Michael Finney's Consumer Blog

Don't get fooled by job scam

 The Federal Trade Commission is going after companies promising federal jobs to the unemployed. The Commission says it has found companies posting job listing for "Postal Jobs," "Wildlife Jobs," "Border Patrol". Here's the federal government's official web site: http://www.usajobs.gov/

Job scam! Don't fall for it!

The old job scam just keeps going and going. Help wanted ads are placed online and off. Great job, great pay, often posted as a government job or government job list. To get in on it, all you have to do is pay. Don't fall for it! Never pay to applying for a job or for 'job testing'. Never!

Discrimination against the unemployed

You know there is gender and racial discrimination but did you know there is now discrimination against the unemployed. New ads looking for workers tell the jobless ‘don’t apply’. Talk about mean spirited. Why would they do that? Apparently these employers believe those without a job deserve it.

Should you pull money out of your 401k?

If you owe a bunch of money to credit card companies and need relief, you may be eyeing your 401k. Bad idea; you’ll pay income tax on the withdrawal, which could put you in a higher tax bracket. You’ll also have to pay a 10% penalty and you must stop making contributions to the account for six months, which means you won’t get your companies matching money.  Without much effort ,you will lose half or nearly half of the withdrawal. Want to see how the numbers add up for you?

>>Check out this 401k withdrawal calculator:  http://www.calcxml.com/do/qua11

Get a second job to get out of debt

There are two ways to get out of debt. The first one you know about and don’t do, spend less. Here’s the second: Get another job. That’s right. Pick up some work. Not only do you make more money, but you have less time to spend the cash you make from your first job. Most people are aghast at working two jobs… that’s why so many are in debt. Want to test the waters? Put an ad on Craig’s list offering to do whatever it is you do; house cleaning, computer repair, landscaping. Make an extra buck or two and soon you’ll be as addicted to the extra cash as you are to spending.

The best time to ask for a raise

Looking for a raise? Don’t just run into your boss’s office and blurt it out. Instead you need to do a little recon.  In most settings the end of the day at the end of the week gets the best results. Your boss is more relaxed, less hurried and can listen to your pitch. However, if your boss has an end of the week meeting with her boss, that may be the very worst time. If you work in a restaurant and the Friday night crowd is coming in, bad timing there, too. So observe your boss for a couple of weeks. When is she less stressed? When does she have time? That’s when you make your pitch.

 

Looking for a job? Hit the highways!

The economy is bouncing back enough that actual products need to be delivered. But the trucking industry laid off so many drivers and sold so many trucks, that there aren’t enough to go around. That means there is an opportunity for the unemployed, either as drivers for hire or as independent truckers.

>>Here’s an article by USA Today

Don’t get sick while unemployed!

Are Californian’s being punished for doing the right thing?  Those who are sick and can’t get insurance through their job can go to companies offering policies of “last resort”.  Responsible people buy these plans rather than show up sick at the hospital and expect the taxpayer to pick up the tab. Well here’s the punishment part: state regulators have quietly given insurance companies permission to raise premiums on these polices. We are talking policies that can cost $20,000 a year and more. The national health care plan puts an end to these types of policy prices, but not till 2014.

>>Here’s more from the L.A. Times
 

The smart way to quit your job

We’ve all had bad days at work, though most of us haven't acted on it like the Jet Blue flight attendant. He may be a working class hero right now, but finding his next job could be tough… that rant and exit through the emergency door is a tough act to follow. So, here is the smart way for you to say “take this job and shove it”. This will save you money and perhaps your dignity.

>>Read more at kiplinger.com

 

 

America’s Heartland is homesteading again

In the town of Beatrice, Nebraska where the first homestead was recorded in 1862, homesteading is back. Those promising to put down roots - build a home, stay for years- can get free land from the government. Beatrice has just been profiled by the New York Times, so it is getting a lot of attention, but it is not the only town allowing homesteading. In an effort to get “new blood” and taxpayers, small towns across the Heartland are offering homesteads. If you want to find homesteading opportunities Google “town” and “free land” and you’ll find modern day homesteading opportunities in Illinois, Wyoming and Kansas.