Banks want a guarantor for educational loans of Rs 4 lakh and even a collateral for amounts exceeding Rs 7.5 lakh.

To fulfil your child's dream

Business Standard

Country&rsquo;s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) today said the proposed base rate for the bank seemed to be around 8 per cent.

SBI base rate seen around 8%, says Bhatt

Press Trust of India

There are a number of instruments that qualify for tax deduction under Section 80C. Choose according to your age.

Don't invest in haste

With interest rates beginning to inch upwards, companies are entering the deposit market to raise funds aggressively. The interest rates on offer are quite impressive as well.

Factor in the risk element

Please advise me about sectors that are most likely to be affected by phasing out of stimulus measures, if at all, by the finance minister in the Union Budget.

Investment:  Paras Adenwala

Credit card issuers are no longer in the midst of a recession and are wooing new customers with eye-popping offers: Save up to 25 per cent on room tariffs at 71 hotel chains across the country with a Citi card; enjoy a 15 per cent discount on SpiceJet online bookings with an HDFC Bank credit card; get a 10 per cent cash-back on your food and entertainment bills anywhere in the country with a Kotak Mahindra Bank card.

Credit card issuers back in business

Higher basic exemption, 80C limit likely.

Budget may bring some cheer to taxpayers

The common man&rsquo;s main grouse is high inflation numbers. But there are other anomalies as well that need to be addressed.

Dear Pranab Babu...

On the Budget day, when the Finance Minister reads through reams of paper, the common man is often left confused. Worse still, there are a whole lot of numbers and jargons like capital account expenditure and current account deficit that could baffle many.

Budget: Five points to watch out for

A term plan is a basic life insurance cover against death of the proposer or life assured. The main purpose of a term plan is to provide high insurance coverage at a low premium. This is ideal for those who want to provide a requisite financial cushion to their family / beneficiaries against the adversities in life due to a premature death of the life assured during the policy term. Hence, one should decide the term plan not based on the premium alone, but the amount that they would like to set aside for their beneficiaries. A thumb rule is a life cover of at least 7-10 times the annual premium. You should also look at existing liabilities and loans like home, car or personal loans so that the quantum of Sum Assured should be adequate enough. The tenure is also an important consideration which will decide the feasibility of paying regular premiums.

Insurance: Kamesh Goyal

Rise in income slabs, hike in 80C limit will help reduce impact of high inflation.

Taxpayers get ticket to spend

Last year, the finance minister had given 1 per cent subsidy on purchase of such houses with the loan amount capped at Rs 10 lakh. The subsidy was to expire at the end of the current financial year. The 1 per cent subsidy introduced last year was computed for the first 12 months on the disbursed amount, and adjusted upfront in the principal outstanding, irrespective of whether the loan was taken on fixed or floating rate basis.

2nd innings for affordable housing subsidy

Anumber of Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs)have hit the market over the past year. In the first week of February, L&amp;T Finance launced their issue to raise Rs 500 crore. These instruments usually provide a slightly higher return for investors than the prevailing interest rate on fixed deposits because. Most investors in their search for returns restrict their attention to only the interest rate. There is the benefit of an additional feature on these instruments and this needs to be taken into consideration.

Trading gains from listing

Yes, there&rsquo;s more money in your hands. Use the surplus to boost your savings kitty.

Middle path for middle class

Money does not grow on trees is an old saying. But when it comes to children, they actually need to be taught that. For instance, when parents have withdraw money from automatedteller machines (ATMs), their children think that it is a machine that dispenses cash for one and all. Seldom do they realise that to withdraw money, their parents have to earn and deposit it in the bank.

Party pooper

During uncertain times investors flock to pharmaceutical stocks. Here&rsquo;s how to evaluate them.

A pill for your investment woes

Want to buy a new car in 2010? Well, the process itself is not very arduous. But you certainly need to take the right steps to garner a good deal.

The devil lies in the details

Fixed deposits (FDs) have always been an integral part of every investor&rsquo;s portfolio, simply because they give an assured rate of return. And traditionally, FDs have been plain vanilla products. However, in this era of fierce competition, banks have started introducing packaged deals to attract investors.

More than a fixed deposit

Since the Satyam scam, the focus on corporate governance has increased manifold.

Be curious about companies

To fund the expansion plans of its insurance and healthcare arms, Max India is issuing compulsorily convertible debentures and convertible warrants to Goldman Sachs and the promoters, respectively. The investment bank will put in Rs 538 crore to ultimately get a 9.4 per cent equity stake in Max India at Rs 216.75 a share.

Insuring the future

Road ministry mulls a fee of Rs 15 for such a cover.

Car insurance may come with accident cover

Personal Finance: Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

Personal Finance: Investing, Planning, Retirement, Loans, & Insurance | Business Standard

Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

Page 924 - Personal Finance