Some co-signers have had their lives severely disrupted when the borrower for whom they co-signed stopped paying, leaving it up to the co-signer to make the loan good. Most of the mail I get on the subject is from co-signers in this situation. They now regret they did it, and they invariably ask me how they can get out of it.Jack M Guttentag

In a world of economic instability and corporate upheaval, savvy professionals like the technology consultant Josh So epitomize the benefits of brushing up your online image and keeping it polished.

When Mr. So, a 32-year-old from Dublin, Calif., learned he had 45 days to find a new job before his company eliminated his division, he turned to friends online.

Within hours of updating his job status on the social-networking site LinkedIn, Mr. So won four job interviews through his contacts there. Within a week, two of the interviews resulted in offers. And within less than a month, his employer counteroffered with a position in another division and a $25,000 bump in his annual salary.

The old business adage that it’s not what you know but who you know takes a twist in the Internet era: it’s what you know about social-networking sites that can get you ahead.

“Build your own inner circle of people you know are good — people you know will get you places,” Mr. So said.

While it lacks the glamour of more popular sites like MySpace and Facebook, LinkedIn “is the place to be,” said the JupiterResearch media analyst Barry Parr, if you want to make professional contacts online. LinkedIn is a “Chamber of Commerce mixer,” he said.

LinkedIn has more than 25 million members, and it is adding new ones at the rate of 1.2 million a month — or about one new networker every two seconds.

With that kind of mass demographic, LinkedIn is hard to ignore. But with that kind of scale, can it be useful? It can be if you use it judiciously.

LinkedIn is intended to appeal to its average user: the 41-year-old white-collar professional with an income of $109,000 a year. User pages are spare: a brief professional summary, a photo and a résumé.

As you create your network, the site shows you people you may know through past jobs or educational institutions. (Facebook also suggests contacts, but it starts with lists from your e-mail or instant messaging accounts.)

And there is a search function so you can find people you don’t know but would like to — for instance, at a company where you want a job.

You might be shy about calling or e-mailing people you have neglected, but the social-networking sites let you avoid that. You are simply renewing the connection when you add a contact.

Bernard Lunn, a Web technology entrepreneur in New York, describes LinkedIn as the ultimate Rolodex.

“I’m no spring chicken,” said Mr. Lunn, 53. “I’ve been in business for almost 30 years. I had lost touch with a lot of people and had spent time in different industries.”

The Web site did the work of finding people for him, providing a list of likely connections by searching its own database of people who had overlapped with him at past jobs. All Mr. Lunn had to do was review the list and select contacts he wanted to add to his network.

“Some of them are now doing very useful jobs,” he said.

That’s the point. You don’t have to fear you’ll be perceived as using them; they are on the site for the same reason. They might well intend to use you.

Even so, don’t go crazy trying to connect with everyone you brushed past in the hallway 20 years ago, or friends of friends. Too many people can weaken your network.

“We try to discourage promiscuous linking,” said Kay Luo, a spokeswoman for LinkedIn.

But don’t be afraid to network strategically. You want to connect to people who can get you jobs. “People usually invite up — people above them in hierarchy,” said Ms. Luo. “When you’re talking about a professional network, quality is so important.”

So if the No. 1 tactic is to connect with people who are useful and successful, how do you make sure you’re one of their worthy connections? There are a few helpful approaches.

Ask for recommendations. Mr. So, who so quickly parlayed his connections into job offers, said that having updated recommendations with his résumé on LinkedIn was crucial to being noticed.

“The only way to get recommendations is to go out and ask for it,” Mr. So said. “It’s kind of a weird system. I typically go to my bosses and peers and say, ‘Do you mind?’ ”

The flipside of that system is that it behooves you to be generous. Jeremiah K. Owyang, senior analyst at Forrester Research, has watched the growth of online social media since 2005 and advises social-networking users to follow an 80-20 rule. “Give information and answer questions 80 percent of the time, and 20 percent of the time ask for help,” he said.

When a contact asks for a recommendation, write it graciously and promptly. If you think that person isn’t worth a recommendation, think again about being connected to that person.

And remember the other social-networking sites. If LinkedIn is the Chamber of Commerce luncheon, then Facebook is the after-hours party (and MySpace is the all-night rave, which may make trolling for business connections there a bit trying). “Facebook seems a more natural way of communicating,” said Debra Aho Williamson, senior analyst for eMarketer in Seattle. “LinkedIn seems more formal.”

Facebook, which began in 2004 as a way for college students to communicate, has more than 80 million active users. The fastest-growing segment is now those 25 years old and older, according to the company.

The site makes it easy to carry on a casual conversation or ask group questions. The easiest way to use it professionally is to join your employer’s network. And it helps to post interesting links that are relevant to your job.

The site features classified ads in the Facebook Marketplace, and there are job-hunting applications on the site, like Jobster. There are also tools for building a professional profile or online business cards. And you can use one of a handful of applications, liked LinkedIn Contacts, to connect your Facebook profile to LinkedIn.

But the social ease of Facebook makes it easy to look frivolous, all of the experts warned. If you tend to overshare, people in your network will quickly learn about the breakup of your marriage or your love of Jell-O shots. (Facebook now offers fine-tuned privacy settings, on the upper right side of the home page.)

So perhaps the best tip of all for online social networking would be: Keep the social separate from the networking.

source:sara jane tribble

Amy Cunningham’s first boss at a Minneapolis public relations firm was a yeller and a micromanager, a tough challenge for a new employee just out of college. After a series of unpleasant incidents, the boss finally exploded when he found out Cunningham had put together a media kit without showing him the separate pieces before assembling it — a routine task she’d done many times before.

The boss stormed into her office, got in her face, yelled and cursed. “He tried to throw out any personal insult he could come up with,” Cunningham says. “I’ve never been in another situation, business or social, that was that scary.”

It all worked out. Cunningham approached another executive at the company and got reassigned. The boss left a few years later, and Cunningham stayed on–15 years, and counting.

Having a bad boss is more than an annoyance. It’s the main reason people leave their jobs. Increasingly, that’s a tough choice these days. A new survey from Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate, says that more than 50 million workers feel some pressure to stay with a bad boss because of the current economic downturn.

“It’s difficult to handle [uncomfortable] situations without taking some type of risk, and that’s why a lot of people choose to ignore or live with it,” says Manny Avramidis, senior vice president for global human resources at the American Management Association.

So if your boss is a jerk and you feel you have no choice but to stay, how do you cope? Here are some basic tips:

The best way to deal with a micromanager is to update him frequently. E-mail the boss a memo or checklist of what you’re doing on a project so the boss is reassured, and check off your accomplishments as you go.

For instance, if the boss assigns you a report to write and then dictates what exactly you should have in it, tell him, “You’ve given me enough guidance. Let me take a shot at it and I’ll come back after I have a rough draft. Can we talk about the rough draft when it’s done?”

Dealing with an unpleasant boss can be uncomfortable, if you choose to address the situation by confronting him. Weigh the problem and how much bringing it up with him might affect your career. If your boss is a yeller and is creating a tough–or even hostile–working environment, say something like, “These aren’t the conditions I work best under. Let’s talk about a way to make them better.” If that approach doesn’t bring results, seek advice from Human Resources.

Sometimes a boss who’s perceived as a dummy can actually be good for your career. Use cluelessness as an opportunity to gain more responsibility. Ask if you can take on more projects and even help manage the team.

“For people who like to take initiative, that can be a great thing,” says Gini Graham Scott, author of A Survival Guide for Dealing with Bad Bosses.

Meanwhile, others find that they’re directionless without a boss’s guidance. If that’s the case, gently force the boss to critique your work and ask you questions.

Ideally, vet your boss before starting a new job. If you’re in the final rounds of interviews with an employer, use networking to find someone on the inside. Ask about the person you’re likely to work with. What’s his skill set? Does he respect the views of his employees? Does he delegate or does he drive people crazy with questions?

Finally, ask the following to flush out any facts your source didn’t spill earlier: What do you like–and not like–about working here?

If you don’t like what you hear, don’t take the job.

source:tara weiss

Over six years of undergraduate and graduate education, Johnsen had taken out $140,000 in student loans, which her grandmother co-signed against her mother’s wishes. After Johnsen earned her master’s degree from a prestigious arts program at New York University, she assumed she’d make the median salary cited by the school’s financial aid counselor — $65,000. Instead, she couldn’t find a position in her field paying more than $30,000.

Johnsen, 26, has both federal and private loans. She put them on forbearance twice, and has now exhausted all the forbearance offered during the life of the obligation. “The interest is capitalized at the end of each forbearance period, so at the end of two years there was an additional $20,000 to $30,000 on top of the loans I took out,” she says.

Johnsen recently started a new job as a media assistant at a New York art gallery that pays $35,000 — or just over $1,800 a month after taxes. On Sept. 1, she begins a 15- to 20-year repayment plan. For the first two years, her payment is $527 a month. “Then it increases to 900-something,” she says. “By that time I’m hoping to be able to further myself with the company.” She still takes medication for anxiety and depression.

A Subprime Education

It’s time to banish the notion that all student loans are “good” debt. These products unquestionably offer the opportunity to boost one’s career — college grads make 60 percent more than those with only a high school diploma. But the changing nature of the private student loan industry — which in recent years doled out dollars with the enthusiasm of subprime mortgage lenders — makes it critical for students to assess the risk, and borrow with a realistic idea of future earnings potential. In fact, these loans are worse than subprime mortgages, because they can haunt the borrower for life.

During the 1990s, average student loan debt doubled. Two-thirds of graduates now leave school in the red, with average borrowing of $21,000, according to the Project on Student Debt. Ten percent of graduates from four-year, private, nonprofit institutions had debt of $40,000 or more.

Private loans, which typically carry higher interest rates than federal loans, have grown at an average annual rate of 27 percent in inflation-adjusted dollars since 2000-2001, according to the College Board. Private loans comprised about one-quarter of the student loans made in 2006-2007 — up from 6 percent a decade earlier.

Risky Business

“Federal loans offer fixed, low-interest rates and a lot of borrower protections in repayment,” says Lauren Asher, associate director of the Project on Student Debt. “Private loans have limited consumer protections and variable interest rates that can go very high. It’s a little like going to a payday lender — you’re paying a huge amount to get cash, and that can follow you through your whole life. They can be even more risky than credit cards, because private student loans can’t be discharged in bankruptcy.”

Some 54 percent of students polled in 2004 said they would have borrowed less if they had to do it again — up from 31 percent in 1991, according to the Project on Student Debt.

While Johnsen is an extreme example, consider what happens to the 10 percent of students who leave four-year private institutions with $40,000 in loans. Let’s say the graduate earns the 2006 median income of $46,435 a year — or $3,382 per month after taxes. I asked Mark Kantrowitz, founder of FinAid, a college information website, to create a few scenarios contrasting public and private loans, paid back over different periods of time.

By the Numbers

The borrower who repays his loans over 10 years will face a monthly bill of $460 to $551, or 13.6 to 16.3 percent of his income. (See the tables below.) The borrower who repays over 25 years will pay $278 to $392 a month, or 8.2 to 11.6 percent of his income. The private-loan borrower who pays back his debt over 25 years will pay nearly twice the amount of the loan in interest.

All Public Loans,
6.8% Interest Rate Monthly Payment % of Take-Home Pay Total Interest Paid
10-year Repayment $460 13.6 $15,239
25-year Repayment $278 8.2 $43,288
All Private Loans,
11% Interest Rate Monthly Payment % of Take-Home Pay Total Interest Paid
10-year Repayment $551 16.3 $26,120
25-year Repayment $392 11.6 $77,608
Note: The federal Stafford loan has a 10-year repayment, but the term can increase to 12 to 30 years if the borrower consolidates and chooses extended repayment. Private student loans tend to have 20- to 25-year terms.

“Ten to 15 percent of income is typically considered affordable,” Kantrowitz wrote me in an email. “So $40,000 in debt is within the range of affordability, although one would probably need a 20-year term on a private loan to make it affordable. But do you really want to still be repaying your own education debt when your children are about to enroll in college?”

read more: laura rowley

It’s a rare individual who wouldn’t like to make a bit (or a boatload) more money each year. It’s not as if most people don’t try: They work hard. They endeavor to boost their performance—and, it seems to follow, their pay—with training programs and career coaches and workplace mentors. They even schedule weekly tête-à-têtes with their bosses to measure their progress and reassess benchmarks.

The truth is that some factors correlated to higher pay are impossible for a person to control. Studies show that taller people make more money, but can people increase their height? Similarly, can a man become a lefty after decades as a right-handed man? Can a woman become a man? What’s more, there are factors in how you behave outside the office that are associated with higher pay. For example: If you like rum in your Coke, you’ll make more money. (It is, at least, a good argument against prohibition.)

Men seem particularly affected by salary advantages and disadvantages that aren’t related to work performance. Consider the premium paid to some lefties. While researchers at Lafayette College and Johns Hopkins University found no wage difference between left-handed and right-handed women, left-handed men who have some college education average about 13 percent more than right-handed men. Lefty males who are college graduates average as much as 20 percent more than their right-handed counterparts.

A report from the Reason Foundation found that while male and female drinkers make more than nondrinkers, men who hit the bar at least once a month—thereby satisfying the definition of social drinkers—seem to make even more.

Married men tend to make more than men who have never been married. Researchers at the Federal Reserve of St. Louis found there may be a few reasons for this. For one thing, employers may have a bias in favor of married men because marital status might signify a man’s stability or responsibility. Old-fashioned or not, another possibility is that marriage frees men up to focus on work, rather than on household tasks. The most likely reason, however, is that the observable qualities that appeal to an employer are similar to those that appeal to a mate—characteristics such as background, education, and appearance.

Men who choose to go into Christian ministry will find that they dominate the field but make less than their female counterparts. A survey of church employees conducted by Christian Today International’s Your Church ministry found that women made up only 6.3 percent of full-time solo pastor positions, but they reported 10.4 percent higher total compensation.

Women are generally acknowledged to be underdogs in the compensation world, but a report from American Association of University Women Education Foundation noted that women choose college majors that pay less—majors such as education, psychology, and healthcare. Men choose more lucrative majors, like engineering and mathematics.

The pay difference has, however, undergone a surprising shift in some metropolitan areas. Andrew Beveridge, a sociology professor at Queens College, found that New York women in their 20s earned an average of $7,000 less than their male counterparts in 1970 but were making about $5,000 more in 2005.

A 2007 study from University of Northern Iowa looked at 2000 census data and found that cohabitating lesbians earn about 10 percent more annually than married women. They also earn more than cohabitating, unmarried, heterosexual women.

Perhaps the research that suggests the most potential for control over pay has to do with hours logged. Two MSN-Zogby polls found 37 percent of workers with household incomes of $100,000 or more report working between 41 and 50 hours a week, while only 8 percent of those with household income less than $25,000 work as many hours. Of course, there’s plenty that could explain this, as illness, old age, and disability can affect a worker’s hours. But there may be some hope that putting in the time will pay off.

Liz Wolgemoth

Acquiring an established brand might be the easiest way for Chinese companies to get a foothold with upscale U.S. car buyers, because in that segment perception trumps reality, experts say, and even five or 10 years down the road, the idea of a Chinese-branded luxury car made in China might be too tough of a sell with those shoppers.

“The public will buy most brands that are sold to and managed by other companies no matter where they’re located, so long as they maintain the same ’shape and feel’ to the product,” R.L. Polk’s Miller says. “The question here is whether the consumer will look under the hood and see a lot of Chinese script on the engine, or are they going to be able to tell that it’s still a Volvo?”Forbes

Crunching the Numbers

Some jurisdictions are performing blanket reviews and proactively cutting property taxes on homes purchased at the market’s top. Los Angeles County, for example, says it reduced assessments on 128,000 homes, with average savings of $750. California’s Proposition 8, adopted in 1976, allows for reductions in assessment due to declining home values.

“It’s not common — we did this in early ’90s, but haven’t had this type of real estate recession since that time,” says L.A. County Tax Assessor Rick Auerbach. “L.A. County reviewed everything purchased in last three years, as did most counties in the state.”

Tax offices are also inviting homeowners in declining markets to do the research and send in a challenge themselves. Craig Withers, a banker, bought a three-bedroom, 2,200-square-foot home in January 2007 in a suburb of San Diego. “I guess you could say I caught a falling knife,” he says. “When I bought, prices were already 10 to 15 percent off their high — then they kept falling.”

Withers received a notice from the assessor suggesting he log on to its website and follow the instructions to seek a reduction. “They wanted recent sales comparable to your home and what you thought your property was worth,” says Withers, who ultimately won a 10 percent cut in his assessment. (Property taxes are determined by the home’s assessed value multiplied by a local tax rate.)

Take the Challenge

The National Taxpayers Union estimates that just 10 percent of homeowners nationwide protest their property assessments, but many more could benefit from a challenge.

“It depends on the jurisdiction, but there are accounts of properties being 30 to 60 percent over-assessed,” says spokesperson Pete Sepp. “Some have to do with losses or gains of market prices, others with sloppiness or inaccuracies, others with the changing character of the neighborhood — in that the classification of properties is no longer accurate.”

An estimated 30 to 50 percent of appeals are successful, says Sepp. “People shouldn’t be intimidated by the appeals process — it’s like traffic court. Think about it as if you’re protesting a parking ticket,” he says.

With big hikes in property taxes in recent years, though, this protest can add up to much more than a parking violation. According to the Taxpayers Union, the most successful challenges come from long-time homeowners who have never viewed the factors that went into their tax assessment or the worksheets used by the assessor.

“Maybe you tore down a screened-in porch three years ago — that’s a simple error that can be fixed without a formal appeal,” says Sepp. “You may also want to consider an appeal if home sales have taken either an upward or downward turn, or there have been major new developments around your neighborhood on previously vacant land.”

Reassessing Values

That was Aimee Bennett’s basis for appeal. The Colorado homeowner was one of the first residents to purchase in a new development in 2003, which was surrounded by vacant lots. “The assessor’s office even admitted they didn’t have a lot to go on — they had to base the assessment on houses that were kind of nearby, but not really. A few miles away it’s a whole different [neighborhood]),” she says.

Properties in her area are reassessed every two years. When the Bennetts received their 2005 valuation, they noticed that it surpassed home sale prices in the same period. Bennett consulted a local website to run comparisons; you can also find comparable sales by asking a real estate broker or using a website such as Yahoo! Real Estate’s Home Values page. (Homeowners can also hire professional appraisers — just check if your jurisdiction allows it, Sepp says.)

“I went online and found all of the [recently sold] homes,” says Bennett. “It took me time to walk all over the neighborhood, and I wrote down numbers of the homes that matched our model.” She asked for a reduction of 20 to 25 percent in the assessed value of her home, and got 15 percent.

An Appealing Prospect

You may also have grounds for an appeal if your home has a unique flaw that differentiates it from your neighbors’ houses. Maybe it’s the only house on the street with a railroad running behind the backyard, or it’s on a busy corner where there’s minimal street parking. In that case, bring supporting evidence to the assessor’s office, such blueprints, building records, or photographs.

Timing of an appeal is important; the filing deadline is typically 60 to 90 days after receiving either your notice of assessment or your property tax bill — and some jurisdictions require you to file in as little as two weeks. There may also be a fee for filing an appeal. If you lose, you can appeal to a higher authority, typically a state board.

For a first appeal, don’t hire help, experts say. Earlier this year, the L.A. County Assessors Office warned consumers about companies charging anywhere from $99 to $999 to file appeals. “Within California, the person can fill out a simple form saying ‘this is the property address and I think it’s worth less than the assessed value,’” says Auerbach. “It’s a simple thing any taxpayer can do easily.”

Homeowners may want to hire a professional if the challenge is declined, and they must appeal to a higher level, Auerbach adds. If you do hire an attorney, try to find one willing to work on contingency (in which the firm would receive a percentage of a successful reduction).

No Boom, No Bust

Meanwhile, if you feel your property has been overvalued, it’s not a bad idea to check in with the neighbors. Counties will sometimes reduce assessments in an entire area if they receive enough appeals. That was the case in Wake County, N.C., which includes the cities of Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and Cary, where some homeowners were pleasantly surprised by an automatic reduction in their assessment.

“If we get a high number of appeals in a certain section we sometimes will go back and adjust the entire section based on the grade or quality of construction — so the appeal of a few may affect several,” says Marcus Kinrade, Wake County appraisal/collection manager. The county does a revaluation every 8 years, and only 8 percent of homeowners appealed following the re-assessment that ended this past January. Residential property values rose 43 percent countywide since 2000.

“We didn’t boom here as much as other places — it was very steady and controlled growth,” says Kinrade. “Sales are slowing down, but because we didn’t boom like other places, we weren’t as affected when things went bad.”

Laura Rowley

2006 Mercedes-Benz R-class

Courtesy: Daimler AG
6-month value drop: $6,275

Est. private party value: $22,250

Mileage: 22 mpg Hwy, 16 mpg City

It’s no secret that used SUV prices have been collapsing as gas prices have shot up. But now prices are dropping for used crossover SUVs, which get better mileage, but are still thirstier than cars.

Some of these crossovers — SUV-like vehicles with smaller engines and car-like engineering — have been on the market long enough so that redesigned versions are out. That also means big discounts on the old versions.

We worked with analysts at Kelley Blue Book to find a few gems that this pricing drop has unearthed. If you’re in the market, this could be a great time to pick-up a relatively fuel-efficient used crossover.

Check out the Mercedes-Benz R-class. In just the past 6 months, values have dropped by $6,275. That reflects the trouble the R-class has had finding its niche in the American SUV market.

“There has been such a proliferation of vehicles in the Mercedes-Benz line-up that the R-class has taken a hit,” said Jack Nerad, managing editor of Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com Web site.

Longer and lower than its close relative, the M-class SUV, the R-class looks a lot like a minivan with van-like spaciousness. But inside you’ll find the opulence you expect in a Mercedes-Benz SUV.

2006 BMW X5


6-month value drop: $7,162

Est. private party value: $36,960

Mileage: 21 mpg Hwy, 15 mpg City

When BMW engineered the X5, the automaker didn’t want to damage its legendary reputation for driving enjoyment. The X5 manages to keep BMW’s brand character unblemished with decent interior space and practicality to boot.

Besides the general decline in crossover values, the X5’s price plummet probably has something to do with the recent introduction of a newer, more powerful version.

The introduction of a redesigned vehicle almost always leads to a steep drop in the value of used versions of any given model, which has created a real buying opportunity here.

2006 Infiniti FX45

Courtesy: Nissan Motor Co.
6-month value drop: $6,162

Est. private party value: $27,734

Mileage: 18 mpg Hwy, 14 mpg City

Like the BMW X5, used FX45’s are getting hit by competition from Infiniti’s recently introduced FX50. With a different-looking new version out there, used FX45 buyers can no longer pretend they just bought a brand-new vehicle.

The FX45 may also suffer from its unimpressive fuel economy figures. There are larger, roomier SUVs out there that go farther on a gallon.

Nonetheless, FX45 buyers get sharp-looking design and an engaging driving experience.

2006 Acura MDX

Courtesy: Honda Motor Co.
6-month value drop: $6,036

Est. private party value: $22,177

Mileage: 23 mpg Hwy, 17 mpg City

The Acura MDX benefits from parent company Honda’s well-earned reputation for reliability.

But, again, a new, improved version is pushing down prices of the now old- seeming last-generation MDX.

That just means you’ll pay even less for a vehicle that gets very good fuel economy for a seven-seater, while earning top-notch crash-test ratings all the way around.

2007 Cadillac SRX

Courtesy: General Motors
6-month value drop: $4,493

Est. private party value: $22,641

Mileage: 24 mpg Hwy, 16 mpg City

Like the Mercedes-Benz R-class, the oddly shaped SRX has suffered from a lack of understanding.

“That’s a vehicle that, I always thought, looked a little awkward, but, man, I like the way it drives,” said Jack Nerad, managing director of Kelley Blue Book’s automotive data Web site KBB.com.

The SRX offers the interior space of a mid-size SUV with the handling of a large luxury station wagon.

2006 Volvo XC90

6-month value drop: $4,332

Est. private party value: $28,958

Mileage: 23 mpg Hwy, 17 mpg City

The XC90 was redesigned for the 2007 model year and got a more powerful engine, but the old 2006 model got slightly better fuel economy.

As expected from Volvo, the XC90 also has outstanding crash-test ratings and electronic stability control is standard equipment.

2007 Kia Sportage

6-month value drop: $4,334

Est. private party value: $13,287

Mileage: 28 mpg Hwy, 23 mpg City

Kia and its Korean sister-brand Hyundai have long suffered from poor resale value. If you own a Hyundai or Kia, that’s bad. On the other hand, if you’re shopping for a used vehicle, it’s all the better.

Visit the Loans Center
Hyundai and Kia offer some outstanding, safe and fuel-efficient vehicles that you can buy cheap from the used vehicle lots at your local dealer.

The Sportage and the largely similar Hyundai Tucson are just two examples. Both are nice to drive while offering excellent fuel economy and crash safety.

2005 Toyota Highlander

6-month value drop: $3,457

Est. private party value: $15,928

Mileage: 27 mpg Hwy, 22 mpg City

Last year, Toyota rolled out the newer, bigger Highlander. That’s put additional pressure on the prices of used Highlanders, which don’t offer the comfortable third-row legroom of the new ones.

Toyota’s strong reputation for quality and fuel economy means that, even in this market, Highlander prices are holding up relatively well. But used models are still a real bargain.

You get a smooth, car-like ride and handling, excellent crash safety and outstanding fuel economy.

Ford Escape

6-month value drop: $3,185

Est. private party value: $15,770

Mileage: 29 mpg Hwy, 24 mpg City

The Ford Escape has always been a popular crossover SUV. For the 2008 model year, Ford introduced a “re-skinned” version. It then introduced more significant upgrades for the 2009 model, which is just now hitting showrooms.

That means prices are getting pushed even lower for the now ancient-seeming 2007 Escape. Even in the non-hybrid version, car-like fuel economy remains a high point.

2007 Suzuki Grand Vitara

6-month value drop: $2,726

Est. private party value: $12,573

Mileage: 23 mpg Hwy, 18 mpg City

When it comes to vehicles with four wheels and a roof, Suzuki suffers from an unfortunate lack of brand recognition. When you say “Suzuki,” what comes to mind for most consumers, is a motorcycle.

But for used car buyers, that means low prices for the company’s cars and SUVs, which have become quite competitive.

In this case, the handsome Grand Vitara, surprisingly rich in amenities and featuring a powerful V6 engine, looks like a steal at for something as new as a 2007 model.
CNN

No panic moves, mind you.

Instead, put your portfolio through its paces to make sure it’s doing what it needs to do to help you reach retirement in good financial shape.

Here are four pieces of advice worth taking:

1. Consider Being More Aggressive

Recent events notwithstanding, stocks perform better than other investment vehicles over time. The typical stock fund averaged a 10.4% annual return from 1926 to 2005, compared with 3% for inflation, less than 6% for bond funds and less than 4% for Treasuries. And while stocks can be volatile, the risk of holding them diminishes over time.

Stocks have outpaced both bonds and Treasury bills during more than 75% of rolling five-year periods since 1926, according to Ibbotson Associates, a Chicago-based investment research firm owned by Morningstar. Look at 10-year periods, and stocks won 85% of the time. For 15-year periods, the percentage jumps to 92%. Your allocation to stocks should match your time horizon and risk tolerance.

Remember: your target date should not be the year you retire. Your retirement may well last for decades, and during that time your portfolio will need to grow enough to stand up to inflation, including rising health-care costs. Bottom line: Even as you approach and pass the end of your working years, don’t be afraid to emphasize growth — meaning stocks.

2. Expand Your Horizons

Today’s 401(k) plans tend to offer a broad array of investment possibilities. Consider whether your portfolio is taking advantage of them. Investment vehicles such as emerging-market stocks, high-yield “junk” bonds and small company stocks offer superior growth over the long run. They may seem risky — and in isolation they are. But when you hold them with other investments, they can actually reduce your overall risk. That’s because these asset classes tend to zig when other segments of the financial markets zag. As a result, they can help smooth out the year-to-year returns of your portfolio even as they increase your potential for long-term gains.

3. Identify Losers and Overlapping Funds

Review each fund in your portfolio, and compare it to others in the same category both inside and outside your plan. For example, how does your small-cap growth fund compare with other funds that hold shares of small growth companies? (You can find this info at websites such as Lipper.com, Morningstar.com and fund-company or 401(k) plan sites.)

Compare both returns and volatility over one, three and five years, with an emphasis on the longer term. While you’re at it, look for fund overlap, which occurs when two funds are concentrated on the same stock or sector. For example, if you hold several funds that have invested heavily in technology stocks or long-term bonds, you could be overexposed to a decline in those sectors.

4. Coordinate Your 401(k) With Other Accounts

Let’s say that your plan’s options in some categories aren’t appealing. In that case, consider investing in the plan’s strongest funds, then diversifying into other categories through an IRA or taxable accounts.

The bottom line: As a retirement account, your 401(k) should focus on the long term. But tweaking your holdings can improve that long-term outlook — and might also offer some shelter from the market gyrations that will occur in the meantime.

source:yahoo finance

What’s more, the borrowers who need to refinance the most - because their adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) are resetting to higher interest rates - are among those having the most trouble winning approvals.

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“I’m turning away about 60% to 75% of the clients who come to me for a refi,” said Bob Moulton, president of Americana Mortgage Group on Long Island, N.Y. “Some don’t have enough equity and others have bad credit scores.”

During the boom years, lenders approved most anyone with a pulse. Not so today. Mortgage brokers recognize this and are now being very selective about the clients whose applications they choose to submit to the likes of Wells Fargo or Bank of America.

If an applicant has poor credit, or a home whose value is rapidly deteriorating, they’re just not going to bother.

“If the person is Sweet Polly Purebread - good income, good assets, high credit score - there’s money out there,” said Moulton. “But if not, then it’s harder.”

Interest rates are way down - 5.67% is the going rate for a a 30-year fixed loan this week, according to Freddie Mac. That has generated a spike in refinancing applications.

Total mortgage applications were up 73% last week from a year earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), and 69%of those applications were for refis. Last February, when interest rates were about 6.3%, about 46% of applications were for refis.

The make-or-break metric for anyone looking to refinance right now is home equity - the difference between what is owed on a house and what the house is worth. But with home prices down, many homeowners have little of that precious commodity left.

“If you have an 80% loan, with a 10% home equity loan, you may not be able to refinance,” said Peter Grabel, a mortgage broker in Connecticut - especially in down markets.

Consider a homeowner who bought in Miami a year ago with 20% down. Home prices have fallen 15% there in the past year, wiping out three-quarters of the equity. Lenders, who want collateral that’s worth more than the value of the loan, are wary about having so little cushion. If they have to repossess and resell the house, they’re on the hook for a big loss.

“No lender would take that deal,” said Marc Savitt, president of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers. “It’s a lot different from two years ago.”

The bar has also been raised for credit scores when it comes to refinancing, according to Grabel. And sometimes, it’s not a matter of whether someone can get refinancing but at what price.

“Those with high credit scores are getting very good rates, but the lenders have heightened the requirements to qualify,” said Grabel. Instead of a score of 680 for the best rate, a borrower might need 700 now.

For example, Grabel has a client who wants a cash-out deal. The client has lots of equity in his house but a dismal credit score - 552.

“I used to have 20 lenders I could send him to; now there’s maybe one,” said Grabel. “The rate, though, will be high, higher than what he’s paying now.”

The only reason that this client will take the deal is because he’s going through a divorce and needs to buy out his wife. He doesn’t have time to rebuild his credit rating, but he’s lucky that at least his house appraises well.

Indeed, appraisals are another tool that lenders are using to eliminate unqualified applicants.

“It used to be a formality,” said Grabel. “Now it’s, ‘Lets do the appraisal first and see what value comes in.” Lenders are scrutinizing them to a degree unheard of during the boom. They don’t want to lend $160,000 on an appraised value of $200,000 unless they’re sure the house is truly worth that.

Ted Grose, a past president of the California Association of Mortgage Brokers, said lenders now often conduct what he called “bench reviews” of appraisals. “They have an experienced, independent third-party go over the appraisal to make sure the numbers are accurate,” he said.

Grose called many of the applicants he sees “very challenging, mostly because of high loan-to-value ratios.”

Many of these people took exotic loans to get into high-priced properties. They used hybrid ARMs that are resetting to higher rates, or interest only loans.

Particularly deadly are option ARMs, which act as negative amortization loans; the payments don’t even cover the interest and the balance grows over time. Combine that with falling home prices, and the loan balance may be more than the home’s market value.

Under those circumstances, said Grose, few borrowers can be helped.

Source:yahoo personal finance