Bad Date....

If you were single, do you think you could date someone twice a year and have them fall in love with you?

How about once a quarter?

Isn't this what many small business owners and salespeople do? Isn't that what we've been taught to do in this industry?

We make the sale, then essentially forget about the relationship. We may keep in touch a few times a year, but is it enough to have our clients fall in love with us? And besides, isn't most of the stuff sales people send their clients all about the sales person instead of the client?

What happens when your clients fall in love with you? They tell others!

Send Out Cards is about helping small business owners and salespeople improve their relationships which in turn generates referrals for them. Create raving fans in an easy and cost-effective way with Send Out Cards!

The card above would cost me less than $1.50 to send you, do you think it would be worth $5 per client per year to be able to create raving fans for you? To date myself, "things that make you go hmmmm......!"

Beth Riegger
Send Out Cards

Top 10 Money Wasters!

So, I was listening to my radio while getting ready the other morning and they actually had some pretty interesting stuff on there so I thought I'd share. I'm not sure where they got their information but there are plenty of sites that back up their claims.

So, if you are in a money crunch right now or just need a budget re-vamp, here are some things to take a magnifying glass to!

1. Coffee-I have fallen victim to this countless times!! I've found a way around this. I actually don't drink coffee, I drink Chai Latte's which are just as expensive. I buy my mix at home and it's the same stuff most of the shoppes use and I can buy 1 box of the stuff for the same price as a cup at the Shoppe! Also, did you know that some discount retailers sell gift cards for less than face value? I meet all of my clients at Caribou, because I have bought a $50 gift card for $40!! Work smarter, not harder!! :)
2. Cigarettes. Smoking is a habit, a learned behavior. Go to One Hour Stop Smoking and learn about this great technique to quit. I quite 7/11/07 and haven't looked back ever since, not even a twinge.
3. Alcohol. I am a major splurger on this. I don't think ahead, I don't watch the sales, I am totally an impulse buyer when it comes to alcohol. Besides, if we are tightening our budget, do we really need it? I think not, if we do, than we may have a bigger problem on our hands than just spending!
4. Bottled Water. This is the thing that I just don't understand. I get that drinking fountains are infested with germs and all that but really, do you really need to buy gallons upon gallons of the stuff? Why not recycle a bit and use a re-usable bottle with filtered water from home? Much, much cheaper in the long run and much better for the environment.
5. Manicures. I would have to say I changed this habit about 2 years ago. I figured that I was spending about $30-40 dollars every 2 weeks on this! I'm not saying that my nails look as beautiful as they used to but I tell you what, I'm able to do a heck of a lot more financially with that all most $100 more a month!
6. Car washes. I'm not sure that I really agree with this one. I'm kind of a car snob and I really like my car to look good. I'll pay more for a touchless car wash than one that's going to rub someone else's dirt all over my car and scratch it up! Also, living in MN, to properly take care of your car, you need to wash off the salt every once in a while or it will eat your car up!!
7. Weekday lunches out. Whew, I would not even want to count up all of the money I've spent on lunches out over the last 15 years. I'm sure of one thing though, if I had packed it at least 4 days out of 5, I'd have been to Hawaii twice on the savings!! YIKES!!
8. Vending machine snacks. I've never been a real big fan of sweets. I've always been a little cheap when it comes to the vending machine. It always chaps me when they charge you a dollar sometimes more for a 12oz can of pop when if you buy it at the store (even if it's not on sale) it would cost you around $.25!!!
9. Interest charges on credit cards. I think another thing that can go into this category is late fees as well. I have done a lot of work in finance over the last 15 years and when I ask people the reason for the late payments on their credit cards are, do you know what 90% of them answered? I forgot! STUPID!! Not only did you get hit with more interest but another $25-35 in late fees!! That could be date night for me and my hubby!! :)
10. Unused memberships. I have so many friends and clients who have various memberships to things that they never use it's crazy! They say, "Well, I'm on a 12 month contract." I think for most of them, it would be less expensive to pay the early termination fee than it would be to continue to pay the membership fee! I think another thing in this category should be cell phone plans. People should review their cell phone plans every 6-12 months and make sure they are getting the best plan with their current carrier or see if breaking your contract and going with another would be a better idea! I did this and saved all most $75 a month!! I broke even by paying the early termination fee after 1 month. Also, did you know you can sell your old phone? I have a friend who will do all of the work for you!! CRAZY!! Click here to see his site.

I hope you have found this information useful!! Let me know your thoughts and if you have fallen into any of these pitfalls!!

Also, if you'd like to create all the referrals you could ever want and more, click here!

Sincerely,

Beth Riegger

MySimpleCards

You NEED This!!

Do you live in password purgatory like I do? Well, I was chatting with a friend over lunch the other day and mentioned something to that effect, how many passwords we have to remember these days, pin numbers, codes, usernames, URGH!! I'm soooooo sick of them all!! She replied that she's in the same boat.

When she returned to her office after lunch, I got an email from her saying she didn't know why she didn't think of this when we were talking about it but gave me a link to RoboForm and how much this tool has helped her. Well, I was pretty skeptical of a FREE tool. I figured I would get spammed to death or something or that it wouldn’t be very good.

Well, I’m here to tell you that I’ve been using it for 2 weeks now and I love it!! I haven’t gotten a ton of additional emails, actually I can’t say that I’ve gotten any more emails than usual. Also, all I have to do is remember 1 password now. This tool quickly fills in the username and password for every site that I’m on and I’m on a lot! (about 20-30/day! You can even set up different folders, personal websites, work websites, etc.

Here are some other great features of RoboForm.

• It encrypts your passwords to get complete security!!

• You can have it generate passwords for you.

• You can back up your passwords and copy them between computers.

• It’s portable!! You can use a USB key to run this!!

• PDA friendly, I’ve got installed on my Treo 650 so even if I’m not at home, I can still have all of my passwords with me. Again, it’s password protected and encrypted so it’s totally secure.

• You can use it in what ever web browser you happen to be using, IE, AOL, MSN or Firfox!

• One of the few things that actually does work seamlessly with Windows Vista! LOL
  

There’s also a pro version available for a small fee, I haven’t checked into yet. I have a palm version called e-wallet that I use to keep passwords and account information, I paid $30 for it. I’ve had many problems with it getting it to sync with every phone change and computer change I’ve had.

I think RoboForm is a real lifesaver. I hope you do too!!

Let me know what you think!

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success
SendOutCards

Has Your Mortgage Set You Up to Fail?

I just read a startling statistic about risky loans today, and since it may affect you, I wanted to put this out there immediately. Here's what it is about.

According to a poll I read recently, 1 out of 3 homeowners have no idea what kind of loan they have. Under better market conditions, that might be okay. But in the current market where it is predicted that over 2 million homeowners will lose their home due to sudden, unexpected and devastating increases in their mortgage payments, it's imperative you know exactly what kind of loan you have, and even more importantly, when and if your loan will recast and/or go up.

I've set aside time on my calendar over the next two weeks to help homeowners like yourself find out the important details on their loans and to provide the advice they need to determine whether a decision should be made and, if so, help them make the wisest decision possible.

I'd be happy to meet with you and conduct a complete Equity Review of your home and your loan, FREE OF CHARGE. Call me at 888-583-2808.

Beth Riegger
Sr Mortgage Advisor
Keys 2 Success

Examples of SendOutCards

Our Deepest Fear is our Greatest Opportunity

I was fortunate enough to find this peice by Kody Bateman, the founder of SendOutCards and I'd like to share it with you.

In 1994, Nelson Mandela gave his Inaugural speech and delivered to the world a message, a message that may go down in history as one of the greatest gifts of expression. His message has turned into one of the most used quotes in motivational speeches around the world. I would like to share his priceless message with you:

Our Deepest Fear

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world; there is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people wont feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's in everyone! As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Nelson Mandela

The first several times I read this quote, I did not fully understand its meaning. In fact, I found myself asking how can I fear my power and light more than my inadequacies and darkness? I am excited about my gifts, my talents and what I have to offer the world. How could I possibly fear them? I have processed this thought many times through. My answers have come and I have gained a deep sense of appreciation for Mr. Mandela for the deep wisdom and the high energy that resonates from his words.

This is what I have learned:

First of all, I am fortunate to have discovered my gifts. I have an understanding of what I have to offer and I am excited to offer it. Over 85% of our worlds population does not share this good fortune. They knew their gifts at birth but their world clouded their vision of those gifts over time. They often get glimpses of those gifts and they immediately cloud those glimpses with doubt and fear. They fear their gifts because their doubts tell them they will never obtain them. In fact, it becomes their greatest fear because their inner self lets them know that these gifts are their birthright while the outside world says they cant have those gifts or they don't deserve them.

I thought for a while that this was the complete answer but I learned that there was even a deeper meaning to it. I learned that this lesson does not just apply to the 85% that have not fully envisioned their gifts. It also applies to the 15% that know and share their gifts everyday. I learned that, even though I celebrate my power and light by sharing it, I still have a fear of it.
You see, I have been fortunate to manifest life long dreams into reality. I have experienced some success and I believe that I am making a difference in the world. I am currently living a dream and I enjoy the amazing positive energy that comes from that. I have found, that with that energy, new dreams emerge, new goals are written, new possibilities have been created. They are all at a higher level. A new chapter is being written for me; a new step on the ladder has been reached. The view changes the higher you go. I know that the power and light that has been given to me can accomplish much greater things than I could have ever imagined even five years ago. With that knowledge, I have a responsibility to deliver what the universe has entrusted to me. The same fear and doubt sets in; a fear that I might stumble or disappoint; a fear that I might not deliver; a fear that I might not be deserving of this new level of greatness. I have learned that, as before in my life, I must walk through those fears and stake claim on the greatness I have to offer. To realize I have weakness but I will do it anyway. To know that if I simply celebrate the strengths and gifts in others, the universe will celebrate the strengths and gifts in me. And, with that celebration I will overcome the inadequacies, the darkness, the doubt and the fear that tries so hard to hold us all back.

I am fortunate to be in a position where I can watch thousands of other people experiencing this same journey. Every person reading these words is on that journey and you are heading in the right direction. We are all at different levels. Some have small glimpses of their greatness. Others have a clearer vision. SendOutCards gives us an atmosphere and a daily mechanism that will help us bring our greatness into view. We have the opportunity to celebrate another persons greatness every time we send a card. With that celebration, the universe celebrates our greatness and takes us to a new level.

The key is to keep on going. Be consistent with your card sending. Your promptings will guide you to your greatness within and they will prepare you for each new level you reach. We are all destined for greatness. We are all powerful beyond measure. We are all brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous. We were all born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

Kody Bateman

Thank you so much Kody for your wonderful insights and words of wisdom. You truly show us the way!!

Beth Riegger

Keys 2 Success
Send Out Cards

www.freegreetingcardsonline.info

Tennessee Drag Racing Crash

My husband and his father have been drag racing together for years and it’s brought them a lot of joy. It gives them a lot of opportunity to spend time together doing something fun and active. They have to drive pretty far as there are not a lot of strips in Minnesota so they get to spend a lot of time on the road together as well. Being that my husband is so into this, I am as well!! So, anytime there’s something on the news about drag racing, my ears always perk up. This is a picture of their current dragster.

Last night as I was watching the news, there was a piece on a charity event down in Selmer, Tennessee called Cars for Kids that went tragically wrong. This town has been doing this event for 18 years and it always ends with the drivers doing a burn out. The true reason drag racers do this is that is actually lays warm rubber across the starting line to give the racer some added traction. There has never been an accident at their show until this year when pro drag racing driver Troy Critchley lost control of his car and six by-standers lost their lives. The accident also injured at least 20 other people including a 5-year old boy.

Thankfully, there are no criminal charges being brought against this driver. This is just such a sad situation. It certainly wasn’t his fault, but I’m sure he’s going to blame himself for this accident for the rest of his life. There was a small stretch of guard rail where he started, but it didn’t stretch the entire length of where ended up driving his car. One by-stander said that even if there had been a guard rail for the entire stretch, it wouldn’t have mattered. I happen to agree. There’s a reason at the race track that the guard rails are made of cement.

Also on the driver’s behalf, several different news agencies reported that he has an immaculate safety record. His former race team boss from Australia even said that you just don’t get to where he’s gotten without the respecting safety, I have to agree with him. He has more than 20 years of drag racing experience both in Australia where he got his start and here in the US. This is a picture of his car before the accident.

It seems that he was only supposed to go about 50 feet but he ended up going much further than that. The car must have gotten away from him. I read a few forums where drag racers were talking about the tragedy and they seem to think that the car did get away from him, he got off the gas, he tried to correct it and then got back on the gas again which is when it plowed into the crowd. The pro-mod cars (which is what Troy was driving) are among the most unpredictable drag racing vehicles on a smooth and level racing surface that has been specially prepared with racing compounds. Troy was on a city street, it was sloped and I’m sure had no traction at all.

Many of the articles that I read all stated that the engine was heard to be revving loudly before taking off. Hmm, I guess they weren’t listening to the other cars? This is what they do!! When doing a burn out, the driver revs the engine up, spins the tires and then lets go so they go a little ways down the track.

I guess the biggest thing I wanted to share was that we should all remember everyone down in Tennessee today, including the driver. They were trying to do something good and it ended horribly wrong. Drag racing is an awesome sport, especially in the correct environment, on a proper race track.

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success
Send Out Cards

Have you said thank you to anyone lately?

I just wanted to share this cool video with you, THANK YOU for watching:)

Monitoring Children's Computer Activites

Do you read your myspace bulletins? I do about once a week. I get so many. This one lady must send me about 5 a day. Today happened to be a day that I actually read my bulletins. One of this gal's bulletins caught my eye and I read it. I wish I hadn't but I'm glad I did because my son will soon be typing away on the computer and as a parent, we need to know what's going on with our kids.

This article is not for the weak, it's disgusting what this boy did, if you want to read it, click here.

I don't want this blog to become a rampage about what this boy did but rather a warning for parents and people in general that when kids or people in general are crying out for help, we need to listen. We need to be good people and not just ignore warning signs and think it's someone else's problem or that you don't want to get involved. This is how Columbine happened, this is how Virginia Tech happened, this is how many tragedies happen.

I don't know about you but I'm going to hug my son tonight and have a little talk with him about appropriateness.

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success
Send Out Cards

Storm Warnings/Watches

I listen to the radio every morning as I’m getting ready for the day. I like to hear the DJ’s sounding off about this that or another thing and I often start my day by laughing!! Well, this morning, they must have had the weatherman from a local TV station on about every 15 minutes to warn us of a looming storm headed our way. It got me thinking that this is the start of storm season and I did some research on the various aspects of storms that I wanted to share with you all today.

Before I get started on the various aspects of things we should know about storms, I wanted to make sure to share with everyone in the Twin City Metro Area that this storm is supposed to hit us around noon today so please keep what ever methods you may have for tuning in the weather available. These storms are supposed to move fast so you need to be able to as well.

During my investigation on several sites this morning, I found out that severe thunderstorms kill more people each year than tornados! Just my humble opinion but I think it’s because we don’t think they are as bad as the weather service and the weathermen make them out to be so we are unprepared. Of the estimated 100,000 thunderstorms that occur over the US each year, only 10% are classified as severe!! I guess MN and our surrounding states must get them all!!

According to the National Weather Service, a severe thunderstorm is one that produces hail at least three-quarters of an inch in diameter, has winds of 58 mils per hour or more, or produces a tornado.

What the heck is the difference between a WATCH and a WARNING? This has plagued me since childhood and I don’t know about you, but I think we all need to know the difference!!

So…when the National Weather Service has issued a WATCH, it indicates that conditions favor the occurrence of a certain type of hazardous weather (thunderstorm, hail, tornado, etc). It also means that the storm could happen within the next six hours or so within an area approximately 120 to 150 miles wide.

When the National Weather Service issues a WARNING, it indicates that a hazardous event is occurring or is imminent in about 30 minutes to an hour. You are in danger of lightening if you can hear thunder. Many strong thunderstorms produce hail. Downbursts and straight-line winds associated with thunderstorms can produce winds 100 to 150 miles per hour! These are as bad as tornadoes, they can flip cars, vans and semitrucks.

What to do in these conditions?

• You need to postpone outdoor activities. Many people take shelter from the rain, but when a thunderstorm is coming, they continue their activities, this can be dangerous!
• If you see or hear a thunderstorm coming, go inside a sturdy building or car. Keep the car windows closed. Rubber-soled shoes and rubber tires provide no protection from lightening!! I always thought they did!!
• If you can’t get inside, or if you feel your hair stand on end (that means lightening is about to strike!!) get to a low, open space immediately. Crouch down on the balls of your feet, place your hands on your knees and lower your head. Make yourself the smallest target possible and minimize contact with the ground.
• Stay way from tall things like trees, towers, fences, telephone lines or powerlines, they attract lightening!!
• Turn off your air conditioner and TV, and stay off the phone until the storm is over. Lightening can cause electrical appliances to become dangerous during the storm.
• Stay way from running water inside the house. Electricity from lightening has been known to come inside through plumbing, are you kidding? I never knew this either??
• For tornados, it used to be advised to go to the SouthWest corner for safety, however it is now believed that it is no safer than any other corner. You need to be on the lowest level away from windows to be the safest, it doesn’t matter the direction of the corner.
• In case of tornados, close all windows as well.
• If you are driving during a tornado, is to go to a nearby sturdy building and go inside. Or, get out of the vehicle and lay down flat in a low spot on the ground not subject to flooding, protecting your head and neck. Flying debris can be blown under overpasses and bridges or the weaker ones can be destroyed all together.

Tornado Danger Signs:

• Dark, often greenish sky
• Wall cloud
• Large hail
• Cloud of debris
• Funnel cloud
• Roaring noise (often compared to the sound of a train)

The biggest thing of all is to just heed the warning put forth by the National Weather Service, they aren’t kidding around. Make a plan with your family and make sure they all know where the flash lights are kept and what to do in an emergency. Your kids schools and daycares run fire and tornado drills, why don’t we at home?

I hope that you have found this information helpful and I hope you all stay safe this summerJ

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success
Send Out Cards

Giving to Improve Brain Power?

I just came back from a seminar this weekend where they talked a lot about giving and giving to give not giving to receive. I found that this article by Simon really touched on this point. It seems like a lot of rich people have the same philosophies, things that make you go hmmmm.

Can Giving Improve your Brain?
By Simon Evans

Altruism, the act of giving unselfishly, is an enigma to neuroscience. The theory of evolution says that organisms will behave in a way to ensure their own survival and that of their offspring. So how did altruistic behavior come to be? Is it beneficial to the giver?

Giving Activates Brain Circuits

Some interesting recent research begins to unveil pieces of the puzzle. When neuroscientist monitor the brains of people either giving or getting there are some commonalities. Especially in a part of the brain that helps control pleasure and survival behaviors like the search for food or sex.

It seems that both giving and getting activate pleasure centers. This gives immediate gratification to altruistic behavior. However, these brain regions also exist in animals where they are responsible for similar survival behaviors and animals aren't typically altruistic so there must be something more.

Now, new data shows that givers, but not getters, involve a couple other brain regions in the cerebral cortex. These regions are only well developed in humans and are involved in higher levels of thinking and processing information.

You can interpret this in lots of ways. One way is to see altruistic behavior as more driven by higher thoughtfulness, and getting behaviors driven more by animal-like desires. This is not to difficult to grasp, but let's dig a little deeper.

Use It or Lose It

We know that the brain is constantly remodeling itself. Brain circuits that get used a lot strengthen and develop while those that don't get used a lot wither and fade. This is one-way that behaviors get entrenched into habits.

So think about that in the context of altruism. The act of giving might actually strengthen certain brain circuits in regions that are involved in higher levels of thinking, especially those that control social interactions. This can be adaptive to you by improving parts of your brain that control higher thinking and your ability to work with other people.

The basis of many religious and secular philosophies is to give before you get. Zig Ziglar, one of the grandfathers of personal development said ‘help enough people get what they want and you can have everything that you want'. Now, Zig and others are not saying you should be altruistic for the purpose of getting stuff in return – but it just always seems to work out this way.

Science Catches up to Wisdom

Perhaps the recent work in neuroscience is beginning to explain why this is true. The act of giving may actually improve your skills to work productively with other people, which is the best way to enhance your own life as well.

Looking at that another way, if you are always looking to receive you are thinking very short term (animal-like survival) in your behavior. Whereas, if you are always willing to give and help, you are thinking long term, even if you don't realize it at the time. This would explain how altruistic behavior can get improve your odds of surviving and passing your genes to the next generation – which is the driving force behind evolutionary theory.

It doesn't matter whether you subscribe to the theory of evolution or creationism or something in between. The bottom line is that altruistic behavior my actually improve the most ‘human' parts of your brain and make you a higher functioning person.

It always amazes me when 21st century science catches up to age-old wisdom.

Copyright (c) 2007 The Brain Code LLC

Master Brain Fitness techniques for you and your family. The Brain Code is the key to unlock your maximum potential. Dr. Simon Evans puts together the right ingredients in right amount to create the recipe for success. Visit http://www.thebraincode.com for FREE Brain Fitness resources.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simon_Evans
http://EzineArticles.com/?Can-Giving-Improve-your-Brain?&id=587954

Wow, thanks Simon, I can’t believe that being a giver actually helps improve your brain!!

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success
Send Out Cards

Park City, Utah Wedding

So, for my blog today, I thought I would share something personal about myself. I went to Park City, UT for my cousin's wedding this last weekend. I was so much fun!! I flew out with my parents and my Grandmother.

My husband was racing with his father and our son stayed with my husband's mother. Our son had a wonderful time and my husband all most won a Wally!!

We met my sister, her husband and their son when we got there. We stayed at the Canyon's resort and WOW, was it beautiful!! I wish they would pay me to talk aobut their resort because it was amazing!!

She got married to a wonderful man named Wade and the church that they got married in had huge windows in the front of the sanctuary. You could actually see the Olympic Ski Jump!! CRAZY!! Wade used to be on the Olympic ski team so there were many famous skiiers in attendence. They were all very nice.

We got back late Tuesday night and I feel like I've been swimming up stream ever since trying to catch up but I thought I'd share a photo of us cousins at the wedding.

I love weddings. I asked my husband if we could get married again and for some reason he said no???

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success

Money Saving Tips

I have been silent since last Thursday because I was out of town for my cousin’s wedding in beautiful Park City, Utah! It was absolutely wonderful. The week before we left, I was watching the news and saw this piece on saving money on airfare. We all like to take trips, don’t we? Well, I know we ALL love to save money!! Here are the hints I found out and I wish I had found them sooner!! This is some fantastic stuffJ

We all know the major sites like www.cheaptickets.com, www.orbitz.com, www.expedia.com, etc but here are some ones that you may not have heard of. Have you ever visited www.airfarewatchdog.com? This site searches for the best UNADVERTISED deals that you can’t find on most travel websites. There’s also a section that lists the best fares of the day.

Did you know that there are best times to buy? I didn’t!! You can find better deals early Saturday morning, you just have to get up and start searching in your pj’s!! Most travel experts say airlines don’t want you to know about this because they of course don’t want to sell too many seats at the cheaper price or only have a few of them available. Also, mistakes generally happen this early in the am!! Yes, that’s right, mistakes, like the price of $1.86 fares out of Hilton Head, SC that USAir honored last April!!

Some other times that prices of airfares may change and you may want to keep a look out for ar

e 9am, 11:30am and 7pm (Central Time) and during the weekend around 4pm. It’s all kind of like the gas prices, opinions vary but why not just watch them for yourself!

When talking about saving money, experts always suggest to make connections instead of flying straight through. Most of the websites allow you to make a choice of having 1 or 2 connections. This is all a personal choice. If you are under time constraints, this doesn’t make a lot of sense to go through the stress or if you have small children or have people in your party that have a difficult time getting around. But, if you enjoy the adventure, why not? You may be able to go through a city you’ve never been through

before, even if it’s only the airport!!

Another thing to watch for is that prices tend to be cheaper 7, 14, or 21 days out from your departure date. Usually, the airlines review their flights at these intervals and if their seats aren’t filling up, they will drop the rates.

I usually use the websites mentioned about, shop them all to see which ones have the best fairs and then try to purchase from the airline directly. If you do this, and you are busy like my, I don’t have time to keep checking on flights and what not, but guess what? Thanks to modern technology, there’s this fantastic website called www.yapta.com that all you have to do is enter in your info and it will watch your flight for you!! That way, if

rates drop by $100 for just an hour, Yapta will alert you. Most often you won’t get a full refund because you will have to pay to change your ticket but it will definitely be worth it. Some airlines will also only give you a travel voucher but most of them are good from a good length of time.

There’s another similar service called Faregaurd. You can find it at www.farecast.com. This is more like price insurance but it’s only good for 7 days. You pay $10 and it has 2 options. You can either track a specific fare you may be interested in purchasing later or you can get it to protect you after your purchase of the fair for 7 days.

Have you ever wanted to fly first class but haven’t wanted to pay the price? Try clicking on first class with restrictions or first class non-refundable. Many times you can find first class seats for half the price!!

Did you know? I had no idea that Northwest offers a Best Fare guarantee. What they say is that within 24 hours of booking your flight on www.nwa.com, you find airfare on the same flight, the same same itinerary and cabin is at least $5 cheaper, you can get a $50 travel voucher! If you used Yapta, you could take advantage of this more often!! Of course they require proof.

Here are some other nuances that were quite interesting:

· Cheapest days to travel are Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday

· Evenings are the cheapest times to travel except Fridays and Sundays

· Avoid Mondays, Fridays and Sundays, unless you want to pay more, these are the most expensive days to travel!!

Some other sites you may want to check into are:

• Air-fare.com tracks fares that have dropped 20 percent or more from the following day.

• farecompare.com helps you compare airfare from many different sites. They also have a lot of historical data on different flights that show when you can expect the cheapest airfare from the different airlines, again a guessing game!

• Hotelbook.com helps you find independent hotels not chains if you are interested.

• Sportsgroupie.com helps you plan a trip around your favorite sports team be it basketball, football, baseball or whatever.

• Flyertalk.com is a site where lots of frequent flyers share tips on deals and steals.

• Turnhere.com is a site that gives travelers the inside scoop on offbeat, interesting neighborhoods and topics.

• Airline cheat sheets. This site lists shows you how to find the right customer service agents to help you solve your travel troubles quickly and effeciently.

I hope you found this information as useful as I did and I hope it also saves you some cash-o-rama!! Let me know what you thought of the sites or if the suggestions saved you any money.

Have a great day!!

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here.

Mortgage People are Boring!!

I'm not boring!! So in that spirit I thought for my blog today I'd share a funny video I found on YouTube but I couldn't find it here on myspace so you'll just have to click the link.

Don't worry, there's no spam involved, no emails, no hidden anything, I'm not selling a thing!! It's just a funny video from Jay Leno to prove to you I can have fun too. He soooo cracks me up!!

Let me know if you busted a gut too over this short video!!

Beth Riegger
Keys 2 Success

Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

What to do this beautiful day? I think the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is a very good idea!! Do you know the history of it?? Well, here it is:

At one time, the Mississippi flowed through the place which is now called the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. This is why things grow so abundantly here. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board acquired this land between 1903 and 1935 and was known as the “The Parade” because of the military drills and exercises practiced in front of the Armory.

The area the Garden now occupies was also called the Armory Gardens, which featured a large brick National Guard building and formal gardens. The building was torn down in 1933, but the elaborate garden remained under the management of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. In the late 1960s, I-94 severed the connection between Loring Park and the garden, and eventually the area in front of the Walker Art Center became a playing field.

In 1988 the Walker and the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board collaborated to turn that playing field into the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. In 1992 it was expanded from 7.5 to 11 acres, making it the largest urban sculpture garden in the country at the time. There are more than 40 works on permanent view. Additional temporary installations keep the Garden experience continually fresh.

It is located just West of downtown at the corner of Vineland Place and Hennepin/Lyndale Avenues, across from the Walker Art Center. It offers the people that visit it the opportunity to enjoy various works of art by leading American and International artists in a garden setting of plazas, walkways and plantings.

Some of the permanent displays to look for are the colossal Spoonbridge and Cherry Fountain by Cleaes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen; the Irene Hixon Whitney Footbridge designed by Siah Armjani that connects the Sculpture Garden with Loring park and downtown Minneapolis; Frank Gehry;s Standing Glass Fish located in the Palm Room of the Cowles Conservatory (this room features permanent and seasonal horticultural displays); the Northern boundary of the Sculpture Garden features the Alene Grossman Memorial Arbor.

• Hours are everyday from 6 a.m. to midnight
• Phone: 612 370-4882
• 726 Vineland Pl.
  Minneapolis, MN 55403

Let me know if you end up visiting the Sculpture Gardens and what you thought! I haven’t been there since I was a kid. I will be going out of town this weekend for a wedding so I won’t get a chance to visit it this weekend but I’m certainly going to try soon!

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here

The Mortgage Crisis In MN

I wanted to continue with my previous blog about the foreclosures here in Minnesota and Kare11’s coverage on them. The very next night, they had another story on this and I wanted to tell you about and also wanted to give you some very good insights having to do with your mortgage.

They interviewed two different people, one a single man and the other a family, both about ready to loose their homes due to foreclosures. According to Alexa Milton of the non-profit ACORN Housing organization, “The spike in foreclosures has been huge in the Twin Cities.” ACORN reports that the foreclosures on residential properties in Hennepin County more than tripled in between 2000-2006. There were fewer than 1,000 in 2000 and in 2006, there were over 3,000.

There is some truth in the thinking that foreclosures are a minority problem or a lower income problem, but foreclosures are also spreading to the more affluent areas as well.

In Ramsey County, the number of foreclosures in 2000 were 300, rising to 1400 in 2006. This quadrupling of foreclosure rates also happened in the counties of Anoka (214 to 900), Washington (100 to 429), Scott (54 to 300) and Dakota (159 to 860).

The family that was interviewed refinanced their home in 2005 to pay off some bills and reduce their debt. The husband was going to college still so they needed every penny they could. They signed up for an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) that their rate was locked in for 2 years. They had originally wanted a 30 year fixed mortgage but their broker told them they didn’t qualify for it.

Now, I’m going to take a moment here. It is so impossible to dissect their situation in the way that it was presented here. Clearly, I don’t think their mortgage broker educated their clients to the fullest extent that they could have. Or, maybe they did and the clients just only heard what they wanted to. There are only three people that know this for sure, the clients and the mortgage broker. The fact of the matter is this, if you qualify for a mortgage, it doesn’t matter which program you choose, ARM or 30 year fixed or what have you. What is most likely the case in this situation is that the payment for the 30 year fixed was much higher than the ARM product, so the mortgage broker knowing that the family wanted to reduce their payments, introduced them to the ARM product.

In the news spot, they go on to say that this mortgage is now costing them an arm and a leg and their home. How can they say this? The customers certainly had the right to refinance their home after the fixed rate period was over so that they could lock in their rate. They also said they didn’t realize that their rate would adjust after 2 years. I’m not sure if this interviewer has ever been to a mortgage closing or not but those closers at the title companies really hammer it in to the customers everything about the ARM mortgages and when things will happen. Again, I think what we have here is denial on the part of the customers.

They did go on to say that there was a pre-payment penalty if the customers refinanced. Most often, in the case of pre-payment penalties, it would be a two year ARM with a two year pre-payment penalty or a 3 year ARM with a three year pre-payment penalty. More often than not, a pre-payment penalty could be absorbed into the loan as well. If this mortgage broker had any scruples at all, they would offer to help pay part of it as well for not properly informing their customers. This pre-payment penalty is also something that is covered in great detail at the closing.

The most unfortunate thing for this family is that the appraisal that was done on their home in 2005 said their home was worth $268,000 and so they mortgaged $240,000. After speaking with several realtors, they now feel their home is worth $225,000. The news spot blamed the mortgage company for over inflating the value of the home but did they forget what this article was all about? It’s about all of the foreclosures in these areas. In fact, they mentioned a home in these folk’s back yard that was just sold on foreclosure. Don’t you think that has some effect on the value of your home? I know for a fact that homes in 2005 were gaining much more value than they have been since. Some homes, and it sounds like this one might be one of them, might have even lost value.

Again, it’s hard to say if the appraisal was over inflated or not but as a mortgage broker, I have no control over how much an appraiser values a home at!! We have to justify every comparable home to the lender that we are selling the deal to as well. I think it’s pretty difficulty to over inflate a value by that much. I think I can beg and plead with my appraisers that I work with and they might have to dig really deep to find some other comparables that the lender will approve but I have never seen someone come up with an extra $38,000!! Maybe an extra $1,000 or two but again, it has to be justifiable!!

They also talked about how many loan applicants are being deliberately deceived. Is that really the case or are people really just looking for scapegoats here? Just because I’m honest, doesn’t mean that everyone is but I think the media has a big role to play here and they aren’t doing anyone any favors by this kind of reporting only half of the story.

Another part of the story was taking on the stated-income loans. These are loans where you state that you make so much per month instead of having to prove it. Most often, these types of loans are used for the self employed borrower. Mainly because when you are a W-2 employee (you work for someone else and they take your taxes out for you), you get to use your gross income (your income before taxes) to qualify for your loan. If you are self employed, you have to use your net income (your income after taxes and ALL deductions). How is this fair to the self employed person? There are a lot of expenses that a self employed person can deduct for that the W-2’d person has the same expenses (like car expenses) but because you are self-employed, you have to qualify after those deductions.

The stated income loan is also for people who have many different streams of income such as the single man that they interviewed. He’s a music teacher and he also gives private lessons. Unfortunately for him, he ran into a bad mortgage broker. His mortgage broker stated his income at $10,000/month when in all actuality, it was only $3,000/month. So, when is ARM started adjusting, he too could not afford the payments. He stated that it was like someone trying to explain the theory of relativity to him so he just sat there. Again, who’s to blame for this??? You need to take action if you don’t understand something!! I make sure to explain things to my clients in a way that they can understand things, without using all of the mortgage terms. I ask them several times if they understand thing and let them know that there’s no such thing as a stupid question!!

Both of these different sets of people got into what’s called a subprime mortgage. These are higher risk mortgages and carry higher penalties and restrictions. That being said, again, how could that appraisal been inflated by so much if there are so many restrictions on these loans? They also said that these subprime loans are believed to be largely responsible for the flood of foreclosures. It’s estimated that 80 percent of subprime borrowers can only afford the fixed year rates, when the rates start to adjust, the customers start to go under.

Every customer that I’ve ever put in one of these loans, we’ve always talked about the road to credit repair and how important keeping things on track are. We’ve also always talked about what it’s going to take to get out of that mortgage and what they need to do to help themselves. I can only do so much but they need to get involved with the process as well to have a steak in it. I’ve always been able to get my customers out of these loans before the adjustment period was over and after the pre-payment penalty period.

When a lender forecloses on a house, the average cost to them is around $58,000!! Do you think now that they WANT to foreclose??? Lenders must repurchase loans that default in the first 180 days. The staggering amount of these defaults has put a number of major lenders into bankruptcy or out of business. Since many of those lenders were publicly traded, there is a ripple into Wall Street. Since mortgage loans must be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, it’s not clear yet what the exact impact is going to be on Wall Street.

One major mistake in the reporting of this article was that they interviewed a mortgage broker and said that the customer has a full three business days to review the paperwork before it funds (or is made legal). While this is true on a refinance, it is not true on a purchase. This is a major distinction that must be made. This is why you must have a knowledgeable and trustworthy mortgage broker who will work with you.

The woman mortgage broker that they interviewed also agreed with me that these ARM loans are generally for people not to stay in them. You need to continually stay in contact with your client and your mortgage broker to be sure that things are being done so that when it does come time to refinance and get out of this loan, you can.

So, what can you do if you are in need of help? Well, if you live in the Twin Cities, you can call 311. It’s just like 411 or 911. I’ve not called it myself but I just might have to try it out. Also, call your lender. Put your pride aside and tell them the entire story, don’t leave anything out Call me, maybe I can do something to help as well, maybe give you a number of someone you hadn’t thought of yet. There are ways. I’ve always been fond of the saying, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you’ve got the will, I’ve got the way.” Make it happen, you can do it!!

Sorry this was such a long one today.

Wishing you much success!!

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here.

Syttende Mai??

I am a proud Norwegian. On my Dad’s side, our family has only been in the US for about 120 years. Half of his father’s siblings were born in Norway, the other half here in the United States. I find it quite hysterical that here, in Minnesota, the land of the Scandinavians, that no one knows what Syttende Mai is but yet everyone knows what Cinco de Mayo is!! Just as Cinco de Mayo is the Mexican independence day and the 4^th of July is the American independence day, Syttende Mai is the Norwegian independence day. It is also known as the Constitution Day or “grunnlovsdag” in celebration of the signing of their constitution in 1814. This constitution ended the 500 year union with Denmark.

The first Syttende Mai celebrations in Norway we all about political demonstrations against Swedish control. First they had them in private clubs under the guidance of Matthias Conrad Peterson of Trondheim. Peterson was really Danish but in his heart of hearts, he was all Norwegian (don’t we all want to be? Ha!). In 1824, he proposed that Syttende Mai be celebrated publicly as Norway’s Constitution Day.

So, in 1824 against the wishes of the King of Sweden, Carl Johan, celebrations began in Oslo (then known as Christiania). In 1829, a scuttlebutt of sorts happened on Syttende Mai. A beautiful steamboat called the Constitutionen arrived in the harbor of Oslo. People had gathered in large numbers near the harbor for the celebration and in the city marketplace called Stortorget. The military at Akershus Castle was ordered to disburse the crowd because they were chanting “Long live the Constitution.” The military knew that the people were honoring both the ship and the document but were forced to attack anyway. Fortunately, no one was killed but the Norwegians were humiliated. It was called the Battle of the Marketplace.

The hero of this battle was actually a young college student!! His name was Henrik Wergeland and was the actual son of the one of the signers of the Constitution. This battle was the beginning of a lifelong commitment for human rights, equality, freedom and democracy. Wergeland’s successful promotion of the Syttende Mai celebrations are illustrated by the “Hurra for Syttende Mai,” or “Horray for the Seventeenth of May,” which is said all through the day’s celebrations both in the US and in Norway.

The first official Children’s Parade was in Oslo on May 16, 1870. Bjornstjerne Bjornson was the man who instigated this fun tradition. He was a controversial patriot, author, political agitator and inspirational speaker. He actually wrote the national anthem called “Ja, vi elsker dette landet,” or “Yes, we love this country.” His cousin, Richard Nordraak wrote the music to go with it. I guess family doing things for family goes way back!!

Since the signing of the constitution in 1814, the relationship between Norway and Sweden was strained. The Norwegians elected a King, Kirstian Frederik and a war ensued with Sweden. This war only lasted 6 months (well, let’s face, it, we Scandinavians can never be mad for too long!) and a peace treaty between the two was signed established the two separate Kingdoms under one common monarch, King Charles XIII, who consented to recognize Syttende Mai. In 1905, after much hard work and diligence by the Norwegian people, all ties between Norway and Sweden were peacefully dissolved.

Syttende Mai is celebrated today in Norway and all across the US. It is mainly known as the children’s day and communities have parades, food (hmm, lefse, krumkakke, rosettes, how many can you name?) and several other celebrations.

Another way to celebrate this day is for Norwegians to share their heritage with others. I did this today at my son’s Montessori. We brought krumkakke, lefse and red/white/blue cookies. We also brought little Norwegian flags for the kids to bring home, a map of Norway, a picture of a Viking ship and several other fun things. The kids really loved it and my son really loved being the center of attention and professing his love of his heritage.

I think it’s an awesome thing to celebrate where we come from and keep traditions alive. As I stated before, I find it quite laughable that we all know of the Mexican Independence but absolutely no one that I ever talk to (under the age of 60), knows anything of this holiday unless they have the background that I do. Last time I checked, Scandinavians settled Minnesota! My hometown has a huge celebration on May 1^st and dances around the May pole, another Scandinavian tradition. I hope these traditions don’t get lost in the big city!!

Har en stor dag!! (Have a great day!!)

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here.

Digging Out Of Debt

I was watching Kare11 News last night and Mike Pomeranz did a story about consumers digging out of debt that I found quite interesting. He interviewed a girl that went to the U of M who fell for every trick those nasty credit card companies dealt her. I think my generation was the first to experience this. They offer free water bottles and towels if you sign up for a card. They sit in the student unions where the highest traffic is, it’s like they are preying on our young college students.

This new college student not only used it to make clothing purchases but she spent over her means, paying rent, traveling, paying for gas, paying for groceries and many other items. She made her minimum payments just as she thought she was supposed to do. When she graduated, she had racked up $3,000 in credit card debt. I guess that’s not too bad considering the national average in 2004 was $8650 according to The Plastic Safety Net.

Now that she was out of college and had to start paying back her student loans, she couldn’t afford to make her minimum payments on her credit cards any longer. She tried to negotiate with the companies on her own but they were just too tough on her.

Now, not everyone who carries credit card debt has racked up their bills because of extravagant spending or living beyond their means. A lot of them are in over their head because of medical bills, job loss or divorce. They are trying to live paycheck to paycheck and trying to find a way to lower their overall debt.

No matter which category you fall under, the offers coming flooding in from every nook and cranny to help bail you out. Some even promise to do it for next to nothing. One such company called Ameridebt was sued by the MN Attorney General’s office for cheating Minnesotans out of nearly $1 Million.

"They basically promised people that they would help consolidate and payoff their credit-card debt, only to charge the people significant amounts of money in up front fees. And then on the back end they failed to pay the creditors. So they would pocket the fee money to pay themselves," Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson explained.

Mike went on to talk about rolling over some of your debt into your mortgage. I was very grateful since I’m in that business that he didn’t say it was all bad. He was sure to point out that you will get a much lower interest rate then what you are paying on your credit cards, you can write-off some of the interest and expenses at tax time as well. If you can afford to make the payments, this might be the right thing to get you out of your pickle.

You need to make sure that you can afford the payments though!! Should I say this again? If you sign up for a very short 1 year ARM where your payment is fixed for only a year, well, that really doesn’t do you much good now does it? Because in a year, your rate is going to start fluctuating and as a result, your payment will undoubtedly go up as well. If you do get your self into a “band aid” loan so to speak, make sure the term is long enough to get you into the clear again, get you back on your feet so that you can re-finance into a fixed product or when the payments do start adjusting, you can afford them.

When working with a credit counseling service, you should try to work with someone local so that if you have a problem, you can actually go to them and look them in the eye!! There are so many to choose from, I’m not going to go into the many different places here. Besides the fact that I personally do not have any experience with them so I would not want to endorse anything I nor any of my clients have had any experience with. If you have, please let me know so that I know where to advise my clients to go!!

The gal that Mike Pomeranze interviewed that left college with the $3,000 in debt, where is she now? Well, she had all most finished up her credit counseling, she only had about $600 left so she thought she could do it on her own and she left her credit counseling program. She got a fantastic job, a great new apartment and started her spending all over again. She’s now up to $10,000 in credit card debt, (she lost the fantastic new job) and she’s back into credit counseling.

My problem is this, why aren’t we teaching our kids anything about credit cards and bills in general? Why aren’t there mandatory programs in high school and college about this? I went to college for business and never once was credit or credit cards or paying bills on any class list. Thank God I’ve been in the finance industry so that I could learn by other people’s mistakes but what’s the rest of the world to do?

I could blog about all of the things I’ve learned and all of my trade secrets but if people aren’t looking for this specific information, they aren’t going to find it. I educate all of my friends and my family and every customer that I can and that’s all I can do for now. I think as people in the Real Estate profession, we should take the time to inform the people within our sphere of influences of these same things because as a nation, we aren’t doing well!!

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here.

The Stress of Bankruptcy

With all of the articles and newscasts lately about the high foreclosure rates in the Twin Cities, I thought I would find some relevant material about credit issues.

The Stress of Bankruptcy
By Keith Burke

The stress of not being able to pay your bills is often very overwhelming for people. But the stress of dealing with a bankruptcy is the unknown that many people find even harder to deal. The bankruptcy is a subject that not too many people talk about and therefore it makes it a mystical process that is hard for people to understand. When someone is faced with mounting bills that they know are impossible to ever overcome, bankruptcy may be their only choice.

Many people are afraid that by filing for bankruptcy, it will leave a permanent record on their credit report and followed them for years to come. It is true that bankruptcy does stay on your credit report for up to 10 years, but it usually only lasts seven years. The fact is, if you are planning on paying your bills on time after bankruptcy, you will contin

ue to grow your credit rating even with such a blemish on it. Your bankruptcy record does not have to prevent you from getting a car loan, a home loan, or any other credit after it has been discharged. Establishing new credit is encouraged after bankruptcy in dealing correctly with your new credit and will show banks and other creditors that your financial situation is in the past and you now know how to manage your money better.

Once you have decided to claim bankruptcy, it is important to inform yourself of all the applicable laws regarding bankruptcy in your state. Some of the most important things you will want to be informed of is if your home or your car will be in jeopardy during the bankruptcy court hearing. Many assets that you own can be protected when you file bankruptcy depending on the state you live in. Another important aspect of filing for bankruptcy and is to ensure that the creditors you are unable to pay will no longer be able to hassle you while the process of bankruptcy is being completed. Finding a good bankruptcy lawyer will help you with this process. Bankruptcy lawyers have a wealth of knowledge regarding the laws in your area as well as the specifics in dealing with creditors throughout the bankruptcy process.

Hiring a bankruptcy lawyer will take the stress of the situation off of your shoulders. Although the process itself is still very stressful, your bankruptcy lawyer will be able to handle all of the most stressful parts of filing for bankruptcy. Make sure to find a bankruptcy lawyer that you feel comfortable with and someone who will be able to represent you the way that you would like to be represented. You do not have to be vulnerable throughout the bankruptcy process and instead, hire a bankruptcy lawyer who will be able to take care of the process

for you.

Did you know that you can request an annual free credit report?

Get additional information about taking control of your finances by visiting us
on the web, the information is free. http://know-your-credit-score.com

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

http://EzineArticles.com/?The-Stress-of-Bankruptcy&id=553994

It is ever so important that you find someone who knows what they are doing with your bankruptcy if that’s what you decide to do. You need to go to someone who specializes in this field so that they know exactly what they are doing. This is a very hard decision to make but there are places that will help you and it will not destroy your life if you do the right way.

Beth Riegger
To find out more information on how to increase your credit score, click here.