Betting the Ranch Online advice from TIME finance columnist Dan Kadlec People have always wanted to be rich. It's no crime. Wealth as a goal is even noble when pursued honestly and patiently. Trouble is, many of us do need a lifeline desperately.
Consumers are up to their eyeballs in debt, and the strain shows.
Personal bankruptcies, credit-card debt in default and installment loans more than 60 days past due are all at record highs. The interest on such margin loans is fully deductible as long as you have an equal amount of investment income. The loans tend to be used to buy more stocks. That has Fed chief Alan Greenspan mildly concerned. When stocks fall, margined portfolios fall faster.