Bad Debt Collection: How Long Should It Be Done? By Jim Oneil

A debt will always remain as it is until it gets fully paid. This means that if someone owes you money, you certainly have the right to collect the payment from him. It is your money after all. Even as you do so, you should also realize that there are laws that may no longer be applicable if you want to use to them to compel the debtor to pay. In Britain, for example, if you have no contact with the debtor for a span of six years, you may no longer be able to collect the payment for the bad debt.
Of course, this does not mean that you could no longer make a follow-up on the debtor and try collecting the money from him. It is your right to re-acquire what is originally yours, particularly if it is a debt. However, as pointed out already, you could no longer take advantage of any law to compel the debtor to pay. You just have to think of more effective ways of making sure that the debtor meets his obligations. Apparently, this would entail a lot of effort on your part. Still, you could never be too sure whether you would actually get to see the debt repaid soon.

What you should avoid therefore is to be incapable of establishing communication with the debtor for six years. This would guarantee that the debtor would not run away from his responsibility and that you would still be able to use the law to force him to pay. To do this, you should not scare the debtor with huge installments. If you just send him a bill with the a four-figure amount to be collected, he may just start computing the costs of running away and compare it to the cost of paying you.
The reason why you are collecting the debt payments is that you simply want to get what is yours. This is your business. Scaring the debtor or telling him that you could do many things just to get the payment would only backfire. Instead of sticking to his obligations, the debtor may just decide to run away. When this happens, you would only all chances of being repaid. The logic is pretty simple; it is better to be lenient than to insist that you are the boss. With the latter, you are only able to satisfy your pride. But with the former, you get something more tangible, the payment.

The best that you could do is to adjust the payment methods or schedules according to the capabilities of the debtor. Under such flexible arrangement, the debtor may be able to heave a sigh of relief because the burden would no longer be as heavy. However, he would still pay the entire amount of the debt plus the interest rates. Another option that you could apply is to sell the debt to a debt collection agency. This method would certainly relieve you from the tedious task of collecting the payment.

Jim Oneil is a writer with a special interest in debt issues and personal finance. He has written for small local newspapers in the past and now devotes part of his time writing about debt consolidation and management and also UK based financial products.

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Debt Collection After Years of No Contact With a Creditor By Jim Oneil

Would there ever be a time when the creditor would no longer be able to pursue debt payments? This must be a question that must arise every time you get a call reminding you of your payment schedule. When you get annoyed at such calls, you would really wish for a time when you are left at peace without being forced to repay. If you live in the UK, then you are fortunate. This is because there are laws in the country that actually deprives creditors to make use of legal avenues in order to make you pay after a certain period of time.
The provision is that if the creditor does not have any contact with the debtor after six years, it would no longer have the right to employ legal remedies that would compel the latter to repay. Of course, this does not mean that the creditor could just forget about the debt and label it as a mere loss. It is still a debt and it still should be paid. The creditor could still make use of different avenues and techniques just to make sure that the debtor pays. However, the main advantage that the debtor can enjoy is that he can no longer be charged.
This is the reason why creditors do their best to establish communications with the debtor always. If they were not able to connect with the debtor in a span of six years, they would no longer be backed by the law in pursuing the payment. Because of this, it is no rare for creditors to simply sell the debts to debt collection companies. Once this is done, the problem of contacting and dealing with errant debtors would no longer be the problem of the creditors but of the debt collection agencies. Apparently, this is the more convenient option for the creditors.

As the debtor, you would certainly think that this is something that you could take advantage of. However, you must also realize that six years is quite a long time. It would just seem impossible for the creditor not to establish communication lines with you during that time. Unless you leave the country or to actually go incognito for that length of time, the creditors could still compel you to pay. This becomes even more possible if the debt has been sold to the debt collection agency. Because it is their specialty, debt collection agencies never seem to run out of methods to make debtors pay.

The key here is to consider paying your debts and you could live without anyone hassling you afterwards. Although they may no longer be able to sue you after the 6-year no contact period, the creditors could still call you for as many times as they want after they have located you. You may not have the trouble of going to the courts but you would certainly have to deal with the annoying calls that you would get from the creditors every now and then.

Jim Oneil is a writer with a special interest in debt issues and personal finance. He has written for small local newspapers in the past and now devotes part of his time writing about debt consolidation and management and other UK based financial products.

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How To Get Out Of the Debt Trap By Jean Brewer

Will Rogers once said that too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like - and I agree with him. What a crazy world we live in today; it's the world of instant gratification - the wanting of it all now, right now, and the unwillingness to wait.
So many are in debt because of this very thing. Maybe you are bored, it's been a hard day, nothing is going right. So what do you do? Well, maybe a bit of retail therapy will help? And off you go to the mall, looking for something to lift your spirits. Next thing you know you are walking back to the car laden with parcels of all the goodies you have purchased. And that sudden excitment of some new toy, some new product does lift your spirits.... until you get reminded that while you may have the latest iphone, you cannot afford to eat for the next fortnight! Chatting to friends may feed the soul, but it won't fill your stomach!
Why do we do it? Well, it's because of all that great advertising all around us about get it now and pay later - its proof that advertising does work. Maybe advertising is not the right word for it, how about - brain washing? Because that is what it is like; whatever you want, the billboards scream that you can get it with no money down, and easy (like heck it is) repayments. So we flash out our cute little plastic card - or one of the many if you have a selection like most people do- and zip zap! The deal is done - painless and over in minutes. Unfortuately the pain is just about to begin as the payments become due. Most of us are still paying for things we gave up using months ago, and because of that, can barely afford the necessities of life like quality food, rent, or a much needed trip to the dentist.

It has to stop; you have to change. Make a decision to only buy the essentials while you concentrate on paying off all your debt. If you need to take on a second part time job, then do so. It will get you out of debt quicker. There is no feeling in the world like the one when you are debt free. It is even better when you have money in the bank so you can take that trip, you can get those yellow rotted teeth fixed, you can afford to go out for dinner and enjoy it knowing you have money in your pocket to pay for it.
As a society we need to turn things around. Instead of buying on credit, we need to buy with cash. Save the money then buy. An alternative is to put something on layby - in other words, pay it off before you get it. That way we know we really do want it because we are prepared to wait and pay it off before we get our sticky fingers on it. It's back to front in today's society - we get things we cannot afford to buy, then struggle to pay it off. Lets start by getting rid of all our debt which is the cause of all the worlds financial woes, and start afresh. Use cash to buy what we need. Not only will it change your life, it has the power to change the world if we all did it.
Get ahead of things, don't get behind. It will take a bit of time to catch up and get ahead, but once ahead it is easy. Learn to live within your means. If you want more of something, then you need to earn more. This way you will always be improving your life, not sabotaging it with the ball and chain of debt.

One more thing we need to do is to stop competing. Just because the neighbour has a brand new car (and is drowning in debt) there is no need for you to get a better one. And that applies to homes, clothing, jewellry - any material possession. Peace and happiness comes from within, you cannot buy it in a shop. And while the latest gadget will bring momentary pleasure, you will be off chasing something else when the glow wears off. Stop worrying about what others have, that's their business, you mind your own. We all have way too many things, you only have to see the stuff some people have hoarded in their homes that they have hardly used - its amazing.
Material possessions are only a small part of life. What you make of yourself, who you become and how you live life is your true purpose, not how much you own. Why waste your precious time worrying over debt and fancy stuff? Lets solve our own financial crisis, get rid of debt and really start to enjoy life and live!

My goal is to educate and inspire people to be the best that they can be. Whether in health, wealth or personal self development Brewer International is there to assist all who visit. http://brewerinternational.com/ Sign up for our Newsletter that offers loads of free information for health, wealth and personal development all mixed with a bit of humour and some fantastic quotes.
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Please visit us at our website link above, and join us in the journey for a full and happy life.

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Welcome to the "$1,000 Gold" Fan Club By Kevin A. Demeritt

The $1,000 gold fan club? Absolutely. And, as far as fan clubs go, this one's membership is swelling daily. There's no question that the number of financial analysts who see gold topping the $1,000 mark have suddenly become as common as Tom Brady touchdown passes. But whether these folks are newcomers to the gold bandwagon or have been riding confidently along for years, it's remarkable just how many analysts now see nothing but good for gold.
Here, for example, is what a few $1,000 gold prognosticators have to say...
o The Falling Dow/Gold Ratio. The Dow/Gold Ratio - the number of gold ounces it takes to buy one share of the Dow Jones Index - has fallen from 42 in 2000 to nearly 19 in 2007. "What is interesting," said analyst Dr. Marc Farber, "is that despite the stock market's rebound since October 2002, the Dow/Gold Ratio has continued to decline. Simply put for the holder of gold - the world's only honest currency, since it cannot be printed by some dishonest central banker - the Dow, although it increased in value in dollar terms, has continued to decline in gold terms with the result that, today, it 'only' takes 20 ounces of gold to buy one Dow Jones Industrial Average.

"Simply put, since 2000, gold has risen at a much faster clip than the Dow Jones and I would expect this out-performance to continue for the next few years until 'gold currency' holders will be able to buy one Dow Jones with just one ounce of gold.
"Now, you may think that I have become insane (but) I am convinced that the US Fed's monetary policies will lead to exponentially widening wealth inequity and impoverish the majority of US households, which will then lead to social strife, protectionism, war, and the breakdown of the capitalistic system.
"However, if one considers that in 1932 and in 1980 one could indeed buy one Dow Jones Industrial Average with just one ounce of gold, then maybe my views are rather conservative. Possibly one will be able to buy, sometime in future, one Dow Jones with just half an ounce of gold!"
With that in mind, Farber believes we could be in store for a lot more than just $1,000 gold.

o In 1980 Dollars, Gold is Just Half-Price. John Hathaway, managing director of Tocqueville Asset Management, believes $1,000 gold isn't far off. "I don't think it will take much. Let's not forget, in 1980 dollars, gold is less than half of its nominal price today.
"The disparity between the amount of paper that has been created since 1980 and the amount of gold that has been produced since then is just enormous. The ratio of financial assets to physical gold is at the low end of a historical range. If you were to mark all the gold to market that has ever been mined, which is a very conservative approach, and then take the valuation of all the global stock markets and all the global bond markets, gold represents about 3%, compared with a figure in the mid-20% range in 1980, which was the top of the bull market in gold and the beginning of the bull market in financial assets.
"Gold is a good value, certainly, at these prices, just based on the considerations we've discussed. Even if you don't think worst-case outcomes are in the cards, gold is still rare and hard to find, and believe me, these companies are having the toughest times trying to maintain production, much less build it."
o Central Banks Abandon Control of Gold. Two Citigroup metals analysts wrote that central banks faced a choice between a global recession and their continuing "control" of gold.
They chose to focus on staving off global recession.
"We believe that the policy resolution to the credit crunch will take the form of a massive, extended 'reflationary rescue' in a new cycle of global credit creation and competitive currency devaluation which could take gold to $1,000/oz or higher."

o Slashing Interest Rates Will Only Add Fuel to the Fire. Analyst John Ing believes $1,000 gold is just on the horizon. His reasoning? Bankers are out of bullets when it comes to settling U.S. debt battles.
"Ironically, while there is a crisis of confidence in the credit markets, the world is awash in liquidity due to the gargantuan current account surpluses of China and other Asian countries as well as the Middle-East," Ing wrote. "The problem however, is not the supply of surpluses, but the imbalance between the short term and long term obligations of the world's biggest debtor and the United States."
"As long as there is a lack of confidence in the short term, central banks are faced with the dilemma as to how to supply liquidity. Today, central banks continue to boost money supply but the monetary aggregates were already growing at double-digit levels and they had little room to maneuver. What is likely then is a dramatic reduction in interest rates, which will serve as a short term palliative. But this will not correct the imbalances. Central banks have tried to stabilize the global financial system by pumping large amounts of liquidity into the markets. To date, they have only addressed the symptoms of the underlying crisis. The situation will become even worse."
o "Gold Is the Purist Play Against the Dollar." When the former head of technical research at Citigroup predicts gold is heading not to $1,000, but to $3,000, it makes great sense to pay attention.
"Gold is the purest play against the dollar," Louise Yamada, managing director of Yamada Technical Research Advisors said. She predicted gold would surpass $730 on its way to $3,000 inside of a decade.
o "Still Cheap Relative to Oil or Base Metals." Australia's Fat Prophets newsletter is another prominent member of the $1,000 gold fan club.

"We think the price could reach $850 an ounce by the end of the year, based on issues in the US housing market," senior equities analyst Greg Canavan says. "US housing was an accident waiting to happen. We have also been forecasting an eventual price of $1000, and we would expect that in the first half of 2008.
"In the US, we expect further interest rate cuts. In Europe, the euro is getting stronger, with implications for exports. It could lead to a slowdown there," he went on to say. "Also in Europe, the Bank of England had said it would not be bailing out lenders. But now it has been told that it must do so. So investors are seeing that gold is a fundamental store of wealth."
Canavan added, "You should have 10 per cent of your portfolio in bullion or gold stocks. Also, it is considerably undervalued right now so it is more than just insurance. Despite being at more than 20-year highs it is still cheap relative to oil or base metals."
o World Currencies "Becoming Increasingly Doubted." James Turk in his Freemarket Gold & Money Report believes $1,500 gold is possible.
"A blow-off leg in gold is looking increasingly likely once it clears $1,000. Think about this a moment. The US dollar is now trading at record lows, with no bottom in sight. Commodity prices are soaring, with wheat at over $9 per bushel and crude oil looking increasingly well supported over $80 per barrel. Gold is rising against all the world's currencies, indicating that fiat national currencies backed by nothing but promises from over-indebted governments are becoming increasingly doubted. Britain just experienced the world's biggest bank run since the 1930s. ... We should be mentally prepared for the possibility that gold exceeds $1,000 within the next few months, and then just keeps climbing to a blow-off high.
"How high? A doubling of the gold price has happened before in blow-offs like the one I am describing, so $1,500 or more is not out of the question."

So...where are you with your investments? Are you overly reliant on those worrisome "paper" investments at a time when more and more people want to hold something of authentic value in their hands? If that's the case - and even if you've never joined a fan club your entire life - today may be the perfect time to become a member of the $1,000 gold fan club.

You've seen him on Fox News Television and heard him on the Rush Limbaugh Show. He's a published author, writer and an expert guest on more than 1000 radio programs discussing today's economy and gold.
Kevin DeMeritt, President of Lear Financial, is a nationally renowned analyst whose insight into the future of domestic and global economies is unmatched.
His book, The Bulls The Bears and the Bust, reviewed by the Associated Press, predicted the market crash of 2001 and the ensuing rise of gold to the status of best investment.
At the helm of Lear Financial, Kevin DeMeritt has made Lear one of the most highly endorsed gold companies in the country. Relying on his insightful recommendations, uncanny market and trading skills and 20 years of experience in investment quality gold, Kevin has navigated thousands of portfolios to profitability through boom and bust times.
And, now more than ever, his insights are welcome by nervous investors.

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What If I Don't Have A Lot Of Money - Can I Still Build Wealth? By Linda P. Jones

Many people are under the mistaken assumption that if they don't have a lot of money to invest, that they can't build wealth. Sometimes that's true, but not today.
The way I teach people to invest is by first identifying the cycle we're in. Cycle refers to repeating patterns with investments that occur at regular time intervals. There are two main cycles: stocks and commodities. Each cycle lasts roughly 15 - 20 years. Currently, we are in the commodity cycle which began in 2001. We can see this is true, because commodities have led in performance for the last 11 years. Gold has appreciated about 17% per year and silver about 24% per year (except last year, silver was slightly negative due to a normal pullback, not the end of the trend).
So we know we're in the commodity cycle and roughly 11 years into a 15 or 20 year trend.

There is still plenty of time to build wealth. Cycles end when it becomes obvious to everyone, even the non-investor, that this is a good place to build wealth. Then seemingly everyone jumps to invest, or go "all in", and we see tremendous appreciation at the very end of the cycle, usually climaxing in a "bubble." By definition, bubbles are invisible while they are building, and only can be recognized by everyone in hindsight.
Since this bubble has not only to do with commodities, but also gold and silver being treated as currencies (yes, it's happening. Countries are now paying for oil with gold, the Comex is accepting gold for payment, and so is the State of Utah). It's just the beginning. Gold and silver will gain more acceptance as currency as the Dollar, Euro, and other paper currencies continue to lose value over time.
This will cause demand for gold and silver to back paper currencies (like the Swiss Franc is proposing now to be backed with 20% gold). The bubble will likely be worldwide as Central Banks purchase the metal at any price to back their failing paper currencies.

All of this is why silver is a great investment now. Silver is not only in the commodity cycle and also is a currency, it is used also as an industrial metal in new energy inventions and technology. Don't let the fact it's only $34 an ounce fool you. It is very rare and in low supply. High demand and low supply = a great investment opportunity! You can buy it from a coin dealer, like an American Eagle coin for about $5 over the spot price, or about $39 today. You can also invest in billionaire Eric Sprott's silver ETF, symbol PSLV (I prefer this and do NOT recommend the more popular, SLV). PSLV is at $14.55 a share today. Remember, you're actually buying the physical silver, not mining company shares.

Linda P. Jones is America's Wealth Mentor. Linda teaches women all over the world her personal wealth building system, which begins with having a wealthy mindset and ends with creating your legacy.
http://www.lindapjones.com

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