Kate Bourland Empowering America to Live Debt Free

In July Redding's City Council, approved the appointment of a privatization committee to consider the pros and cons of privatizing or outsourcing city services. The Redding Convention Center is one of the facilities on the list for privatization or outsourcing.

Today, September 17th, at 4:00 PM there will be a Special Meeting in the Community Room at the Redding City Hall to discuss privatizing the Redding Convention Center.

There are two possible courses of action, both with substantial implications for Non-Profit and Community Organizations. Non profits use the convention center and pay less to utilize the facility, it's part of the concept called: the public good that the City subsidizes the use for these organizations.

1. The biggest worry is that if the Convention Center is privatized, the fees will be so high that the Non-Profits will not be able to afford to rent the facilities.

2 The other option that is being considered is tearing down the Auditorium because of the drain on the city budget ($900,000 per year).

Rumors abound regarding who is behind the push to privatize or tear it down. Some argue that it's driven by a fight over TOT funds. This argument suggests that local hoteliers want all the TOT money for themselves and that they want the Convention Center torn down. I checked with a local hotel owner who indicated that the hotel association has not made any recommendations as to the convention center that he knows of.

Some believe that the McConnell Foundation is behind it and that privatizing or tearing it down will afford the Foundation the opportunity to swoop in and purchase the land for development purposes.

As background, the convention center was built years ago as a public asset and was never intended to be a profit center. Because some of the members of the committee think the convention center should be profitable, they keep asking questions about why the convention center is an economic black hole.

Cities build convention centers so that people who live in other communities have a reason to come to their city. Think of San Francisco, Las Vegas or New Orleans where tourism is a major revenue generator for those communities. To make a convention center work, there has to be a major airport to get the people in and out of the city. In Redding, there is no airport to facilitate even 100 people coming into town, most of the flights are already booked with local citizens needing to get a connecting flight and business people who need to fly in and out of Redding.

Does it make sense to close the convention center? It depends on how you look at it. If there is a need to have the operation break even, it never will. The building was intended to be a gathering spot for community events that were bigger than the Veterans Hall next to the Post Office downtown and possibly bringing people from the outlying areas to spend money in Redding. One needs to look at the schedule of events at the convention center to determine if the building is still relevant; and that is a community decision.

In any event, today's meeting is a significant one, one that members of the community need to be involved in. Be there if you can, make your voice heard!

I am Kate Bourland. I help my clients get out of debt and establish a debt free lifestyle. You can reach me at 530-419-3967.

45% of American Banks make more from overdraft fees than then they do in profits from normal banking activity. What is wrong with an industry whose entire business model is built upon stealing money from the very people who can least afford it?

A recent New York Times article outlines a Wells Fargo customer whose teller failed to tell him that funds from a recent deposit were being held. He went about using his debit card and made a number of purchases under $10.00. He was charged multiple $34.00 over draft fees to the tune of $238.00. This means that a 4.00 cup of coffee at Starbucks actually cost him $38.00.

In my opinion, if a Bank can't make money lending money, then they shouldn't be in business. I say, close their doors now, don't pass go and don't collect $200.00

Here's what the banks do:

1. Customers are allowed to overdraft their account on their debit cards at point of purchase. (The banks bill this as overdraft protection and claim that they do this so that the customer is not embarrassed.) If the customer is aware that this is happening it's not a problem, they get to the bank and make sure that the debits are covered.

2. Unfortunately, thousands of Americans are unaware that it's even possible to use the debit card to withdraw more than is in the account. They find out the hard way that a $1.00 overdraft has cost them hundreds of dollars.

3. One of the sneaky techniques that banks use to increase revenue from overdraft fees is to process large debits first. In the old days, debits were credited based on the date and time they were incurred. No longer. By processing larger debits first, banks realized that it would force many customers into multiple overdrafts, thus increasing fees. By contrast, if the large debit were processed in order, they bank might only make a single overdraft fee- easy profit at the hands of a consumer programmer.

I for one am tired of the heavy handed financial sector. We as Americans do need to be responsible with our money, but when the systems are designed to trip us up and bury us, something is very wrong.

Unfortunately, I have no faith that any legislation being considered will actually help the consumer. Based on what we have seen in the last several year, government intervention will hurt the consumer and the small businesses who rely on small debit card purchases to stay alive.

The playing field isn't level, stay informed and watch your balances.

For those of you who are interested - here is the New York Times Article

I am Kate Bourland. I help my clients get out of debt, get loan modifications and establish a debt free lifestyle. We Guarantee our Loan Modifications. You can reach me at 530-419-3967.

http://www.katebourland.com

This wonderfully fun Your Tube Video pays homage to the beautiful city of Redding, CA. I really enjoyed the images of some of our local landmarks, from the Sacramento River to the beautiful Lake Shasta. WinRiver Casino to the magnificant Sundial Bridge, the only glass bridge to cross a major River - it's magnificant. Mount Shasta, to Downtown by the old bus station. He missed the Cascade Theatre though. The Cascade is one of the most beautiful man made landmarks we have here in town.

Enjoy!~

I am Kate Bourland. I help my clients get out of debt, get loan modifications and establish a debt free lifestyle. We Guarantee our Loan Modifications. You can reach me at 530-419-3967.

http://www.katebourland.com

Things to Do In Redding California

Two Re-Replet recycling centers have opened here in Redding.

I love these machines because they make it so simple to bring in just a few bottles so I don't have to save up the cans and bottles in big plastic bags that get smelly or worse attract bugs.

I recycle here all the time. It's like a vending machine. You simply feed the cans into the machine and it counts them, adds up your money and you print a redemption ticket. The redemption tickets can be taken into Holiday Market for cash!

So simple and easy.

One of the really neat things about these recycling centers is that they are completely self contained.

Inside the building the bottles and cans are sorted and crushed right on site. This diminishes the carbon footprint from having to truck the uncrushed cans somewhere else.

Brilliant.

Right now there are two Re-Planet recycling centers here in Redding.

The Holiday Market Shopping center on Placer and Buenaventura. You'll find the center next to Blockbuster on the Buenaventura side of the center.

The second center is located behind hte Holiday Market off Highway 273.

Re-Planet is an international company with centers across the United States.

Check out the Re-Planet Websitefor information on how recycling pays and the positive impact that it has on our environment!!

I am Kate Bourland. I help my clients get out of debt, get loan modifications and establish a debt free lifestyle. We Guarantee our Loan Modifications. You can reach me at 530-419-3967.

How To Get Out Of Debt Blog

http://www.katebourland.com

Things to Do In Redding California

Debt is one of those words that brings up all kinds of negative emotions, fear, shame and guilt among them.  It's also a topic that everyone has an opinion on.  

Some will argue that some debt is good while others will argue that all debt is bad. 

What I find most interesting is the idea that there is a single best way to get out of debt.  The truth is that there is no one size fits all strategy to eliminating debt.   There are however two truths when it comes to tackling debt:

 

1. You must spend less than you make.
2. In order to spend less than you make you must either increase your income or lower your expenses.

The trick is figuring out the combination for your individual circumstances.  If you have suffered a Financial Hardship, your strategy will be different from someone who hasn't undergone such an event. It's important to understand the difference. 

A financial hardship is anything that has lowered your income or increased your expenses to the point where you can no longer afford to make your minimum payments.  Financial Hardships include loss of job, reduced income, a house payment that has adjusted upward, birth of a child,  medical expenses.

If you have suffered a financial hardship your choices are going to be as follows:

• Continue to try to make the minimum payments, missing a payment here and there and living off of credit cards.  This is a ticking time bomb and you hurt your credit big time usingthis strategy.
• Credit Counseling (aka - CCCS):  These organizations are typically sheep in wolves clothing.  They are usually owned by credit card companies themselves and take money from you the consumer and the credit card companies themselves.  They work by lowering your interest payments, and charging you a monthly fee to manage your debt.  You send them a monthly payment, that is slightly lower than your current minimums and decide who gets paid and who doesn't.  CCCS also puts a mark on your credit report which acts as if you've undergone a bankruptcy.  The quoted payoff time is typically 5 - 7 years but typically it's 7 - 9 years before you are out of debt.
• Debt Settlement:  Debt settlement companies will actually tackle the principal balance of your debt.  They do it by negotiating with your credit card companies and will save you 50 - 60% off the principal balance.  A good company will have you out of debt in 2 - 3 years, no longer than 48 months.  There is no hardship program that is faster or more effective than debt settlement.  Your credit takes a serious hit when you are in the program but it quickly recovers once all your debt is paid.  It's not for everyone and it only works with unsecured credit cards, medical bills, and personal loans.  Be wary as there are a lot of new companies cropping up who don't have your best interest in mind. 
• Bankruptcy:  Bankruptcy is the last alternative.  The goal of Debt Settlement and Credit Counseling are to help you avoid bankruptcy. 

In most circumstances, debt settlement is the least harmful and most effective of the hardship categories.

For those who are not in a financial hardship, your options are much wider.  The debt strategy that is right for you will depend on your goals, your age, and your exit strategy.  By your exit strategy I mean what do you want to do once you are completely out of debt?

Your options are going to be debt consolidation loans, debt roll-down strategies, interest cancellation strategies, or a combination of all three.

The solution is to seek help from a professional who is experienced in reviewing individual situations.  There is no one size fits all solution to managing debt.  What works for you might not work for your neighbor.  If you find yourself struggling to make payments, get a qualified opinion sooner, rather than later.

Kate Bourland is a Debt and Credit Specialist. Customized Debt Solutions. Got Debt? I can help!

Call Today 1-530-419-3967