Complete Finance Blog

The ability to get a small loan is going to help you in many aspects of your life. Most major life events happen only because of the financial provided by a lender. Knowing what you need to get approved for a loan will improve the odds that you get approved.

Lower Your Debt-To-Income Ratio

Most lenders are going to take a close look at your financial situation. You can approve your chances of getting a loan by having low levels of debt. Aim to have a debt-to-income ratio of less than 30 percent. This will assure lenders that you have the necessary income to dedicate to the loan you are applying for.

Consider Using Collateral

Collateral is a great way to increase your chances of getting a loan. For example, you could use your home as collateral in a home equity loan. Putting up something of value will give the bank a chance to get its money back if you do not repay the loan. Collateral can also lower your interest rate.

Have A Satisfactory Credit Score

All loans are subject to a credit check. This means that lenders are going to check your credit score to see if you are worth taking a risk on. Read more…

Organizational leaders and senior managers will now find it more convenient to earn an Executive MBA, thanks to a new format at the University at Buffalo School of Management.

Beginning in fall 2012, classes will be held all day Friday and Saturday every third weekend (with some exceptions for holidays), and participants will be able to complete the program in 20 months.

“Executives are working longer hours and have more demands on their personal time,” says Courtney J. Walsh, assistant dean for executive education at the UB School of Management. “But they want a program that offers a reasonable schedule without sacrificing world-class content.”

The new schedule retains all the content, but packages it in a way that reduces the amount of time away from the office during the regular workweek by 25 percent.

Walsh says the new format will also accommodate those with rigorous travel schedules as well as the increasing numbers of executives from Toronto, the Southern Tier and Central New York.

In between class weeks, tutoring in quantitative courses will continue to be offered live at UB or over the Web.

The UB Executive MBA program develops leaders who can initiate change and drive business strategy within their organizations. Particip

Read more…

“In general, an annuity is like any other investment option,” Ryan Peterson tells me. “It’s a tool, and you need to evaluate your situation and find the best tool to help you. An annuity isn’t appropriate for everyone.”

Peterson is the founder and President of Wisdom & Wealth Solutions, an independent investment advisory firm. He has years of experience as a financial planner and investment advisor, and works closely with clients to help them fund their futures. One of the products he feels can be a good fit for many investors is the indexed annuity.

“Indexed annuities have nice features,” Peterson points out. “You have the opportunity to get some appreciation, since the annuity has growth potential related to the index it’s related to. However, you also don’t have to worry about losing money. Many of these annuities guaranty some rate of return, so that even if the stock index has a down year, you are protected from losing money.”

Using an Indexed Annuity as a Pension

Peterson points out that an indexed annuity can be used as a pension. “Gone are the days when

Read more…

The holiday shopping season is now behind us, but that doesn’t mean investors should ignore retailers now.

In fact, I just made a new recommendation in this space for my dad’s retirement portfolio … on top of a few other choice store stocks that are ALREADY in both his income portfolio as well as my long-standing Dividend Superstars list.

More on why I like those specific companies in a minute though.

First, let’s take a broader look at this particular area of the market …

A good general definition of a “retailer” might be any company that sells goods through physical and/or online storefronts.

But it’s important for us to make more detailed distinctions … especially if we want to understand where the real dangers and opportunities are.

For example, there are traditional department stores — the ones you used to find around your local town square, and which now typically anchor malls.

And even am

Read more…