The Cash for Clunkers program was designed with two basic objectives in mind. The first: get old gas guzzling and pollution emitting cars off of the road and new more energy efficient cars with better gas mileage and fewer emissions on the road instead. The second: get people into empty car dealership showrooms to buy new cars thus stimulating the sluggish economy.

Originally our lawmakers approved one billion dollars for this program. That money was quickly exhausted in a matter of two weeks. So the lawmakers hastily approved another two billion dollars to refuel the program. This allows continuation of the program that gives consumers up to $4500 in federal subsidies if they trade in their old cars for new more energy efficient models that get better gas mileage.

So far the program has been a big hit with car buyers. In just the first ten days of the program 75% of the originally budgeted amount of one billion dollars was used up by consumers trading in their old cars for new ones. And according to our lawmakers this is a huge boost to the struggling automakers in Detroit.

Of course the critics point out that 36.5% of these auto sales are from Japanese auto firms like Toyota, Honda and Nissan. Not to mention the fact that the $3 billion adds to our already huge and ever growing federal deficit. These same critics argue that the lawmakers are acting as if they have received no budgeting advice whatsoever as they continue to spend money like it grows on trees. Many are upset with the additions to our federal debt when they feel lawmakers should create federal debt solutions.

But on the other side of the coin, money is being spent at dealerships here in the U.S. and that is good for our struggling economy. Plus it is hard to argue that getting these old gas guzzlers off of our roads is a bad thing. In the case of the Cash for Clunkers program the benefits do appear to outweigh the costs.

Arizona home owners who are already struggling to make ends meet may find themselves facing an unforeseen expense related to their mortgages. If you are one of these homeowners already stressed with money management woes, perhaps even to the point of exploring debt settlement options or debt consolidation plans, the state equalization property tax repeal bill might be a surprise you didn’t need. This is especially true right now with Christmas shopping right around the corner.

The repeal of the state equalization property tax means that even though the value of your home has been going down, your property taxes will go up. If you have a mortgage on your property, your property taxes are likely paid by an escrow account you set up when you took out your mortgage. You literally pay your taxes as a part of your mortgage payment which is then held in an escrow account.

In the event that property taxes go up you have the choice of making a higher monthly mortgage payment or paying the difference to the mortgage company in one lump sum when your tax bill is due. Many homeowners are surprised when they get a bill stating their escrow account does not have enough money to pay their taxes that recently increased. Will homeowners already having money management issues be able to come up with this extra expense?

Not likely. Most homeowners have to tighten their belts even more when it comes to discretionary spending as the holiday season approaches. Money management is on everybody’s minds right now, and unforeseen bills can ruin a family’s budget. Less discretionary spending means less money getting infused back into the economy. This of course refuels the recession. It is a vicious cycle.

Homeowners may not be the only ones who feel the pain from this property tax increase either. Businesses and utility companies who own large tracts of land will be facing very large property tax bill increases too. The additional expenses they incur will of course be passed on to you, the consumer already struggling to make ends meet.

Are you prepared for a possible increase to your property taxes this year? Thankfully, if you have excessive unsecured debt in addition to your mortgage problems, debt settlement options are available for these tough times.

The recession has caused agencies at all levels of government to look for debt solutions. Across the board, one of the solutions implemented has been to shift the burden of debt off of the government and on to the taxpayers. Taxes are rising throughout the United States and Canada as budget shortfalls cause government agencies to alter their budgets. It’s certainly a fact that the government has to do something to deal with its debt.

Debt settlement and debt consolidation are abundant for consumers while options for government agencies aren’t easy to come by. Nevertheless, moving the burden of debt on to taxpayers who are already struggling because of the recession doesn’t seem like a smart solution.

We have seen taxes rise in different ways at all levels of government throughout the United States and Canada. For example, New York state legislators voted last year to amend their budget in a manner that resulted in both property tax and school tax increases for residents. These changes may seem like smart debt solutions to New York legislators who have saved almost a quarter of a million dollars in the past two years as a result of the property tax change alone. However it must be remembered that this money is coming from somewhere else: the taxpayers. In a difficult economy, even the smallest increase in taxes can cause financial difficulties for individuals.

In many areas, taxpayers are already paying the bulk of the bills for the city and can’t afford to take on any more of debt to cover budget shortfalls. An example of this is seen in Vancouver, Canada where two thirds of the city’s revenue already comes from taxpayers. The city has a $1-billion annual budget with a $60 million shortfall and that $60 million has to come from somewhere. The city is looking into debt solutions that include cutting jobs and eliminating city programs. This is a no-win situation for taxpayers. Either they experience rising taxes in order to keep city workers employed and programs in place or these people and programs are cut to make up for the budget shortfall.

So what’s the solution? It’s not an easy issue to find answers to. The economy is still shaky throughout North America. Individuals are being forced to look into debt settlement, debt consolidation and loan deferment. Businesses are struggling to stay afloat through the rest of the recession. And the government is going to have to make some cutbacks of its own to reduce budget shortfalls. Hopefully they’ll come up with some creative debt solutions that don’t involve increasing taxes but also don’t cut jobs with an ever increasing unemployment rate.

It was only a couple of years ago that Dubai was flooded with money from investors. Now the wells have run dry, most projects are at a standstill and no one is sure what is going to happen with Dubai. The Dubai debt debacle should be something that is of interest to all of us today. Global economists are predicting that the fallout from this debt crisis could have a serious impact on the global economy, worsening the recession that we’re already in. Even if you don’t pay a lot of attention to politics and the global economy, you will probably find that you can empathize with (and learn something from) the situation in Dubai. If you have ever looked into debt consolidation plans or other debt settlement options then you have a lot in common with Dubai. What is happening there now is what has been happening on a grand scale to all individuals who need to settle credit card debt today.

The short story of what happened in Dubai is that there was a massive rise and fall of this place in a short period of time. Dubai has an interesting economy which is free in many ways and yet restricted in other ways. There are almost no taxes there and that makes it ripe for investment development. What happened was that many people realized all at once that this could be an amazing place to invest in some serious development. The plans for Dubai were ambitious and included everything from becoming the home of the world’s tallest skyscraper to creating a series of manmade islands shaped like luxurious palm trees. The money flooded in to support these innovative projects. Workers came from around the world. More cranes were moved here to support building projects than anyone had ever seen in one place before. It was an exciting time. And then the economic crisis hit, the money ran out and projects have been halted halfway through. Property values have declined and Dubai owes a whole lot of money that it simply cannot pay back.

What does this have to do with you? Think about what you have gone through as you have realized that you need to look into debt consolidation plans or other debt settlement options. What likely happened to you is that you were coasting along fairly well in your job and your life. You were spending a little bit more money than you had and accumulated some debt along the way but you figured that you would pay it off in due time. Then the recession hit. Your income was cut back. You couldn’t quite make your minimum payments due anymore. The only solution left was for you to settle credit card debt because there was no way that you were going to be able to pay off the full amount owed. That is the exact situation that Dubai is going through right now on a much grander scale than what you experienced with your own personal debt. This may be a problem relevant to the global economy but it’s one that we can understand and empathize with because of our own personal struggles with debt.