Business

When the lender or credit card company denies your loan or line of credit, often they will tell you that you can reapply with a co-signer to have a better chance of getting approved. But what exactly is a co-signer, how do you find one, and what should you do if someone approaches you and asks you to be one?

There are a lot more considerations and resources available for professional athletes these days than there have ever been in the past. In terms of providing athletes with education about life and work after their playing days are over, much has changed. In contrast to the past, there are now measures in place so that the retired athlete is fully prepared for when those big paychecks stop coming. Such was not the case several decades ago when Junior Bridgeman played professional basketball.

As an entrepreneur, it can be difficult to obtain a line of credit for your small business start-up. But according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, you can generally apply for a business line of credit after you have at least a full business plan and pilot programs, or ideally several months of financial statements after you have been in business. Until then, use these alternatives to fund your small business.

President Obama may not be under par as he concludes his tour of the Hawaiian links, but he got what could be considered a hole-in-one gift from the Kappas and the Omegas. Two prominent Black fraternities—Kappa Alpha Psi and Omega Psi Phi—have come together to forge 1911 United, a super PAC with the goal of raising more than $1 million to help President Obama get re-elected.

The day after Christmas is considered one of the biggest shopping days of the year. This year, millions of already weary and worn out shoppers got a second burst of energy from revenue-driven retailers advertising bargain basement deals of up to 75 percent off on thousands of items, according to dozens of retail industry analysts, including some from the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Since the housing market collapsed, mortgage lending to African-Americans and Hispanics has plunged precipitously—by more than 60 percent, according to a new study of loan information that banks submit to the federal government.

For former New York City Mayor David Dinkins, the adage of giving back to the community is not a tired cliché, but a cogent prerequisite that signifies success and should be a mandate for everyone. Last week, the African-American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey (AACCNJ) honored Dinkins, 84, in his native Trenton, N.J.

African-Americans will, by 2015, have a buying power of $1.1 trillion. Yet the advertising world steadily ignores this valuable consumer. In hopes of providing an arena where marketers can tap into this market more effectively, Cabletelevison Advertising Bureau (CAB, a trade organization) has launched a new website called reachingblackconsumers.com. 


The opening weekend to this year’s holiday shopping season has come and gone, but retailers and shoppers alike continue to pay close attention to number crunchers and trend watchers as they gauge spending patterns and the season’s “hottest” buys. 

The minimum wage in New York City is $7.25 an hour. Yet of about 317,000 low-wage workers in New York City, about one in five of these workers are paid less than the legally required wage, according to the National Employment Law Project’s recent report which surveyed 1,432 low-wage workers in New York City, titled “Working Without Laws: A Survey of Employment and Labor Law Violations in New York City.”