Why Student Loan Consolidation Is Often The Best Solution For Students

Why Student Loan Consolidation Is Often The Best Solution For Students Student Loan Consolidation is a payment plan that combines all of your loans into a single loan. This way, individuals who are paying for multiple loans would only have to worry about making a single payment to a single lender. This is a great solution for those students who are having difficulties keeping up with the payments of all of their monthly student loans.

Student loan consolidation is also beneficial to those students who have graduated; but find that they're still having difficulties managing the payments of all of the credits that they've amassed while they were still in school. This way of paying for your loans is more organized, and manageable. It also allows you to save some money, because consolidating all of your student loans lower your interest rate.
Students on average, borrow around $10,000 in loans. The average interest rate goes for around 6- 8 %. Now, for those individuals who would choose to have their loans consolidated, this number would decrease significantly. Some may even go down as low as 3-4% in interest rates. Student loan consolidation gives you many benefits. For one thing, this type of payment plan is a long term deal. So this would give you more time to finish paying for your debts.

A longer payment plan also means a lower monthly payment. Most payment plans for student loan consolidations are flexible. This is ideal for those individuals who are in a financial crisis. If so desired, students may increase their monthly payment as their finances would allow. This would shorten the overall time they'd have to make payments. This would also enable them to finish paying up for their consolidated loans as soon as possible.

There is no payment fee required to have you student loans consolidated. The procedure of applying for a student loan consolidation is very simple.
Lending institutions vary in their requirements and specifications for eligibility. Some of the information that is usually asked for is, personal information, list of loans, contact information, etc. Those who are thinking of applying for a student loan consolidation should also look for a lending institution that offers an arrangement that's most suited for their needs. Plus, it would not hurt to compare interest rates to get the best deal.

Applicants for student loan consolidation would have to continue paying for their existing loans while they are still waiting for their applications to get processed. Students can even apply online. Once they have been accepted they would receive a notification email that relates to all of the necessary information that they need, such as: schedules and details about the payment plan.

All of their existing loans will be paid for by the lending institution. This would be advantageous for the borrower since this would show on their credit record. All the borrowers would have to do is to make sure that they keep up with the payments for their consolidated student loans.

Students can always seek out the assistance of a loan councilor to get the advice and evaluation of a loan expert. This way, they would be able to discuss and ask questions pertaining specifically to their case. Student loan consolidation is a great payment plan that helps individuals pay for their educational loans. This is something that should be looked into by students who are having difficulties keeping up, and paying all of their loans. Student loan consolidation just might be the solution to their financial problem.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Why Students Opt for Student Loan Debt Consolidation

Why Students Opt for Student Loan Debt Consolidation Going to college is not easy today. The fees, books, travel all bring up a hefty sum of money that has to be spent for college education. Some people may in fact, have to take out some student loans to cope with all these fees and rising costs. With these loans, there comes with it monthly payments to be paid, and sometimes, this in turn leads to more loans that will be used to pay back these loans.

Usually, the consequences of all these loans are debt, and to come out of student loans, students often opt for student loan debt consolidation. When we speak of student loan debt consolidation, all the student loans will be consolidated into a single loan which is called the student loan debt consolidation loan. With this loan, there is no need of keeping track of all the individual student loans, and to make payments to all these loans. Instead, only a single payment is made towards the student loan debt consolidation loan.

This is the main reason children opt for student loan debt consolidation. They find it rather tedious having to shoulder the responsibilities of studies, day to day living chores and keeping track of all the student loans while making timely payments to the necessary sources. With a student loan debt consolidation loan, all the related tension is reduced wherein the student can concentrate more on their studies, and make the most of their education.

Another reason students prefer to take a student loan debt consolidation loan is that there is usually some savings in the monthly installments of student loan debt consolidation loans. In the various student loans that you take to complete your studies, the interest rates for the various loans will be varied. Some of them may be a bit on the higher side, and some of them on the lower side. With this, the monthly installment for some loans would have been high, and some low.
But with the student loan debt consolidation loan, you find that the interest rate here will be lower than the average interest rates of the other student loans. So the monthly installment for the student loan consolidation loan will be lower than the combined monthly installments of all the student loans.

With the student loan debt consolidation loan, the student will usually have a longer time to repay the loan. In fact, the larger is the combined student loan amount, the longer will the time you have to repay the loan. And the longer is the period; the lower will be the monthly installment you have to pay. However, if you feel that you can pay more than the amount stipulated by the student loan debt consolidation company, you can pay more, and clear the loan within a shorter time span.

With a student loan debt consolidation loan, you stand to improve your credit rating too. This is because there is a chance of missing payments with the many individual student loans. However, with this loan, since there is only a single payment to be made, the chances of missing payments are lower.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Why You Must Apply For As Many University Scholarships As You Can

Why You Must Apply For As Many University Scholarships As You Can Most of the college and university scholarships available today are not awarded based on financial need as they were in the past. The scholarships are also not only awarded for the academic genius, the star athletics superstar, or the captain of the chess club, but they are awarded based on a wide variety of different factors such as the major you have declared (and you can always change your mind!), your heritage, your last name, and many other things. There are even scholarships for left handed students!

The major difference in scholarships opposed to student loans is the money does not have to be repaid at graduation. Student loans are expected to be paid back after graduating. Who wants to start their life in the real world after graduation having a huge financial burden of student loans that now need to be repaid?
Applying for university scholarships can be fun. As an example, the Duck Brand Duct Tape Company holds a contest for students age 14 years and older who are attending a high school prom. Entrance is open to couples only and both parties must be decked out wearing accessories or costumes made out of duct tape. A color photo of the couple together in duct tape attire must be submitted. First place prize is a $3000 scholarship for each person of the winning couple. Another $3000 cash prize goes to the host school. Additional prizes include $2000 for second place and $1000 for third.

The American Association of Candy Technologists sponsors annual $5000 university scholarships. It is open to college juniors, sophomores and freshmen to use for the following academic year. Students who have an interest in confectionery technology (making candy) are encouraged to apply. To qualify, candidates should be attending a four-year university in North America, be majoring in biological science, food science, or chemical science, and have a GPA of at least 3.0.

Have you come up with a great idea or invention? The National Inventors Hall of Fame gives university scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students for inventing new ideas, processes, and technological innovations. The invention must be patentable, and not have been made available to the public or patented more than one year prior to the date of submission of the competition. Submissions are judged on their potential value to society, originality, and inventiveness. Up to four students may work together as a team, but only one prize is awarded to each entry. One lucky winner walks away with the grand prize of $25,000! There is also competition prizes of $15,000, and $10,000 awarded.

The David Letterman Scholarship was established in 1985 to provide university scholarships for telecommunications students. The awards are intended for creative students who make average grades. Winners are judged primarily on creativity. Projects used to enter can be crafted using film, graphics, written, audio, or video. The winner receives a $10,000 scholarship, $5,000 goes to second place, and $3,333 is awarded to the third runner up.

Do not let a lack of funds stand in your way of receiving a quality college education that will gain you a rewarding future. Many university scholarships go unclaimed each year because no students apply for them. Do not let a lack of applying for possible scholarships hold you back from being awarded one (or more) of them.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Why You Should and Should Not Worry About School Loan Consolidation

Why You Should and Should Not Worry About School Loan Consolidation - Unsecured credit card is usually offered to people without requiring them to have a bank account. It also does not require a client to have a minimum maintaining balance for the service to be continuous. This is becoming more popular than secured credit cards, the purpose of which is to gain more clients, including students, in the market. With unsecured credit cards, a student can have a credit card at the soonest possible time unlike that of its opposite where you will be required to present documents before it is issued and approved.

Once you have an unsecured credit card, you can start purchasing items and avail of services with the simple use of your card. Of course, you can only purchase up to the maximum amount of credit approved for your account. The credit card company can increase your maximum credit limit depending on your ability to pay and your standing as a borrower. At this point, you might think of availing for another card so you can enjoy the benefit of spending more but remember not to lose track of all the credit cards you have taken. Sooner or later, you might notice that you have been spending more than you should and more credit card bills are coming your way. At the end, you realize that you are having financial problems which you know should be addressed in the earliest possible time.

Instead of wracking your brains with the best solution to your problem, school loan consolidation may be an option. You start to ponder on the advantages and disadvantages, will this work to your liking? Should you take what is being offered to you? Before you start deciding, you should consider certain things so that you will not regret your decision later. How will debt consolidation be of use to you?
Loan consolidation is also another name for debt consolidation. It is where multiple loans are transformed into a single loan. This is to make it more suitable to the lifestyle of the client to pay it on a monthly basis. There is greater chance for the loan amount to be paid within a longer period of time and at a lower interest rate or fixed interest rate. This way, it would help the client find a solution to his financial worries.

But what are the things that are hidden about school loan consolidation? If you do not religiously perform your obligation in the loan agreement, of course there are consequences. It is true that you will find it very convenient to be paying just one bill but you also have to realize the consequences that you might face by having all your debts consolidated. First, you will be paying for a longer period of time. Though you might be paying lower interest rates, you will be paying them for years. As a student, you will still be incurring debts after debts on top of your student loan, especially if you do not know how to control your expenses.
The choice of having one is something you have to make for yourself and it is not that easy.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Why You Want to Consolidate Student Loans

Why You Want to Consolidate Student Loans The Advantages of Consolidating Student Loans Into One Account:
Being a college student is not simple at all. Between tuition, books, and living expenses, there are many times when money is so scarce that one can barely make ends meet. Keeping up with debt payments appear virtually hopeless. If you are a student who is suffering trouble handling all your debt, consolidation of your student loans may help you better manage your accounts. When you consolidate your college loans, you save a lot of time and effort when it amounts to regaining control of your personal finances. By paying a single loan instead of multiple loans with different expected dates and payment rates, you quite possibly could reduce confusion and delays in your payments. It may even work to eradicate frustration and perhaps produce savings by avoiding late fees.

Under the current system, consolidating your student loans will really get you a fresh loan. How this takes place is that the financial institution that will manage your loan consolidation will pay all your other creditors in full and open a new account for you under their company. Since consolidating student loans means acquiring a fresh loan, you will represent in a good position to negotiate better terms and conditions of loans. In many cases, banks, financial institutions, and private lending businesses will be prepared to present you longer payment periods, smaller monthly amortization and lower interest rates. Technically, longer payment periods will actually make the payment bigger, but since the amortization is smaller you will not truly get much trouble paying back the loan as soon as you graduate and discovered a good job.

Things to Remember When Consolidating Student Loans:
There are businesses who aid free your mind of stress and regain your direction on your education. However, before you select a business to address your debt consolidation, you should first frequent the marketplace or go online to compare the student loans consolidation programs of various federal agencies, banks, and financial institutions. Never cut the chore of comparing the services of these financial institutions unless you wish to finish up kicking yourself when you discover that another institution is granting better terms and conditions. If you keep abreast of the news, you acknowledge that in the present-day economy, every last penny counts.

When consolidating student loans, pay close attention to the terms and conditions of the loan offered up by the financial institutions. Do not simply sign up for anything unless you are certain that you are receiving the better bargain. Make A Point that you receive the best terms and conditions available. Almost all financial institutions are ready to negotiation when it amounts to the terms and conditions of loans. Be for certain to negotiate your terms well. Constantly think that better terms will help you pay for your debts and not become bankrupt as soon as you graduate.

By adopting these easy guidelines you might even realize the long term benefits. A good credit standing will affect purchasing a home easier as well. You will be more inclined to get a better mortgage rate. That may too generate savings that can be used to a achievable early retirement program. The benefits of consolidating your student loans are limitless and yours for the taking.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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You Can Afford To Go To College With A Nellie Mae Student Loan

You Can Afford To Go To College With A Nellie Mae Student Loan - Are you worried you can't afford to further your education and get the degree that you require so that you can take your first step on the career ladder?

If you are then you are not alone. There is no doubt about it: Cost is a major factor in any decision to go back to school. Many students think they can't afford college. If you're worried about your ability to pay, you should apply for financial aid -- even as an adult! There are many sources of help and a Nellie Mae Student Loan is one option.

Let me tell you a bit about their background: Nellie Mae is a subsidiary of the widely known SLM Corporation, also known as Sallie Mae. It is well established and started way back in 1982.

Since then the agency has provided literally millions of students and their families with funding for their college education. Both undergraduates and graduates have benefited and because of the financial burden being lifted off them have gone on to get their degrees and move into well paid employment.

Here Is How It Works
Nellie Mae work with colleges and universities nationwide to provide successful loan programs. They are able to offer convenient online application options, including pre-qualification for Federal PLUS and private loans, Federal Consolidation Loan applications, and downloadable Master Promissory Note (MPN) forms for Stafford and PLUS Loan borrowers.

To help students remain brilliant borrowers, Nellie Mae offers cash-back rewards for on-time repayment. This gives the student a great incentive and allows them to continue having a good credit store as well as having a bit of cash back for simply taking care of their responsibilities in paying back Nellie Mae student loans.
Not only does Nellie Mae find the best funding sources to enable students to get a wonderful college education but they also have many helpful online resources such as loan counseling, and are eager to provide advice and feedback during the whole course of the loan.

How Quickly Can You Get Your Loan?
The good news is that Nellie Mae has a very quick turnaround time for private loan applications. After receiving your completed and signed loan application along with any required supporting documentation it only takes between three to five business days to get a response back regarding available lenders for your loan.
This gives you a bit of an advantage because it means that you will be able to get an answer quickly and start making plans instead of waiting around wondering when you will have an answer. Waiting to find out if your loan application has been accepted is a very tense time so you will really appreciate the quick turnaround. This is especially important if there is a declination so you can quickly make alternative arrangements.

Once accepted, the process is plain sailing. Nellie Mae will simply request certification of your loan from your school's financial aid office. The funding will go directly to the college so that there will no need for additional paperwork and red tape in having to pay the school. This also helps reduce fraud and makes it a quick, pain free transaction.

Who Can Apply For A Nellie Mae Loan?
Apply for a loan is very easy. There are just three basic categories for borrowers of Nellie Mae student loans.
1) Undergraduate students: This is someone who is just entering or returning to college in order to pursue a bachelor’s degree.
2) Graduate students: Graduate students are people who have already received a bachelor’s degree and who are returning to college in order to get an advanced degree such as a Master’s or Doctorate.
3) Parents: Many parents help their children by taking out a loan to fund their childs education.

So if you think that you won't have the money to go to college, think again. With financial aid and some smart planning now, you could be on your way to continuing your education beyond high school and obtain the degree that you need to get a high salaried career. Begin by talking with your parent(s) or guardian, teachers, and school counselor. They are in the best position to help you get ready for college and they will help you to submit a successful application form to Nellie Mae.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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You DON'T Need Student Loans to Go to College

You DON'T Need Student Loans to Go to College
Each year millions of kids will graduate from High School and many look to try and get into college. Their parents have worried for years about how to pay for college. Saving for most families is nearly impossible. By most estimates, college costs have increased an average of 14% a year for the last 10 years. Parents stress levels are at an all time high. They know their kids' future could be at stake because of the money issue. Let's take a quick review of traditional options when it comes to paying for college.

Your Financing Options
When the Family Share of paying for COLLEGE Is More than You Can Afford
There are a variety of financing options available for families who are concerned about their ability to meet their family share of costs. These alternative sources of aid, most often in the form of loans, can help families cover financial aid gaps, or unmet need in a financial aid package.
Student Loans,
Federal Unsubsidized Loans,
Private Student Loans,
Parent Loans,
Federal PLUS Loans,
Federal Grad PLUS Loans,
Home Equity Loans
IRA Withdrawals,
Tuition Tax Credits
These are all most certainly options for being able to pay for the cost of college BUT...

All these options require at least one of a minimum of five things:
1. Borrowing money
2. Filling out mounds of paperwork
3. Affording the LOAN
4. Saving enough money for an IRA in the first place
5. Good Credit

I keep thinking to myself, all this constant worry, stress and pressure could have been easily prevented if families would have just had the information and knowledge of creating a home business to generate income to pay for college for their kids.
Here are several benefits of having a home business to pay for college;
1. Generate a monthly cash flow to save and pay for college.
2. Congress has passed laws giving Thousands of Dollars in Tax Deductions to average Americans who operate legitimate home-based businesses. Thereby creating additional savings.
3. The average American who runs even a part-time home-based business can now qualify for more Tax Advantages than any other category of taxpayer.
4. Pay less taxes than you do now. Don't have a home-based business? Then you are definitely paying way too much taxes. This alone will help most families save more than enough to pay for college.
5. The United States has TWO Tax Systems, and You Just Might be in the Wrong One!
6. Hire Your Family Members to Perform Business Services, and Watch Your Deductions SOAR!

There are all kinds of home businesses to get into. Many can help you generate monthly cash flow and potentially reduce income taxes you pay. However, there are many businesses out there that are scams and you have to do your homework on them to make sure they are legitimate.

One of the best methods to finding a home business is already at your fingertips. A hobby, or interest you have can easily be turned into a cash generating machine that would provide cash flow and keep many families from having to borrow money for college.

Student loans are expensive. Credit is tight. There are better ways. Look to starting a home business and open up a whole new world of opportunity for yourself and your family.
Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Trust funds guide

Trust funds guide A Trust is perhaps the best channel to keep your money and other assets safe and secure for your future generations. It is a lawful creation that isolates your money for specific reasons.

A trust is beneficial even when the grantor is alive and after his death. A grantor, settler or donor is the person who is responsible for settling the trust. Trust funds can be set up by single or a group of individuals. There are always some reasons behind forming a trust. These reasons vary from persons to persons. Besides the grantor, there is or are trustees. These trustees are appointed by the grantor and they take care that the trust is functioning according to the will or wish of the grantor.


The first and the foremost benefit of a trust is the tax saving. A trust can protect the grantor from paying huge taxes and claims. Money kept in abeyance in the form of a trust can be helpful in your old age when you take retirement, when your children need money for higher studies or for the secure future of your spouse or when you plan to do a venture in business etc. The money enveloped in the name of trust is exempted from taxes like the estate tax and the like. The tax subsidy actually varies with the kind of trust you have formed.


Types of Trusts

• If a person is alive and forming a trust then such a trust is called a living trust. Every trust including the Living trusts can be bisected to form the- Irrevocable and Revocable trusts. The former are those where the statements cannot be altered by the grantor during his lifetime and even after that once legally formulated and the in the revocable trusts the settler can change his statements even after they are legally penned down once till the time he lives. For instance a trust set up by parents that provides for their minor children in case any problem grips them. Both these types of trusts revocable as well as irrevocable have their positive and negative aspects.

• There is also the Life Insurance Trust that ensures some kind of financial safety for the survivors in case something happens to the donor. A life insurance trust fund is better than a simple life insurance policy because of the tax exemption. The trust fund is not subject to the cumbersome Estate Tax while when the beneficiaries receive the policy money it is supplemented with this tax. Again there are pros and cons associated with both, it is recommended to take the advise of an attorney before reaching any conclusions.


• Bypass Trust is formed by a couple. When either of the spouses die, the estate is transferred to the other and is taxed and when they both die, it is taxed again.

• Spendthrift Trust- is a trust that allows you the opportunity to let only those people benefit of the money that you think are worthy enough. In simple terms via this trust you can safeguard funds for the individuals you like, no one else can claim them.


• Living Children’s Trust- is the trust to ensure a bright future for your kids. The grantor can add clauses in it like the child will get the funds only when he turns a major etc. and till then the guardian (usually parents of the child) he appoints will take care of the children and the trust fund.

• Charitable Trust Funds- the best philanthropic idea to help the destitute throughout your lifetime and even after your death.

Once you make your mind which trust to go for, make some profound thinking as to who will be its beneficiaries and at what time, about the trustee, what exactly are the terms and conditions, the taxes by the State, should the trust be revocable or not and so forth. After all a trust is your lifetime investment…you need not take any chances!

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Need Some Mutual Fund Info?

Need Some Mutual Fund Info? Mutual fund info is one of the most sought after things on the market when it comes to investing. People are considering this fun option for many reasons. First, what is a mutual fund? It is a way of allowing many investors to pool their money together and to allow a professional investment manager to manage the money in the larger sum. Because more is invested as the group, more money can be made in this situation. But, who, what, where and when are all questions that many people are asking as well. Mutual fund info is right around the corner though.

To have the right mutual fund info, you need to do several things. First, you need a personal knowledge, at least somewhat so that you know what is happening and what could happen with your investment. Knowing what is happening will give you an edge, so to speak. Secondly, you need to find a trustworthy investment manager to use for your mutual fund needs. Many of these funds can be found through your financial advisor. To find a manager of your money, it is wise to compare several companies including their history of management, their fees, and the means in which they will communicate with you.

That said, it is still wise to keep an eye on your personal investment at all times. Nevertheless, there are excellent companies out there that will successfully manage your investments, no matter how large or small to your specific needs. It is wise to take the time to find just the right company. Mutual fund info can be found updated continuously right here on the web.

There are also many information portals now devoted to the subject and we recommend reading about it at one of these. Try googling for “mutual fund” and you will be surprised by the abundance of information on the subject. Alternatively you may try looking on Yahoo, MSN or even a decent directory site, all are good sources of this information.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mutual Fund Expenses

Mutual Fund Expenses - An informed investor knows where his money is going. For an investor in mutual funds, it is essential to understand the expenses of mutual funds. These expenses directly influence the returns and cannot be neglected.

The expenses of mutual funds are met from the capital invested in them. The ratio of the expenses associated with the operation of the mutual fund to the total assets of the fund is known as the “expense ratio.” It can vary from as low as 0.25% to 1.5%. In some actively managed funds it may be even 2%. The expense ratio is dependant on one more ratio – “the turnover ratio”.

“The turnover rate” or the turnover ratio of a fund is the percentage of the fund’s portfolio that changes annually. A fund that buys and sells stocks more frequently obviously has higher expenses and thus a higher expense ratio.

The mutual fund expenses have three components:

The Investment Advisory Fee or The Management Fee: This is the money that goes to pay the salaries of the fund managers and other employees of the mutual funds.

Administrative Costs: Administrative costs are the costs associated with the daily activities of the fund. These include stationery costs, costs of maintaining customer help lines and so on.

12b-1 Distribution Fee: The 12b-1 fee is the cost associated with the advertising, marketing and distribution of the mutual fund. This fee is just an additional cost which brings no actual benefit to the investor. It is advisable that an investor avoids funds with high 12b-1 fees.

The law in US puts a limit of 1% of assets as the limit for 12b-1 fees. Also not more than 0.25% of the assets can be paid to brokers as 12b-1 fees.

It is important for the investor to watch the expense ratio of the funds that he has invested in. The expense ratio indicates the amount of money that the fund withdraws from the funds assets every year to meet its expenses. More the expenses of the fund, lower will be the returns to the investor.

However it is also essential to keep the performance of the funds in mind too. A fund may have higher expense ratio, but a better performance can more than compensate higher expenses. For example, a fund having expense ratio 2% and giving 15% returns is better than a fund having 0.5% expense ratio and giving 5% return.

Investors should note: It is not sensible to compare returns of funds in different risk classes. Returns of different classes of funds are dependant on the risks that the fund takes to achieve those returns. An equity fund always carries a greater risk than a debt fund. Similarly an index fund that invests only in relatively stable and thus less risky index stocks, cannot be compared with a fund that invests in small companies whose stocks are volatile and carry greater risk.

Avoiding funds with high expense ratio is a good idea for the new investor. The past performance of a fund may or may not be repeated, but expenses usually do not vary much and will certainly reduce returns in future too.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Market timing with your mutual funds

Market timing with your mutual funds - When investing in bonds, stocks, or mutual funds, investors have the opportunity to increase their rate of return by timing the market - investing when stock markets go up and selling before they decline. A good investor can either time the market prudently, select a good investment, or employ a combination of both to increase his or her rate of return. However, any attempt to increase your rate of return by timing the market entails higher risk. Investors who actively try to time the market should realize that sometimes the unexpected does happen and they could lose money or forgo an excellent return.

Timing the market is difficult. To be successful, you have to make two investment decisions correctly: one to sell and one to buy. If you get either wrong in the short term you are out of luck. In addition, investors should realize that:

1. Stock markets go up more often than they go down.

2. When stock markets decline they tend to decline very quickly. That is, short-term losses are more severe than short-term gains.

3. The bulk of the gains posted by the stock market are posted in a very short time. In short, if you miss one or two good days in the stock market you will forgo the bulk of the gains.

Not many investors are good timers. "The Portable Pension Fiduciary," by John H. Ilkiw, noted the results of a comprehensive study of institutional investors, such as mutual fund and pension fund managers. The study concluded that the median money manager added some value by selecting investments that outperform the market. The best money managers added more than 2 percent per year due to stock selection. However the median money manager lost value by timing the market. Thus, investors should realize that marketing timing can add value but that there are better strategies that increase returns over the long term, incur less risk, and have a higher probability of success.

One of the reasons why it is so difficult to time correctly is due to the difficulty of removing emotion from your investment decision. Investors who invest on emotion tend to overreact: they invest when prices are high and sell when prices are low. Professional money managers, who can remove emotion from their investment decisions, can add value by timing their investments correctly, but the bulk of their excess rates of return are still generated through security selection and other investment strategies. Investors who want to increase their rate of return through market timing should consider a good Tactical Asset Allocation fund. These funds aim to add value by changing the investment mix between cash, bonds, and stocks following strict protocols and models, rather than emotion-based market timing.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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How to select a mutual fund

How to select a mutual fund - One of the most common ways of selecting a mutual fund is to invest with the crowd in today's hot funds. Unfortunately, jumping from one winning fund to another is a recipe for disaster. The mutual funds that the crowd follows typically have had a hot recent performance and tend to gather all the new mutual fund sales.

Investors as a whole are primarily allocating their new investments to a small number of mutual funds and to a smaller number of mutual fund companies. Investors have invested over $400 billion in the 2843 different mutual funds, but one-third of those assets are invested in only 50 of those funds and one-half of those assets are invested in the largest 100 funds.

There are benefits to following the market leaders. Larger mutual fund companies and larger funds have the ability to reduce costs and attract the best professional money managers. However, the biggest limitation is that today's better-selling mutual fund may not be tomorrow's winner. This is true for any mutual fund but it seems to plague the best seller, and the one that garners the most attention, the most often.

So buying the equity fund that was yesterday's best-seller isn't a strategy that produces excellent returns. You do not have to go fully in the opposite direction and ignore these hot funds, but you should understand their limitations and strengths. They became best-selling funds because they have merit, but you have to access that merit within your own well-diversified portfolio, and not the crowd's current investment trend.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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How To Pick A Profitable Mutual Fund

How To Pick A Profitable Mutual Fund - We have all heard the advantages of investing in a mutual fund over trying to pick individual stocks. First of all mutual funds hire professional analysts that are market experts and devout many hours of study to the various stocks. Unless you want to devout a large portion of your free time to the study of the financial reports, you probably won’t have as much information to make a decision as a mutual fund manager.

Then there is the well documented advantage of diversification. Risk is reduced by holding several non correlated investments. Put simply, some go up, some go down and combined, the return levels off the fluctuations, or risk.

Finally, a mutual fund offers smaller investors a chance to invest in small increments rather than having to save a large chunk of cash to purchase 100 shares of stock.

Given the above advantages, it’s no wonder that mutual funds have become a very popular form of investing. Now there are thousands of mutual funds to choose from, so how does one make a selection? Here are a few tips:

1. Do not be seduced to jump on the recently performing best fund. It may seem like the safe and rational thing to do, but like individual stocks, you want to buy low and sell high, not buy high and pray for more growth.

2. Even good funds may not be able to overcome the force of the overall market. You should be looking for funds that can exceed the broad market without increasing risk. Each fund has certain risk parameters that it is required to follow. Read the prospectus closely to understand what these are.

3. Limit the number of funds that you own. Unless you are trying to simply achieve the same returns as the broad market, diversifying into many mutual funds will not reduce your risk or increase your return by much.

4. Funds that become too popular and too big tend to slip in performance. There are several reasons for this.

Find more valuable mutual fund resources at www.best-mutual-fund.info

One final point to keep in mind is that the type of fund will totally depend on your investment objectives. There are certain funds that are designed for your objectives be they retirement, income, growth, funding the kids college, etc.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mortgage Calculator

Mortgage Calculator - Finding mortgage loan offers in the UK is not difficult. From newspaper advertisements to surfing the Internet, mortgage loans sporting low interest rates and additional benefits to entice borrowers to sign up are literally everywhere. But, when a mortgage offer claims that it can save 'x' amount over the competition, how can you be sure just how much it will save you when applied to your own mortgage loan? Moreover, if the deal offered is short-term, how much will the offer's standard mortgage rates compare with the mortgage rates you are currently paying for your loan? The answer to these conundrums is to compare the mortgage offers against each other, and to do this we need a loan calculator mortgage calculator.

Making comparisons with a loan calculator mortgage calculator

A loan calculator mortgage calculator is a clever little web program that is freely available on many loan and mortgage related websites. The principal behind a loan calculator mortgage calculator is quite simple - input the amount of the mortgage loan into the calculator along with the interest rate applied to the loan and the loan duration, hit the 'submit' button and 'hey presto' you have a schedule of monthly loan repayments. So, for two or more mortgage offers you can enter the loan parameters into the calculator along with your mortgage balance and get an idea of what a particular mortgage offer will cost you each month, as well as what it will cost you in total over the lifetime of the loan.

To accurately compare your loan calculator results for different mortgage offers it is a good idea to print off each set of loan calculations from the calculator and make a side-by-side analysis of them. If the calculator you are using cannot handle multiple interest rates across the life of the loan then you may need to do several calculations to arrive at the final loan cost before making your side-by-side comparison. As an example, if you were to spend say 4 years on a fixed interest rate of 4.5%, and then change to a standard rate of 6.75% you will need to make two calculations - one at 4.5% to work out repayments across the first 4 years, and then a second calculation at 6.75% for the remainder of the mortgage term.

Aside from mortgage loan comparisons a loan calculator mortgage calculator can be used to work out how much of a mortgage loan you can afford in the first place. To do this simply choose a calculator that allows you to 'reverse' the calculation process by entering the repayment amount that you want to pay / can afford to pay each month and the interest rate. The calculator will take the loan input information and from it extrapolate the total mortgage loan you can apply for. Do bear in mind though that mortgage companies are rarely willing to lend more than 3.5 times your salary on a 75% mortgage or any loan greater than 75%.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mortgage Brokers

Mortgage Brokers - When applying for a home loan, it can be difficult to ascertain your options and the best deal out there. Mortgage brokers can help you shop for the best loan for your situation.

Mortgage Brokers

A mortgage broker is an independent professional assisting homebuyers with their mortgage needs. Instead of a loan officer for a bank, a mortgage broker typically works with tens or even hundreds of lenders. This independence lets mortgage brokers hunt for loans that fit the credit history and particular lending needs of a person.

Let’s assume you have less than stellar credit when you apply for a loan at ABC Lender. The lender pulls your credit report and determines you don’t qualify for any of the loans offered by the lender. The lender is going to drop you like a rock and move onto the next potential borrower.

Now, let’s make the same assumption regarding your credit score, but put a mortgage broker in the place of a lender. The mortgage broker is going to look at your credit score, income and overall borrowing circumstance. The broker is then going to give you options and a recommendation regarding the best loan for you. Instead of hoping to get financing, you are now in a situation where you are evaluating the best financing options.

Mortgage brokers can help anyone, but are particularly valuable in two circumstances. The two circumstances are bad credit and document overload.

If you have bad credit, even horrible credit, a mortgage broker is going to be able to hunt down loan options. Many people make the mistake of believing bad credit precludes them from getting a loan. It doesn’t. The loan terms may require more points or a higher interest rate, but bad credit doesn’t preclude home ownership.

For some borrowers, the monstrous amount of paperwork required in the loan process can be overwhelming. When you use a mortgage broker, the documentation is all taken over by the broker and his staff. In fact, mortgage brokers have people known as processors on their staff who do nothing but compile, organize and process all the documentation needed for loans. The do this everyday and are masters of the process.

The decision to use a mortgage broker is often a good one. A good broker is going to help you get the best loan while making the actual loan process a lot easier than going it alone.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mortgage Broker Training Tips

Mortgage Broker Training Tips - If you want to be a successful mortgage broker there are a few things that you can do to increase your chances. There are thousands of mortgage brokers across the world, and to set yourself apart you are going to have to be the best at what you do; there is no two ways about it.

Here are seven mortgage broker training tips that you can follow if you want to be the best in the industry.

1. You do not need to use hundreds of lenders in order to be a successful mortgage broker. Many mortgage brokers think that the more lenders they work with, the more money they will make. By getting five reliable lenders on your side, you will be able to do all of the business that you could hope for.

2. Make sure that you know your lender’s rules and guidelines for loans. After all, if you are going to be selling their loans, you need to know everything about them. Many people make the mistake of skimping in this area. Do not let this happen to you.

3. Stay in touch with your lenders, underwriters, and anybody else that is integral to the loan process. By doing this they will be more inclined to stick with you through the thick and the thin. You can stay in touch via mailers, brief calls, or gifts during the holiday season.

4. Determine what your market is, and how you are going to define it. In other words, know what you sell and stick to it. This includes the loans that you are trying to sell to borrowers, as well as what type of people you will work with. Some mortgage brokers only work with borrowers that meet a certain credit score requirement. This is not a bad idea as long as you are consistent.

5. Try to carve out a niche for yourself. By doing this you will have much less competition to go up against. One example would be specializing in foreclosure loans. Sure, you are going to have competition, but it will not be nearly as fierce.

6. When you are communicating with borrowers and lenders make sure that you are professional at all times. This process can be hard on everybody; but a good mortgage broker can make things seem much easier.

7. Ask people that you know in the industry if they can help you garner new business. This way you will have a marketing technique working for you. This is one of the most overlooked but effective mortgage broker training tips.

Overall, these are only some of the mortgage broker training tips that you should consider. In order to be more successful come up with a list of your own tips to follow.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mortgage Bank Partnering

Mortgage Bank Partnering - Mortgage bank partnering can have distinct advantages for both parties and can lead to many other financially viable partnerships. Mortgage bank partnering can help you to establishing profit sharing in real estate and loan industry. Mortgage bank partnering can help you provide business ownership opportunity through franchising and other means, and can help you by partnering to build a virtual franchise.

Mortgage bank partnering can help you create passive income in real estate and mortgage, or help you in partnering with real estate agents and mortgage professionals to build passive income. Passive income can be creating through mortgage bank partnering by creating sources of income independent from the business ventures that you are actively involved with. Passive income generated can not only supplement your total income, but can help you succeed in other financial ventures, simply by having the resources and experience to branch out to other financial opportunities. Mortgage bank partnering can als.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Mortgage and Home Loans

Mortgage and Home Loans - The expansion in the real estate market has allowed many Americans to become "equity rich." They may not have much money on hand, but they may have equity in their homes worth several hundred thousand dollars or more. Unfortunately, this increasing wealth gave birth at home as equity in cases of theft, as more and more thieves increasingly finding creative ways to help owners of their equity, their homes, or both. A clever scam involves new companies that promise to completely "eliminate" an owner of the mortgage. For a fee of a few thousand dollars, these companies claim that the owner can have a free and clear title to their home without repaying the remaining debt. How does this scam?

This scam is a bit more complicated than other scams that often use simple forgery of identity theft. In this "mortgage elimination" swindle, the owner places his home in a climate of trust with the mortgage elimination of society as a trustee. The trustee files a long and tedious, frivolous, a letter of complaint with the mortgage company, giving them a mere 10 days to respond. If the mortgage company does not respond within ten days, and often they do not, the confidence that these claims are then free from the obligation of mortgage. Using a power questionable procedure, and then the confidence files with the share register for a local release of the house of the title. It thus appears that the house is now without a privilege.

The legality of this range of disorders and of questionable outright fraud. It becomes even worse when the liquidator, clearly stating the title of the house, took a home equity loan, the coffers of the audit, and is rapidly disappearing. The disorder often leaves the original owner of a pile of trial, numerous visits from the police and from the obligation to pay two mortgages. This scam is currently underway in some parts of the country, and is not yet widespread. The owners can easily avoid being taken by this scam by simply recognizing a simple truth, you can not simply give up without a mortgage obligation to repay the loan far. Remember, if it seems too good to be true, it is too good to be true.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Forward Mortgage Basics

Forward Mortgage Basics - As the real estate price are booming up for the last five years, homes are selling for 33% higher than the last few years, this has made more difficult for the home buyers to purchase the homes by making huge payment as lump sum. Over these years many mortgage options are available for the homebuyers that reduces the burden of purchasing the home.

Forward mortgages are also known as traditional mortgage that are used to buy a home, so this also creates debt against your home you purchase, and this affects how much ownership value or equity you have in the home you have purchased.

Debt is nothing but the amount you borrowed from the lender and this includes cash advances that is made to you or made for your benefit along with the interest. Home equity means it is the actual value of your house less of the debts you owe it, incase if your home value is $150,000 and you owe mortgage of $30,000 then the home equity would be $120,000 only that is Rising equity and falling debt.

When you have purchased the home by making a small down payment and mortgage the rest of the amount you require to purchase it, then you must be repaying the forward mortgage loan every month for many number of years, while making the repayment of forward mortgage your home equity gets increased and your debt gets decreased

With forward mortgage you would be using your income for the repayment of debt and this will increase the equity of you home ownership. For borrowing forward mortgage, the borrower has to sign on dotted line for a huge amount of money and should make repayment monthly for a fixed period of years that reduces the amount he owed. To qualify in this forward mortgage the borrower should present his income proof or any kind of asset requirement to prove that he can afford to make repayment, the younger the owner the more amount he can mortgage.

As and when you make your forward mortgage repayment the amount you owe that is your loan balance or your debt gets decreased, but at the same time the value of your home that your equity or home ownership gets increased, ultimately when you finish your final mortgage payment you owe nothing to the lender and the value of your home is equal to the home equity, In brief the forward mortgage is “rising equity and falling debt”


Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Flexible Payment Mortgages

Flexible Payment Mortgages - With most mortgages, your payment is the same every month. But what if your paycheck isn’t so regular? Would you like to be able to vary your mortgage payment depending on your cash flow? An option ARM -- also called a flex-ARM or pick-a-payment loan -- allows you to do just that.

How does it work?
An option ARM is an adjustable-rate mortgage with a twist. You don’t pay a set amount each month. Instead, the lender sends a monthly statement with up to four payment options. You simply choose the amount you want to pay that month and then submit your payment.

The options vary, but here’s the most common menu:

Minimum payment: This is calculated using an “initial” interest rate that can start as low as 1.25 percent. Because this payment is so low, it’s useful for months when you don’t have much cash on hand, perhaps because you are waiting for a commission or bonus check. But any unpaid interest gets deferred, or added to the principal of the loan, so your principal grows.

Interest only: You pay all the interest due, but none of the principal. This doesn’t reduce your mortgage balance, but it allows you to avoid deferring interest.

30-year amortized: This matches the monthly payment of a mortgage amortized over 30 years at your current interest rate. It includes both principal and interest.

15-year amortized: The same as above, but amortized over 15 years. This is the highest monthly payment. Choosing it allows you to reduce your principal faster than any other option.

The fine print
The biggest caveat with option ARMs is that those enticing initial rates are short-lived. The low minimum payments that make these mortgages so attractive can increase dramatically. In addition, every five years, the loan is recast -- that is, a new amortization schedule is drawn up to ensure that the remaining balance will be paid off by the end of the loan’s term. When that happens, the minimum payment can be pushed even higher.

What’s more, if you defer too much interest, you can reach what’s called negative amortization. If your balance grows to 10 percent to 25 percent (depending on state law) greater than the original principal, your loan is automatically recast and you have to start paying the fully amortized rate, which will increase your monthly payments.

Another potential downside of option ARMs is that they’re more complicated than most other mortgages. Home buyers may be seduced without fully understanding how much the minimum payments will increase over the long-term. When the monthly amounts go up, these people can experience payment shock.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Top 7 Youth Fundraising ideas

Top 7 Youth Fundraising ideas - The most important rule in planning a youth fundraiser is to make sure that everybody has fun!

These ideas will work well for a youth group, a church young people's group, non-profit group or a youth sports (e.g. football, baseball) group.

Here are seven ideas to get your fundraising started:-

Sales -if you type in “youth fundraiser” on any search engine you'll find offers to sell cookie dough, pizza cards, scratch cards, candles, sports goods and plenty more. Depending on the age of the children and the type of group, the locality, consider which of these are likely to be well received in your area. Using existing contacts with family, neighbours and friends alone can be quite profitable.

Car wash - this can be a profitable way to raise funds. It will need good planning. A great free guide to organising a successful car wash event is available from www.carwashguys.com , called “How to run a successful car wash fundraiser” and is written by Lance Winslow.

Fundraising auction - clear out the garage, spring clean the house, ask for donations - and then auction!. Publicise your auction well in advance around the neighbourhood, invite friends and family, have a printed list of auction items and get someone you trust to run the actual auction itself for you.

Sponsored event - such as a walk, sleepover, or 24 hour sports event - your young people will have their own ideas as to what they'd like to do!

Photos - arrange for a photographer to come for a day or evening. Book a time slot for families, children, publicise the event. Arrange a good level of commission on all photographs purchased and ensure plenty of flyers are available to distribute.

Website advertising - does your group have a website? Could you set up a free blog to keep people informed? If so, consider selling advertising space to local suppliers who may be interested - e.g. the local sports shop.

Dance/Disco/Live Music/Barbeque/Casino event - any event that will work for your locality. Obviously, some church youth groups might find a casino night inappropriate. However, most of these are suitable for young people to help to arrange and to attend.

For other ideas to raise money, get your group together and do a little brainstorming. Everyone will have ideas that they can contribute and this will help to get them involve in the fundraising effort.
Remember to follow some simple rules:-

• Never go out fundraising alone, but always in groups of at least two.


• Have some printed information about your project and how much you are planning to raise.


• Involve as many friends and family members as you can - they will want to support what you are involved with.


• Have fun!

Thanks for visiting our hints and tips on organizing a youth fundraiser.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Top 7 fundraising ideas

Top 7 fundraising ideas - Have you been given the job of organising a fundraising event and are stuck for ideas? Here's seven great and simple ideas that you can organise:-

Cookie Dough fundraisers

This is an ideal fundraiser for all times of the year. Just take orders and sell tubs of delicious cookie dough to your group. Profit margins 30-50%.

Fundraising Cookbooks

Often described as a recipe for fundraising success (groan!) - creating a personalized cookbook is ideal for groups such as churches, schools, charities and hospitals. New publishing techniques make it easy to profit from selling just a few or even hundreds of cookbooks. Profit per book from $3-$10.

Pizza Fundraiser cards

People will be happy to pay for these cards which entitle them to free pizzas. If your group is spread out geographically, this may be ideal. Ideal for small groups due to small minimum order requirements. Profit margins 70-90%.

Scratch card fundraising

Easy to order and can be printed to link to your group e.g. basketball, baseball, high school, etc. Each person in your group begins fundraising with 1 scratch card. They simply approach friends, family, and neighbors and ask them to scratch too! Profit ranges from 90% upwards.

Fundraiser candles

Everyone loves candles and especially scented candles! Simply take orders from friends and families - these items are especially good for Christmas fundraising. Profit margin 50%

Candy fundraising

Ideal for easter or summer fundraising events - sales of candy can be profitable. You can sell the chocolate at school, pep rallies, sports events, businesses or just person to person. Profit margin 50-60%.

Fundraising brochures

Brochure fundraising allows you to raise money by offering products from color brochures to family, friends, neighbors and business associates. Ideal for Christmas fundraising. Profit margins 40-55%.


These fundraiser ideas are great, for:-

• high school fundraising


• college fundraising


• cheerleading fund raising


• fundraising for youth groups


• sports group fundraising

Set yourself a target, establish a plan of action, involve parents, teachers and students and go for it!

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Three Great Fundraising Event Ideas

Three Great Fundraising Event Ideas - These three fundraising events work well for any size group. To maximize your success, you must create awareness within the community of both the specifics of your fundraising event and the reason why your group is raising funds.

Both are important to any fundraiser, but they are absolutely critical for pulling off a successful event. You have to generate enough publicity to draw a sizable audience and you must motivate the attendees to support your program.

So, which fundraising events shall we talk about?

Three Event Ideas:

1- Get The Picture
2- Rubber Duck Derby
3- Clean Comedians

#1 - Get The Picture
Get The Picture is a name I coined for portrait event fundraisers. The idea here is to offer family portraits, glamour shots, vintage photos, and other "dressy" pictures.

You'll need a central location with plenty of room for costume changes, picture-taking backdrops, and a waiting area. The best times are usually Saturdays. Pre-sell the event with flyers and reserved session" tickets.

You'll want to get photo commitments up front from 250 people to make this worth your while.

Your sales pitch should "Focus on the Fun:"
Capture The Moment (before it slips away)
Dress up Picture Party (be there or be square)
Goofy Faces Wanted! (yours included)

Or tug at the heart:
When's the last time you sent a family photo Christmas card?
They're not getting any younger... Get a portrait!
Mother/daughter, Father/son - Pictures last a lifetime!

Your group can coordinate with a local photographer or partner with a national photography chain. One that I recommend is Vista Studios. They offer a 10x13 family portrait for $8 and your group gets paid $6, plus additional performance bonuses.

#2 - Rubber Duck Derby
The Rubber Duck Derby is an easy and fun fund-raising event that can be scaled in size to fit your group's supporter base. The actual event, crazy as it may sound, involves racing rubber ducks down a local waterway.

Your local community "adopts" the ducks for a chance to win valuable donated prizes. Duck races have become a unique and profitable event for many charities.

Your group sells a ticket linked to a number that's painted on one of the racing rubber ducks. Depending on the prizes involved, tickets are priced somewhere between $5-$10 a ticket.

A standard size for a race is 3,000 rubber ducks, but you can adjust that up or down depending on the size of your group and the amount you need to raise.

Large plastic bags full of the ducks are simultaneously emptied into the water. The winning duck is the one that floats to the finish line first.

It adds a little extra zing to the old-fashioned raffle ticket sale. Prizes can also be awarded in various categories to add to the festivities. Many groups organize their "race" around a group picnic near the waterway and make a leisurely afternoon out of your fundraiser event.

A company called Great American Duck Races can supply you with everything you need.

#3 - Clean Comedians
The third of our fundraising events is Clean Comedians. They offer over 50 performers capable of meeting almost any entertainment need. These hilarious entertainers will have your audience rolling with laughter -- and no one will be offended!

All you need to coordinate is a hall or auditorium and arrange an audience. Sell tickets up front or at the door. If you want to make additional funds, you can also offer food items as well.

If your group is small, partner with another organization and split the profits. Many groups are reporting record giving with this unique "Bucks through Yuks" approach.

Hundreds of schools have used Clean Comedians for years to provide top quality entertainment for their students. From stand-up comedians and impressionists - to musicians, magicians, and jugglers - their performers provide outstanding, clean entertainment for any group.

Not only are these guys hilarious entertainment, but each performer also has several messages focusing on important issues students face today.

Performances can be arranged at this web site: Clean Comedians

Special Events - Wrap-up
Pick an event that suits the talents and size of your group. Then, focus your energies in getting your message out to your potential supporters. These fundraiser events will do the rest.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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The Real Thing About Fundraising

The Real Thing About Fundraising - Fundraising is both challenging as it is rewarding. Raising the needed fund for a worthy cause is indeed spiritually and emotionally satisfying. Every school organization may want to extend a helping hand to those folks who are in dire need. The prospect beneficiary could either be a charitable institution, an orphanage, a community project, and the likes. However, no matter how pure the intention is, school funds can be exceptionally tight. Even the school itself needs aid from people who have a kind heart to give out donations.

When your school organization aims to help out through whatever possible means regardless of who or which is the beneficiary, fundraising is just the most precise thing to do. Is it not much fulfilling on your part to put out the best possible effort you can in order to earn money for a specific cause or if you’re earning money to help others? Of course it is!

Confused of which fundraising strategy to go for? There are a lot of fundraising ideas to opt for which may either be simple or a bit complicated. As a matter of fact, it is usually the simplest plan which works best.

What can fundraising do for you?

Due to the fact that fundraising stirs the best out from you, the feeling of being able to help the needy is particularly spiritually and emotionally gratifying. Fundraising campaigns are as well beneficial for your organization as it heightens the return of good and positive feedbacks that your group may get.

Apart from all other glorifying aspects which fundraising generate, one’s creativity, organizational skills, communication dexterities, and firmness as likewise enhanced. During fundraising ventures, you and your group mates get the chance to interact with people from all walks of life and be able experience for yourselves the real score outside of the world which you are traditionally confined in.

Fundraising Ideas

There are a number of fundraising ideas that your school organization can choose from. The most common fundraising ideas are selling sandwiches, candy and chocolate bars, shakes, beverages, meal coupons, concert tickets, basketball game tickets, discount coupons, personalized shirts, mugs, pens, and other collectible items, and so on. Cooking and then selling the output from the recipes you have collected can also be effective. You can try selling them to the school’s population or to the outside community. Your organization can even team up with the school’s sports games and earn profit from the ticket sales. Or, your organization may stage a concert for a cause. Garage sale and car washing is also among the trendiest fundraising activities these days.

Things to Consider in Fundraising

After finally deciding on which fundraising idea to go for, there are two major things which must be borne in mind. The first thing is to carefully think about the percentage of profit that you will make out of the fundraising activity. When your organization had opted to team up with another organization or some company, the agreement must be put into writing.

Next, it is significant to make sure that the products you put up for sale for the fundraising campaign are worth it. Once the people know for a fact the real cause for the fundraising activity, they tend to be exceptionally generous.

Any fundraising activity needs careful planning. For the campaign to be highly successful, it is important that all members of your organization should concert enough effort for the realization of the specified goals.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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The Importance of Location in Fundraising

The Importance of Location in Fundraising - Location, Location, Location!

There are few things that are more important than location. It not only
applies to real estate, but to fundraising too.  Here are some tips to
expand your horizons when trying to maximize your fundraising efforts.

Traditionally, fundraising efforts are concentrated on:
-Friends
-Neighbors
-Relatives
-Co-workers

Besides the usual suspects, there is a whole lot of money in other places right under your nose.

You have to go where the money is. The big money in fundraising is being located where people are shopping. They are out and about with cash or checkbooks in hand.

There's no better time than that for offering a quality fundraising product at these locations:
-Drugstores
-Home Improvement Stores
-Grocery Stores
-Shopping Malls

Drugstores - Nice entry-level sales spot. Generally have good sidewalk space available.

Home Improvement Stores - Big weekend traffic spots. Lots of do it yourselfers diving in to their next project.

Grocery Stores - Prime hunting grounds for product fundraisers. A small, high-quality food item does real well here.

Shopping Malls - Hard to get approval for outside space, but a location near the food court is golden.

And don't forget the 800-pound gorilla: Wal-Mart - The Holy Grail of fundraising locations. A day spent fundraising in front of this high-traffic retailer is like being in fundraising heaven. You'll have more potential prospects than you can shake a stick at.

Because of the sheer volume of Wal-Mart shoppers, you'll
need oversize signage to get your fundraising message across quickly before
your prospects hurry on in

Casing the Joint Ahead of Time
You want the best location for your weekend fundraising table. Scope out the lay of the land. Check which entrance gets the most foot traffic.

Find out who is in charge at this location. Often it's the store manager, but occasionally it might require approval from the regional manager or
shopping center management. Don't expect them to drop everything to speak with you. If necessary, set up an appointment to seek permission

Be prepared with a two-minute overview of
Who - Tell them who you (and your group) are
What - Describe what your fundraiser involves
When - Have a primary date and an alternate one picked out
Where - Identify the exact spot you'd like to use
Why - Give the specific reason you are raising funds
How - Summarize your proposed activities at their location

It's a good idea to have everything written up in a well-prepared letter. Stick to the basics as described above. If you have group letterhead, use it!

Make sure that everything will go smoothly. Ask for the name of the contact person for your chosen date. Get permission, preferably in writing, just in case the weekend manager didn't get the memo.

Setting Up for the Big Job
After you've cased the joint, you want to be prepared to pull off your fundraising bank job.

Location - There is often a separate set of entrance doors. You want to stake your claim right there. There should also be plenty of room for people to get by.

Signage - Look for good places to hang your signs and posters. They should be bright and bold with wording visible from thirty feet away. Highlight major benefits of the product and be sure to identify your purpose

Table Space - You want a large folding table, preferably 36x72. Place folding chairs on the side away from the door. Use a full-sized tablecloth to improve presentation.

Staffing - Schedule your fundraising teams with overlapping adult/child pairs. You want two adults and two children covering each 90-minute shift. Stagger the start/departure times by 30 minutes to avoid resource shortages.

Pulling It Off
To really break the bank, you have to have everything well planned. Timing and presentation are everything. You only have 30 seconds to capture your prospects attention and convince them to stop. Your fundraising should be well thought out in these areas:

Product - Make sure to choose a high-profit, cash and carry fundraiser. Fast food discount cards are excellent. So are quality food items such as cookies and gourmet treats like fudge. Sales items should be small, highly portable, and attention getting in their own right.

Samples - Product samples should be well-displayed and readily offered to each prospective client. In the case of food items, plates or trays of small nibble-sized morsels should be offered by the children involved.

Presentation - Sell the sizzle, not the steak! Accentuate product benefits, not features. Would you rather have a juicy, mouth-watering, flame-broiled Whopper or a hamburger?

Sales Patter - Talk a good game! Work from a loose script. Write down your best talking points as itemized bullets. Keep it short and simple. Tell them about your cause and be sure to ask for their help

Location Wrap
As you've seen, a great location delivers hundreds of potential customers right to you. All you have to do is stake your claim to the prime turf and go for it!

Don't wait for your next fundraiser to suddenly grow wings. Plan ahead and pull off your own bank job instead.

Maximize your fundraising success with location, location, location!

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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The Hard Task Of Coming Up With A Fundraising Idea

The Hard Task Of Coming Up With A Fundraising Idea - When trying to get a fundraiser set up probably the hardest decision you will encounter is trying to decide which fundraising idea will work best for you. Choosing a fundraising idea is not as easy as one may think with the variety of ideas available. Many companies do business supply products as fundraising ideas for various organizations. Not only will you have to decide which product to sell, but you have to choose one of the many ways to conduct fundraising.

Some of the fund raising ideas for the product itself range from chocolates, cookies, candy, pet supplies, magnets, candles, books, posters, and the list goes on. Your next step will be deciding how you are going to get these products to the people. Maybe your fundraising idea will be to sell from door to door. This has the advantage of talking to the people face to face about your fundraising, but be prepared that everyone you talk to will not welcome you with open arms and will close the door in your face.

Another fundraising idea you have is direct mail. This is not by selling a product, but by asking directly for donations. It can be a bit costly because letters have to be made up. To have these done properly, they should be done by a marketing firm, which can cost you more than you anticipated. This fundraiser idea will have to have self addressed envelopes included for donors to respond, and there is really no way of telling how much money your fund raising will solicit from the donors out there.

Out of all the fund raising ideas that are out there the donation boxes as got to be among the easiest and the cheapest way to coordinate a fund raiser. This is where you place containers in the businesses around town. These boxes are usually clear with the group’s name printed clearly on the container. Be prepared though, the drawback for this fundraising idea is that the boxes fill up very slowly and you can’t depend on this for your whole fund raising. This fundraising idea is a supplement for other fund raising ideas.

Another way to make a fundraising idea work is to team up with other groups. In this way you have all the fundraising help you need and the results can really pay off. Combining schools and churches for instance can make a very successful fund raiser. There are many more fundraiser ideas that you can explore. It is you that will have to decide which fundraiser ideas will work best for you and your cause.

There are lots of fundraising ideas, but you have to know what you need, plan it and do it well for it to succeed.

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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The Four Major Forms of Fundraising

The Four Major Forms of Fundraising - Fundraising is, without a doubt, extremely challenging work. For any of you with experience in this line of work, you will understand what I mean. For the rest of you, go out and volunteer your time with a local non-profit organization. After that, I think you will understand. While this can be a challenging profession, it continues to be quite rewarding in many respects. This article was drafted with the new fundraising coordinator in mind. So listen up, kids!

There are four major forms of fundraising. When one mentions fundraising to the average person, the image of a well-meaning person going door-to-door begging for support immediately comes to mind. While most of us have been there at some point or other, there is a lot more to this business than meets the eye. And yes, my friends, this is a business. We are in the business of managing relationships; relationships which, more often than not, are the key determining factor for success.

The first major form of fundraising is dealing with institutional grantors. These organizations are often the most difficult to deal with, due to the inherent bureaucratic nature of these types of organizations. On the other hand, grants and endowments from these organizations can often amount to incredible sums of money. For this reason alone, they should not be dismissed. You may have to invest a lot of time and energy into convincing these institutional organizations into supporting your particular cause, and this where the business of managing relationships comes into play. A single grant from one of these groups could secure the future of your non-profit activities.

The next significant form of fundraising is the promotion of special events and product sales. While this area could potentially include thousands of ideas, there is a central theme between them all. What is the donor getting in exchange for their donation? These types of fundraisers are labor intensive, and require a lot of detailed planning. In the case of event planning, spend the majority of your time on ticket sales. While you may want to obsess over every little event detail, it won't really matter if people do not show up.

Direct marketing is another one of the major fundraising types. This approach includes direct mailings, telemarketing, paid advertising, public service announcements, and door-to-door canvassing. Direct marketing can be extremely effective, as it affords your organization the ability to reach out to a vast number of potential donors. In this area, it is crucially important to have a reliable donor list. There is no point spending resources trying to ask individuals or organizations for donations, if they are not connected with your cause in some way. Be sure that your direct marketing efforts are highly targeted, and you will undoubtedly achieve the desired results.

Last, but not least, we explore the idea of approaching individual donors. This approach is very similar to that of institutional donors, but it is geared towards well-to-do individuals. Individual donors can contribute to your cause in a number of different ways. One area that is common to individual donors is the planned gift. In simple terms, this refers to the choice of an individual to leave a portion of their estate or life insurance policy to your organization. Approaching individual donors should be left to your more experienced team members. As we mentioned before, fundraising is the business of managing relationships. A mentor once told me that "80% of your money should come from 20% of your donors". Wise words, indeed!

Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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Important Fundraising Tips To Remember

Important Fundraising Tips To Remember - Fundraising doesn't have to be a challenge if you have a good product, are well organized, and have a good attitude. Try to put yourself in your customers' shoes, treat them how you would like to be treated. And always remember you are representing your team so be on your best behavior. Keeping all this in mind, here are some great tips to help you have a successful fundraiser.

Organizational Tips

• Identify your organizational needs and fundraising goals
• Motivate your organization and members
• Relay the organizational goals to the parents and participants
• Begin planning the logistics of distributing the products to the participants, and eventually, to the supporters

Helpful Hints

• Set a daily goal based on how much time is available
• Practice your sales presentation with your participants
• Show customers the Order Form so they can see the various team options
• Be helpful if the customer is indecisive, and be prepared to offer a suggestion
• Keep a copy of your customers' name and purchases for next year's fundraising drive

When selling be sure to follow these steps:

• Introduce yourself, (Hello, my name is_____)
• Tell the person why you are fundraising (We are trying to raise money for our football program…)
• Ask if they would like to buy multiples of your items.
• Tell them your item is a great, inexpensive gift for fans of any age
• Be sure to thank the customer (Even if they do not buy any of your items - remember you are representing your team and town.)

Most people are more than willing to help you in your fundraising efforts. They have probably been in a few themselves. Always remember to thank them and wish them a pleasant day. A good product and good service will quickly bring you success in your fundraising efforts.


Source: PLR College Scholarhips

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