With the massive losses caused by Katrina, the economy of the Gulf Coast region is in extremely bad shape. Fortunately, there is a quirk in the tax code that can help you generate a large refund from your 2004 taxes. Apply Losses to 2004 Taxes When a large geographic area suffers a disaster, the President can declare it a federal disaster area. President Bush has made such a declaration for the Gulf Coast area. While you’ve probably heard such declarations occur over the years, I doubt it means much to you. The declaration, however, has major implications for recovery efforts. Initially, the declaration of a federal disaster area means the federal government is going to provide disaster relief loans, special grants that don’t have to be repaid, unemployment benefits and a variety of other assistance. It also signifies a major tax break for impacted businesses. When a business suffers a loss, the deduction must typically be made in the year the loss occurred. Wit

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According to research, `the bank of Mum and Dad` is now calling in its debts – as parents ask for larger amounts of money back from their children, The Telegraph reports.

The findings revealed that one in 10 grown-up children either gave or lent, on average, 8,250 to their parents last year. This figure is 1,750 higher than it was in 2008.

More than one third of parents admitted to using the money they received from their children to repay their own debts, while a similar amount used the money to cover their everyday expenses.

A spokesperson for Debt Advisers Direct commented: “We would advise anyone struggling to afford their day-to-day living costs and/or their debt repayments after the recession to seek professional debt advice.

“Borrowing money from family members may provide a temporary solution to the problem, but it is unlikely to solve it unless they start managing their finances more effectively.”

Most people who are in debt are looking desperately for a way to avoid bankruptcy. They scramble to create new budgets, ways to spend less and make their pennies stretch further. Much to the dismay of countless consumers, it’s a relatively simple process to get into debt, but not so easy to get out of. Buy now, pay later has been the source of many consumers financial destruction. What you purchase on credit today, may look affordable in your budget, it may even BE affordable at the moment. The problem is that things change very quickly in the wide world of finance and with the economy shrinking the way that is has been in recent months, what you could afford comfortably 3 years ago is no longer affordable today. Food and gas are more costly than ever and those monthly expenses alone can break a family of four.

There are ways to avoid the embarrassment and disgrace that typically accompany a bankruptcy. There are also ways to get out of debt without having to give up your future credit profile. I

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The recession has done little to reduce consumer spending and personal debt, according to one survey which claims that more than £24bn of unsecured debt has been amassed during the economic downturn.

Comparison service uSwitch has claimed that “shopaholics” have been largely undeterred by the recession, with women amassing more than £13bn of personal debt compared to £10bn for men.

The website defines a recession shopaholic as someone who has built up more than half of their unsecured debt through fashion purchases – and while there are more female than male shopping addicts – about 4 million and 3 million respectively – men acquire a higher average personal debt of £3,425 compared with £3,353 for women.

Anne R

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Consumers took on 2bn more mortgage debt than they repaid in July, according to the latest figures from the British Bankers` Association (BBA).

This represented a 4.1% annual increase in net mortgage lending by banks, the report adds.

Gross mortgage lending came to 8.4bn in July, but this was down on the 8.6bn seen both a month earlier and on average over the six months before that.

Mortgage lending for house purchase came to 5bn, while remortgages came to 3bn and `equity withdrawal and other purposes` accounted for 0.5bn.

Meanwhile, the BBA`s figures also showed a slight increase in net consumer credit lending in July. Net credit card lending increased slightly, but net overdraft lending fell.