Never borrowing money might look slightly extreme so let’s look at it carefully. In the big wide world, there are many things you “can” do. All it takes is the wish and the will to make any one of them happen. So, when we have the money, we can spend it however we want to get whatever we want. If we don’t have the cash in hand, we can always borrow to spend some more. For many, saving has not been an option. With property values rising year-on-year, there has been a growing positive housing equity to tap into to keep on spending. Except that was yesterday.

Today, it’s official. The US is in recession and this “thing” called the credit crunch is biting us. It’s a scary time. So what does it all mean? Well, like all situations, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is there’s still money out there to borrow. If you use a site like this, you will find there’s still money looking for borrowers. The bad news is loan companies are only lending to the people with the best credit scores. Even the top-rated borrower is thought a risk for a more substantial cash loan unless there’s collateral. Worse, if the companies offer loans to people with lower scores, they are asking for cash deposits on the property or goods, and charging higher rates of interest. This puts a lot more pressure on people to manage their credit scores and ensure they remain as high as possible. Now back to the question: even though you can borrow, should you?

There’s a simple rule about keeping your credit score high. Use the credit available or watch your score fall. The way the score is calculated will penalize you if you don’t use your credit cards and take out loans. So you have no choice. You should borrow. Running money through your cards for routine household bills is good. But don’t use your cards for big ticket items unless you have no choice. Always try for a separate loan where the interest rates are usually lower. Then think carefully about what you’re buying. For example, the biggest purchase most people make is a vehicle, but it’s the item that’s going to lose its value the fastest. Buy a new car and it will lose two-thirds of its value in the first four years.

So never buy a new car unless you can afford the loss. More importantly, don’t be tempted by car loans offered through the dealerships. Even the zero-percent deals are expensive when you look at the profit margin built into the retail price of the car itself. Unless you’re made of money, stick with used cars with two or three years depreciation already paid by the first owners. Then, make sure you get a free-standing auto loan. You want to be a cash buyer in the dealership. That way, you get the best discount on the price. Using your credit wisely during a recession is the way to keep your credit score high.

health insurance, life insurance, auto insurance, or dental insurance, you should always have the right kind of protection. Business insurance is a way for you to guard your company, your employees, yourself and your clientele. The reality is that more and more businesses are shutting down because of the economy. With the fickle buyers that our society offers, you can never be sure that you are stable in the market and that your business will never have any problems. The reality is: you are not immune to the economy and every changing needs of buyers. To stay on top of things, to always know you are protected, it is important to have business insurance. Using biz insurance is not a bad thing. It doesn’t mean that you are a pessimistic business owner. In fact, it makes you a savvy business owner because you choose to use the resources available so that you can protect your business as a whole. Staying optimistic about the growth of your company is easy when you know that you’re protected. Don’t hesitate to look into the business insurance that you need now.

SOHO stands for Small Office, Home Office and it’s used to refer to people who work from home (sorry it’s a boring explanation). With the cost of business premises still high even though the housing market is in free fall, it’s natural to base start-ups in the spare room and the garage for storing inventory. With computers, people can easily work from home. Employers cut their expensive office overheads by having their full-time staff telecommute. The self-employed freelance or run e-commerce sites. Unfortunately, most people never think about home insurance. They have their home insurance policy but never read the small print. The bad news? The majority of policies either exclude or limit the cover for people who telecommute or operate a home business. Let’s deal with your boss offering you the chance to work from home. That’s great for you, saving all that money in gas or bus fares to travel to work. But if your boss gives you a computer, router and other office equipment, make sure the business insures it all. If not, you’re likely to find a burglary expensive. Your home insurance probably doesn’t cover any property belonging to someone outside the immediate family. So who’s going to pay for all the missing kit? The answer is to add an endorsement to your existing policy and to pass the additional cost on to your boss (you can sell this because your personal endorsement will be less than the business insurance cost). If it’s your own business, how much is all your equipment and inventory worth? Even if some of the value is covered under your home policy, there’s almost certainly no cover if you take any of it outside the home. Worse, there’s no liability cover so if anyone is injured whilst dealing with your business, you’ve just discovered the joys of self-insurance. You’ll be pleased to know there are options. If your own business is small scale, add an endorsement to your policy (sometimes called permitted incidental occupancies). But if the business is more substantial, there’s no substitute for a work at home business owners insurance policy. It’s more expensive but, because it offers strong liability cover against all claims for loss caused by the operation of your business, it pays for itself in the long run. You can use online quotes to find the best homeowners insurance for your needs.

Auto insurance quotes may seem elusive, especially the free ones. But there are reasons why you should take the time to get plenty of quotes. Having an understanding about what your driving record and type of car you drive will cost you as far as benefits go will allow you to make a better decision. If you are a student, you can save money for good student driving discounts. If you have a perfect driving record, you just may find you have quotes for lower rates. What if you have parking citations or auto accidents on your driving record? Well, you just might find that you have the higher insurance quotes. This is not terrible as there are always ways to lower your rates. By paying all your fines, driving better, avoiding parking tickets, and paying the premium in advance, you will lower your rates and cut your costs. If you really want to save money, look at the vehicle that you drive. Sometimes insurance agencies increase the rate for sports cars because they tend to speed, leading to speeding tickets. With that, auto insurance companies take a good look at everything and will give you higher or lower auto insurance quotes depending on everything possible. Start your search for your auto insurance now.