It has already been more than one year since the bankruptcy of Lehman bank has triggered a financial crisis in the United States and the entire world. Since the number of bankruptcies has been increasing, many investors have lost a lot of money. Indeed, almost everyone is wondering how safe his investments are. Politicians have reacted to this problem and have adjusted German law to protect deposits. The law became effective as of June 30th.

One of the most obvious changes is the increase in the amounts that is protected. Before the law was adjusted, only 20,000 Euros were guaranteed. The first step taken has been to rise that amount now to 50,000 Euros and this will again be elevated to 100,000 Euros until 2011. There is no longer a deductible of ten percent to be paid by the customer in case of a loss. All private customers, business partnerships and small corporations are protected under this law.

The protection includes all forms of deposits such as traditional savings and time deposits. Certain forms of saving bonds are also protected. The deadlines have been adjusted as well. Previously, the refund of the deposits could take up to three months before the adjustment would be made. Now the bank has to reimburse the customer no later than 30 days after the deposit is lost. Many banks offer better compensation than the law requires though.

While mutual savings banks provide a full guarantee for all deposits, many small private banks have united to form a fund for the protection of deposits. Every customer is guaranteed to get refunded up to a limit of 30 percent of the bank´s own equity. De facto, this means that each customer is protected against the loss of at least 1 million euros.

Political guarantees are not to be forgotten. Chancellor Merkel has given a public guarantee that all deposits are safe. It can be assumed that the German federal government would always fulfill such a commitment to avoid a breakdown due to loss of customer confidence.

Verwandte Artikel

• (Deutsch) Wie minimiert man das Risiko bei Geldanlagen? (0)
• (Deutsch) Kredite / Kreditformen (0)
• (Deutsch) Der Kredit (0)
• (Deutsch) Ablauf bei der Kreditvergabe (0)

Private households often have their own little financial crises. To bridge financial strains, taking a new debt seems to be an appropriate option, but many banks are very reluctant these days to hand out new credit. People who got received a negative rating by the Schufa credit bureau are not likely to get any money from serious banks.

However, there are numerous advertisements for credits where no Schufa disclosure is demanded. Such offers sound tempting at first, but they often contain big risks and can be a total rip-off for the customer. Such credit offers are found even on reputable internet sites because Google helps to incorporate aggressive advertisements on many websites.

Although such credit offers are not new at all, a lot of desperate consumers are stepping right into the trap. Dubious brokers visit such people, their only intention being to collect high fees and sell overpriced insurance. This often works because people who need money and hope for credit will often sign anything presented to them. The problem is that almost never will someone actually receive the credit. Oftentimes illegal fees are collected, which means that not only does the customer receive no credit, but often ends up paying hundreds of euros to the broker. Trying to get the money back in a legal manner is possible theoretically; however, this usually fails because the customer cannot afford a lawyer. Even if a court rules in favor of the customer, the brokers cannot pay back and the money is lost practically. With foreign credit brokers, it is even more difficult to get any money back. Switzerland especially is known as a source for such credit offers.

As a general rule, it can be assumed that credits without successful investigation of the customer´s credit history cannot be serious, because almost no bank will take such a risk. If money is paid out in such an instance, interest rates are very high and will lead the customer deeper into a debt trap. But in most cases promises made are never kept in any way.

Verwandte Artikel

• (Deutsch) Wie funktioniert eine Kreditvergabe im Internet? (0)
• (Deutsch) Ratenkredit (0)
• (Deutsch) Finanzierungen über einen Kredit (0)
• (Deutsch) Die häufigsten Kreditarten (Teil 1) (0)
• (Deutsch) Der Kredit (0)

In the past people who owed money to others often could never get rid of that debt. The long period of limitations was 30 years and and attempt to be free of debt some day would be futile. In 1999, the German government changed this law. Since then, the debtor can file for private bankruptcy. To go this route, however, is not easy.

The procedure itself seems to be simple. During a period of compliance, the debtor has to do his very best to pay back his debts for six years. After that period, all debts are erased from the credit history and the debtor can have a new start in life. The debtor will offer a settlement to all creditors. Usually these first settlements are rejected because it means that the creditor will lose most of the original credit amount.

A judge will open the official procedure for filing bankruptcy after acknowledging that the debtor has no further assets. Over the next six years, the debtor can only spend the money that is left after the maximum garnishment on his income. The seized money is forwarded to a repository who will allocat the money to the different creditors. The debtor is left with a monthly amount that equals the same amount as social welfare under the Hartz-IV-law would provide. But after six years the
debtor´s credit history is totally clean again.

However, there are some sticking points on the path that will have to be avoided because even small mistakes can make the bankruptcy invalid. It is most important that the debtor lists every debt he has and names every single creditor. If any creditors show up later, the entire bankruptcy is in danger.

It is not possible for a debtor to simply file bankruptcy himself. The assistance of a lawyer or a certified credit counselor is required for this. Lawyers do not work pro bono usually, and debtors should beware of credit counselors who demand fees. Cost-free credit counselors are overburdened though, so filing bankruptcy can take a long time in the end.

Verwandte Artikel

• Keine verwandten Artikel

The low dollar rate has many consequences. One of them is that there is a location advantage for American companies with regard to operating costs compared to other countries.

This is one of the conclusions drawn in a study named „Competitive Alternatives“, which every two years compares conditions that are necessary to establish and maintain an industrial enterprise. Therefore, 136 cities in 10 countries in Europe, North America and Asia have been compared with each other. The current study reviews 27 cost factors such as personnel costs, taxes, real estate prices and energy costs. Other non-financial factors were also included that are important for competition.

Among these countries, Mexico took first place. Their advantage with low operational costs was as high as 20 percent compared to the second best. Canada, the United States and Australia followed closely behind. The improvement regarding cost factors has been most significant in the United States. Since 2006, the fall in value of the dollar has helped.

Among the European countries, France has the most efficient cost structure, which brings it to 5th place in global competition. England, Holland and Italy have similar operational costs which are between 7 and 8 percent higher than those in the United States.

Japan is known to be a relatively expensive base for industrial production. So it is not surprising that Japan took 9th place.

Germany is at the lower end of the ranking, hitting 10th place. Operational costs are here are up to 16.8 percent higher than in the United States. Superannuation of the population is another factor, a problem known as well in other European countries and also in Japan. The USA has a constant flow of Latino workers coming into the country.

However, the study does not only focus on mere operational costs. Quality of life is also an important factor when comparing international cities. This also includes education, crime statistics and the state of the real estate market. Therefore Mexico drops in its ranking because their high crime rates will influence decisions of companies looking for industrial bases.

Verwandte Artikel

• Keine verwandten Artikel

Many small investors put their deposits into several different daily allowance accounts in various banks. For each of these accounts, an exemption order for capital gains can be made in order to avoid full taxes. People who have a multitude of daily allowance accounts are collecting the same number of exemption orders. The investor has to be careful to keep everything in order. Writing down which bank got which order is an important and easy way to stay in control of the situation. It is a requirement in order to avoid problems with the revenue board. The quick and uncomplicated use of daily allowance accounts should not tempt investors to forget about the exemption orders.

All exemption orders together must not exceed the sum of 801 euros for single households. Married couples have a limit of 1602 euros. This lump sum for savers is replacing the old rules that had been effective until 2009. Exceeding this sum does not automatically create a problem with the revenue board. Not only does the total number of the exemption orders count, but the actual sum of the exempted interest does also. The total sum is automatically determined by the Federal Office for Taxes.

However, the investor is responsible for the correct tax declaration. If the investor conceals that he collected higher interest than allowed, the reaction of the revenue board will be harsh and swift. A penalty is likely then. In that case, the exemption orders must be corrected also. The German Federal Court has ruled that banks must not collect fees for the correction of amounts in the exemption orders (file number XIZR 269/69).

If the investor forgot to issue the exemption orders, the taxes are automatically forwarded by the banks. In that case, the investor can request the refund in his tax declaration. Therefore, he should fill out the form „revenue from capital investments“ in order to not give away the lump sum.

Although daily allowance accounts provide much flexibility for investors, the tax situation should always be kept in mind.

Verwandte Artikel

• (Deutsch) Wohin geht die Zinsentwicklung beim Tagesgeldkonto? (0)