Game Of Loans

Why fears about a looming student loan crisis are unfounded—and how they obscure what's really wrong with student lending College tuition and student debt levels have been rising at an alarming pace for at least two decades. These trends, coupled with an economy weakened by a major recession, have raised serious questions about whether we are headed for a major crisis, with borrowers defaulting on their loans in unprecedented numbers and taxpayers being forced to foot the bill. Game of Loans draws on new evidence to explain why such fears are misplaced—and how the popular myth of a looming crisis has obscured the real problems facing student lending in America. Bringing needed clarity to an issue that concerns all of us, Beth Akers and Matthew Chingos cut through the sensationalism and misleading rhetoric to make the compelling case that college remains a good investment for most students. They show how, in fact, typical borrowers face affordable debt burdens, and argue that the truly serious cases of financial hardship portrayed in the media are less common than the popular narrative would have us believe. But there are more troubling problems with student loans that don't receive the same attention. They include high rates of avoidable defaults by students who take on loans but don’t finish college—the riskiest segment of borrowers—and a dysfunctional market where competition among colleges drives tuition costs up instead of down. Persuasive and compelling, Game of Loans moves beyond the emotionally charged and politicized talk surrounding student debt, and offers a set of sensible policy proposals that can solve the real problems in student lending.

This book can save you more than $100,000. These days, most people assume you need to pay a boatload of money for a quality college education. As a result, students and their parents are willing to go into years of debt and potentially sabotage their entire financial futures just to get a fancy name on their diploma. But Zac Bissonnette is walking proof that this assumption is not only false, but dangerous-a class con game designed to rip you off and doom your student to a post-graduation life of near poverty . From his unique double perspective-he's a personal finance expert (at Daily Finance) AND a current senior at the University of Massachusetts-Zac figured out how to get an outstanding education at a public college, without bankrupting his parents or taking on massive loans. Armed with his personal knowledge, the latest data, and smart analysis, Zac takes on the sacred cows of the higher education establishment. He reveals why a lot of the conventional wisdom about choosing and financing college is not only wrong but hazardous to you and your child's financial future. You'll discover, for instance, that: * Student loans are NOT a necessary evil. Ordinary middle class families can- and must-find ways to avoid them, even without scholarships. * College "rankings" are useless-designed to sell magazines and generate hype. If you trust one of the major guides when picking a college, you face a potential financial disaster. * The elite graduate programs accept lots of people with non-elite bachelors degrees. So do America's most selective employers. The name on a diploma ultimately won't help your child have a more successful career or earn more money. Zac can prove every one of those bold assertions - and more. No matter what your current financial situation, he has a simple message for parents: "RELAX! Your kid will be able to get a champagne education on a beer budget!"

Investing in property is the largest single financial transaction anyone will make. Property buyers usually concentrate their research on online search engines, looking at glossy photos of beautifully staged homes. Instead, they would be better off working out how much they will need to borrow, how they should structure their loan and who would be the best lender. Author and personal finance expert, Stuart Wemyss, admits that finding the right loan is a bit like a game of snakes and ladders. You run up the ladder when you think you've found the lowest interest rate, only to slide down the snake when you realise the fees are high and conditions are stringent. "Interest is the single largest lifetime expense for investors" says Stuart. "The amount of borrowings investors carry affects their net worth and their cash flow and can make or break their retirement goals. Getting their borrowing right and structuring their investments correctly can save a considerable amount of money - often thousands of dollars per year."To make sure you get your borrowing right, Stuart explains the Rules of the Lending Game in this fascinating book. It contains invaluable information on: Choosing the right loan products Calculating how much to borrow and how to reduce the overall cost Structuring loans to manage cash flow and create wealth Making the most of your equity.

From his childhood of factory work in communist Latvia to his current life as one of the Bay Area's most respected and successful mortgage industry professionals, Manny Kagan has enjoyed a colorful journey to the top.In this fascinating new book, The Mortgage Game, Manny shares not only his amazing life story but also his secrets to finding the best mortgages possible. It all boils down to his trademark "Five Cs"--Collateral, Capacity, Credit, Capital and Character. Using real-life examples, Manny shows how he was able to overcome the "minuses" of some of his mortgage- or refinance-seeking clients (and most clients have some minuses) and turn them into "pluses." Just about every mortgage lender working today talks about the Four Cs, but Kagan takes it a step further and includes his own signature fifth C--character. This is the one that often makes the difference - and it's the one that helped him become a leader in the industry. In this book Kagan pulls back the curtain and shares details of his own real estate transactions--from the very first house he and his wife bought for their family, to subsequent refinance deals he was able to close on a basket of rental properties. The Mortgage Game is a valuable tool for anyone who's thinking of investing in real estate or refinancing an existing loan. The Mortgage Game offers up-to-date information on the current marketplace, along with clear explanations of how the market got itself into so much trouble. But this valuable book also offers more - it's the one reference guide every home-buyer needs.

A “bracing and well-argued” study of America’s college debt crisis—“necessary reading for anyone concerned about the fate of American higher education” (Kirkus). College is far too expensive for many people today, and the confusing mix of federal, state, institutional, and private financial aid leaves countless students without the resources they need to pay for it. In Paying the Price, education scholar Sara Goldrick-Rab reveals the devastating effect of these shortfalls. Goldrick-Rab examines a study of 3,000 students who used the support of federal aid and Pell Grants to enroll in public colleges and universities in Wisconsin in 2008. Half the students in the study left college without a degree, while less than 20 percent finished within five years. The cause of their problems, time and again, was lack of money. Unable to afford tuition, books, and living expenses, they worked too many hours at outside jobs, dropped classes, took time off to save money, and even went without adequate food or housing. In many heartbreaking cases, they simply left school—not with a degree, but with crippling debt. Goldrick-Rab combines that data with devastating stories of six individual students, whose struggles make clear the human and financial costs of our convoluted financial aid policies. In the final section of the book, Goldrick-Rab offers a range of possible solutions, from technical improvements to the financial aid application process, to a bold, public sector–focused “first degree free” program. "Honestly one of the most exciting books I've read, because [Goldrick-Rab has] solutions. It's a manual that I'd recommend to anyone out there, if you're a parent, if you're a teacher, if you're a student."—Trevor Noah, The Daily Show

"Bibliography found online at tonyrobbins.com/masterthegame"--Page [643].

This four-volume-set (CCIS 208, 209, 210, 211) constitutes the refereed proceedings of the International Symposium on Applied Economics, Business and Development, ISAEBD 2011, held in Dalian, China, in August 2011. The papers address issues related to Applied Economics, Business and Development and cover various research areas including Economics, Management, Education and its Applications.