Loan loss provisioning methodology for community banks

Mikkalya Murray

I'm the chief credit officer for Harleysville National. We're a $2.4 billion community bank holding company with three nationally chartered banks, located outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Our branch system runs up to the New York border. We have a $1.3 billion loan portfolio. At year-end, $627 million of the portfolio was in commercial loans. Currently, we have about a $17.3 million reserve. As a frame of reference, when we talk about losses and loss rates, the bank's reported net charge-off at yearend was 21 net basis points.

We have been carefully following the July 2001 FFIEC pronouncement. After reading that material, we redrafted our policy and procedures information, and then adjusted our methodology so as to have a much more granular focus. In other words, we segmented the portfolios more discretely than we did in prior times.

When we look at our portfolio for reserve purposes, we break it down by C&I loans, commercial mortgage, commercial construction, direct and indirect consumer, revolving, credit cards, residential mortgage, auto, and equipment leasing. We break it down first by those segments of loan type. And then we segment based on our 10-grade risk rating system. We break the segments down further, with a special focus on the regulatory or criticized grade, which for us is doubtful, loss substandard, and special mention credits.

Within those categories, we then go to our loan review or risk rating criteria and look for the risk ratings on the credit. We have calculated loss ranges within those risks and segments. From that data we get a trend report that captures delinquency, nonaccruals, and charge-offs for each of the segments in each of those risk ratings over a 12-quarter period. It took us a number of years to develop that much data. You can start somewhere along that horizon and begin to gather the data.

Then, after we've segmented and captured all that data, we examine those loss rates in four different ways:

1. By the loss in our current period.

2. By the average loss in the most recent four quarters.

3. By the prior year-end loss rates.

4. By looking at the 12 quarters of rolling annualized loss rates.

We look at where we believe losses will be in the next year to 18 months. We consider which one of these loss rates most accurately predicts that rolling quarter approach. It's based on historical data; it's based on live loss rates. We may have a shrinking portfolio; we may have an expanding portfolio. The risk direction may be up or down. We adjust for what we believe to be the current risk profile of any particular segment.

Based on that calculation, we have a quantifiable number. We have an adjustment to losses after that quantification is done. In other words, we look at between 20 and 80 basis points of adjustment based on what we used to call BC201 factors or qualitative factors that tell us what's happening in the economy and what's happening with the management of our own portfolios. We fine-tune our quantitative number by 20 to 80 basis points. We then plug that into a spreadsheet with all the segments, and the result is the calculated reserve amount

Life insurance: Dispelling illusions

Purchasing life insurance has never been, and never will be, fun, Nevertheless, it is important-especially for the high-nel-worth individual who must provide liquidity for estate planning purposes. To put the purchasing decision in perspective, the author presents a brief history of life insurance, explaining the developments that have led to today's array of products. Their variegated evolution means certain inevitable compromise that an advisor can illuminate and some salesmen may obfuscate.

Purchasing (or advising the purchase of) life insurance involves the careful considerations of current and future financial circumstances and a studied observation of the policy's provisions. A successful policy benefits both the insured and the insurer. Only by properly understanding all the pluses and minuses of the myriad policies and provisions available can a wise purchase be made.

Most people, especially CPAs and other financial professionals, think they know what "life insurance" is. But what does it really mean? First, it's not really life insurance. It's "death insurance." It's the promise of an insurance company to pay the face amount (the initial death benefit, which may change over time) upon due proof of the death of the insured and the surrender of the policy with a properly completed claim form.

One of the facts of life is that people don't want to think about death-especially their own-which is why this contractual promise is called life insurance. Today's life insurance is the product of a long history of continuous change and has become substantially more useful as a result.

Brief History of Life Insurance

"[L]ife insurance as we know it ... began in the 19th century ... Industrialization-with its cities, factories, money economy, and an urban 'saving' class-set the stage for life insurance as a large-scale, national institution. Life insurance, it can truly be said, is a product of modern industrial society. [Davis W. Gregg and Vane B. Lucas, "A Brief History," Life and Health Insurance Handbook (1973)]

The first life insurance company in North America, the Presbyterian Ministers' Fund, was established in 1759. The Insurance Company of North America, chartered in 1794, was the first commercial enterprise to sell policies; it sold only six policies in five years and discontinued operations in 1804.

The insurance business took off in the 1840s because of the confluence of the rapid growth of the US industrial economy, the start of mutual companies, and the development of the agency system of distribution. The in-force level rose to $97.1 million by 1850, and $173.3 million by 1861. Numerous companies failed during the general depression of the mid-1870s, and by 1882, only 55 of 129 survived. By 1970 there were around 1800 companies, but today there are hundreds fewer, because of failures, consolidations, and mergers and acquisitions. Today, most life insurers are stock companies owned by shareholders. Fraternal companies make up a very small piece of the total pie, and only a small number of the mutual companies remain as such. The primary allegiance to the policyowner is the most obvious competitive advantage that a mutual company has over a stock company.

Risk Assessment and Ratings

The cost of life insurance protection is based on a number of factors used by the actuary in pricing the product. The home office underwriter collects and reviews the prospective insured's personal information for these factors in order to obtain a clear picture of risk. These underwriting and actuarial factors include:

* Age

* Sex: Women typically live longer than men, so their rates are lower.

* Smoker status: Actuarial data prove that cigarette smokers die at a younger age, so their mortality charges are higher; cigar and pipe smokers are treated variously.

* Health history: A family history of early deaths due to cancer, heart disease, or stroke will affect mortality.

* Face amount: People have an unlimited insurable interest in their own life; as a practical matter, carriers and their reinsurers do have aggregate upper limits, which cap out around $150 million on an individual life or second-to-die basis.

* Motor vehicle record: Speeding tickets and drunk driving arrests could presage an early demise.

* Vocation: Some jobs are riskier than others.

* Avocational pursuits: Sky diving, hang gliding, mountain climbing, scuba diving, auto or motorcycle racing, and private flying can increase the risk of an early death.

* General reputation and personal character.

Legal Issues About Trademarks And Domain Names

Trade marks are a name or symbol that are used to distinguish the goods of services of a particular company from others.

Similar to copyrights and other signs of intellectual property, the effects of the trademark system is territorial. This means, that each country has its own trademark system. A brand name like Machine Head may be owned by one person in the United Kingdom and by another, totally unrelated, person in the United States.

The domain name system, which is putting most of its emphasis on the .com title as the international domain, does not really jive well with the trade mark system because of the latter’s fundamental definition of “ownership.”

A case in point is the Prince vs Prince suit. Prince, the US-based manufacturers of sports goods, challenged the use of the domain name by a British computer consultancy company. The said company registered the domain in good faith and have been using it. The Prince sports goods company, which has no registered UK trademark, threatened to sue the British company for US trademark infringement. The latter counter-sued in the UK for the unwarranted threats regarding trademark infringement. They eventually won and the US company had to contend with just using the domain name www.princetennis.com.

Alternatively, a different scenario where the trademark owner will most likely prevail over a domain name holder’s rights is in the case of Marks & Spencer vs One in a Million. This particular case was elevated to the English High Court in 1997 when various trademark holders, including the world-famous UK retailer Marks & Spencer, sued One In A Million, a company who accumulated a number of domain names under the well-known trademarks like Sainsburys, Virgin, Marks & Spencer, and Cellnet. These domain names, and others, were bought with the express goal of selling them again to the trademark owners. The High Court decided that One In A Million be required to relinquish their claim on the said domain names. This decision was further upheld by the Court of Appeal.

The One In A Million company’s basis of argument was that domain name registrations were first come, first served”, thus, the trademark owners do not have any rights to the domain names.

Based on the two actual court cases we can build up a clear picture about the interrelation of trademarks and domain names.

In general, domains that have no trademark significance can be acquired by the entity who registered them first. Continuous use of this non-trademarked name will allow the holder to build a reputation on the name. When the situation is between to legitimate companies who have a right to the name then, as with the stipulation of most laws in most countries, the first person who registers will get the domain. However, a registrant to a domain that is also a subject of a trademark and who does not have any entitlements is going to be forbidden based on the laws of most countries.

Choose the company

If you haven’t given much thought to the specific direct sales or home party sales company you’d like to join, now is the time to consider that. In order to succeed in the home party business, it’s important that you choose a product that you use or would use yourself. Selling something about which you are passionate is much easier than selling something about which you have no interest. If you don’t use plastic containers that burp, selling them will probably be difficult. If you don’t wear a lot of jewelry, then a jewelry home party plan is not the one for you.

Every day, new party plans and direct sales companies are being formed. Why? Because in the 1980’s it was discovered that this continues to be one of the best ways of selling. Some products really need to be seen and demonstrated, and home parties are a way of having those products demonstrated. Even though our lives get busier, and people say they have no time for themselves or their families, the home party business thrives.

Perhaps you are aware of some of the home party plans in existence. Perhaps not. Do a computer search to find all the home party sales companies you can on the Internet. I think you’ll be surprised at the number and at the kinds of products offered by home parties. There are companies selling Christian merchandise, candles, make-up, jewelry, crafts, home décor, gifts, coffee, and much, much more.

It’s important to interject here that home party sales is not a get-rich-quick-scheme. Working in the direct sales/home party sales industry requires work. But the rewards are many. Most home parties now boast of having average sales of $300-800 per show. Most offer commissions of 20-30%. If each show requires an hour of pre-show preparations, three hours to travel and demonstrate, and an hour of post-show paper work, that means that each show or demonstration will require an average of five hours of your time. At the lowest earnings (20% of a $300 average show), the earnings would be $60 or $12 per hour. And that’s not bad for a part time job that allows you to choose the days and time when you work. At the highest level (30% of $800), the earnings would be $48 per hour. That’s why it’s important to choose the company and the products that interest you most. If you enjoy representing the company, you’ll want to build your business, and the chance of earning about $25 per hour of your time is not unreasonable. But, I emphasize, the money doesn’t just come in while you sleep. With home parties, you do have to prospect for sales and demonstrate. And that requires your time and effort.

Besides showing an interest in the product being offered, another deciding factor in choosing a company to represent is what the start-up cost will be for you. Most companies offer a sales kit which does require a out-of-pocket expense. Most don’t charge retail prices for their sales kits, and they include catalogs and sales tools in the kits. There are companies that don’t charge for kits. Instead, they make the sales consultants sign an agreement to return the kit if they don’t earn it by selling a predetermined amount. Some companies allow you to earn your kit by having a show in your own home. Someone else, a manager perhaps, usually conducts that first show and reaps the benefits of the commission. But you earn the sales kit. How much you have to invest in a new venture will be another determining factor in choosing a home party sales company. As you research the different companies available, you’ll want to take note of what is required to get started.

The third consideration when choosing a direct sales or home party plan business is what training and support you can expect. If were recruited by a local person, you can expect more training and support. Many companies offer official training classes, regular sales meetings, season kick-offs and award ceremonies. Brand new companies may not have any representatives in your area, and any training may be done by video tapes, email and long distance phone calls.

Whether you should choose a well-known older company to represent or a brand new one, is another thing to factor into your choice of companies. There are reasons for choosing either. You won’t have to explain the business of an older well-known company. People will already know. However, they may tell you they have enough of that particular product, because they’ve been to so many parties.

A newer company will require that you educate your friends and relatives and the public more about the products and the company. There probably won’t be any others in the area on whom you can lean for support. But for many, being in on the "ground floor” is attractive, and outweighs not having local support.

The choice of what kind of product and company you’d like to represent is your own. Although it would be nice if your friends and family will agree to be some of your first customers, it isn’t wise to let them choose the company you represent.

Yes, the choice is yours and yours alone. I suggest that while you search the Net for these opportunities, you keep track of the pros and cons of each company you investigate. Doing research and keeping track of the benefits of each company will help you make a wise choice.

Low Interest Online Loans

Whenever people need money in form of loans, they run towards loan market to get the loan. They go for deals which first come in their notice, but in practice they ignore the fact that they can get better deals at lower rates which are available in the market, if they do some research work. However, this needs lot of time, as you have to visit the offices of all the lenders available. It may not be possible for every person to take out such time from their busy schedule. But with internet becoming the portal for the loan lenders, this research is now just a matter of few clicks. Through this, you can get information about numerous low interest online loans in very little time.

Low interest online loans are loans with low rate of interest. These loans are multipurpose loans, which mean that you are free to use the loan amount the way you want. Some examples of its usage are debt consolidation, buying residential and commercial properties, investment in business proposals, home improvements, funding education and wedding expenses, buying car or boat or you can use the low interest online money for holidaying around the beautiful places of the world.

Low interest online loans provide you with following features:

• Enhanced searching for loans eliminating the task of going to lender’s office

• Saves time and energy of the borrowers

• No up front cost

• Free online loan quotes on dozens of loan websites to choose from.

• Comparison tools, debts and repayment calculators and budget planner to help you understand a loan better.

• Reduced paper work with lesser formalities

• Fixed and variable interest rates to choose from

• Easy and simple online application form secured under data protection act 1998.

• Faster application and approval process

• Borrowers are regularly updated for all of their transactions for repayments

There are basically two forms of low interest online loans: secured and unsecured. The amount and repayment term is depended on the collateral presence. With collateral you can borrow amounts up to £75000 for longer terms. On the other hand, you can get quick cash support from £1000 to £25000 for a period up to 10 years with an unsecured low interest online loan.

Low interest online loans are available to homeowners, non-homeowners, tenants, PG’s, employed or self employed people, ex-servicemen and also to people with a bad credit score including CCJ’s and IVA’s, defaulters, arrears and bankrupts.

A low interest online loan is the perfect partner for you when borrowing money is on your mind for satisfaction of your wants

Customer Service Mistakes And Avoid Mistakes

1) Being placed on hold endlessly. Don't you just love it when you call a company and they place you on hold, leaving you to listen to their latest on-hold, recorded sales pitch, over and over again. Would you think it normal business practice for a retail store clerk to ask you to "wait a minute" while they disappeared into the back of the store for ten, fifteen, thirty minutes or longer? People do things over the phone that they would never do in person. It's bad business either way to leave a customer hanging without at least coming back to let the customer know how much longer they'll be holding.

2) Getting rude with a customer. As the saying goes, even if the customer's wrong, the customer's always right. There's never any reason to get rude with a customer. If a customer gets rude with you, let them blow off steam and remember that their behavior is not an attack directed against you personally. Always keep in mind that as long as you remain calm and in control, you can address the reason behind the customer's anger.

3) Ignoring a problem. Ignoring a customer's problem won't make it go away. The same can be said of fixes that work for the company but not for the customer. Some customers have problems with a service or product that don't fit comfortably into any category. Those are the problems that need special attention, not standard responses. Too many companies ignore this and try to use the "one size fits all" method of complaint resolution. Companies have to realize that their policy must fit the customer's needs, not the other way around.

4) Making the customer jump through hoops for a refund or exchange. I recently had to return a product to a national bookstore chain. Before the clerk refunded me, she asked me for all sorts of personal information. I refused to give this information. I explained that I hadn't given this information out when I made the original purchase, and didn't see the purpose in giving it out to get my money refunded. After 15 minutes and a visit from the store manager, they finally relented and gave me my refund. The time spent waiting in line, plus the time spent to get my refund, added up to 20 minutes. This company wasted 20 minutes of a customer's time, all in the effort to get information. If you have to disregard your customer's time in order to gather a marketing profile, you're defeating your long-term marketing goal, which is to retain a satisfied customer base that makes repeat purchases

Starting Your Own Business

All the initial steps for starting your own business can easily be financed with the funds obtained from a home equity line of credit and the flexibility for repayment will provide you with the ease you need to concentrate specifically on your business instead on repaying the loan. The characteristics of home equity lines of credit are perfect for this purpose.
In this article we will analyze the concepts of home equity and home equity lines of credit and explain why these particular lines of credit are perfect tools for starting new businesses and what the benefits that these financial products provide are.

Defining Equity
Equity is the difference between the current value of your property and any pecuniary obligations that it is guaranteeing. These obligations can be liens, mortgages, etc. The amount of available equity is obtained by subtracting the amount of the outstanding obligations to the valuation price of the property.
Thus, if you own a property that is worth $120,000 and your current mortgage balance is around $70,000 that means that you still have $50,000 of available equity on your home that you can use for obtaining a loan or line of credit and use it for any purpose you can think of. Following we will analyze home equity lines of credit for starting businesses.

Lines Of Credit for Businesses
Lines of credit are revolving sources of funds that can provide you with all the finance you need for starting a business if they are based on sufficient equity. The idea is that you are granted credit up to a certain amount limit which is guaranteed with your home equity. In the above example you would count with up to $50,000 on your line of credit to start your own business.

There is no need for you to withdraw the whole amount and as long as you don't request money, the line of credit won't generate interests. You'll only have to pay a small maintenance fee. Moreover, say you withdraw $10,000, the interest rate will only be charged over that $10,000. Once you repay the amount, it will stop generating interests and you can withdraw that amount or any amount up to the credit limit whenever you want.

As regards repayment, it is also very simple. You will only be required to repay a minimum amount every month, just like with credit cards. This minimum almost always consists on the interests and sometimes a small portion of the principal. This provides you with a lot of flexibility. When starting a business you can't be suffering pressure from lenders because you need to concentrate on generating income rather than repaying a loan. Thus, home equity lines of credit provide you with all the finance you need and don't asphyxiate your business with high monthly payments.

Once your running business generates enough income for you to cope with higher payments, you can start repaying the principal at your best convenience. Moreover, you can easily fix the interest rate (that is otherwise always variable) and turn the home equity line of credit into a home equity loan.

Working the room new business

Let's cover an area of working the room with which people often struggle... the actual moving around the room. Disengaging with one group and breaking into groups. Finally I will cover the bridge process and explain the importance of the follow up after we have met new people.Perhaps you have recently had a chance to meet people at a business networking event or social event, a conference, or seminar and have taken the opportunity to go up to someone standing alone. The problem comes when you wish to extricate yourself from this person but don't know how to go about it. Here let me give you some practical ideas. If you are both fellow guests at a function you don't owe it to this person to spend the rest of the evening with them. Think about it for a moment, the chances are that this person wishes to move on as much as you do but like you they simply don't wish to offend or cause any embarrassment.You can do one of three of things:

1. After you have finished speaking you can simply say "Well, Jo, it's been great meeting you, enjoy the rest of the evening. Please excuse me as I promised to go and talk to Gerry over there".
2. You could say, "I'm going to get another drink, would you like to come?"
3. The coward's way out is "Please excuse me, I need to go to the loo!" and make sure you move well away from the person.

Whichever you use please do it with respect, integrity and politeness. Good manners is essential when working the room and is good business; bad manners brings no business.

The important aspect here is to move around the room with or without your new found friend. Again can I remind you that if your conversation is dry, they too probably want to be off working the room as well. You are doing them a favour by using your superior business networking techniques

Using the second idea of moving to the bar is an opportunity to park the person with someone else or for them to park you. It's rare both of you will be at an event where you don't know anyone so moving to the bar usually has the desired effect. When you do bump into someone you know even though you are a guest at an event act as a host. Don't just say "Hi Lou this is Jo" and leave it there. You have been chatting to Jo for some time and you obviously know Lou ... so play host. Say something like this, "Lou let me introduce you to Jo who I've just met this evening. He has a fascinating business selling sand to Middle Eastern Companies and, Jo, Lou here and I have been friends for years. He runs a business helping growing exporters raise finance from people who are looking for high-risk high return opportunities". These introductions are designed to get the two of them to talk quickly and with ease and reassurance. Who knows what may happen. You just might have created some potential for both of them? Business networking isn't just about what you can do for yourself, it's about what you can do for others. If you help someone, they will remember you when they hear of someone who needs your services. This of course makes it so much easier for you to move on and meet other people. This exercise is what I call parking. Like your car do it carefully, watch all angles and don't hit anything!

So now you have a parked Jo with Lou you have freshened up your drink. You look around the room and you see clusters of people or groups chatting to each other.

"Help. What do I do next?"

It's easy. Work the room! Look for a group of three people and move over to the edge of the circle. As you are moving towards the group, look at the faces of the people and decide who seems to be the most welcoming. Stand opposite that person at the edge of the group and smile. I can assure you the following will happen. The person you have smiled at will smile back and one or both of the other people will turn towards you and both will take one step to the side making a space for you. When you first do this, it's not easy. I'm not pretending it is but it always works. Ask in a gentle voice "Good evening please may I join you"? Again I have to tell you, you will not be rejected. The chances are someone will put their hand out and introduce themselves. I often play a game at the start of a business networking seminar or prior to a sit down meal by asking my newfound friend if they would allow me to use them as a Guinea Pig. I get them to go up to people they don't know, try out what I have just said and it always works. I do this simply to ensure that whenever I write about the matter or speak about it at the presentations and seminars I deliver that I feel confident in the advice I give.

Once you have successfully joined a group, don't change the subject matter and wait for them to start asking you questions. Bear in mind again, the chances are these people are from the same business or have known each other for a long time but haven't got the self-confidence to break away and meet new people... So you are a big relief for them!

When you are in a group, you will know the time to move on, instinct will tell you. I don't need to. So go to the top of this article and remember the tips about working the room.

Online Business Opportunities?

If you are a budding entrepreneur or you are a seasoned business owner, online business opportunities may fit your needs perfectly. These businesses are home based and require very little to get started, some as low as $35 for the initial business membership fee. The advantages to owning a home based business are many, and all you really need is a well equipped computer system, a high speed internet connection, adequate work space, and commitment and dedication. A huge investment isn’t always required to take advantage of online business opportunities, as mentioned above, and those new to the whole thing should do their research, and speak with people who know something about what you want to do, before getting involved with something that is nothing more than a scam. Reputable online business opportunities are listed in a number of online publications that post reviews and ratings for home based businesses, and are a good place to get reliable information to get you started.

There is much more out there than stuffing envelopes and joining online affiliate programs, not to say that people cannot be successful in these ventures of course. Any type of home based online business opportunity must be right for the person who chooses to enter into the venture. Obviously you wouldn’t want to be a medical transcriptionist if you don’t have the necessary computer equipment and the skills and the knowledge to do the job. The internet has opened up a whole new world for people who are tired of the traditional Monday through Friday, nine to five gigs, and the commute from hell. More people now work from home than ever before thanks to online business opportunities and the World Wide Web. You would be surprised at the number of things people can now do to make money in the privacy of their own home, without the travel and daily headaches.

Online business opportunities may be the answer for you if you want to be your own boss, to not have to be somewhere by a certain time, and conform to what someone else is telling you to do. If you are motivated and have a bit of cash to get going, then you are well on your way to becoming an entrepreneur and possibly making more cash than you could ever dream possible. It happens, it really does! Just be knowledgeable about the online business opportunities you are seriously considering, and when you choose the right one, go for it with all you’ve got!

A large number of people make a full living from eBay auctions, Google AdSense programs, affiliate networks, selling other people's information products etc.....

So Good Luck! Here's to your success and online research!

Thinking of Opening a Coffee Shop Business?

What is the most booming industry you can think of? What pops in my mind is the coffee shop business. I mean come on, doesn't it ever slow down? The world has certainly spoken, and what they love is coffee. I often wonder if the plethora of businesses will ever cease, or plummet in profits. At this rate I'm thinking that the coffee shop business is headed nowhere but up. Have you had your cup of Joe today? Who am I kidding; one is never enough.

I love coffee! I will admit that to anyone. Now I'm not claiming that it's healthy or anything like that. I'm not one of the new-age specialists who say that coffee makes you more intellectually endowed. I'm simply a guy who loves the taste of java. Yep, that's right! It's not even the caffeine issue. Heck, you can take the caffeine out of the equation, because I love the flavor. Personally I've even considered opening my very own coffee shop business. Then after many nights of brainstorming I realized that I'd consume all the profits.

That would just not go over well in the long run. However, I do encourage those who strive to start their own business to consider a coffee shop business. This is where the money's at. It's that simple. You take a town that lacks a proper coffee house or espresso drive-thru, and then you invest in a coffee shop business where the morning traffic hits. Put up a drive-thru right where the entire town passes by. That's golden my friends. I saw it happen several times in Oregon and the customers were pouring in. What always gets me is the ration of supplies versus cost. Let's see, there's a cup of milk, two shots of espresso and some syrup in an average latte. How in the world do they get four bucks out of that? That's got to be some major turn-over.

If you're a coffee nut and wish to start your own coffee shop business, then you may want to do some recon work first. It's crucial to know the right location. This will really determine how well your coffee shop business will do in the long hall. They don't say location, location, location for nothing. You will also need to know the overall investment cost prior to getting started, and that's why it's imperative to get jacked into the web. The Internet will educate you plenty regarding what it takes for a successful coffee shop business.

Here's to your success and great coffee!

How To Avoid Data Entry Scam

With prices continuously on the rise, more and more people are now looking for ways to earn a few extra bucks to stretch their budget. This is the reason why data entry from home job opportunities has become extremely popular. Not only does this kind of work opportunity promise huge earnings, data entry from home job opportunities allows you to be your own boss. This means that you do are able to work as short or as long as you like and how frequently you would like to work on this.

The problem of most people is that not all data entry from home job opportunities are legitimate. In fact, hundreds of thousands of people have been scammed into paying a registration fee for various data entry at home jobs. Here are just four of the many tell-tale signs that the website that you are looking into is a scam website.

Unreliable Contact Information


The first thing to check when enrolling in a data entry from home work opportunity is the company’s contact information. Call them and inquire personally about the business. This is to determine whether the contact information that they provide on the website is accurate. Legitimate companies would have a customer service agent ready to answer any inquiries that you have over the phone. If you are having problems contacting them, or there is no contact information on the site, chances are the company is a scam.

Non-Refundable Fees


Legitimate and scam companies offering data entry from home work opportunities require a one-time registration fee. The difference between the two is that legitimate companies have a money-back guarantee for their registration fee. Others would offer you a chance to try out their services first for a period of time before paying the registration fee. Some would even offer both. On the other hand, scam websites do not offer these options. In fact, the registration fee is non-refundable under any circumstance.

One Form of Payment Accepted

Legitimate data entry from home work opportunities would offer you a number of different methods of both paying their registration fees and receiving your earnings. This includes the use of secure online payment systems such as the use of Paypal. Make sure that the data entry from home job that you are looking into provides you these options in order to ensure that your personal information and credit card information would be protected from identity theft. This is because many identity thieves use these work opportunities as a front in order to gain your personal information and credit card information for their personal use.


How to Avoid These

The best way to check on the legitimacy of a particular site is to check with government agencies. However, the information that they have may not be accurate. The number of scams posing as legitimate online job opportunity websites is increasing rapidly. Many times, government agencies are not able to keep up. Your safest bet would be to check the Internet for reviews about a particular company posted by people just like you.

Home Loan In India

In the past few months the Indian home loan market has seen highly varied changes, home loan rates went all the way up to 14 percent, however due to the market downturn the government of India is taking steps to bring home loans closer to the common man.

Perhaps this is the only bonus for the middle class man in the past few years, when the property prices and home loan rates shot up and the middle class man could not afford to buy a property.

the GOI has announced a special package for loans up to Rs 5 lakh where the banks reduced the rate to 8 per cent. Loans up to Rs 20 lakh will be charged 9.25 per cent. These rates could be fixed for five years. Also, there will be no processing fees and free insurance on these loans. But these loans are being provided only by the public sector banks.

Thanks to the NHB housing loans are expected to get cheaper as Housing finance companies will get access to cheaper funds with the National Housing Bank providing the special refinance fund from the Reserve Bank at 8 per cent interest rate, smaller housing finance companies join the ranks of major banks and housing finance companies to give loans below Rs20 lakh at attractive interest rates.

The NHB is even looking at the possibility of restructuring reverse mortgage scheme to senior citizens in association with insurance companies like the Life insurance Corporation of India.

However, for loans above Rs 20 lakh, there has been no respite yet, but more rate cuts are expected. With the consistent fall in the inflation numbers RBI is expected to cut rates. In turn, you could expect banks to cut housing loan rates.


In the short to medium term home loan rates are expected to fall, which means it is a good time to buy a home especially if it is not just an investment but a home for personal use.

As the expectation is high on fall of interest rates, home loans would be wiser to be taken on floating interest rate rather than fixed interest rate. At a future point of time you can consider converting to fixed interest rate when interest rates stabilize.

The effects of the economy are such that banks have made due diligence before disbursal very strict, and the margins to be provided by customers are higher now. The present scenario suggests that saving money is better than spending money, save and invest for a brighter future!

HOME BUSINESS

Home Business

One of the most popular part-time jobs in the United States and the rest of the world is online data entry. Apart from being able to provide a good source of extra income, one of the reasons why data entry jobs are popular is because of its convenience. Anyone can do data entry work from home, in an Internet café or in their favorite coffee shop.

Although most of the information you need is posted on the website, it is still important to ask if you have any doubts. Not only would you be better informed of the data entry work opportunity offered. It is also one way for you to determine if the company you are looking into is legitimate. Here are four of the important questions to ask these companies.


Registration Fees


Many companies offering data entry work from home opportunities would require you to pay a registration fee. Inquire as to what the fee is for. Would they be sending any materials or would this be for the software program used? If they did not include information about a trial period, ask the company if it offers a money back guarantee. Make sure that you jot down the specific reasons and the time period you can apply for this.


Payment Methods and Terms


Data entry work from home work opportunities would pay you only for the work completed. Inquire as to the rate you will be paid per form completed. This way, you will have an idea how many forms should be completed for a particular amount. It is also very important to inquire just how often would they be paying you. Would this be done weekly, bi-monthly or monthly? If it is bi-monthly or monthly, when is the cut-off period for the payment? Make sure that you also inquire about the methods of payment. Would they allow payments to be deposited to your online payment account like Paypal, or directly to your bank account?

Hidden Charges

Another important thing to ask the company offering data entry work from home is if there are any taxes or fees deducted from your salary. Many people are caught off guard when they receive their salary and the amount is lower than what they are expecting. Remember that some companies would deduct any bank transfer fees from your gross salary. This is to make sure that there are no surprises when you receive your salary.

Reference Information


The most important thing to ask when inquiring with a company offering data entry work from home is the complete name of the representative you spoke with. Make sure that you get their first and last name before ending the call. In some cases, some companies would advise their representatives not to provide their last name. In this case, ask for their agent number or code to include in your reference. This is to make sure that when you call back in the future and are told a different set of information, you would be able to refer back to the previous agent. Also note down the date and time that you made the call.