Monday
Aug302010

Say Good-bye to Unreasonable Late Fees and Interest Hikes

DateMonday, August 30, 2010 at 11:26AM

The CARD Act of 2009 required the Federal Reserve to provide new credit card protections for consumers.  Many protections went into effect earlier this year, but the latest series of regulations went into effect on August 22 and include:

  • Penalty Fees, such as late payment fees or over limit fees, cannot be more than the infraction itself (i.e. if you went over your credit card limit by $5, the penalty cannot be more than $5).
  • Credit card companies can no longer charge inactivity fees for not using your card.
  • Credit card companies are now required to explain the reason for any rate increase on your account.
  • Credit card companies are now required to re-evaluate any rate increase every six month and reduce the rate within 45 days of the evaluation if appropriate.

For more information about the CARD Act of 2009, visit http://www.federalreserve.gov/creditcard/.

AuthorKaren W. Ingle | Comments Off |
tagged , , , ,
Friday
Aug272010

The Three D’s of Identity Theft: Deter, Detect, and Defend

DateFriday, August 27, 2010 at 12:40PM

DETER:

Most of us have heard the warnings about identity theft and know many of the ways to deter it.  However, in the interest of being thorough, let’s review them again.

  • Safeguard your Social Security Number.  Despite the use of the word “social” in its name, a social security number should never be shared except in its official capacity.
  • Verify the identity and purpose of anyone wanting your identity information.
  • Cross-shred, or otherwise securely dispose of, documents containing billing or personal information.
  • Select “high security” passwords—the kind that are randomly generated using as many types of characters as the program will allow (numbers, symbols, upper and lower case letters).

DETECT:

Early detection of identity theft is the key to minimizing its damage.

  • Review bank statements and financial information monthly.
  • Review your credit report annually.
  • Be alert to the signs of identity theft:
    • Accounts you don’t remember opening.
    • Inaccurate information on your credit report.
    • Debt collection communication you don’t expect.

DEFEND:

Hopefully, most of you reading this article have not had to defend yourself against an identity theft.  However, if your identity is stolen, here are some steps you can take to “get your life back”:

  • Send written fraud alerts to the credit bureaus.  Be sure to contact the Big 3:  Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. 
  • Report the fraud/identity theft to all of your financial institutions.  Many companies have their own fraud reports, so be sure to fill out the proper forms.
  • File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission: 1-877-ID-THEFT or https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/.
  • File a police report.
  • Keep copies of all of the above.
AuthorKaren W. Ingle | Comments Off |
tagged , ,
Monday
Aug092010

Abandoning your home? Think again...

DateMonday, August 9, 2010 at 9:22AM

Are you so upside down in your mortgage that you think you will never find equity again?  Do you think a short sale isn’t worth the hassle?  Has the economy and the housing crisis made you begin thinking about abandoning your home?  Some have done just that, but have later discovered that perhaps abandoning the house was not the best decision to make. 

Not only will the abandonment of your home likely result in foreclosure and a big hit to your credit score… it could likely result in a deficiency judgment.  In today’s economy, the value of a home may not equal the amount of the outstanding mortgage.  Therefore, the lender may file a deficiency action against you to recover the difference.   A deficiency judgment is an unsecured lien against a borrower whose foreclosure sale did not produce enough funds to cover the mortgage in full.

You paid for private mortgage insurance (PMI)?  The PMI will pay the lender the difference between what the house sold for and what the borrower owed on his mortgage.  BUT, the PMI company can also seek deficiency judgments against the borrower for payments from the PMI policy.

If you still think you have no interest in a short sale, you should think again.  Through the short sale process, you and your realtor have much more leverage to negotiate a full release of your obligations to the lender and avoid a deficiency judgment.  A foreclosure or walk-away such as you might be considering is not negotiated and lenders and PMI companies can pursue, and are pursuing, deficiencies.

AuthorKaren W. Ingle | Comments Off |
tagged , , , in
Wednesday
Jul282010

IRS Offers Relief to Small Non-Profits

DateWednesday, July 28, 2010 at 9:57AM

Nonprofit organizations that fail to satisfy annual IRS filing requirements for three consecutive years automatically lose their tax-exempt status. On July 26, 2010, the IRS announced that it is providing one-time relief that will allow small exempt organizations to come back into compliance and retain their tax-exempt status even though they failed to file for three consecutive years. The original deadline for filing a return was in May. IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said the agency is extending the deadline to Oct. 15, 2010.

This one-time relief benefits organizations with gross receipts less than $500,000 and total assets of less than $1,250,000 only (i.e., organizations that are eligible to file Form 990EZ or Form 990-N).

The IRS website has a list of organizations at risk of losing their tax-exempt status (IRS link) because, according to IRS records, they have not filed for 2007, 2008 and 2009. The list contains the name of the organization and its last-known address.

AuthorKenneth L. Mishoe, IV | Comments Off |
tagged , in
Wednesday
Jul282010

The Corporate Veil

DateWednesday, July 28, 2010 at 9:52AM

As a general rule, when a Georgia corporation (which, for the purposes of this discussion, includes all limited liability entities such as limited liability companies and limited liability partnerships) is formed, it is an entity that exists separate from its owners. Georgia law allows the corporation’s owners to operate a business under a “veil” of protection. That veil can provide the owners protection from certain types of liability of the corporation. However, under certain circumstances, the courts will “pierce” the veil and hold the owners liable.

When a corporation engages in fraud or other wrongful acts, is a sham, or is used exclusively for the personal benefit of its owners, courts may disregard the separate corporate existence and impose personal liability on the owners.  In such cases, courts look beyond the form of the corporation's actions to the substance. The facts must show some misuse of the corporate privilege. 

Courts generally require fraud, illegality, or misrepresentation before they will pierce the corporate veil. Courts also may ignore the corporate existence where the controlling owner or owners use the corporation as merely their instrumentality or alter ego, where the corporation is undercapitalized, and where the corporation ignores the formalities required by law (e.g. annual meetings, failing to identify the business as an entity with limited liability, etc.) or commingles its assets with those of a controlling owner or owners. In addition, courts may refuse to recognize a separate corporate existence when doing so would violate a clearly defined statutory policy.

If business owners take the right steps, they can protect themselves from a variety of liabilities by incorporating their business in Georgia. Proficient legal counsel can provide the help and advice to business owners to ensure their business is set up correctly and retains its veil of protection.

AuthorKenneth L. Mishoe, IV | Comments Off |
tagged , , in
Page 1 2 3 4 5 ... 24 Next 5 Entries »