The Pros And Cons Of A Bad Debt Consolidation Remortgage

Do You Want to remortgage for debt consolidation?

If you're thinking about getting a bad debt consolidation remortgage then it's wise to consider all the options. There are several reasons why a bad debt consolidation remortgage might be worth consideration. For example, you might have a number of debts which you are paying off at a high rate. Suppose you have three or four credit cards at an average annual percentage rate of 14 per cent or even higher? Then getting a bad debt consolidation remortgage could help you reduce the amount you are repaying to credit card companies.

A bad debt consolidation remortgage can also help you manage other high interest debt. Store cards tend to charge a high interest rate, which can be nearly 30 per cent, in addition to charges for payment protection insurance and any other cover you might take. Under those circumstances a bad debt consolidation remortgage might be a way to keep your debt more manageable.

Test Your Credit Rating 125x125 If you have also got a finance deal for your new car, have borrowed for home improvements and are always using your overdraft, then these are all signs that you could benefit from a bad debt consolidation remortgage. After all, it can be difficult to sort out who needs to be paid when and you wouldn't want to damage your credit rating any further.

AdvertOne good reason for getting a bad debt consolidation remortgage is to decrease the amount you are spending on debt repayment each month. Consolidating your debts means that you will have a single debt payment to make - to your bad debt consolidation remortgage company. That is easier to manage and may help you to get your finances in order.
Bad Debt Remortgage Risks

Of course, there are risks when it comes to a bad debt consolidation remortgage, especially if this is not the first time you have consolidated. If you are on your second or third bad debt consolidation remortgage maybe you have a real problem with debt and should seek professional advice on debt management.

Many people also use a bad debt consolidation remortgage to free up their credit cards so they can spend more money. If you fall into this category, you are not alone. Recent research shows that a third of people who consolidate go on to rack up more debt, especially on credit cards. However, doing this negates the purpose of getting a bad debt consolidation remortgage as you will end up in debt once again.

One thing to bear in mind when seeking a bad debt consolidation remortgage is that your home is serving as security for the mortgage. That means it is at risk if you do not keep to the agreed repayment schedule. This is one reason why it is wise to seek professional advice and make sure that your debt consolidation plan is one that you can live with.

There is good news, though. If you do manage to stick to the plan for consolidating and repaying your debts, one day you will be debt free and your credit rating will be better than ever. That's an excellent reason to consider a bad debt consolidation remortgage.

Source: adverse-mortgage-centre.co.uk

Online Bachelors Counseling Degrees

Online Bachelors Degree In Counseling - Rewarding Career Opportunities
By Ross Angelo

If you are desirous of having a career in counseling but don't have the time to attend college to get a degree in the field, then you should consider doing an online bachelors degree in counseling.

State universities and community colleges have extended their reach with the help of the internet. This allows them to deliver all sorts of accredited degree programs via the internet to your computer. Therefore, you won't need to travel to a physical campus or take time off from work to do your degree.

Online schooling is not at all that different from regular schooling. The major difference is the medium you are going to use. Instead of being in a classroom, classes will be conducted through web-based systems such as video conferencing. Your classes are also archived, so that you can use your PC to access them later - anytime of day or night.

Assignments, papers and other requirements will be passed to the faculty electronically. Classroom discussions will likewise happen electronically.

An online bachelors degree in counseling instructs you in counseling theory, patient to counselor relationship and therapeutic strategies. Like the regular schools, you have to complete a core number of units that will be given by the school. You will be allowed to major in a field that matches your career preference.

Here are some fields that you can choose to specialize in while earning your counseling degree online:

Family Counseling. This major will equip you with methods on how you can treat families who are going through rough times in their relationship. These family problems may revolve around rebel teenagers, depressed parents and even domestic violence. Here, you will be taught how to analyze your clients' backgrounds and all the things that might be causing their untoward behaviors.

Marriage Counseling. This field is a more specific that family counseling. Here, you will deal only with couples (collectively or individually) whose marriages are on the rocks or who are experiencing problems that if left unaddressed, could fundamentally affect the marriage down the road.

Career and Guidance Counseling. This is an area that is for you to major in if you plan on working in a school. You will be equipped with skills on how you can help students develop and discover their educational and vocational potential. This way, you can help them become productive people in the society.

Mental Health Counseling. If you major in this field, you will be taught advanced methods on how you can treat clients with mental disorders. Here, you will learn therapeutic techniques that will help you address issues such as depression, self-esteem problems, anger and grief.

Rehabilitation Counseling. This program will focus you on helping the disabled achieve their career and independent goals.

Having an online bachelors degree in counseling can open up a new horizon of work opportunities for you. Having a degree is an edge that you will have over others who choose not get formal education.

Take the time now to find out which online colleges offer the best counseling degrees and what are the career and salary prospects open to you.

Next, find out which colleges offer the top online bachelors degree in counseling. Visit: http://www.DistanceLearningDegrees.org

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ross_Angelo

Chase Online - Logon

Chase's online bank service outage continues
Nation's second-largest bank has 16.5 million customers who bank online

By PALLAVI GOGOI
updated 9/15/2010 6:07:59 PM ET

msnbc.msn.com NEW YORK — Chase's online banking service was still having problems for much of Wednesday, extending an outage that has lasted for two days and affected millions of customers.

In the longest outage the bank has experienced, Chase's online service went down around 8 p.m. EST Monday and was down all day Tuesday. Its service for mobile phones was also down, but Chase's network of ATMs and telephone banking services were functioning normally.

Chase, which is the second-largest U.S. bank, said the problem had been fixed early Wednesday. However, people who tried to log in could not get into the site and Chase acknowledged that problems were persisting.

The outage was bad news for Michael Carney, who runs MWC Accounting, a small business in Chicago. Carney uses Chase to conduct all his personal and business banking needs, including payments from clients. He has a checking and savings account and three credit cards with the bank.

"I do all my payments online and not to have access to my account to pay simple things, or check my account disrupts everything," said Carney.

Carney is among an increasing number of people who prefer to do their banking online. According to research and advisory firm Gartner, about 50 percent of Americans primarily bank online, compared to just 25 percent five years ago.

"For many Americans, online banking is not an alternative channel, rather a channel of first choice and such an outage affects their rhythm around how they run their financial life," says Stessa Cohen, research director at Gartner.

Chase has 16.5 million customers who bank online. Many of them resorted to airing their frustrations on the online social network Twitter, and some wondered what would happen to penalties for late fees resulting from the outage. Chase spokesman Thomas Kelly said the bank would work with customers who missed deadlines on bill payments and promised to pay any related fees. He wouldn't venture to guess how much the bank would likely end up paying in such fees.

Gartner's Cohen said this was the longest outage that she had seen for a bank of this size. She was also surprised that the bank didn't provide a guide on its site telling customers on what to do.

Customers who had logged in on Tuesday and early Wednesday were greeted with a message saying: "Our website is temporarily unavailable." They were not directed to the telephone banking system, the ATMs or its branches, all of which were working.
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For small business owner Carney the lack of communication was the most infuriating part. "It's even more frustrating that Chase isn't telling me what's going on," he says.

Many corporations have accounts on social networking sites like Twitter or Facebook, where they announce important developments and give guidance to their customers. However Chase doesn't have active accounts in either place, leaving their online customers in the dark.

The lack of explanation and the length of the outage didn't please Jacob Jegher, senior analyst at Celent, a Boston-based financial research and consulting firm. "There is an outpouring of customer frustration online and Chase has been quiet, which certainly isn't good for their reputation," said Jegher.

Chase's Kelly wouldn't comment on the bank's lack of presence on social networking sites or their lack of communication with customers online.

Justin Bieber Kissing

Justin Bieber's bird tattoo

Annual Credit Report : credit report, free credit report, Equifax, Experian, TransUnion

March 30, 2011 by sandy scarlett-journey.net

Holding a check on your own credit is quite important. Often you can find errors and points that might seem on your report and if they do it is possible to dispute them and get them fixed so it does not show up in your report anymore. You will find 3 major places that retain track of your credit score and you’ll manage to get a free credit report from them once a year.

3 in the credit reporting agencies have tried using to produce issues easier. Rather than requesting a report from every single agency individually, one site can deal with all of them. Equifax, Experian and TransUnion credit reports may be acquired from annualcreditreport.com. This service continues to be free.

Reports generally don’t include a credit score. Some agencies will offer a free credit score which has a subscription to their service.

Wiz Khalifa 'Rolling Papers,' Britney Spears 'Femme Fatale' hit stores; Ben Harper frees rock n' roll

By Sophie Schillaci

In case you missed "Good Morning America" today, the city of San Francisco has dubbed Mar. 29, 2011 "Britney Spears Day" in honor of her album release. The highly anticipated "Femme Fatale" is finally available to the masses and while you should definitely buy it (we've been Britney fans forever and this album does not disappoint), why not take a listen to all 12 tracks first? You can hear the songs for yourself and check out a song-by-song breakdown. [Billboard]

Brit Brit isn't the only one with a major album drop on Tuesday. Wiz Khalifa is celebrating his debut major-label release with "Rolling Papers" to rave reviews. Anyone who watched this year's SuperBowl was bombarded with his infectious hit, "Black and Yellow," which is a recognizable theme on the album cover. "Rolling Papers" is certainly not one dimensional and as this review says: "This is a hip-hop album for people who didn't think they liked hip-hop albums." [The Washington Post]

Lady Gaga rang in her 25th birthday like most of us do -- performing in front of a sold out Los Angeles crowd. Mother Monster rocked the Staples Center, thanking her fans for "the best birthday present." Adding, "Thank you for still buying tickets to my show. Thank you for believing in my music." Gaga wasn't the only one performing Wednesday night (Mar. 28), toward the end of the evening the crowd chimed in with a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday." [MTV News]

Rock n' Roll really can be free. At least when it comes to Ben Harper. The singer is releasing his new single, "Rock N' Roll Is Free" for -- you guessed it -- free. For a limited time, the track is available for download at no cost to fans. His latest album "Give Till It's Gone" hits stores May 17, but we imagine you'll have to pay for that one. [Rolling Stone]

Rip Elizabeth Taylor

Dixie Chicks Star Covers Beach Boys Hit

3/16/2011 6:20 PM ET (RTTNews) - The Dixie Chick's Natalie Maines has returned with her first new recording since the group's 2006 album Taking the Long Way.

The new track is a cover of the Beach Boys favorite "God Only Knows," from their famed 1966 release Pet Sounds.

Natalie recorded the track with the help of producer Rick Rubin and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. The track will be featured on the finale of HBO's hit original series Big Love, set to air on March 20.

It will also be made available for download via iTunes starting this week.

The Dixie Chicks made headlines last year as Martie Maguire and Emily Robinson offered up their debut as the duo Courtyard Hounds. Their self-titled record hit stores in May of 2010.

by RTT Staff Writer

For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com

Dodgers start season with new manager, familiar voice in broadcast booth

By Beth Harris, The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — The Dodgers head into a new season with a first-time manager and a goal to return to the playoffs at the same time owner Frank McCourt's contentious divorce continues to cast a shadow over what happens on the field.

Former Yankees star Don Mattingly replaces ex-manager Joe Torre for a team that finished fourth in the NL West with an 80-82 record last year and missed the post-season.

For the second straight winter, the Dodgers failed to add a big bat to bolster an offence that was second-worst in baseball after the all-star break. But despite McCourt's well-publicized financial woes, the team committed more than US$90 million in signings over the winter, including three-year deals for pitcher Ted Lilly, who got $33 million, and infielder Juan Uribe, who got $21 million after leaving San Francisco.

"I feel guys are ready, guys get along, like each other," Mattingly said. "So as we hit storms and what goes on during the course of the season when you get tested, I feel good about our club."

The biggest unanswered question remains the team's ownership.

In December, a judge threw out a 2004 marital property agreement that gave Frank McCourt sole ownership of the Dodgers, clearing the way for his ex-wife Jamie to seek half the team.

Over the winter, Frank McCourt tried to secure a $200-million loan from Fox Television against the team's cable TV rights. However, commissioner Bud Selig rejected the deal.

"It doesn't affect us at all," Mattingly said about the McCourts' struggle for control of the team. "They don't throw it, hit it or pitch it. If that is going to distract you, you've got bigger problems."

The Dodgers open the season Thursday at home against the Giants, their bitter rivals who won the World Series a year ago, something that doesn't go over well with the Dodger faithful.

"Crazy things can happen in this division," starting catcher Rod Barajas said. "If you are able to stay healthy and pitch, that's what is the key. We feel like we have some great arms in here. With the guys we have here, we can do something special."

The Dodgers were 13-19 in spring training, as Mattingly emphasized fundamentals. He was the team's hitting coach the last three seasons under Torre, who retired at age 70 after last season. Mattingly turns 50 in April, giving the players a younger boss to relate to.

"Donnie is great," pitcher Clayton Kershaw said. "He's positive, never says a bad thing to anybody and I think he's good for this club."

Besides Kershaw, the rotation is Chad Billingsley, Lilly and Hiroki Kuroda. Fifth starter Jon Garland (oblique) will open the season on the disabled list.

"We've got a lot of depth in our starting rotation and in our bullpen," Billingsley said. "Every guy in our starting rotation, any day they go out there they have a chance to throw nine innings. They have a lot of confidence and we have a lot of experience on this staff, which is good. And we have Clayton, who just keeps getting better the more times he goes out there."

Closer Jonathan Broxton anchors a bullpen comprised of Hong-Chih Kuo, newcomer Matt Guerrier (who signed a three-year, $12 million deal), Kenley Jansen, Blake Hawksworth, Mike MacDougal and likely Scott Elbert.

Also starting the season on the DL are third baseman Casey Blake (back), catcher Dioner Navarro (oblique) and pitcher Vicente Padilla (arm surgery), who is set to return as a reliever.

While Blake is out, Ivan DeJesus Jr. figures to get most of the playing time at second base, with Uribe playing third. He had career highs of 24 home runs and 85 RBIs in his second season with the Giants.

The rest of the infielders are James Loney, Rafael Furcal, Jamey Carroll and Aaron Miles. Hector Gimenez is the likely backup to Barajas behind the plate.

Joining veterans Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp in the outfield are Marcus Thames, Jay Gibbons, Tony Gwynn Jr. and Xavier Paul.

Ethier, Kemp and Loney are looking to improve their offensive numbers after tailing off last season.

"We have a group here that is hungry to win and eager to get back to the playoffs," Loney said. "It's 162 games and you're going to have bad days, but it's how you deal with those and how you learn from your mistakes and how you help win the next game."

While Mattingly adjusts to being in charge and the McCourts battle it out, many consider the best news going into the season to be the return of 83-year-old Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully, who will call his 62nd season with the team.

Copyright © 2011 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Merritt Wever brings undoctored flair to 'Nurse Jackie'

Actress brings an earnest lack of affectation to the role of Zoey Barkow on the Showtime offering starring Edie Falco.

Merritt Wever provides a quirky, unexpected foil in "Nurse Jackie." (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times / March 29, 2011)

By Melissa Maerz, Los Angeles Times

Reporting from New York ——
When it comes to awkwardness, Merritt Wever is a Zen master. As Zoey Barkow, the eager puppy of a junior nurse who trails Edie Falco's character on "Nurse Jackie," the 30-year-old actress can perform a scene over and over with serious focus, all while wearing pink hospital scrubs imprinted with bunnies. During the show's third season, which began Monday, she eats doughnuts without using her hands, stacking them up into a tower and hollowing them out with her teeth. She flaps her arms, calling herself a "very sexy gazelle," and jumps rope in a way that no bra should be forced to withstand.

With her endearing goofiness and flair for slapstick, Wever's defining a new kind of "it" girl — the kind who'd no doubt roll her eyes at anyone who'd ever use the term "it" girl. But over the last few years, she's snagged memorable scenes in indie film favorites such as Lena Dunham's "Tiny Furniture" and Noah Baumbach's "Greenberg," playing the role of the charmingly geeky best friend so believably that Dunham still hangs out with her today. Like Dunham and Wever's "Greenberg" costar Greta Gerwig, she belongs to a generation of actresses who've transformed a certain slouchy, clumsy, earnest lack of affectation into a legitimate acting technique of its own.

That no-big-deal performance style has elevated her from sidekick to bona fide star on "Nurse Jackie." Watching Wever flop around unselfconsciously on screen, it's easy to forget that looking like you're not acting takes a lot of hard work.

When Wever arrives at a cafe in Brooklyn, looking fresh-faced with long, wavy, wash-and-go hair and no makeup, she seems far more reserved and soft-spoken than Zoey — which might be why it's so funny to see her transformed into a brash, unhinged creature on screen.

"I like getting to do physical comedy," she says, in between great, fluffy bites of omelet. "I don't feel like there's that many opportunities for young women my age to get to flail around and become" — her voice suddenly takes on the faux-serious tone of a movie voice-over — "the master of her own comic destiny."

Sometimes it seems as if Wever simply willed Zoey into being, or sprang fully formed from Zoey's pastel-scrunchie-adorned head. Originally, the character was supposed to be a very conventional medical drama type, and a woman of color. "When Merritt walked in, I almost laughed because it was like 'You're at the wrong audition!'" says Linda Wallem, one of the show's creators. "But then she started reading and my palms got sweaty. She was just like Jackie 20 or 30 years ago. She was Jackie's more innocent self."

Now, Wallem says she and co-creator Liz Brixius occasionally leave the ending of a scene ambiguous, just so Wever can improvise. She remembers the day Wever decided her character should spontaneously hug Jackie (who's not a hugger) for an uncomfortably long time. Seeing Falco's pained expression, Wallem prayed that no one would crack up and ruin the take.

"Merritt will say every word you've written in the script, but then she'll add something totally unexpected, like she'll curtsy, or pat Jackie on the back, and everyone will just lose it," explains Brixius. "Part of what makes comedy work is the element of surprise, and when we're laughing on set, it's usually because, oh my God, Merritt, what did you just do?"

Wever admits that she's never exactly hated getting attention. Born to a single, progressive mother who used a sperm donor, she used to sit in on the weekly, left-leaning activist meetings her mom held at their New York apartment because, "embarrassingly, it was an audience."

Recognizing her love of performing, her mother enrolled her in everything from dance classes to the children's choir of the Metropolitan Opera. She even sent Wever to a liberal Jewish summer camp where she sang pro-union, pro-labor songs in Yiddish. It wasn't until she attended LaGuardia Arts high school that she began auditioning in earnest, eventually winning parts in off-Broadway plays. (She still occasionally does theater and will soon appear in a New York production of the Tony Kushner play "The Illusionist.")

Though she'd go on to win small parts in "Michael Clayton" and "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," Zoey has become her breakthrough role — almost accidentally. The more subtle her comedy — no one else can do the very slight, confused-cocker-spaniel head tilt like Wever — the more she got noticed.

"I remember in Season 1, some magazine called her a scene stealer," remembers Brixius. "Merritt was horrified that anybody would see her that way."

Now she's finally embracing it — with that awkward, too-long embrace that Wever does so well. This season, Zoey's emerging more often from behind her tuna-and-raisin-bread sandwiches to take on more screen time. She's moved into what Wever calls "full-blown b-friend, g-friend" status with the EMT guy, and she may have another suitor on the way. She's even started a blog. The inspired title is "Nursing It Yo!"

Meanwhile, Wever's moving past the bunny scrubs into something a little bolder: frog scrubs. "For a long time, I thought that as long as I wasn't wearing pink scrubs, nobody would recognize me," says Wever, breaking into a crooked smile. "Luckily, it hasn't worked out that way."

melissa.maerz@latimes.com

Victoria's Secret Coupon: Seven Panties for $25.50

Mar 28th 2011 at 12:05AM walletpop Here is a hot Victoria's Secret coupon code that brings the cost of underwear down to $3.64. The coupon code is 7PANTIES because you can get seven pairs of panties for $25.50. Expires today, March 28, 2011 in stores and online at 11:59 p.m. EST.

The sale is for Victoria's Secret cotton undies and select Victoria's Secret Pink styles -- 25 styles total to chose from. The link above takes you to the page with all the seven-for-$25.50 pairs.

Take advantage of this sale and you'll also get a Secret Reward Card that has a value of $10 or more for an in-store, online or phone purchase made April 1-30, 2011. Basically, the card is a teaser to get you to buy something else.

Caveats: The Victoria's Secret coupon excludes PINK MLB and the PINK Collegiate Collection. While supplies last. You must have seven eligible pairs in your cart for the code to work. Not valid on clearance merchandise, previous purchases or with any other panty offer.

Check back later today and through the week for more great coupons at WalletPop.

Obama Birth Certificate News

March 28th, 2011 Digital News Report – Although the Obama campaign produced a birth certificate in the run-up to the last general election, there are still questions about President Obama’s birthplace.

Donald Trump Raises Questions

While Donald Trump has not officially announced his candidacy for President of the United States, he has political aspirations. Earlier this month he told Good Morning America he is seriously considering a run for the presidency.

The host of the “Celebrity Apprentice” is asking for the Obama administration to produce a birth certificate. He is not alone; many “birthers” believe Barack Obama was born in Kenya and not Hawaii.

Timeline of the Controversy

During the 2008 election season, emails were circulated questioning Obama’s birth location and religion. The National Review added fuel to the debate saying that his original name was Barry, and his middle name was Muhammad, not Hussein.

On June 12, 2008 the Obama campaign released a copy of the certificate obtained from the Hawaii Department of Health a year earlier. After the release, a report in the National Review stated “Barring some vast conspiracy within the Hawaii State Department of Health, there is no reason to think his (original) birth certificate would have any different data.”

The birther movement responded that the certificate was digitally forged.

In 2001 the state of Hawaii destroyed all paper birth certificates and stored the data in computers.

After the state became overburdened with requests for a copy of the birth certificate, they released a statement.

On October 31, 2008 the director of the Hawaii Department of Health, Chiyome Fukino, released a statement. “I as Director of Health for the State of Hawaii, along with the Registrar of Vital Statistics who has statutory authority to oversee and maintain these type of vital records, have personally seen and verified that the Hawaii State Department of Health has Sen. Obama’s original birth certificate on record in accordance with state policies and procedures”.

Recently the release of another birth certificate from the Republic of Kenya was circulated. This gave the movement more ammunition until it was pointed out that Kenya did not become a Republic until after the certificate was made.

Birther Questions Remain

There have been lawsuits filed against President Obama. On August 21, 2008 Pennsylvania attorney Philip J. Berg filed suit (Berg v. Obama) claiming Obama was born in Kenya. The petition was denied by the Supreme Court.

Attorney Mario Apuzzo, on behalf of Charles Kerchner sued Obama and Congress (Kerchner v. Obama). A request for a hearing was denied.

On January 20, 2009, Orly Taitz filed a lawsuit (Barnett v. Obama). That case was dismissed.

There have been numerous other court cases with similar outcomes. Hollister v. Soetoro and Cook v. Good didn’t have positive results.

Donald Trump is not alone. In 2009 Sarah Palin said: “I think the public rightfully is still making it an issue. I don’t have a problem with that. I don’t know if I would have to bother to make it an issue, because I think that members of the electorate still want answers.”

By Mark Williams