The future of America's job growth is in the clean tech industry, according to a new report by Clean Edge. Walletpop talks to Ron Pernick, author of The Clean Tech Revolution, about one of the fastest growing job markets in the world.Read more about it here.

WalletPop Wire

Travel is still smoking hot (at the fire sales, that is)

Jason Cochran Nov 16th 2009 @ 12:30PM EST Filed Under: Bargains, Extracurriculars, Technology, Transportation, Travel, Economizer

Travel may be down in this economy, but there's one area where business is booming: discount booking sites. With travel providers desperate to unload unused rooms and tickets, it seems like the only sectors of the travel industry that are exploding are the ones previously seen as a last resort by the industry.

Priceline.com reported that bookings through its site, which offers steep discounts on hotel rooms and other travel products, are at their best levels in nine years. Hotwire.com, which is owned by Expedia, reports a similar boost in revenue. Its hotel room sales over 12 months have exceeded $250 million for the first time, and the site told WalletPop that compared to last year, hotel bookings in the biggest markets (meaning the most popular travelers' cities) are up between 20% and 30%.

Continue reading Travel is still smoking hot (at the fire sales, that is)

FHA going broke? How to qualify for a home loan anyway

Charles Feldman Nov 16th 2009 @ 12:00PM EST Filed Under: Real Estate, Mortgages

As the economy is supposed to be emerging from the dark cave of deep recession, you might expect it would become easier for you to secure a mortgage in the months ahead. The truth is, however, that unless you start taking some key steps right now, you may find yourself still in that recessionary cave instead of a new home, because the Federal Housing Administration is running out of money. For many potential home buyers, that's a bit like your rich uncle Sam, who was always a soft touch for a few extra bucks, filing for bankruptcy and leaving you in the lurch.

Continue reading FHA going broke? How to qualify for a home loan anyway

Really want to save the world? Quit having kids

Zac Bissonnette Nov 16th 2009 @ 11:30AM EST Filed Under: Tax

The IRS recently updated consumers on all the tax savings you can get from making your home more green-friendly. Installing energy efficient windows and doors, insulation, roofing, HVAC, water heaters, and biomass stoves can save you a boatload of money on your taxes.

But will doing all those things really help the environment? Yes. But ya know what will help mother nature a hell of a lot more?

Not breeding.

Continue reading Really want to save the world? Quit having kids

Twitter: Time's Person of the Year or yesterday's fad already?

Tom Barlow Nov 16th 2009 @ 11:00AM EST Filed Under: Technology

According to Folio magazine, the Internet microblogging site Twitter is in consideration to be named Time Magazine's Person of the Year (yeah, I think the idea is silly too).

However, the magazine's timing could be poor, as Mashable.com has pointed out that Twitter visitor numbers have plateaued and even declined slightly in the past five months. The site hit 23,579,044 unique visitors in August. By October, this number had dropped by over half a million.

Continue reading Twitter: Time's Person of the Year or yesterday's fad already?

Myth Buster: No jail time for uninsured

Lita Epstein Nov 16th 2009 @ 10:00AM EST Filed Under: Health, Taxes-tax credits, Insurance-health

You'll find numerous blogs out there threatening jail time for the uninsured, but don't believe them. This is just another scare tactic to prevent health insurance reform.

While it's true there are penalties for those who choose not to get insurance, that penalty is 2.5% of one's income and the penalties will be collected by the IRS. Jail time is not likely. In fact criminal prosecutions by the IRS are rare. Of 156 million individual tax returns filed in 2008, only 100 resulted in criminal prosecutions for those who willfully defrauded the system. The penalty will only impact those who are wealthy enough to pay for insurance and choose not to pay. The intent is that this penalty will be used to pay for the medical needs of those who choose not to get insurance.

Continue reading Myth Buster: No jail time for uninsured

Overdraft protection coming ... at a snail's pace

Martha C. White Nov 16th 2009 @ 9:00AM EST Filed Under: Banks

As we told you earlier, the Federal Reserve just announced it would begin reigning in the scourge of debit-card users nationwide: overdraft charges. The good news is that the new ruling will prohibit banks from foisting this so-called protection on customers automatically; instead, consumers will have to voluntarily sign up (don't all line up at once, now!) The bad news: It's going to be another eight long months before this relief comes.

The government is making Americans wait until July 1, 2010, to get the relief they've been literally begging for, even though Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke called the new ruling "an important step forward in consumer protection."

Continue reading Overdraft protection coming ... at a snail's pace

National Association of Realtors predicts 4% gain for housing in 2010

Zac Bissonnette Nov 16th 2009 @ 8:00AM EST Filed Under: Real Estate

The good news: National Association of Realtors chief economist Lawrence Yun is predicting that home prices will rise 4% in 2010.

The bad news: Lawrence Yun has never been right about anything in his entire life, ever.

Yun predicted that sales volume will also rise about 14%. I'm definitely not smart enough to try to make short-term predictions about what will happen with home prices or sales volume. But the track record suggests that Lawrence Yun isn't smart enough either.

In July of 2008, Yun opined that "I think we are very near to the end of the housing downturn. In June of 2008, Newsweek guru Daniel Gross wrote that "Yun is the Little Orphan Annie of forecasters. He's always sure the sun will come out tomorrow." Lawerence Yun Watch is an entire blog devoted to exposing Yun's track record of poor predictions.

And as much as it pains me to link to a video of Glenn Beck, he actually has a pretty good exploration of the disastrous predictions of the National Association of Realtors' economists. (see below)

So what will happen with housing in 2010? I have no idea. But don't get your hopes up based on Little Orphan Annie's mumblings about price increases.

Faces of loan modification: Christine Attalla, Bolingbrook, Ill.

Amy Pyle Nov 15th 2009 @ 10:00AM EST Filed Under: Banks, Budgets, Credit, Real Estate, Recession

How well is the government's loan modification working? WalletPop's four-part special report continues with profiles of some of those trying to get help. To read the overview, click here.

Christine Attalla is among the lucky. The suburban Chicago homeowner not only got a temporary loan modification, but she's on track to convert it to a long-term adjustment before Christmas.

She even calls herself lucky, although when she does there's a quiver in her voice. That's because in the process, her credit took a beating.

For a solo entrepreneur -- Attalla, 38 and divorced, runs her own public relations company -- poor credit is a serious problem.

It all began last spring, when Attalla realized the economic downturn was making it increasingly difficult for her to manage her $3,000-a-month payment on her Bolingbrook home. And she was pregnant, so she knew she'd have less earning power later in the year.

Attalla heard from a friend about the modification program, applied in April through her lender, CitiMortgage, and waited.

She was approved for a three-month trial reduction -- for June, July and August -- which cut her monthly payments in half. If she kept current, she said, she would qualify for a permanent modification that started with a 2% interest rate and tiered up after a decade. So far, so good.

Continue reading Faces of loan modification: Christine Attalla, Bolingbrook, Ill.

Extreme home makeover, Part V: $55,000 later, we're finally done

Barbara Bartlein Nov 15th 2009 @ 6:00AM EST Filed Under: Budgets, Debt, Home, Real Estate

This is the last of a five-part series about how the writer and her husband, Charlie, tackled a major overhaul of their home and the pitfalls they faced along the way. To read the first installment click here.

The workers are gone, the dumpster was picked up, and we are touching up the stain and paint. Now that things are finished, we are so glad that we put in the quality finishes and the extra touches we wanted. The total cost was around $55,000 -- twice as much as we had originally planned.

The investment is definitely worth it. Now we have new plumbing throughout the house, updated electrical, refinished floors, and a state-of-the-art kitchen -- all upgrades that are bound to boost the value of our home if we ever decide to sell.

Continue reading Extreme home makeover, Part V: $55,000 later, we're finally done

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