| Excerpt: 'Green With Envy'
Buying a home can be a great financial milestone, and does have a lot of advantages. It's an investment likely to rise in value over the long-term, the mortgage interest is tax deductible, and as equity builds, a home becomes a source of low-cost emergency money in the form of a home equity line of credit. But there are potential pitfalls: � It's easy to stretch too far and get a home that's not easy to afford. � You might have to sell on short notice, when the market is down, or before the house has had time to appreciate in value. It's expensive to sell property, and some sellers do end up owing more money than they get from buyers. � Plus there is what I call the social cost of home ownership: Projects you'll be tempted to take on to improve the property, especially to make it look as nice as what your friends or neighbors have or what you've seen on the home shows on TV.
NW bank robber dubbed 'Nomad Bandit' sentenced to 9 years
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) -- The man the FBI dubbed the "Nomad Bandit" during a bank holdup spree across the Pacific Northwest was sentenced Thursday to nine years in prison. Jeremy Lewis Stewart, 28, pleaded guilty in May to robbing six banks and attempting to rob another. As part of the plea agreement approved by U.S. District Judge Edward Shea, 10 counts were dropped. The "Nomad Bandit" was suspected in bank robberies in Washington, Oregon and Idaho during 2006. Stewart told FBI agents he began robbing banks because he was angry over an $800 assessment levied against his personal bank account while he was in jail on an unrelated charge. The FBI gave Stewart the nickname because of the wide geographical area he covered. He was arrested in October 2006 at his home in Reardan, west of Spokane.
Europe 2030: Model power not Superpower - Bruges Speech by the Rt Hon David Miliband MP Foreign Secretary
I feel a strong sense of personal history in delivering this lecture today. My father was born in Brussels, my mother in Poland. My family history reflects the strife which divided the Continent and the values which later united it. This college reflects that history too. You have a sister college in Poland. The vision of your founder, Henri Brugmans, a hero of the Dutch resistance, was fired by memories of dark days listening to BBC reports of resistance struggle against fascism. And the people we honour this year, Anna Politkovskaya and Hrant Dink, were exemplars of our basic commitment to freedom of expression, a founding value of the EU. But my speech tonight is not about history. It is about the Europe that you, the students gathered here, will inherit in the future.
Stocks lifted by Goldman Sachs†good news on subprime and Wal-Martâ€s strong earnings report
NEW YORK (AP) —Wall Street shot higher Tuesday, lifting the Dow Jones industrials nearly 320 points after reassuring news from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. quelled some of the market’s worst fears about the credit crisis and the economy. A plunge in the price of oil gave investors further incentive to buy.Goldman Sachs heartened investors with word that it didn’t expect a significant hit from the subprime mortgage turmoil. Goldman Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein, speaking at a conference held by Merrill Lynch & Co., said the bank has a short position in the subprime mortgage market and won’t be taking any significant charges to write off losses.Goldman’s news helped offset an announcement from Bank of America Corp., which joined other big financial companies including Citigroup Inc.
Weak Housing Market May Not Be Signal to Buy
Real estate has often been referred to as the one of the surest investments, and homeownership has long been part of the American dream. But in a market that seems to be in a freefall, buying may no longer be the safest bet. The Federal Reserve recently warned that the housing market is unlikely to recover anytime soon. Shira Boss, the author of Green with Envy, says first-time buyers probably shouldn't rush to get a mortgage. "Nobody knows where we are on the curve," Boss tells Renee Montagne about the housing market. "It could be a little bit cheaper now or it could be getting cheaper for the next five or six years. You really don't know." Boss says people should examine their individual situations "and not really rush and try to time the market." In recent years, prospective buyers have been able to purchase homes with small down payments, or even no money down, and borrowing more than the house is worth.
Public sector bosses pocket rises of up to 27% - as staff set to get 2%
SCOTLAND'S best-paid public servants pocketed salary rises of almost five times the rate of inflation last year, it emerged yesterday. A new survey revealed that the four highest-earning officials north of the Border are now paid more than £150,000 each. .
Yemen, Drugs and the Water Table
As Yemen attempts to reinvent itself as a pro-Western ally in the so-called war on terrorism, it faces a number of difficulties. As Jonathon Walz explains, prominent among them is the prevalence of the drug qat — the consumption of which has surprisingly widespread economic, environmental and political ramifications. .
Arrest warrant highlights
In the affidavit, Waco police detective Charles Jaquith says he obtained records by subpoena for several banks where Mills and Downtown Waco did business. The investigation found the following: * Mills wrote 121 checks from Downtown Waco Inc. to herself, cashing some and putting some into her account at First National Bank of Central Texas. Other Downtown Waco Inc. checks were deposited into the account of her son, Richard Coke Mills Jr., at Bank of America. * Mills diverted into her private account at least 10 checks intended for Downtown Waco Inc., worth $19,939. That included checks of several thousand dollars from Kelly Realtors, Waco Independent School District, the Waco Tribune-Herald, McLennan Community College and Baylor University. * Mills wrote $40,800 checks to herself from a Downtown Waco Inc.
Rob Carrick on how to spend your soaring loonies
"That's the United States we're talking about here. "The land of the free isn't exactly gratis to Canadians now, but it is a big, screaming bargain now that our dollar is on the rampage." In his column, Mr. Carrick offers these suggestions, among others, for how to take advantage of loonie's rise against the greenback: * Book a family trip to Disneyworld or make other U.S. travel plans. * Buy blue-chip U.S. stocks for your investment portfolio. * Buy from U.S. online retailers. Are you taking advantage of the soaring loonie? Do you want more suggestions for how to do that? Mr. Carrick was online earlier today to take your questions. Your questions and Mr. Carrick's answers appear at the bottom of this page.
British PM Outlines UK Foreign Policy Priorities
Gordon Brown has spoken at length on Britain's foreign policy priorities in his first address as PM at the Lord Mayor's Banquet. Mr Brown took the opportunity of his appearance at the traditional annual event to stress the importance of the UK's relationship with the US and to call for Iran to resolve its differences with the international community on the issue of nuclear development. Mr Brown also said there was a great opportunity to forge a stronger relationship between the US and the EU following the appointment of new administrations, led by Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel respectively, in France and Germany. .
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