When last was a State bill signed in a driveway?

The Governor visited Brockton on Saturday to make a statement
Was anybody in the lending industry listening?

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick signed a bill into law last Saturday that its sponsors hope will both keep house owners in their homes for longer, and protect tenants from eviction from foreclosed real estate. To make the point abundantly clear, the Governor authorized the legislation while standing in the driveway of a foreclosed home in Noyes Avenue, Brockton.

Governor Patrick chose that site to sign the bill known as an act relative to mortgage foreclosures because that part of Massachusetts has reported among the highest rates of foreclosures across the State, while at the same time displaying an exceptional level of resilience and community spirit. The guts and courage exhibited in trying times by grassroots communities were in fact what brought the foreclosure issue to the table, the governor said. “You don’t have to be a big shot on Beacon Hill anymore to move your agenda forward,” he concluded.

The Brockton Interfaith Community is a leading light for all those affected, and, in recognition of that, its 29-year-old organizer Diluvina Vazquez-Allard, was invited to join Governor Patrick, Attorney-General Coakley and Mayot Balzotti on the podium that Saturday afternoon. “I am

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Taking a home loan? Beware of these facts

A bank is eligible to demand additional security when property prices fall. Even if you are loyal on your EMI payments, this clause demands a security cover in addition to your loan amount and if a borrower fails to provide such a security then he/ she may be declared a defaulter by the lender.

Sameer Tiwari, a Pune based mechanical engineer, thought he had made a “prudent decision” by opting for a fixed rate EMI when he took his home loan five years ago from a reputed national bank.

Three years after the date of disbursement, Sameer received a letter, which said it was time for renewal of his loan and that the interest on his fixed home loan had been increased by 0.5 per cent. Though this did not mean a change in the actual EMI he paid, this would however reflect first on his loan tenure, which would be increased to accommodate the interest change. On checking with the bank, he learned that there was a clause in the agreement that said the fixed rate was only for a period of three years and not for the entire loan tenure!

This letter brought endless, sleepless nights to Sameer and his family now, they had to recalculate and replan all their income sources and planned expenses because the “fixed EMIs (Equated Monthly Instalments)” will increase!

What is a loan agreement?

A loan agreement is a ‘contract’ entered into between the borrower and the lender (banks and financial institutions) that regulates the terms of a loan. The loan ag

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How to Increase Your Web Site’s Traffic


Increase web site traffic with these simple tips.
Traffic can really make or break your website.

If you crank out piece after piece of great content, yet no one reads it, it can be demoralizing. (This, I think, is why most bloggers quit after a few months.)

If you have a great product or service that you know can help a lot of people, but no one knows about it, and you’re on a limited budget, it can seem impossible to get your business off the ground.

I understand. I’ve been in both of those places, and in both of those cases, traffic can help. Today, I’ll take you “behind the scenes” and show you one of the big ways I grew a business in a highly competitive industry to the $1 million mark, and also how I grew this blog to one that gets massive traffic every month–in the top 0.1% of all websites by traffic, according to Alexa.

Then I’ll show you how you can do the same thing…and grow your business by leaps and bounds without killing your wallet by buying advertisements.

The Big Myth: Just Write Great Content, and the Search Engines Will Love You

This big myth gets uttered all the time. It might have been true years ago. The theory behi

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Tell us about your visit to Washington DC?

The State Department had a half day event for employees and guests about Mobile Money. Well attended and great interest in mobile money for “development” (improving political, economic, and human conditions around the world).

The group was diverse in experience – which is a challenge for a presenter. Since I co-presented the first session my goal was to create a common understanding of mobile money, how it is successfully implemented, and what are the benefits. I wanted to make sure the audience came up to speed quickly and got beyond the simplistic view.  The feedback was overwhelmingly positive about the opening session (partial credit goes to Jan Chipchase my co-presenter who started the session with a look at the needs of under-served people around the world) .

What is the role of State in Mobile Money

In conversations I learned that although State is enthusiastic about mobile money for development, their engagement model is still to be determined. They want to see these solutions go to places like Haiti as well as large markets like India. Yet I don’t think they yet know exactly what their role should be in helping make that happen. I was ab

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