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No wonder Americans find car buying stressful. One Edmunds.com survey found that 33% of respondents would rather go to the DMV or do their taxes than participate in the car-buying process. Going in unprepared can make a tense situation that much worse. To find your perfect car and close the deal without succumbing to pressure tactics, you need to be ready to cope with common car salesman tricks. 1. The Lowball / The Highball This tactic works two ways: the lowball is when the salesperson offers a ridiculously low trade-in price on your vehicle, and the highball is when the salesperson offers you one of their own vehicles for a ridiculously high price....

Bi-Weekly Payment Plans Your lender probably offers a bi-weekly mortgage payment plan, where you make a half-payment every two weeks instead of a full payment once each month. By paying bi-weekly you’ll make 26 half payments, or 13 full payments each year—one more than you would make by sending the lender traditional monthly payments. Every dollar of that extra payment can go towards reducing the principal balance of your loan, the balance that future interest calculations are based on....

This belief likely stems from long-term returns of stocks versus the returns from bonds. Historically stocks have a higher return but are also more volatile than bonds. Bonds offer lower returns, but also offer lower historic volatility than stocks. When considering this risk-reward statement, it would seem that you need more risk to make more profit, but it’s not true for the day trader. The Mathematical Root of the Myth When looking at absolute percentages, the risk-reward assertions seem accurate....

There are some restrictions on the type of property that can be depreciated using bonus depreciation. These restrictions are meant to make sure that the property was bought from an external unrelated source. What is Depreciation? Depreciation allows (or requires) businesses to spread out the cost of long-term assets over the life of the asset. The alternative would be to take the cost of the asset in the first year after the asset is acquired by the business, but this....

While overconfidence is blinding, successful traders don’t trade in fear, because fear is also blinding. That level of confidence, where you see the market for what it is, step in whenever there’s an opportunity, cut your losses when it doesn’t turn out, and sit on your hands when conditions aren’t right, is the confidence that can be lost after a losing streak. After a losing streak or big loss, you may begin to question yourself, which leads to all of the typical problems that many new traders have, like getting out of trades too quickly, holding on to them too long, skipping trades with the fear of losing, or getting into more trades than you should, in an attempt to get some winning trades....

Most businesses work with an attorney to write the bylaws. Still, it helps to learn about bylaws and why they’re important to running a business and maintaining order in an organization. What Are Bylaws? Think of corporate bylaws as the overall guiding principles for operating the business. These principles direct the board of directors in their work to oversee the day-to-day operations of the corporation. Alternate definition: Bylaws are rules put in place by a society to regulate its members and maintain civility....

The Debt Collection Law The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is the federal law that defines what third party debt collectors can and cannot do when they’re collecting a debt from a consumer. The law, passed in 1977, doesn’t address many forms of modern communication. Text messaging, for example, wasn’t introduced until 1992, 15 years after the FDCPA was passed, and the law hasn’t been updated to address collection activity via text message or other modern communication mediums....

Merchants suffer substantial losses when thieves make fraudulent credit card purchases. By checking IDs, merchants are simply trying to avoid losing money and protect their customers. In many cases, though, they aren’t aware of credit card company policies about this issue. Card Processing Network Policies In most instances, merchants are not allowed to require an ID for credit card purchases. They can ask for your ID, but they cannot refuse to accept your credit card if you don’t show your ID, as long as your credit card is signed....

Does the SavvyMoney website look familiar to you? That’s because it used to be DebtGoal, a free site dedicated to getting you out of debt. The new site is totally revamped and offers some great tools, calculators, and an easy-to-use interface that will help you knock out your debt fast. Advantages One major advantage of this financial tool is that you will quickly become very familiar with your credit score, as well as your interest rates on all debt....

So, what if someone is willing to help you build your Roth IRA? Can they contribute money to your account? The short answer is yes. But there are some rules you’ll have to keep in mind. Here’s what you should know. How To Contribute to Someone Else’s Roth IRA If someone wants to contribute money to your Roth IRA, there are two ways they can do so. They can simply give the money to you so you can add it to the account, or you can give them the details needed to add money directly into the account....

Background It’s called piggybacking. As an authorized user on someone else’s credit account, the account history will then appear on your credit report. If the account on which you are an authorized user has a positive credit history, you can see a boost in your credit score. If you don’t have a good credit score, adding several of these accounts can increase your score enough to get approved for a loan or offered a better interest rate....

Here’s what to keep in mind when going robo. What Do Fans and Critics Say? There’s a lot of good in the robo-advisor model. “It’s democratized the investment management market,” says Will Trout. Trout is the author of the report, “Looking Under the Hood: Robo Advice, Portfolio Risk, and Regulation.” “You no longer need to have $5 million to get the attention of a market advisor—you can be a millennial with $10,000....

What Is a Credit Card Concierge? A credit card concierge is a service offered to those who own top-tier credit cards. These include cards such as the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card and The Platinum Card from American Express. Both companies advertise that their concierges are available 24 hours a day and can help out with a variety of tasks in your daily life and as you travel. Along with standard requests such as theater tickets and hard-to-get restaurant reservations, concierges can also help with other needs, such as planning a birthday party, arranging a marriage proposal, and even helping coordinate medical care....

Consumers carrying the Chase Freedom Flex or Chase Freedom cards can now activate these categories to earn increased rewards on their spending in the new year. From Jan. 1 to March 31, 2022, cardholders can earn 5% back on their first $1,500 in combined purchases across the two categories. If that spending threshold is met, cardholders will earn $75 in cash back in those categories, plus unlimited rewards on each card’s ongoing cash-back categories....

CEO Duties & Responsibilities The job duties of a chief executive officer (CEO) in a company or organization vary depending on the organization’s mission, product, goals, and operational needs. Duties also vary depending on the size of the organization and the number of employees, among other factors. In general, these responsibilities include: Creating, communicating, and implementing the organization’s vision, mission, and overall directionLeading the development and implementation of the overall organization’s strategySoliciting advice and guidance, when appropriate, from a board of directorsFormulating and implementing the strategic plan that guides the direction of the business or organizationOverseeing the complete operation of an organizationEvaluating the success of the organization in reaching its goalsLooking at potential acquisitions or the sale of the company under circumstances that will enhance shareholder valueRepresenting the organization for civic and professional association responsibilities and activities in the local community, the state, and at the national levelParticipating in industry-related events or associations that will enhance the CEO’s leadership skills, the organization’s reputation, and the organization’s potential for success...

China’s economy is measured by its gross domestic product. In 2020, China’s economy shrunk by $4.2 trillion to $125.65 trillion. Here is China’s growth rate by year, showing how it has slowed since the 10.6% growth in 2010: 2010 10.6%2011 9.6%2012 7.9%2013 7.8%2014 7.4%2015 7.0%2016 6.8%2017 6.9%2018 6.8%2019 6.0%2020 2.3% Causes China fueled its former spectacular growth with massive government spending. The government owns strategically important companies that dominate their industries....

However, it’s an important part of starting a business that you should not skip. One survey found that people who created a business plan were twice as likely to successfully grow their business and attract lenders or investors than those who don’t. Business plans come in many shapes and sizes; your goal is to convince individuals to buy into your vision, and there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to that. However, there are a few common elements no plan should lack....

Learn more about conflicts of interest so that you can be proactive and avoid them when possible. What Is a Conflict of Interest? A conflict of interest involves a person or entity that has two relationships competing with each other for the person’s loyalty. For example, the person might have a loyalty to an employer and also loyalty to a family business. Each of these businesses expects the person to have its best interest first....

Coins are cryptocurrencies native to a blockchain and crucial to its working. Cryptocurrency tokens are enabled by smart contracts that operate on an existing blockchain platform and can be traded like cryptocurrency coins. In most ways, coins and tokens work the same way, and some cryptocurrency users may not know they are using one or another. However, this fundamental difference influences transaction costs and the currency’s technical processes. Keep reading for a more in-depth look at cryptocurrency tokens and coins, so you know the key differences....

Predicting the cost of borrowing is hard. Interest rates for business lines of credit might run anywhere from 5% to more than 20%. Learn about lines of credit and how to find one for your business. What Is a Business Line of Credit? A line of credit is a pool of money you can draw from as needed. When a lender approves your application, they give you a maximum credit limit....