Archive for the ‘News’ Category

India doubles Millionaires

High Networth Individuals(HNI) or Millionaire lists always grabs my attention any time of the year. Because, I am interested to see who made to the list and get inspired so I can make to the list one day.  

I read the below interesting article from Trak.in about the India’s Millionaires count doubling in the last year. A developing nation where millions of people still live under poverty line but can still produce more HNI every year only proves the point that Rich are getting rich more and Poor are getting more poorer. The gap is widening and there is no solution on the sight to bridge it. I thought may be you guys would be interested, so posting with the persmission from Trak.in editor. Read on…

India Doubles its Millionaires!

It is quite surprising to see the wealth of High Networth Individuals soaring  drastically even though we are just coming out of a global recession. Last couple of years have been tough economically through-out the world – but the wealthier seem to have gone even more wealthier, while the middle class&lower class seem to struggling even more.


According to the World Wealth Report recently released by Capgemini and Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, most countries in the world have increased their HNI (High Net-Worth Individuals) count. While, India has more than doubled it – maximum compared to any other country in the world.












































Indian HNI growth (past 5 years)

Year of report India Asia-Pacific World
2005 70,000 2.3 mn 8.3 mn
2006 83,000 2.4 mn 8.7 mn
2007 1,00,015 2.6 mn 9.5 mn
2008 1,23,000 2.8 mn 10.1 mn
2009 84,000 2.4 mn 8.6 mn
2010 1,26,700 3 mn 10 mn
Source: Capgemini, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

In 08-09, India had 84,000 HNI’s which grew by 50.9% to take to the number to 1,26,700 HNI Indians !


HNI-Growth


In Asia Pacific region, Hong Kong saw the maximum rise with 105% growth in number of HNIs followed by India (50.9%) and China (31%).


I think one of the main reasons for such kind of growth in India is appreciation of stock market in India. The market capitalization increased 103 per cent in 2009, compared to a dip of 64 per cent in 2008.


Here are some of the highlights of the Report


  • The world’s population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) grew 17.1% to 10.0 million in 2009.
  • The world’s population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) returned to 10 million in 2009, increasing by 17.1% over 2008.
  • HNWI financial wealth increased 18.9% from 2008 levels to $39 trillion. After losing 24.0% in 2008, Ultra-HNWIs saw wealth rebound 21.5% in 2009.Ultra-HNWIs increased their wealth by 21.5% in 2009.
  • In terms of the total Global HNWI population remains highly concentrated with the U.S, Japan and Germany accounting for 53.5% of the world’s HNWI population, down slightly from 2008.
  • The Asia-Pacific HNWI population rose 25.8% overall to 3.0 million, catching up with Europe for the first time.
  • The Asia-Pacific region was home to eight of the world’s ten fastest-growing HNWI populations, led by Hong Kong (104.4%) and India (50.9%).
  • Asia-Pacific HNWI wealth surged 30.9% to $9.7 trillion, more than erasing 2008 losses and surpassing the $9.5 trillion in wealth held by Europe’s HNWIs in 2009.
  • In India, real GDP growth increased to 6.8% in 2009 from 6.1% in 2008.
  • Market capitalization in India and China almost doubled

ING DIRECT Homeownership Survey

I was contacted by ING DIRECT Corporate relation office and requested to share this informative public survey results. It is an eye opener bringing facts about Home ownership from real people.

Americans blamed low, no money down mortgages for economic downfall.

Wilmington, DE – Despite the mortgage crisis, two-thirds (67 percent) of Americans agree that homeownership is still an “aspirational” symbol of the American Dream, according to a recent ING DIRECT survey. But as lower housing prices are prompting Americans to revisit the housing market, the new survey also shows a lesson learned from the mortgage meltdown: save for a down payment.


More than four in 10 (42 percent) Americans think homes purchased with a bigger down payment in recent years could have reduced the number of foreclosures and prevented some of the current economic downturn, according to the survey.  With a larger down payment, Americans can move into their new homes with a lower interest rate, reduced debt and owe less interest over time.  In recent years, too many no-money-down mortgages were offered to homebuyers who could not afford to keep paying their mortgages after their homes lost significant value and the economy slowed.


“Owning a home is an opportunity, not an entitlement,” said Arkadi Kuhlmann, President of ING DIRECT USA.  “Sadly, that message has been lost in translation over the past several years.  Don’t trade your future for the instant gratification of owning a home you can’t afford in the long run.  It you want to own a home, save for it, and our survey shows that Americans agree. ” 


With low mortgage rates, more than 40 percent of American homeowners with a mortgage may refinance this year, according to the survey. Homeowners surveyed also indicated that they are seeking new options from the 30-year mortgage product.  Nearly four in 10 (37 percent) Americans said they are likely to consider a mortgage that allows borrowers to make bi-weekly mortgage payments at no charge.  Making payments every two weeks instead of once a month allows homeowners to pay off their mortgage faster.  


“For a saver, there is nothing more rewarding than finally becoming mortgage-free,” said Kuhlmann.  “Americans want home loans that eliminate years of payments and give them the freedom to own their homes sooner.”  
 
The national online survey was conducted within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of ING DIRECT between May 20-22, 2009 among 2,122 adults age 18+, 1,514 of whom were homeowners. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.


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Mortgage Modification Scams


“Pay us $1,000, and we’ll save your home.”

“File for bankruptcy and keep your home. Call us”

“Loan Modification Lawyer, Call to keep your home.”

I noticed many of these signs newly popping up along the roadside in recent days. I also saw forum questions increasing about same loan modifications scams. There are questions like “Can I use the Loan Modification Lawyer to get my loan modified?”. I want to yell them saying “Noooooo, stop it. Don’t do it”. But they won’t hear it. I decided to put a temporary brake on my previous Bargaining blog series to do some research to publish this blog post.


Scams are like virus to our community. Consider last month’s Swine flu episode. When the flu was announced as pandemic by WHO (World health organization), it sent strong signal to all countries health organizations. They were put in the alert mode. One side, we heard many victims lost their lives to the deadliest virus. On the other, it created an opportunity for scientist to prove themselves at this crunch time. Many countries medical organizations started researching about the virus in an effort to find a vaccine.

Governments started working vigilantly informing and communicating to people via various media to create awareness about the flu. More awareness creates more carefulness by people which stops the spread of the virus. 


Similarly, scams follows the same trend. People lose their money to scams and produce a shocking news. These first time victims are unavoidable. But it eventually creates an alert situation to make others alarmed and cautious. Now people will be careful to approach anyone who provides same service in the future. Government and regulatory organizations are turned to work harder to stop these scams and put more stringent rules to avoid holes on future programs.


Why Loan Modification Scam?

Scams are bad but I hate when they take advantage of already worn out homeowners who are scrambling for any outlet. As per Scammers, they are just looking for new things to tap in their culprit mindset to earn quick cash. It doesn’t matter whether economy is bad or people are going thru hardship.

Mr.Obama announced this program in Feb 2009 to help out distress home owners. It seemed really viable solution but there were hurdles in implementing this program. It took time and great deal of paper work for the lenders and mortgage companies. Meanwhile, Scammers took the time into their advantage and started advertising to work as intermediataries to help the homeowners.


Truth of the matter, you don’t need an intermediatary for loan modification program. Your lender/mortgagor servicer should be able to help you out directly because they not only going to earn great deal from the transaction. They are also paid incentives from the government for doing every loan modification. They might take more time because of too many mods but they should be able to work with you if your situation really calls for it.

Do we have help?


Government cracked down on fraud and deception by mortgage modification and home foreclosure rescue companies. 

On 4/6/2009, FTC announced five law enforcement actions targeting perpetrators of mortgage-related scams. According to the FTC, these schemes typically operate in the following way. First, they use terms like “guarantee” and “97% success rate” to mislead consumers about the mortgage modification or foreclosure relief services they can provide; they charge up-front fees for these “services” – fees legitimate nonprofit organizations do not charge; and they use copycat names or look-alike Web sites to appear to be a nonprofit or government entity. Often, after collecting the fee, these companies do little or nothing to help consumers. Please read more details at http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/04/hud.shtm


Consumer advisory group also started campaigns spreading more awareness  on the Obama Home Modification program and how to be cautious on scams. This advisory provides tips on how to identify scams and what you should do. Check it out.


What can you do?


1. Approach your lender or mortgagor directly for any loan modification programs. They get incentives from government to do your loan modifications. They should be very happy to help you out.


2. Paying any upfront fees or sign papers with any third party agents is a big NO NO.


3. Do proper research over the internet and check on Better business bureau or legal organization for their legitimacy before using any service.

Visit the government website http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/ to get more information on Home Affordability and Stability Programs.

Scams/Scammers needs to be quarantined when identified and needs to create awareness among people to save them before they become a victim.

Please help spread the word around!!