Acknowledgments vii
Introduction Master or Victim? You Decide ix
Chapter 1 How Did We Get Here? And Where Are We? 1
Chapter 2 Find Out Where You Stand 11
Chapter 3 Other People Are Grading You, Too 25
Chapter 4 Avoiding a Modern-Day Identity Crisis 45
Chapter 5 Win the New Mortgage Game 55
Chapter 6 Mortgage Free in Five to Seven Years 73
Chapter 7 Credit Cards: Just Because It’s Called MasterCard Doesn’t Mean It’s the Boss of You 85
Chapter 8 Car Deals: Making Sure You’re in the Driver’s Seat 113
Chapter 9 An Education in College Costs 127
Chapter 10 Don’t Let Bad Luck Derail Your Finances 145
Chapter 11 Surviving Bankruptcy 169
Chapter 12 Debt Strategies for Every Age 177
Chapter 13 Permanent Mastery, Going Forward 183
Appendix Resources 189
About the Author 203
Index 205
JORDAN E. GOODMAN is a nationally recognized expert on personal finance. He is the authorof the bestselling Everyone's Money Book and twelve other books. For eighteen years, hewas the Wall Street correspondent for Moneymagazine and also served as a regularcommentator for NBC News at Sunrise andMutual Broadcasting System's America in the Morning. Today, Goodman appears regularlyon many radio shows, including public radio's Marketplace as well as on TV programs on Fox, CNN, CBS, CNBC, and MSNBC. He also speaks regularly to large groups such as the Harv Eker wealth seminars. Visit Goodman's Web site: www.moneyanswers.com. BILL WESTROM is a consumer advocate and veteran mortgage professional who has become a critic of the traditional banking system. His own businesses, IFS Development Group and TruthInEquity.com, focus on educating and empowering homeowners so they can make smarter choices about mortgages and employ an innovative mortgage reduction strategy; equity acceleration. Westrom's mission is to "change the financial landscape of this country by helping homeowners get more out of what they own and what they earn."
Goodman (Everyone's Money Book), former Wall Street correspondent for Money magazine, offers a lifeline to Americans drowning in debt—with attention to explaining the new rules that the government has put in place since unveiling its stimulus package, including new borrowing guidelines by banks and new policies to avoid mortgage foreclosures. After a brief sketch of the origins of the credit crisis, the author provides a way to determine just how much debt one is in and shares tips on negotiating various payments. Addressing refinancing and paying off mortgages, avoiding identity fraud, selecting the right car deals and student loans, and surviving bankruptcy, the book covers virtually all the debt bases with hard-hitting advice. Goodman offers a detailed appendix with contact information for further reading as well as various resources to empower readers and help them regain their financial footing. (Feb.) (Publishers Weekly, December 21st, 2009)
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