Airfare
Greater demand and fewer available airline seats will likely lead to higher ticket prices for flights next year.

Digital Cameras
Smartphones have quickly replaced budget friendly point-and-shoot cameras, so manufacturers and retailers are focusing more on higher-end digital SLRs.

Hard Drives
There’s been a shortage of hard drives thanks to epic flooding in Thailand in 2011, and some retailers have actually been rationing hard drive–based products.

Desktop Computers
The consolidation of desktop features into monitor-integrated units — many with touchscreens — will drive desktop prices up in 2012.

Food
Most retailers have reported that food prices are rising and those increases are being passed along to shoppers.

Mobile Data Plans
Data plans in the past have had a tendency to decline, but as carriers build out 4G and LTE services, and move away from unlimited plans, data is set to become more expensive in 2012.

You can check out the rest of the list at dealnews.com.

Post from: EveryJoe

Conducting interviews on this topic is the #1 New York Times bestselling author and the Senior Managing Director in the Financial Services Group at Gilford Securities as well as a senior staff writer for WND.com, Dr. Jerome Corsi.  Check out the latest from Corsi’s newsletter, RED ALERT.

Business Insider has published “19 Scary Facts About Getting a Job in America.”

1) If you lose your job today, there’s a 70 percent chance you won’t find a job in the next month.

2) If you’ve been unemployed for a year, there’s a 91 percent chance you won’t find a job in the next month.

3) Two million people have exhausted 99 weeks of unemployment benefits. Another four million will do so in 2011.

4) There was zero job growth in the past decade, the worst 10 years on record.

5) In the most optimistic scenarios, payrolls won’t return to 2008 levels until 2013. In that time, the population will grow by 5 percent.

6) More than one in four jobs added to the economy last year were temporary.

7) At 2000 levels of labor force participation, the unemployment rate would be 13 percent.

8) When you count the unemployed, underemployed and discouraged workers, only 47 percent of the work force is fully employed.

9) The number of workers over 55 has increased nearly 8 percent in three years. No retirement means no hiring.

10) Four out of 10 baby boomers said they will have to “work until they drop.”

11) The average length of unemployment is 22 weeks.

12) For workers over 55, the average length of unemployment is 43 weeks.

13) In one of the hardest cities to find a job, Las Vegas, there are nine applicants for every job opening.

14) No jobs crash since the Great Depression of the 1930s even compares to what’s happening now, in terms of the number of jobs lost by the economy as a whole.

15) A 1 percent increase in unemployment leads roughly to a 1 percent increase in suicides.

16) More than 3 million manufacturing jobs have been lost since 1998.

17) The number of motor vehicle manufacturing jobs will decline by 20 percent in the next decade.

18) The number of apparel manufacturing jobs will drop by 57 percent over the next decade.

19) Here is the competition: A network engineer in Bangladesh makes $6,000 a year, while a CEO earns $30,000 on the average.

“Although hiring is improving, that improvement is gradual and the outlook for many Americans is bleak,” wrote Gus Lubin and Robert W. Johnson for Business Insider. “Especially the record number of 99ers, the baby boomers with no money saved for retirement, the college debt slaves who can’t get a job, and the factory workers who don’t have skills for the new economy.”

Post from: EveryJoe

The U.S. services sector is also enhancing, and this is providing a great deal of hope, especially when added to the employment data. There are signs that 2010 could mean economic recovery.

However, it is important to remember that economic recovery is still likely to be slow in coming. Even though job losses are slowing, job creation is quite sluggish. And the housing market remains somewhat stagnant as of late. All of this points to the possibility of a double dip recession. Indeed, there has been some difference of opinion with regard to what is to be expected from the economy going forward. It should be an interesting year, either bringing a movement toward economic recovery, or slippage back into recession.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe

1. COBRA Extension Benefits: If you are eligible for this tax break, you pay only 35% of your COBRA premiums, and you receive a reimbursement of the other 65% through a tax credit. Termination of your job for COBRA benefits must take place between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2010. So if you’re going to get fired, you better hope it happens soon.
2. Real Estate Tax Credits: The $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit has been extended until the end of April. And, if you aren’t a first-time buyer, you can take advantage of a $6,500 tax credit if you buy before the end of March 2010.
3. Tax Credit for Appliances: Local tax credit programs for appliances are happening right now. But they are being done at the state level, so you will need to check with your state to see what needs to be done.

Do some research, and consider consulting with a knowledgeable tax professional in order to figure out how you can benefit from these tax breaks before they expire.

Image source: blmurch via Flickr

Post from: EveryJoe

There are hopes that other economic data will show an improvement in the fundamentals of the U.S. economy. Jobs represent just one piece of the economic puzzle. There are a number of issues that need to be addressed in the economy. But housing and consumer spending (and confidence) are considered the other two big issues, along with employment.

It is important to note, though, that employment is often considered a lagging indicator, showing where the economy has been. It usually has to catch up with what is already happening. Therefore, if this is true, and the jobs picture really is improving, we may not really know about it for a couple more months. And by then, hopefully, economic recovery will be on more solid footing.

Image source: sxc.hu

Post from: EveryJoe

Indeed, there are some that think that a double dip recession could be on the way, and that the current jobs market is one of the reasons for it. This is because many companies are holding off on making new hires until the economy shows marked improvement, which may not happen until the second half of 2010. This sets off something of a vicious cycle. Consumers can’t spend more, and foreclosures can’t slow the pace (two things that some consider vital for economic growth and recovery), until jobs are available, providing income for people. But if people won’t be hired until the economic recovery is well under way…Well, you see the paradox that could be brewing.

In any event, even though this week’s job numbers were an unpleasant surprise, the good news is that things aren’t as bad as they have been, and that a certain degree of improvement is, in fact, being made.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe

Of course, this positive data does not indicate that a significant number of jobs are being added to the economy — just that the economy is not hemorrhaging them at near the rate we have been seeing throughout the recession. But the news is still encouraging, as it indicates a certain measure of stability in the jobs market, and in the economy. With fewer jobs being lost, there is hope that consumer confidence will return, and with it the important economic driver of consumer spending.

Initially, the stock market rallied heavily on the news. However, other considerations are now taking precedence, and the stock market has pared its gains rather dramatically as mid-day approaches.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe

There are many things I am thankful for. Here are a few things that I feel glad of this year:

• Family
• Friends
• A job I can do from home
• Home
• Food
• Social media ;)
• Faith

It’s worth noting, of course, that many of these items on the list do not necessarily have to do with money. Sometimes it is good to focus on things that are not tied to income. Looking beyond the money can be a way to change your focus and find a deeper richness in life. It is especially helpful in these economic times to focus on thankfulness beyond the monetary.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Image source: sxc.hu

Post from: EveryJoe

One way that you can improve your chances of getting better pricing is to look at the secondary market. There are a number of people looking to get out of their current leases, and some of them have Tier-1 lease pricing. Here is something from a press release I received from LeaseTrader.com:

“Keeping good credit is the most important part of a family’s balance sheet during this period of economic recovery,” said Sergio Stiberman, CEO and founder of LeaseTrader.com. “We’re working with people every day who have the credit to get a car lease but can’t qualify for the best payment at a dealer. Through lease transfer, these people are getting approved to take over a lease that was initially tier-1 pricing with a great, low payment.”

This news is good news for those looking for alternative solutions. However, it is important to be careful and read the fine print before agreeing to any lease swap. You want to make sure you understand the terms, and that you are actually getting what you want.

Image source: TheAlieness GiselaGiardino via Flickr

Post from: EveryJoe

However, even though the news sent stocks a little lower initially, they are inching up, desperate to remain in the black, even with the news. Even though the unemployment rate is higher, job loss is moving at a slower pace, and there are fewer lost jobs last month than the month before. However, the fact that 190,000 jobs were lost in October was still higher than the 150,000 expected.

This means that the Fed is looking justified in its comments earlier this week that the economy still needs some help, and that interest rate hikes — and an end to quantitative easing — won’t come until sometime next year. And if things don’t pick up in the labor market soon, it may be 2011 before we can start serious talking about interest rate increases.

Image source: Daylife

Post from: EveryJoe