Category: Finance

Pawn shops have gotten a bad rap in the past, but currently there is no justification for that because they offer excellent services to the general public and they do it in a professional manner. There is bound to be at least one pawn shop in your local area and if you take the time to give them a visit, you will find a veritable treasure trove of things that you can buy from them and while you are there, you might consider asking them for a loan if you are a little cash-light.

When you walk in the door after parking your car in their free car park, you will notice a brightly lit store with all of the prices that they buy and sell prominently displayed. It is their goal to be very upfront with what they are offering so that customers can feel at ease and know exactly what they are committing themselves to. If you have any questions, Sydney pawnbrokers are more than happy to spend time with you and explain the ins and outs of their business.

If you are still a little unsure about what exactly they do, let me try to explain it to you here.

1. They offer loans based on what you have of value. This means that everyone gets a loan if they have some jewellery or other valuable things to offer. There is no minimum amount of money that you can borrow, unlike banks, who insist you borrow a certain amount over a certain period of time.

2. As well as getting a loan, you can also buy many things there and they are generally much cheaper than you would find anywhere else. They sell all kinds of jewellery and gems and they even have designer bags for sale as well. You can find top end watches like Gucci, Rolex and Armani for a fraction of what they would cost new and you can be assured that they are genuine.

3. You can get a cheque cashed there. It might be from a tax refund, additional salary, bonus or anything. The point is that they can get cash for you quickly and easily with just a picture ID. Once presented, you will have cash in your hands in moments.

4. Some even offer jewellery repair and servicing and they always have a gemologist on site in case you want to change anything that needs closer scrutiny. Remember, you might not be aware of a flaw in a diamond and so this might affect its value.

Your local pawn shop is a one-stop shop for everything that you could possibly need and it’s all under the same roof. You can a professional service with privacy as well.

Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) is a unique code for a bank branch. It contains 11 alphanumeric digits and is used by all the Indian banks, which have the facility of RTGS, NEFT, IMPS, and online payment settlement systems. The Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) has issued this code to bank and its branches in order to streamline their electronic funds transfer process.

If you wish to transact money online through net banking, then providing IFS code of the beneficiary bank is mandatory. It is essentially asked when adding a payee or directly performing a quick transfer. You can easily search for an IFSC on specific bank’s and RBI’s official website.

Explanation of IFSC’s Structure

In the 11-digit code, the initial 4 characters signify the bank’s name. The 5^th character is a zero and kept for future scope for expansion of the bank branch. The 6^th character signifies the bank location. You can find this code on the cheque slip and cheque-book and the front page of the bank passbook.

For instance, the SBI IFSC starts with SBIN (representing the bank, State Bank of India), followed by a zero (0), and if the code is of Dwarka, New Delhi branch, then it will read as SBIN0004384, where the last 6 digits signifying the bank-branch.

The Benefits of IFSC Codes

Below provided are some of the benefits of using an IFSC.

1. Smooth Instant Transfer of Money: By using IFS code, fund transfer online can happen quickly between a bank account to another without any errors. It saves time and is of great convenience.
2. Locates a Branch Accurately: The code helps to identify the correct branch. It also denotes a branch by its location, eliminating the risk of duplication.
3. Keep Away Frauds: Any transaction using this code occurs in a secured manner as each ban-branch has a unique IFSC. Thus, infringement by any third-party is impossible.
4. Paperless Money Transfer: Unlike offline transfers and deposits, IFSC code facilitates online transactions, making room for paperless money transactions. Printing cost can be thus easily avoided and it is a wise way to ‘go green’.
5. Addition of an Authentic Payee:When making a transfer online, you have to add a payee. The payee can be added only when you enter the IFSC of the beneficiary’s bank branch. A payee will be added successfully only when the IFSC and account number are in tandem with each other.

Online Fund Transfer Methods That Use IFSC

Below provided are the online fund transfer systems, which utilize IFSC.

1. NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer): Funds transferred by using NEFT are settled in specific batches during a day. There is no ceiling on the minimum and maximum amount for transfer. You need to enter details such as beneficiary’s account name, account number, account type, and IFSC code of the branch, and the amount for transfer, a high security password sent to your registered phone number, to complete the transaction.
2. RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement): This system is used for high-value transactions. The minimum limit of the amount you can send is Rs. 2 lakhs. For the transfer to take place, you have to provide the payee’s account number, name, transfer amount, and the IFS code of the receiver’s bank branch. Amount transferred reflects into the bank account of the beneficiary immediately or within 2 hours.
3. IMPS (Immediate Payment Service): Through IMPS, you can send money to a beneficiary instantly and on a real-time basis. You can use this service during holidays and weekends as well, unlike NEFT, where transactions do not take place during non-working weekends. IFSC code is mandatory to process IMPS transactions.

The above-given is a brief about IFSC code, its benefits, and uses for transactions via net banking and IFSC enabled payment apps/wallets. Refer this information if you need to make any relevant transactions using an IFS code.

With the mortgage industry thriving since mortgage rates are at the highest they’ve been since the beginning of 2018, experts say now if the time for refinancing your homes. Interest rates are at an all-time low, but they are starting to steadily rise and if you are thinking to refinance your home, you should do it soon while the rates are still low. Mortgage rates are greatly increased and still continuing to increase since the economy is doing very well, and since the economy is rising, soon interest rates will be too.

So what essentially is mortgage refinancing? Mortgage refinancing is when you choose to switch and replace your current mortgage that you are paying off with a different one. Sometimes you can switch to a different program or plan with a different mortgage company, other times your current mortgage company can provide you with a different plan and you can refinance without switching companies. When you replace your old mortgage plan with a new one, your old mortgage gets automatically paid off, but you have to pay for the new one. It is a good idea to refinance while the interest rate is low, because if you connect with a good mortgage company that knows how to refinance properly, you can end up with a program that will require less payments at a lower rate of interest that is very beneficial in the long run.

The lower interest rates that have been around in 2018 are a crucial feature to determine whether you should refinance you mortgage or not. When the interest rates are lower, that also means that your refinancing payments will be on the lower side as well. This saves you a lot of money in the long run, many people manage to save thousands of dollars in just a few years. Loan companies can provide you with a specialized plan to help you pay off your newly refinanced mortgage in a short amount of time, keeping the time limited to when the low-interest rate is determined to begin to rise.

Besides interest rates, you should also consider whether the house you want to refinance is a permanent fixture in your life or not. If you are looking into other real estate and unsure whether you want to stay at the home you are currently in, it might not be the best idea to spend the finances it takes to refinance a home. Refinancing is not an extremely easy process, though when you do it with a company that knows their business well it is often a simply process than with others. Refinancing is something you should take into great consideration and study about for a while to determine whether or not it is the right step for you. Often a good choice is to speak with a mortgage company or a money lender than can help provide you with better and more professional insight that from what you may already know.