C21AGVoices

Given the stock market’s recent performance, it’s not surprising that gasoline’s falling prices are garnering very little attention. That doesn’t make it any less relevant, however. Since peaking in July, gas prices are off by 20 percent. Falling gas prices are an important positive for the U.S. economy because less money spent at the pump means […]

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The Federal Reserve made an “emergency rate cut” last week, dropping the Fed Funds Rate by one half-percent to 1.500 percent. The move is meant to stimulate the U.S. economy. When the Federal Reserve changes the Fed Funds Rate, it often takes 9 months for the changes to work their way through the economy.  On […]

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Photo courtesy of Creativecommons.org I’m from a smaller town in North Eastern PA that in the fall is abundant with haunted hayrides, harvest festivals, and some of the best foliage in the state. To get a little dose of home I did some research to see what Philadelphia had to offer this time of year. […]

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In this 4-minute video, turf grass specialist Carmen Magro demonstrates the proper way to prepare your lawn for Spring.  His tips include: How to seed “worn down” areas of a lawn How to control thatch to promote a healthy lawn How to fertilize a lawn without “overdoing it” The Fall season is one of the […]

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As household budgets get pinched and credit markets tighten, a growing number of Americans are making “hardship withdrawals” from their 401(k) plans. One major fund group cites a 15 percent increase in activity from this time last year for various reasons including staving off foreclosure and medical emergency. However, 401(k) loans should only be made with careful […]

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Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed below the psychologically-important 10,000 level for the first time since 2004. Despite the milestone-marker breach, however, there was a large group of Americans with reason to cheer.  As stocks sold off, mortgage markets rallied to the benefit of home buyers everywhere. Conforming mortgages rates improved yesterday. Most interesting […]

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In an effort to provide “the most market support possible”, Fannie Mae is cutting one of its mandatory loan fees by 0.250 percent, effective immediately. Fannie Mae introduced the Adverse Market Delivery Charge in December 2007 to offset foreclosure and delinquency losses.  The initial fee was a quarter-percent of the amount borrowed.  Then, as market conditions worsened, […]

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While home electronics advance, the basic extension cord has been slow to catch up. This has created a size mismatch because today’s devices tend to carry large size plugs, but the standard 6-outlet power strip is only meant for “skinny” ones. Pictured at right: the solution. Matching form and function, the ezSpace UFO provides 6 […]

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Photo courtesy of Creativecommons.org Whether your are moving, collecting, selling or rummaging Craigslist.org is the best place to find new and used goods on the net. Craigs is the online version of your newspaper’s classified section. You can find a job, a pet, furniture, a car, and even a date. When I first moved to Philadelphia I […]

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