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The Questionable Aspects of The Housing Bailout Bill - H.R. 3221

Posted 18 weeks 3 days ago by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs, Real Estate and Housing, Taxes

In my last article I wrote about the one aspect of the $300 billion dollar housing bailout that I thought made sense, but the full text of the bill known as H.R. 3221 is over 700 pages so it is too complex to discuss in any one blog post. Today I shall highlight some of the more questionable and dangerous aspects of the bill.

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Seller Funded Down Payment Assistance Charities - Scammers or Saints?

Posted 18 weeks 4 days ago by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs, Real Estate and Housing

The United States House of Representatives just passed a massive mortgage bailout bill that includes many changes to the Federal Housing Administration and the Government Sponsored Enterprises. One particular change in the bill is that seller-funded down payment assistance through a third party is now prohibited in obtaining FHA loans. This in direct response to the unscrupulous behavior of many seller funded down payment assistance charities that sprang up in the past decade.

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The Federal Minimum Wage Increases This Week - Are You Getting a Pay Raise?

Posted 18 weeks 6 days ago by Xin Lu

Personal Finance, Career and Income, Consumer Affairs

On July 24th, 2008, the Federal minimum wage in The United States will increase from $5.85 per hour to $6.55 per hour in accordance to the 2007 amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act. This is a 70 cent or approximately 12% increase from last year. Are You getting a pay raise?

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