Springhill Group Home: Top 10 Fraud Schemes

Source : http://newscenter.springhillgrouphome.com/

Springhill Group Home: Top 10 Fraud Schemes

http://newscenter.springhillgrouphome.com/2012/03/springhill-group-home-top-10-fraud-schemes/

For the twelfth successive year, identity theft topped the consumer complaint database of the Federal Trade Commission with the largest number of complaints, perhaps owing to the rampant use (and misuse) of online services such as social networking and e-commerce websites.

From the 1.8 million complaints the FTC got in 2011, almost 300,000 are about identity theft. The information of FTC has included complaints filed to them or from other states and federal consumer protection groups.

Most of the complaints of identity theft are coming from consumers saying that their personal details are used in government documents without their knowledge, with scammers aiming to collect benefits. Last year, government-related identity theft was 27% of the total complaints in that category, increasing by 11% since 2009. Accounting for the 14% of identity theft complaints is credit card fraud, with the rest consisting of complaints of bank, utilities and phone fraud.

More than half of all the complaints last year were related to fraud and taxpayers reportedly paid a total of over USD 1.5 billion in fraudulent schemes, with the average amount paid being USD 537. Moreover, 43% of the victims acknowledged that scammers reached them through email messages.

The top three states that have the most per capita rate of fraud reported are Colorado, Delaware and Maryland as first, second and third, respectively.

Generally, FTC discovered that people are either more willing to file complaints or they simply have more complaints now. The total amount of complaints they have received has increased by over 20% -- from 1.5 million to 1.8 million in 2011 -- that includes both identity theft and fraud complaints.

The following is the complete list of FTC's top 10 consumer complaints for the year 2011:

1. Identity theft

2. Debt collection

3. Lotteries, sweepstakes, prizes

4. Catalog sales, shop-at-home,

5. Lenders and Banks

6. Internet services

7. Auto-related complaints

8. Impostor scams

9. Mobile and telephone services

10. Credit protection/repair and advance-fee loans

Springhill Group Home: Impact of Budget Cuts on Rural Housing and Availability of Mortgage

Source : http://newscenter.springhillgrouphome.com/

Springhill Group Home: Impact of Budget Cuts on Rural Housing and Availability of Mortgage

http://newscenter.springhillgrouphome.com/2012/03/springhill-group-home-impact-of-budget-cuts-on-rural-housing-and-availability-of-mortgage/

The budget cuts on rural housing finance are raising many significant questions. In the present economic situation, where federal funding for the rural housing projects is much needed, the budget cut is really distressing. According to the rural market experts, Section 538 Rural Rental Loan Guarantee Program has offered the most effective service in this regard. However, the recent budget cut is much likely to affect the proceeding of this program and home loan rate for buying a rural property.

Rural economics – Demand vs. supply

Only about 19% Americans live in rural areas. The average yearly income of a rural household is lower than an urban one. The poverty rate in the rural America is about 15%, whereas the rate is almost 13% in urban America. Section 538 by United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the largest mortgage lender in rural America. Till the end of 2011, the program funded about 700 rural housing projects. Unfortunately, this program has become the primary victim of budget cut. It received 130 million USD in FY 2010; while in FY 2011, the Congress appropriated only 30 million USD. The appropriation for FY 2012 is zero. If Section 538 does not get any funding in this year, the prospect of the program is going to be doomed.

Difficulties faced by rural housing development

Considering budget deficit, one can say that it is difficult to construct affordable housing units in rural areas and thereby the obvious option of rental housing comes into play. Interested banks to offer mortgage loans in less developed rural areas with limited facilities are hard to find. So only a very few affluent developers, who won’t require mortgage loans, will be left to build housing units in rural areas and rent them out. Rural Americans are switching to rental units due to the scarcity of mortgage lenders. Although some organizations like HUD are getting some interest in investing in rural housing projects, yet urban and suburban areas seem more interesting to them.

Choices other than Section 538

Present economic situation challenges the government to cut spending by all means. Section 538 is not likely to become active at this point of time, but still there are few alternatives to this popular program and those are,

• A TX-based rural project with tax credit allocation has been accepted by HUD into FHA 221(d) (4) program and the borrower was allowed to pay back his mortgage over a timeframe of 40 years. The borrower got the loan with low rate of interest.
• Some Section 515 apartments were preserved through 4 percent credits, bonds and also 538 guarantee. The same thing can be done with other government funded entities in place of Section 538.

Challenges are everywhere; lenders should accept the challenge of investing in rural projects. The borrowers should also come up. They must look for ways to take out home mortgage loan and buy a home in rural America.

– by Chris

A Scam - Review of Springhill Suites Houston Medical Center

Source : http://www.valueinvestingnews.com/scam-review-springhill-suites-houston-medical-center

Springhill Suites Houston Medical Center/Reliant Park: Traveler Reviews
Ranked #91 of 425 hotels in Houston
50 Reviews
50 reviews from our community
Trip type
Family reviews (16)
Couples reviews (6)
Business reviews (17)
Solo travel reviews (5)
Friends reviews (3)

“A Scam!” - While this hotel is clean, I would NOT recommend staying here, especially if you need to rely on taxis for transportation. First, we asked for three days in a row for the drain in the bath/shower to be unclogged, which was never done. Standing in inches of water while taking a shower is not my idea of fun. Much worse however, was the scam the hotel seems to be running regarding taxis and car service. The last night of my stay, I requested an early morning cab to go to the airport. I was told it would be taken care of. Shortly after, the front desk called my room, asking if I wouldn’t prefer a town car. I was told this was suggested because the cab drivers had been adding extra distance to rides to drive up the cost of the fare. Since I had taken a cab from the airport to the hotel, I had a sense of the cost, and felt confident that I could be firm with the cab driver, especially since the cost of the town car was quoted at $10 more. The next morning, I showed up in the lobby at 4:45 am for my cab. The person at the desk informed me that no cab had been called, that ‘cabs don’t work that way’ here, and strongly suggested (again) that a town car be called, since that was the only way to be sure of a quick arrival. The price this person quoted me was now $5 more than a cab ride, and feeling desperate, I agreed. Once in the town car, I asked the driver if there was any arrangement with the hotel to pass along part of the fare to the hotel. He acknowledged that there was. I believe this is reprehensible. I should add that the three times I took a regular cab in Houston, the service was prompt and pleasant.Stayed July 2008

“Business trip to Houston” - Rooms are nice and clean, but the beds are a bit hard and the AC unit (and in houston, you will need that running) is a bit loud. The common areas like the hallway and the lobby were very warm, not quite as warm as it was outside, but the AC was clearly not being used in those areas. Breakfast was good, staff nice and helpful, not a bad place to stay, but could have been a bit better.

“So comfy!!” - I really liked our stay at this hotel this weekend. The front desk lady was very nice, treated us with courtesy and respect. Everything was hassle free. The beds, pillows and comforters were nice, soft and comfortable. Our room was quiet and we were able to sleep well. The continental breakfast was very nice, waffles, fruit, cereal, yogurt, eggs and sausage. I would recommend this hotel to anyone.

Liked — Friendly atmosphere and comfortable bed, Close to nice restaurants
Disliked — Nothing

“Wonderful stay” - Stayed here for 4 nights during the NCAA tournament. Located about 1/2 mile (easy to walk) from Reliant Stadium. Suite was very comfortable and the flat screen tv in the living room was awesome.

Breakfast was generally good. Waffle bar, juice, pastries, yogurt, oranges and apples. Egg and sausage was mediocre.
Two computers, a printer, and a fax machine in an alcove off the dining room.

Customer service was great. Had a small problem with the mini-fridge and maintenance came within 5 minutes.
Only issue would be the air conditioner unit in the bedroom. Light sleepers might find it noisy.
Liked — location

Disliked — noisy air conditioner but not a big problem
Stayed March 2008, traveled with friends
“Decent accomodations” - The room was clean, and I had no issues with my stay.
Stayed November 2007, traveled on business