(photo: credits)

So are you looking to take advantage of the government offer to give you up to $4,500 cash for clunkers cars? the main question that prett much everyone is asking is “What Vehicles Will Be Eligible For The Voucher?” Well over at Edmunds they have compiled a list of the vehicles that will likely be eligible for the “Cash For Clunkers” voucher. Please note a general rule of thumb is that your vehicle must get 18 miles per gallon or less to qualify for the program (combined city and highway driving). Here is a great video that explains the details about waiting before you rush out and buy a new car.

It’s a shame I recently bought a new Mazda… Because I would have loved to used a crisp $4,500 towards a new car right about now. Granted my current “new” Mazda isn’t too great on gas but, ehh it gets me from point A to point B.

I was searching homes in and around my area when a friend of mine informed me about Bank Owned homes a.k.a. REO properties, or Real Estate Owned properties. Either way you look at it the homes were an unsuccessful sale at a foreclosure auction. Which means that they are the perfect deal when it comes to buying a home.. minus the fact that most of them are buy as-is homes. So with that in mind I started searching for REO banks and I came across a bunch of banks that have their own Real Estate Owned (REO) property databases. I’ve listed the ones that I know of and could find.. If you know of any others please feel free to leave them with a comment.

Bank of America REO:
http://bankofamerica.reo.com/search/

BB&T REO (Branch Bank and Trust)
http://www.bbt.com/applications/specialassets/search.asp

Citibank REO
http://www.citimortgage.com/Mortgage/Oreo/SearchListing.do

Coldwell Banker REO Division
Coldwell Banker REO Division

Countrywide REO:
http://www.countrywide.com/purchase/f_reo.asp

Fannie Mae REO:
http://www.mortgagecontent.net/reoSearchApplication/fanniemae/

FDIC Real Estate Owned
http://www4.fdic.gov/DRRORE/

Freddie Mac REO:
http://www.homesteps.com/hm01_1featuresearch.htm

HSBC REO:
http://www.banking.us.hsbc.com/

HUD REO:
http://www.hud.gov/homes/index.cfm

IndyMac Bank REO:
http://apps.indymacbank.com/individuals/realestate/search.asp

JP Morgan Chase Bank REO:
http://mortgage.chase.com/pages/other/co_properties_landing.jsp

People’s Bank REO
http://www.peoples.com/im/cda/multi_elements/0,,1355,00.html

Regions Bank Properties
http://realestate.regions.com/servlet/Ore/ForeclosedPropertySearch.jsp

SBA Properties
http://app1.sba.gov/pfsales/dsp_search.html

Sallie Mae Financial Services Properties
http://www.grpcapital.com/properties/index.html

Wachovia REO:
http://reo.wachovia.com/

Washington Mutual REO (WAMU):
http://www.wamuproperties.com

Wells Fargo REO:
https://www.pasreo.com/reo/

I was searching for ways online to “make money quick online” and that was when I came across Lending Club I thought hmmm… this is a perfect way to lend money / invest my money with prime borrowers. and by doing so I can earn from 6.69% to 19.37% on what I lend to people. It’s almost as if I’m a person to person lending bank that people can come to online and i’d be able to lend them money and make a decent profit. This is a great opportunity for any one who is trying to get their stocks out of the market but yet want to still make some profit.

Ehh if you aren’t into making money online and you just want to borrow money from multiple people then Lending Club is the perfect opportunity for that as well. As a borrower with Lending Club you have the ability to borrow up to $25,000 with rates as low as 7.88%

Games must be in good condition and your trade-in shipment valued at $10 or more

Print a shipping label and packing slip, package your games, and ship them

An Amazon.com Gift Card will be deposited into your account upon receipt of games

That’s right over at Amazon.com they allow you to trade in your games for Amazon.com credit. Which isn’t too bad if you consider some of the prices listed over on the 15 really cheap xbox 360 games. Amazon.com even allows you to check the trade-in values of your games before you send them. Some of the trade in values run the competition at a tight race…

Examples of the trade in prices:

• Xbox 360 - Trade-in Value:$16.00
  Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Game of the Year
  
• Nintendo Wii - Trade-in Value:$19.00
  LEGO Batman

• Nintendo DS - Trade-in Value:$9.00
  Pokemon - Diamond Version

One cool feature that Amazon offers is that the shipping for your used games is FREE! So even if no one will take you to the game store (GameStop, Blockbuster, etc) now you can just send out the game right from home.  Please note that the games must be in good condition, which means they must include the manual, cover art and case.  So they’re not like GameStop who allow trade ins that are just a disk.

Here is a list of what consoles & handheld devices they buy:
Console

• PlayStation 3
• PlayStation 2
• Xbox 360
• Xbox
• Wii
• GameCube

Handheld

• Nintendo DS
• PlayStation Portable
• Game Boy Advance

(photo: credits)

I came across a great article the had some very useful tips to help you maximize your tax deductions if you haven’t filled your taxes this year. Below are 5 of the 14 overlooked ways to slash your taxes provided by Wallet Pop…

• If You’re Going Green …
  If you made an effort to go “green” in 2008, Uncle Sam wants to put a few extra dollars in your pocket. Unlike deductions against your income, these are actual tax credits … so again every penny ends up in your pocket. Probably the biggest tax credit — between $200 and $3,500 — comes from purchasing a new hybrid vehicle. The weight of the vehicle and how much fuel it saves will have an impact on the size of your tax credit. A new energy-efficient roof for your home can also generate a tax credit of up to $500. If you bought new energy-efficient appliances for your home, these can generate tax savings, too.
• If You Pay PMI …
  When you take out a first mortgage with less than 20% down, you pay a monthly private mortgage insurance (PMI). If you took your mortgage on or after January 1, 2007, that PMI expense is now deductible. Simply use Line 13 on Schedule A — the same form that you use to deduct mortgage interest and property taxes. Your lender should make this easy by telling you the amount of your PMI premium in Box 4 of your Form 1098. This deduction is scheduled to disappear after 2010, so make the most of it while it lasts!
• If You Lost Your Job …
  Did you look for a job in 2008? If you looked for a job in the same field and at the same level as the one you left, you might be able to deduct your job search expenses as “miscellaneous itemized tax deductions.” And even if didn’t get the job, your expenses may still be deductible. Possible deductions include agency fees, resume preparation, advertising, postage, long-distance phone calls, and travel. You can claim these job-seeking expenses as long as the amount of all miscellaneous itemized tax deductions is more than 2% of your adjusted gross income (AGI).
• Tax Preparation Fees
  That’s right… ANY costs pertaining to tax planning. These are easy to forget because they really fall under the category of “miscellaneous” itemized expenses. You can write off your tax preparation fees, plus portions of any legal or accounting fees related to your taxes. Meaning if you sat down with an attorney to review your estate, and you spent a part of that time reviewing the tax implications, that time would be tax deductible.
• If You’re a Working Parent…
  This one is a tax CREDIT, not a deduction. (A tax credit actually reduces your tax bill dollar for dollar.) If you pay for childcare, including daycare or nanny services, you can reduce your taxes up to $3K for a single child or up to $6K for two or more children under the age of 13. The amount of the credit ranges from 20 to 35% of your child care costs, depending on your gross income. For example, if your income is $43K or more, you can claim a 20% credit on your childcare costs. So if you have one child and you spend $8K a year in childcare costs, you can save 20% off the first $3K — or $600. As always, certain “rules” apply.

If you haven’t filed your taxes yet there are tons of places in and around your area that stay open late so you can get them done. In addition to not having your taxes done yet here is a site offering to pay up to $250 towards the preparation of them.