You may want to check with your insurance company to find out what changes are coming your way. Homeowners are seeing a 4 to 8 percent increase in their rates depending on their policy. Insurance companies have been seeking, and winning, rate increase approval in states around the nation. Even people who have never made a claim on their insurance are seeing an increase in their rates.

There are two main reasons why insurance rates continue to rise. Devastating weather events and insurance fraud (like roofing scams) have hit cash reserves hard and insurance companies are now looking to make up the difference. The weather you heard about in last year’s news may cause a problem this year, too. In 2011, there were more federal disaster declarations than there have ever been—99 cases to be exact. Disasters ranged from the February blizzards, the tornado in Joplin, Hurricane Irene, wildfires, flooding, and 646 tornadoes. Between January and September, the insured losses totaled $32.6 billion. The Insurance Information Institute reports that this is about double the average. This means that insurers have to pay out approximately $1.85 for every dollar they make.

Insurance frauds are another problem. Sometimes homeowners themselves make faulty claims that raise the rates for everybody. However, such claims are often not the fault of homeowners. States that do not require their contractors to be licensed are seeing an especially high number of fraudulent claims. A roofer, who became a roofer yesterday, may offer to inspect a roof after a storm, and then cause damage in order to make a claim and get money. When this happens, insurers have to pay out money, and then recoup their losses. This can be troublesome for everybody.

The holiday season usually translates into big business for retailers. During the holiday shopping season (November and December) merchants can make up to forty percent of their annual revenue. The sale season also provides insights about how people are spending their money. This holiday sale season showed the income divide in the U.S.

Compared to last year, high-end stores did well this season. On the other hand, stores geared toward shoppers in the middle and lower income brackets did not do as well. This disparity can be attributed to the divide between the affluent and less affluent in the U.S. Unemployment, together with an uncertain economy and a shrinking middle class, may be to blame for the lack of high sales in some stores. In December, Nordstrom had an 8.7% increase in revenue at stores open at least a year, Macy’s saw a 6.2% increase, and Saks had a 5.8% increase. J.C. Penney had just a 0.3% increase, Kohl’s had a 0.1% decline, and Target had a 1.6% gain, which was lower than what they were expecting. 

Besides the economy and the shrinking middle class, there are other reasons why consumers may not have spent as much money this past sales season. Due to the mild winter in most states, the demand for cold-weather merchandise like coats, hats, gloves, and scarves was lower than it has been in previous years. Now that stores are starting to receive spring items, cold-weather items will likely be placed on sale. People also put off shopping to earlier in the season since Christmas fell on a Sunday this year.

There is a new way to make money that originated in Europe, but has now made its way into the United States - renting out your driveway to strangers for parking. It may sound like an odd concept, but there are instances that make renting your driveway convenient for people and profitable for you. However, before jumping onto this new money-maker, consider the following factors.

Look At Your Insurance

Does your homeowner’s insurance allow you to run a business out of your home? You will need protection if someone should get injured on your property. This would not only include renting your driveway, but a room in your home. Typical homeowner’s liability insurance may not be enough for this endeavor.

Talk With an Accountant

Find out and keep track of expenses that you can deduct from your taxes. Keep receipts, and discuss your business with an accountant. Any business you run out of your home will need to be kept separate from your personal taxes.  

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! Today, we celebrate the courage and vision of one of our nation's greatest leaders. Martin Luther King, Jr. reminds us as Americans that our democracy is a constant work in progress, and that we all have the opportunity and obligation to deliver the American Dream to future generations. 

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day website encourages citizens to make their day off a day of service. You probably know that Martin Luther King, Jr. gave the famous “I Have a Dream” speech, but you may not know these ten little-known facts about the famous civil rights leader.

1. His name was originally recorded as Michael King on his birth certificate. The mistake was discovered by his family in 1934. His name was officially changed to Martin Luther King, Jr.

2. King sang with his church choir in Atlanta at the gala premiere of Gone With the Wind in 1939.

3. He entered Morehouse College at the age of 15. He skipped the 9^th and 12^th grade, which allowed him to enter college early. He went on to earn Bachelor’s degrees in sociology and theology. He also earned a Ph.D. in systematic theology from Boston University in 1955.