Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Mike Dillard's Elevation Group - Another Over Hyped Sales Pitch Or The Real Deal?

You'd have to be stranded on a deserted island in the middle of nowhere to not have heard about the launch of Mike Dillard's latest financial program "The Elevation Group". I've witnessed countless other wealth building programs being pitched, hyped up and marketed to death but I have to admit the level of sales pitches and marketing surrounding Mike Dillard's Elevation Group was about as over the top as I've ever seen.

The big affiliate marketers came out in droves and now you're suddenly seeing a bunch of internet marketers all now claiming to be financial experts. That is absolutely ridiculous.

Half these affiliate marketers suddenly claiming to be financial experts and economists wouldn't know a stock P/E ratio or a leveraged Exchange Traded Fund from a lead capture page. By the way, if financial terms like that leave you scratching your head then you need to read this Elevation Group review more than you know.

So let me cut through the silly marketing tactics and super slick sales pitches and give you the inside scoop on Mike Dillard's Elevation Group from an investor's (not an affiliate marketer's) perspective.

What is the Elevation Group Exactly?

The Elevation Group is a financial and investment education based membership group created by Mike Dillard. Mike is actually one of the most successful internet and network marketers in the business and is well known and respected in the industry.

So how does an internet marketer create a financial and investment education company? I mean what does an internet marketer know about investments and financial information? That is exactly the point of Elevation Group. Admittedly, Mike knew very little about investments and wealth building strategies when he started the Elevation Group. The Elevation Group is actually Mike's personal diary of his journey into unlocking the investment strategies of the ultra-rich.

In nutshell, as a member of Elevation Group you get to tag along and follow a multi-millionaire internet marketer around as he scours the world in search of the absolute best financial experts and wealth building strategies available.

What Type of Information Will You Get in the Elevation Group?

As Mike says, he unlocks the "black-box" investment strategies of the rich. You'll discover how financial gurus and multi-millionaires like Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump actually get richer during times of economic turmoil.

You'll learn how to use a concept called "infinite banking" to become your own bank and grow your money 100% tax free. You'll also get to listen in on world renowned precious metals investor Mike Maloney as he shows you how to grow your wealth by as much as 280% even during a recession.

You'll learn how to scoop up cash-flowing real estate investment properties at pennies on the dollar by leveraging silver and gold. There's also an extensive education on how to profit during times of high inflation and how to protect your family from a financial crisis like the one we had in 2008.

We all know that millionaires and billionaires get to play by a different set of rules and have access to better investments than the masses. Since Mike is already a multi-millionaire, as a member of the Elevation Group, he lets you tag along as he opens doors and gains access to financial investments and wealth building experts that average people simply cannot.

Will You Get Rich With Elevation Group?

The Elevation Group was created more to help you grow the money you already have rather than to make money. If you don't have much capital to invest and you need to make more money, then the Elevation Group may not be the best option for you. The Elevation Group is not a business opportunity but is more of a rolodex of expert financial information and contacts. Truthfully, if you're not an experienced investor I would recommend you obtain the services of a good financial investment advisor who has extensive experience with alternative investments and wealth building strategies before you join the Elevation Group.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Ho Scale Model Train: Keys To Benchwork & Track Planning

The HO scale model train is the popular model train scale in most of the world as it provides a balance between detail, cost, and space efficiency. Its 16.5 mm track gauge allows modelers to utilize a smaller space without compromising on fine detail. Modelers can create elaborate track layouts within a limited room space. Given the HO scale model train popularity, there is a wide selection of cost effective equipment and scenery on the market.

But even given these advantages with the HO scale, the key to a successfully layout for model trains is proper benchwork and effective track planning.

What Is Benchwork and Why Do I Care?

The foundation or structure of the model railroad layout is referred to as the benchwork. While many beginner track start out on the floor, the desire to move the layout up to a bench quickly becomes apparent. A common starting point for benchwork is the standard 4' x 8' sheet of plywood found in hardware stores. But consider 30 x 60 sections screwed together. Now the sections can be disassembled and moved through standard doorways. A 30 section allows for easy reach from the front. And sections can be arranged around the perimeter of a space or around the walls for broader curves and longer track sections. Another reason to consider sections is to support different elevations.

Good model railroad benchwork is modular, relatively lightweight, and easy to work with. For benchtops, avoid dense, heavy materials such as particle board, homasote, or OSB (oriented-stranded board).

Another factor to consider for realism is the height of the layout. With model trains, tracks set waist high or chest high are easier to work with and add realism.

Effective Track Planning

Track planning is about prioritizing the features you want and then laying out a plan that meets your goals. A goal is to balancing realism with available space while adding features of interest. Some features to consider include the following:

Continuous Operation. Real trains don't run in circles, but it's a great advantage to having the option to run a train continuously in a small space.
Switching. Add switching to your continuous loop for variety.
Point-to-Point Operation. For realism and to make operations more interesting, consider some point-to-point track.
Turnouts. Consider siding, passing, facing-point, and stub-end. A stub-end near the edge of the bench makes it easier to park and move equipment to storage.
Changes in Elevation. But keep grades preferably at 2%. Remember that grade is the rise over the run (a 2 inch rise over 100 inches is 2%).
Landscaping. Allow real estate to add realistic landscaping.

In summary, good benchwork and effective track planning will pay off immeasurably with your HO scale model train layout. For best results, start with the planning and then move to building. Identify your priorities, consider alternatives, get external feedback, and create your designs before you start nailing, and you'll be pleased with the results.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Bankruptcy And Student Loans

During college, many students rack up enormous amounts of debt in the form of student loans. And although many private student loans that are credit based may be eligible for discharge during a bankruptcy proceeding, those loans that were obtained from the United States Department of Education do not qualify for discharge under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. If the majority of your past due and delinquent debt consists of student loans, bankruptcy is usually not the best option.

Better Options For Student Loan Borrowers

Bankruptcy can represent a new beginning for many borrowers, but the effects of filing bankruptcy can be felt on your credit file for as long as the next decade. Although many borrowers, especially students with massive amounts of student loan debts, often feel that there is no other option or that there are other alternatives, managing your student debt can be accomplished in other ways.

Forbearance and Deferment Options

Once you have graduated and received the last degree that you will be working on, most student loans are written so that you must begin repayment after six months. However, if you are unable to find work, there are ways to get around paying on your student loans until you become gainfully employed. One such way is through forbearance. During forbearance, your student loans will continue to incur interest, but you will not be required to pay.

Forbearance can give you a reprieve from paying on your student loans until you are better off to do so financially; however, forbearance will only be granted for a short period of time and a limited number of times over the life of your accumulated loans.

A better solution to forbearance of your student loans may be deferment, which is an entitlement under the U.S. Department of Education. Deferment is much like forbearance, although in certain instances, interest may not continue to accrue, although that fact differs from lender to lender.

Student Loan Consolidation

Another option is student loan consolidation. As a student loan borrower, you no doubt have multiple loans with multiple lenders or servicers, which means that you will make multiple payments. During student loan consolidation, student borrowers can consolidate the entire bulk of their student loans into one big loan with one monthly payment that better meets their financial ability to repay their student debt. You can consolidate both private and government student loans.

Defaulting on Your Student Loans

Managing your student loan payments may be difficult, but by actively working with your lender or consolidating your student loans, you can get through the repayment period and get on with your life and your career. The outcome for those who do not take repayment of their student loans seriously is grim. The U.S. government can seize any income tax refunds that you are entitled to, and can actually garnish your wages at your future place of employment.

Additionally, your credit rating will bear the scars of defaulting on your federal student loans for many years, and you will always owe the government (and the government always collects). The only way to have your loans completely discharged is if you become legally disabled.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Commercial Leases - What You Need To Know

Many people think that leasing for commercial purposes are easy as cooking rice. But in actuality, it is far from easy. When renting for commercial purpose, you have to consider lots of things. A commercial lease is also a very important factor to the success of your business. Your lease in a building can also be considered an investment for you. In a commercial lease, you might just want to lease a floor in the building, a stall in a mall or for big business, you might want to lease the whole building.

When signing commercial leases, there are terms that you must be familiar with first and you also have check the details of the lease. You must ask questions and you should also make changes and suggest so that the lease agreement is both beneficial to you and your landlord. Here are the terms you must be familiar with:

The use clause This clause is placed in the contract to protect the property you are renting. All the things you can and cannot improve or remove in the building can be found in this clause. You must be very careful in checking this part of the contract because it will greatly impact your business especially if the ambience or environment of your place will impact your salability to the customers.

The exclusivity clause Having a competitor in front of your stall is not good for your business. In the exclusivity clause, you can include an exclusivity clause wherein it would say that a competition in your kind of business should not be positioned near your stall. This is usually the case when you are renting a stall in the mall or a compound where there are lots of stalls available for commercial leases.

The premises The lease contract should clearly state and defined the premises included in your lease. Also ask your landlord to include the common area, if there are any, in the premises you are leasing.

The security the security of the building is a big concern for businesses. The lease contract must clearly state who is responsible for the security of the building. If the building is big and constitutes lots of floors, the lease should specify which part of the building is the concern of the owner and which is the concern of the leaser.

Clarifications on the renewability of the contract should also be asked from the landlord but does not necessarily have to be included in the lease contract. It is important that the leaser knows if he will be able to renew the lease to the property so that he can make plans ahead. Resolution for disputes over the lease of the property should be included in the lease contract. This way, the landlord could not just evict the leaser when disputes occur.

Terms and conditions regarding the lease of a commercial property may be a little confusing if you have no knowledge of some legal things. If so, then you must consult a legal advisor on this matter.

Friday, September 14, 2012

High Risk Auto Loans

It is one of the things people need the most, a car. Without a car your whole world stops and you are at the mercy of friends or public transportation. So what if you need a car but your credit is bad? Is this where you stop and give up hope? The answer is no, even those with bad credit can obtain transportation.

There are many lenders to choose from when trying to find someone to finance a car when your credit is bad; the key to finding them is research. The name of those who will lend you money for a vehicle even though your credit is bad is high risk auto lenders. They usually require more information than traditional lenders and they usually sport higher interest rates but in the end they will loan you that money for a vehicle.

It is usually easier to purchase a newer vehicle with a high risk auto loan because the lender wants the vehicle to be worth the chance they take. If the vehicle is newer the resell value on it is higher and thus the risk is lower. So not only are your chances good that you may walk away with a vehicle but probably a better one then you originally thought.

One of the things to consider when taking out a high risk auto loan is that the interest rate will be higher then a bank loan. This is the price the consumer pays for the loan company taking a chance on them. Sometimes interest can be as high as 29 or 30 percent which drives the payments up as well, but once again it is a high risk loan and this is one of the catches to having to take one out.

Another issue for those who are taking out a high risk auto loan face is having to make higher down payments. Again this just ensures the loan company that you are fully invested in the purchase of the car. Of course a higher down payment will also lower your regular payments to some degree too so it may not be such a bad idea after all.

So anyone can purchase a vehicle no matter what their credit, it is just a matter of doing the research to find the right loan for you.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Joaquin Phoenix's Best Performances

There are many actors who would go as far as to say that playing oneself is the hardest part an actor can play. In the case of Joaquin Phoenix, he played "himself" over the course of a year. Remember back in 2009 when the actor sat down on late night television host David Letterman's couch? He came out in sunglasses and with a beard so scraggly he could be confused for an animal in season. The interview itself was entirely curious as well. The one word answers befuddled even the astute interviewer Letterman, and the media was quick to label Phoenix's appearance as the sign of a meltdown. Phoenix is more prone to this kind of media attention, thanks to the circumstances of his actor brother's death, River. Of course, it turned out it was all a hoax. Phoenix hired Casey Affleck to make a documentary about Phoenix's supposed "meltdown," but in the end it was a parody of celebrity culture. Critics were less than amused by the results, and gave the documentary, "I'm Still Here," mixed reviews. Phoenix is not used to such mixed reviews when he's playing other characters though. Here are the five best performances of the actor's career.

Gladiator
Russell Crowe may have won the Oscar for playing the hero in this sandals and swords classic, but Joaquin Phoenix's
turn as the venomous Roman Emperor Commodus is the real star turn. Commodus is a complicated character, filled with envy, weakness and lust for his sister. Phoenix explores all facets of the power hungry emperor, and turns him into one of the most human villains in recent cinematic memory.

The Master
Director Paul Thomas Anderson seems to have a way with actors, and with "The Master," he guides Phoenix to the best performance of his career. Phoenix plays Freddie Quell, an alcoholic soldier who is seduced into a cult by the wily ways of its charismatic leader. Freddie may seem like little more than a drunken buffoon at first glance, but Phoenix transforms him into a tortured, animalistic and confused man, lost in post WWII America.

To Die For
In his breakout role, Phoenix plays a high school stoner who starts a relationship with the twisted local weathergirl (Nicole Kidman). Phoenix is different in this film than in most: Goofy and relaxed. This may not be his most iconic performance by any means, but it does display his versatility.

Two Lovers
Phoenix has paired with director James Gray more than any other director. Their 2008 collaboration, "Two Lovers," is far and away their most successful. In this old-fashioned love story, Phoenix gives a remarkably restrained and truly touching performance as a suicidal man torn between the love of two women.

Walk the Line
Surprisingly, this remarkable actor has only two Oscar nominations to his credit, and only one leading nod. He earned it for his incisive portrayal of country legend Johnny Cash in the 2005 film "Walk the Line." While the film rarely rises above the level of average music star biopic, Phoenix's transformative turn makes the audience feel heartbreakingly close to the emotionally fragile man in black.

Few actors would have possessed the skill to eclipse the shadow cast by an actor as skilled as Phoenix's departed brother. Joaquin Phoenix has gone a long way to do, and has established himself as one of his generation's finest actors.

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Invest in the Real Estate in Calcutta

This is a fact that Calcutta is running behind the other metropolitan cities in India in many aspects but this is not the same as far as the real estate industry of this city is concerned. The real estate market of this city is real somehow more stable than the other metropolitans in this country. Even many people want to have this as a profession and want to be Real Estate agents in Calcutta. The value of the real estate property is no doubt very stable and it is really very tough to speculate anything. The property value in this city can never be speculated. Nobody can even say that the industry is hampering any person as well. While going through any such dealings with real estate industry that is to buy Apartment and Flats in Calcutta and Sell Houses in Calcutta a person will definitely get some benefits. It is really a very advantageous as far as the business is concerned as a stable business always captures the investors' attention in a very reasonable point of view. The real estate industry of the city really evokes the attention of numerous investors just because of the fact that this is really a very stable one. If anybody interested in investing some money on any specific property in Calcutta then it can be assured that this is going to be a very safe deal. According to many dealers any such real estate dealing is really beneficial for any investor.

Calcutta real estate business is no doubt the safest. This is a fact that if you want to get a very heavy return then does not try to get any property in Calcutta as it can never fulfill your demands as far as the profit making is concerned. But sat the same time it can be assured that such a property Calcutta will never make you run in loss. This is a very stable real estate sector. The property value in this city is no doubt a little lower than any other city so better to invest for the stability not for any huge profit making. Even it is also very easy and profitable to Rent a houses in Calcutta. The risk of loss is also very in the real estate business in this city just as the city does not assure you to give you a huge profit. As far as the property value is concerned in the city of Calcutta the price is very low that may be commercial properties, residential real estate or retail outlets. Both the capital values and the rental values are more or less very low in Calcutta than the other three metropolitans in India.

Through out the passing passage of time the investment property in Calcutta is really6 rising very high and this can be a very appreciable news for any investors who are interested in the properties of Calcutta or even have already invested a large amount of money in this city. The real estate developers have turned out to be very active and they are trying hard on various issues so that the price can be increased in the property sector of this city. There are various projects that are developing ion a very successful way in this city and not even the country men but a large amount of NRI people are also showing their interest in the real estate business in the city. They really find the properties of Calcutta very lucrative which is no doubt huge enlistment in the industry. There are really some extraordinary projects going on in the heart of the city.