McLain Ward won the Grand Prix title for a record fourth time at the Hampton Classic. Several up-and-coming riders also competed.

Some conservatives believe so strongly that the president is Kenyan, the mainstream media decided it was a story.

By Brian Madigan LL.B.

Well, it just doesn’t matter anymore!

No one seems to care. The possible bankruptcies of GM and Chrysler are now taken for granted.

Here are some recent statements by the parties:

• No government financing without further wage concessions (Ontario Government)

• No further concessions (CAW)

• Bankruptcy is now probable (GM and Chrysler)

Just a few months ago, this would have been the worst result that anyone could imagine. Now, it’s worked itself through the system. It has been factored both into the stock market crash and the stock market recovery. Only 22% of Canadians are in support of a government bailout plan for the auto industry. And, while many don’t care one way or the other, there is a clear message that very few Canadians support this bailout at this time. Let them fail, seems to be the common view.

Other than auto workers themselves, and perhaps their suppliers, this topic has lost interest for most. The CAW is viewed as being greedy and uncooperative. Management is viewed as incompetent. Governments are viewed as foolhardy. All in all, this is not a happy picture.

So, let GM and Chrysler go bankrupt. Let’s get on with it. While all this is happening stock markets have been rising this past month. What this means is that the demise of these two former giants in the industry have already been factored into the numbers.

Both Oshawa and Brampton are part of the GTA, so there will be others who can purchase the homes of the distressed workers. The impact on the real estate market will be minimal.

The market in Windsor has been in decline for a decade. Perhaps a consolidated automotive industry will actually spark the real estate market.

At this time, most observers recognize that the North American auto industry is shrinking and there is excess capacity. Something has to give! And, right now, that might mean bankruptcy. What is clear is that there will emerge a new, more efficient and competitive auto industry. The damage to the economy has already largely taken place. The fear was worse than the cure.

In the GTA, the real estate value impact will likely be imperceptible.

Note: comments published mid April 2009

Brian Madigan LL.B., Realtor is an author and commentator on real estate matters, Coldwell Banker Innovators Realty
905-796-8888
www.OntarioRealEstateSource.com

I have obtained a free report that you may find of interest. It’s called The How to Prevent Foreclosure Guide by Leroy Chan, and it’s available without charge from YourCreditRepairStrategies.com.

Chan covers the options available to you when dealing with your lender as well as those relating to the sale of your home. He includes a state by state guide to foreclosure laws, and he recommends some useful resources for home owners facing foreclosure.

Download The How to Prevent Foreclosure Guide

What happens when you buy a car on credit and then default on the credit card?

One of our readers, David, had this question:

What if I buy a 4k car with 1k down (total 5k) on a credit card and then make the minimum payments for a few months before I “can’t” afford them. What happens?

David

David,

If you finance a $4,000 car on credit and then default on the payments, it will ruin your credit. Let’s take a closer look at the situation though.

What happens when you default on a credit card?

Defaulting on a credit card sets a specific path in motion:

1. The credit card company will begin collection activities - This begins with calling your house, and calling you at work or on your cell phone. If you refuse to speak with them, or continue not making payments, you move on to step two.
2. Collection Activities become more persistent - You will get several letters in the mail. If you refuse to speak to your credit card company at all, or tell them they have the wrong phone number, your account will go to what is known as “Skip – Trace”. The skip trace divisions of credit card companies exist to track you down. This means that they will literally call everyone in the phone book who shares the same last name as you do, among other things.
3. Your debt will be sold - After refusing to make payments over several months, and having no contact with you, the bank will most likely cut it’s loss and sell your debt to a debt collection company. Or they will outsource it, and collect a percentage of anything the company manages to get form you.
4. If you refuse to speak to the professional collection company (and they will use even more aggressive and rude contact methods) then the collection company will usually seek a judgment.
5. You will have to go to court and settle your debt, or your wages will be garnished.
6. The only way the debt will disappear after this point is if you either pay it, or declare bankruptcy.

So, that’s the bad route. At every step along that path you will have the opportunity to make a payment arrangement and take care of the debt.

Now with that said, I think what you are getting at is that you want to purchase a car with a serious discount.

If you were to put $1,000 down, finance $4,000, and make the payments for a few months, you could try this alternate step:

1. After making your payments for several months, contact a debt negotiation agency. This agency will represent you to the credit card company, and negotiate to decrease the amount of your debt drastically.
2. In order for the debt negotiation company to do this properly, they may make late payments in order to reduce the total amount of your debt. (Not all companies do this, but some do). It means that you will have late payment records on your credit report. You can challenge those late payment marks later, but there is no guarantee that you can have them removed.
3. The debt negotiation agency will have to close your credit card account in order to negotiate and reduce your debt.
4. You will also need to be prepared to make a larger, one – time lump sum payment. If the debt negotiation company can negotiate the debt down to around 33 cents on the dollar, then that is the payment you will have to be prepared to make in order to get the settlement.
5. Debt negotiation companies can help anyone reduce their debt, even those that probably can afford the payments. However, this method does damage your credit score. You will have to decide whether or not several late payments, a closed credit account, and a record of a settlement on your credit report is worth reducing the $4,000 debt of the car down to around. $1,320.

For help with that decision, I can refer you to a couple of our articles, as well as a debt negotiation expert who can better answer your questions about that process.

Here are the articles for more information:

• The FICO® Score Breakdown - How will these actions impact your credit score? Learn more about how credit scores are calculated here.
• How to Raise Your Credit Score In 7 Easy Steps - If your credit score was damaged from a default, here are some simple steps that will help raise your score back up.
• Can Your Spouse Hurt Your Credit Score? The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly - If you are married, don’t ruin your spouse’s credit with a default. Likewise, do not use a co-signer.

For more information on debt negotiation, you can listen to our interview with Mr. Sam Sky from Debt Negotiation Associates.

You can also ask Sam a question directly by filling out a quick form here.

Thanks for your question!

Carnival Roundup:

Thanks go out to these blogs for featuring our articles in their carnivals this week:

• Carnival of Twenty Something Finances – Oscars Edition! at Stingy Students.
• Carnival of Financial Planning – February 21 2009 Edition at The Skilled Investor’s Blog
• The 25th Bankruptcy & Debt Carnival at Bankruptcy Access
• Money Hacks Carnival: Bailout Edition at Personal Finance Ology
• Best of me symphony at Dodgeblogium
• The Third edition of the Carnival of Everything Money at The Penny Daily

Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc, the company that owns three casinos in Atlantic City (the Trump Taj Mahal, Trump Plaza and Trump Marina), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday February 17.

On paper Trump Entertainment has ets of $2.1 billion and debts of $1.74 billion which means that on paper it can cover its debts. The company missed a $53.1 million interest payment due on Dec 1 and the company has decided to declare itself Bankrupt before the people that are owed the $1.74 billion ask for all their money back.

Donald Trump was against the company declaring itself bankrupt even though he had managed to increase his personal fortune during the debt restructuring that occurred during the two previous times the same Trump company had declared itself bankrupt.

Donald threatened to resign from the Board of Directors on Friday 13th in advance of the Bankruptcy declaration although he still hasn’t publicly confirmed his resignation.

Press reports indicate that Donald’s daughter Ivanka Trump is currently rich and beautiful.

******************************
If you were a part of the Trump Entertainment company and your livelihood was currently on the line, based on what you know about Donald Trump from his TV series, would you put your future in Donald’s hands or in the shareholders hands?
*****************************

Donald Trump played by Bobby

http://youtube.com/user/famousony0utube

follow me on twitter

http://www.twitter.com/jillhanner

Music used with permission

http://ccmixter.org/files/stickymcbiscuit/2586

Letterman – Hookers & Hair & Donald Trump
Donald appears on Letterman on 18th Feb
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozYczqmqyLM

Duration : 0:0:48

Read the rest of this entry »

More efforts to halt home foreclosures have been announced. The AP’s Mark Hamrick reports. (Feb. 13)

Duration : 0:0:53

The peanut processing company at the heart of a national salmonella outbreak is going out of business. (Feb. 13)

Duration : 0:1:19

The Office – Michael Scott declaring bankruptcy.

Duration : 0:0:25

Read the rest of this entry »