ensure that persons who serve in the Guard or Reserve are not deprived in their civilian careers because of their service and are quickly reemployed in their civilian jobs upon their return from duty without discrimination. If there is a problem or dispute, ESGR is there to help at the business or service member’s request. ESGR has trained ombudsmen who can help negotiate a solution between the parties concerned.

Many business have voluntarily signed ESGR Statements of Support to help ESGR in promoting understanding of the Guard and Reserve members who work for these companies, to develop human resources policies that support employer participation in Guard and Reserve programs, and to voluntarily comply with USERRA which enforces the rights of those called to active duty in time of war or emergency.

It’s tough for everyone – the military service member, the family that is left behind when their loved ones are deployed but it’s also tough for a business that must keep producing with less manpower. ESGR is there to help.
ESGR was established in 1972 and today, operates through a network of thousands of volunteers throughout the United States and Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. If your business would like more information about ESGR, call 800-336-4590 or email USERRA@osd.mil.

Sure, foreclosures seemed to have relaxed a bit but there’s probably a very good reason for that – stalling tactics by homeowners. When the economy crumbed, people started losing their jobs, and the payments stopped on homes around the nation and the population had to think fast. Many decided the best way to temporarily weather the mortgage storm was to stall as long as possible. So, although they were unaccustomed to doing so, many Americans “lawyered up” and put their faith in legal stalling tactics. Up to now it’s worked like a charm. It’s helped people remain in their homes while they desperately search for employment to support their families. It’s also helped the government economic figures. But don’t let the fewer number of foreclosures around the nation fool you. They are not gone; they’ve just been postponed for a few months.

Unemployment continues to rise or remain at constant levels in many states and that just isn’t helping those in need of finding ways to start paying for their homes again. In Nevada, for instance, unemployment hit 14 percent. Those figures have put Nevada 4.3 percentage points above the national unemployment rate of 9.7 percent, and 0.4 point above Michigan’s 13.6 percent rate. By the way, Nevada also leads the country in foreclosures, bankruptcy filings and credit card delinquency. This is just one state’s economic situation; you can find basically the same kind of miserable numbers in Michigan, California and Florida.

There are tons of people out there grabbing up foreclosure deals like mad but the sales are rather slow for a number of reasons. Few people have the money, the credit rating or the desire to be purchasing their next dream home. Banks aren’t lending either and that’s a problem. There is an excess of worry and concern about where families will be in 6 months or a year. Empty homes are fostering vandalism and neighborhoods that were thriving a couple years ago are now quickly falling into ruin and even the homes that are occupied are losing value almost daily.

The government recently reported that new home sales in the United States plunged 33 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 300,000 units. And it was also released that more than half of all homeowners with modified mortgages fell at least two months behind in their payments just a year after the adjustment was made.

In recent months, the possibility of foreclosures continued to fester and that might be a good indication why the media hasn’t reported on it as effectively as they once did. Maybe they’re bored with this persistent problem. Glancing over the headlines on a major news reporting source this morning shows stories about a Sarah Palin public appearance, the problems with the new iPhone, a union that is apparently angry at the governor of Arizona, and the one year anniversary of the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. Not one story about the current problems with the banking industry and the housing sector.

So, it’s on to the daily accounts of the Gulf of Mexico BP oil spill (at least for now), but be advised that the housing predicament still exists and is about to grab the American economy by the throat (again). And I’m just referring to the residential side of the Real Estate market; I haven’t even addressed the commercial side yet.

So, where did the mortgage problem go? It didn’t go anywhere, my friend. As a matter of fact just look next door or across the street and I’m sure you’ll find it. Wonder if your representative in Washington sees the same thing in their neighborhood? Maybe it’s time to write them and find out.

So, what’s the answer? One phrase, “spend less – save more.” It’s time to design a very positive approach to actually changing your habits and develop individual goals. This kind of action will better secure your success in obtaining meaningful returns through an actual meaningful reorganization of your financial life. A recent government report showed that Americans cut their spending and saved more for a sixth straight month as more and more people were either worried about finding a job or keeping a job.

Goal setting is another top priority. Determine specific and attainable goals, short and long term, and make sure you write them down. Physically writing them down gives them power. The act of writing and visualizing your goals makes it much more likely that you will actually achieve them.

You must also understand your current financial situation to know where to make your changes. Add up your assets and your liabilities. Find out how much you owe on your home, your cars and your credit cards and conclude how best to shape and maybe cut those liabilities down a bit during the year ahead. It’s always a good idea to get rid of debt, especially high interest debt. You might also consider establishing new insurance needs. Examine the validity of your current life, disability, home, health or auto policies and decide whether changes are required. If you’re like the rest of us, you probably haven’t looked at your policies in quite some time.

Again, the best way to establish a solid financial plan is to save, save, save. The general rule is to put away 5 percent to 10 percent of your take-home pay, if you can. Remember to pay yourself first and don’t wait for what’s left over after you pay your bills. If that’s your strategy, you’ll find it difficult to save anything. You should also be sure to set aside your savings in an interest-bearing account, such as a money market account, or in a tax-deferred account like an individual retirement plan (IRA). If your company offers a 401(k) plan, start contributing as soon as you possibly can, especially if the company matches your contributions. Once you’ve finished the basics, then you can start examining your portfolio and other investment opportunities.

Something else to pay close attention to, especially during this time of the year, is your tax strategy. When you receive your annual W-2s, make sure your monthly tax payments are being deducted at the proper level. The trick is to come as close to breaking even as possible on your federal tax returns. You should keep and invest your money throughout the year rather than allow the government to use your hard-earned cash.

Remember, it doesn’t matter how old or young you are, or how much money you’re making; now is the time to start improving your financial situation. There are a lot of important events in our lives that rely on our financial health – education, weddings, vacations, security, and retirement just to name a few. These times are tough, there’s no doubt about it, but we all must start to rebuild what we have lost and set goals to get back to where we want to be. It’s important and the sooner you start the sooner things will start to improve for you and your family.

When you think about it, you’ve spent quite a lot of time and money training your staff to accomplish the tasks that have, up to this point, helped to craft a successful business. But today’s environment is forcing business to stockpile cash and other assets, and the fastest and most efficient method of increasing your internal cash flow is by cutting the payroll; or is it? You won’t get an argument that it might be the fastest method but it may not be the most cost effective approach in the long run. While things may be volatile today, bad situations always have a way of improving.

Your staff is not only a trusted group internally but your employees have, no doubt, created positive and productive relationships with your customer base as well. They know your product better than anyone and they also know your customer. That is a very important combination because positive customer relations are more likely to translate into future sales.

While many businesses believe that the customer base is the most important asset of any business they couldn’t be more wrong. Without a highly skilled group of employees there would be no customer base. Each individual has their strong points; most probably have more than one to offer. Develop an understanding of everyone’s string points and assign the right person for the right job. Your staff comes in everyday and deals positively with your customers; they keep the books on track, handle the new orders or answer the phones. They do hundreds of other things that can’t even be quantified; they do their jobs so well that you never seem to have a problem. Things run like clockwork because your staff holds it all together.

Don’t get me wrong, there are times when things haven’t run as smoothly as I’d like but that’s why management exists. Sometimes management has a “bad hire” and that can cause quite a few problems; especially to a small business. Those issues must be dealt with quickly but you should know who your “core” employees are; you know who can be counted on to come in at night or on a weekend, if needed, without complaint. You know who is always there to help bolster his or her fellow employees when they have a tough day. You know who the sales person is that never makes excuses but keeps the bottom line solvent. You can’t lose these people; they have a vast amount of corporate memory and that helps to run your business. But more importantly they have a work ethic that is difficult to find these days. You know who is loyal to the company and you also know who is only there to collect a pay check. There is a big difference.

As I said earlier, the economic slump we currently find ourselves in will pass; they always do. When it does, you will want to be in a position to hit the ground running. So, if at all possible, try saving the cash flow by cutting programs before you are forced to cut people. A well-qualified and loyal group of employees is the most valuable asset of any business. It’s the people who control a business – not the other way around. If you have a well-trained and professional staff you must try to hold on to them through the use of any retention programs you have at your disposal. During the challenging times, a feeling of sincere camaraderie will help your business escape the next tight spot the company encounters. Your people are your most important asset.

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