| Gyms deliver strong profits
PUMPING iron is driving bulging profits as gyms around the country grow strong on the back of a growing fascination with fitness. But as consolidation brings more big business to the sector it is the punters who pay but don't turn up who provide the extra cream on the industry's profits. Dreamworld owner Macquarie Leisure is the latest big player to muscle in on the gym industry, this week paying $60 million for the predominantly Queensland-based Goodlife Healthclub business. It is the second most profitable player in Australia, with world leader Fitness First dominating. That company, owned by European private equity group BC Partners, now controls 70 gyms across Australia and has more than 500 gyms across 15 countries. Macquarie Leisure chief executive officer Greg Shaw says there's plenty of room for growth and expansion would be ideally suited to some of the company's existing AMF bowling sites around the country.
New grads confronted by dizzying loan options
Karen Wons of Maryland finds herself in a quandary that is confronting many parents right now. She is struggling with how best to advise her daughter -- a recent college graduate -- on paying down $25,000 in student loans. Wons did what any wise parent would do. .
Report: University of Nevada, Reno alumni group paid by loan firm
RENO, Nev. (AP) - The alumni association at the University of Nevada, Reno received money from a student loan consolidation company in exchange for names of alumni and exclusive rights to UNR's logo in promotional material, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. Over the past four years, UNR's alumni association received $88,400 from Nelnet Inc., the nation's second-largest student loan consolidation company, according to the New York Attorney General's Office, which has been investigating ties between student loan lenders, universities and administrators. On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced an expansion of the probe to include whether top college athletic departments steered athletes and other students to loan companies in exchange for kickbacks. No Nevada schools were among 39 nationwide served with subpoenas and requests for documents in that aspect.
Weighing options of credit card debt consolidation effort
D ear Debt Adviser: I have consolidated all of our credit card debt onto two credit cards with APRs of 4.99 percent and 2.99 percent until it is paid off. My husband wants us to take out a loan with the bank so that we are making set monthly payments, even though the interest rate would be considerably higher, possibly around 11.25 percent. I have tried to explain to him that we would be paying more money that way, but he does not understand. Can you explain it in a way he can understand or am I somehow looking at this wrong? -- Susan Dear Susan: I can tell who's the most fun at your house. You clearly like an unstructured approach that allows for side trips when something interesting comes along. The old "ball and chain" likes a direct approach with few unknowns and a clear end to the journey.
GE Money & Electric & Gas Industries Association Help Homeowners Save Money, Improve Environment with Nationwide Solar ...
ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GE Money's Sales Finance unit and the Electric & Gas Industries Association (EGIA), a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions, recently announced a new multi-year relationship to provide revolving and installment consumer financing of residential solar systems through EGIA's GEOSmart Sustainable Financing Solutions loan program. .
Credit unions offer great rates, service
Consumers have a plethora of borrowing and saving options, from traditional banks to online-only banks to credit unions and investment brokerages.
And while Internet-only banks can offer the most competitive rates for saving and borrowing, credit unions offer a mix of favorable rates and personal service. They're often a good alternative to traditional banks, which still dominate the market.
Credit unions are affiliated groups of people who pool their money and lend it to each other. They don't have divided loyalties--trying to serve a customer at the same time as boosting profits and the stock price for shareholders.
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Paul Galeski
Despite the stress, the chase for money and the challenges of starting a second company, several serial information-technology entrepreneurs say theyd do it again.
In 1990, Paul Galeski started Magnum Technologies, a factory automation software firm, with $6,000, two employees and a small office in Belleville, Ill. Like a lot of entrepreneurs, he poured his heart and soul into the company.
It expanded quickly, making the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing U.S. companies. Then, in 1997, it caught the eye of General Electric Co.
GE offered to buy Magnum and wanted Galeski to stay on to help run it. Making the decision to sell was brutal, Galeski recalls.
You raise this thing from a pup and grow it into a pretty substantial business, he says from his office at Maverick Technologies in Columbia, Ill.
How to pay off student loans
Karen Wons of Maryland finds herself in a quandary that is confronting many parents right now.
She is struggling with how best to advise her daughter - a recent college graduate - on paying down her $25,000 in student loans.
Wons did what any wise parent would do. She asked for help.
Here's the back story. Wons' daughter works as a project manager at a medical software company. She has an annual salary of more than $50,000.
Her employer provides a 401(k). She has about $13,000 in cash from recently redeemed Series EE savings bonds. She has no credit card debt. She has no payments on a reliable car with low mileage. She's sharing an apartment and other living expenses with an older sister in Madison, Wis. Her portion of the rent is just more than $500 a month.
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