The U.S. is again closing in on its national debt limit, and if a recent statement by Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner is any indication, another fight with the Obama administration over the issue of raising it might be brewing.

Another debt-ceiling cage match is the last thing the American economy needs right now. Remember what happened during last summer's battle? It was ugly. But we may not be able to avoid it this time around, so here's a preview of what we might expect.

Brother, Can You Spare a Trillion?
All of us have credit limits that determine how much money we can safely borrow to pay our bills. The federal government's credit limit -- or "debt ceiling" -- has a few more zeroes than ours. It currently stands at $16.4 trillion. And unlike those of us who have learned to live within our means, Uncle Sam spends a lot more money than he takes in.
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To raise the debt ceiling, both houses of Congress and the president must agree to do it. In the past, that's never been an issue. In fact, the debt ceiling has been raised 74 times since 1962 -- 10 times since 2001 alone.

But last summer, something that had been little more than a formality exploded into a showdown between the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and the Obama administration that brought the U.S. to within hours of defaulting on its debts.

In the end, an agreement was reached, and the country did not default. But as a result of the high-stakes, high-publicity showdown, the U.S. -- for the first time in its history -- lost its AAA credit rating, the highest rating credit agencies can bestow on sovereign or corporate debt.

Our Credit Rating Conundrum
Credit ratings count, because they help determine the interest rate at which the country can borrow. Right now, 10-year Treasuries -- the benchmark U.S. Treasury bond -- are yielding about 1.7%, which is wonderful. It means we only have to pay investors a measly 1.7% or so to buy our debt -- that's cheap. Right now, Spain and Italy are paying investors about 6% for loans.

The rate at which the country can borrow also determines the rate at which consumers and businesses can borrow. As Treasury yields rise, other interest rates go up with them. Higher interest rates mean everything costs more, which could negatively impact our very tentative economic recovery.

Oddly, when the U.S. took its credit rating hit last year, rather than investors fleeing our now "risky" debt and seeking safer havens, just the opposite happened. Investors flocked into Treasuries, which drove yields to record lows. But if we have another public standoff, and our credit rating drops even more, there's no guarantee that weird bolt of lightning will strike again.

Can't We All Just Get Along?
The U.S. is due to hit its debt limit in early 2013, which means Congress and the president will have to agree to raise it once again or let the country face default. A week ago, Boehner said the only way the House would agree to raise the debt limit was if an equal amount of spending cuts was also agreed to.

So, are we headed for a 2013 debt-ceiling showdown? Not necessarily. A lot of things might change by then. Mitt Romney might be in the White House, for one, which would still leave a Democratic-controlled Senate to potentially fight House Republicans on the debt -- unless the Senate switches hands, too. Alternately, Democrats might retain the White House, regain the House, and keep the Senate. Either of these last two scenarios would likely preclude a debt-ceiling fight.

However the politics work out, it would be good to avoid what happened last summer. The fight over raising the debt ceiling went on for so long and with such histrionics on both sides that, to the rest of the world, America looked like a country that couldn't get its act together.

It's not like we were Greece. We could easily make the payments on our debts; we were just choosing not to.

This article originally appeared on Dailyfinance.com.

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Lasting Power of Attorney gives your loved ones the ability to manage your finances should you no longer be capable of doing so.

Dementia affects one in five people and costs the economy over £23 billion each year according to Saga Homecare, which is sponsoring National Dementia Awareness Week along with the Alzheimer's Society.

It's a worrying reality for many adults, but one way to help ease the burden is to arrange Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA).

But it's not just the threat of dementia that should make you think about LPA; a freak accident or illness could affect anyone and result in a person 'lacking mental capacity'. It can help to know that people you trust will be in charge of your finances, if you can't be.
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What is Lasting Power of Attorney?
Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document that gives a trusted friend, relative or professional (such as a solicitor) permission to manage your finances if you're not capable of doing so.

You can also transfer responsibility of decisions relating to your health and welfare, which is a separate LPA document.

If you are mentally incapacitated in the future and unable to make your own decisions, through accident or illness, your chosen 'attorney' can act on your behalf. However, the document must be arranged and the attorney (or attorneys if you choose more than one) appointed while you are still of sound mind.

This is to ensure that anyone making decisions for you is acting according to your wishes and best interests.

Who needs it?
It's not just for elderly relatives. Anyone can set up a Lasting Power of Attorney and it is seriously worth considering.

If there isn't one in place before a change in mental state occurs, you would have to apply to the Court of Protection for permission to look after a relative or friend's financial affairs. This can be costly and time consuming at a time when finances may need immediate attention.

If LPA is already in place and registered, an attorney can start making decisions straight away.

How do you arrange it?
You can either draw up an LPA yourself, with forms available from the Office of the Public Guardian or enlist the help of a solicitor. Registering the document costs £130 and using a solicitor will likely cost hundreds of pounds on top. It takes around nine weeks to register the document.

LPA replaced Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA), which is no longer available but is still valid if you already have one.

Ordinary Power of Attorney
There are some situations when you might need another person to manage your finances when you are still of sound mind and capable of making decisions. In these situations you could use Ordinary Power of Attorney.

For example, if you're going away on a long trip or are a member of the armed forces and you are posted overseas, you can appoint another person to manage your affairs temporarily. Help from a solicitor will vary in cost, but expect to pay around £150 plus VAT. However, it is worth checking in advance that banks and financial institutions you deal with will recognise your attorney's authority.

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More people are showing signs of struggling with catalogue debts than they are with payday loans, mortgages or rents, a charity has warned.

The Money Advice Trust's National Debtline received more than 25,000 calls from people with debts to catalogue companies last year, the biggest number and proportion of calls on the issue in the Debtline's 25-year history and almost double the number it handled in 2007.

The debt advice charity has already taken 7,000 calls on catalogue debts in the first three months of 2012 and said the problem is one of the most common that it deals with, putting it ahead of rent and mortgage arrears and payday loans.

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In 2007, around 8% of calls the Debtline received were about catalogue debts, but by this spring that share had grown to 14%.

Joanna Elson, chief executive of the Money Advice Trust, said: "Catalogue debts go largely unmentioned in public these days, but advisers at National Debtline hear from nearly 100 people every day struggling to repay such debts.

"Many people might be surprised to hear we get more calls on catalogue debts than on things like mortgages, rent and payday loans."

The charity warned that many people do not realise that when they make a purchase from a catalogue they are signing a consumer credit agreement, which means the debt is enforceable in the courts.

Squeezed families on restricted budgets could be attracted by "buy now, pay later" deals offered by mail order companies which allow them to stagger payments interest-free.

But Ms Elson cautioned: "Many many people don't realise that missing a payment on a catalogue debt will usually invalidate any special low or 0% interest deal."

Catalogue debt is the fifth biggest issue the charity deals with, behind bank loans and overdrafts, credit or store cards, council tax arrears and energy debts.

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The broadband watchdog has accused some providers of failing to be honest about speeds.

According to the latest statistics, there are nearly 53 million internet users in the UK, out of a population of 62 million. Just about everyone in Britain between the ages of 12 and 82 is online.

But many of us don't get a fair deal when it comes to our broadband packages. Last week regulator Ofcom ordered providers to be more open and honest when providing information about broadband speeds.

How's my speed?
In December 2008, the Voluntary Code of Practice on Broadband Speeds was introduced to inform consumers of their likely maximum speed before signing up to a broadband service. This wasn't as effective as hoped, so a strengthened Code came into force in July 2011.

As well as other conditions, the new Code requires internet service providers (ISPs) to give estimated speeds in the form of a range as early as possible in their sales processes. All of the UK's largest ISPs have signed up to the Code, which covers 95% of broadband users.
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For cable services (such as those provided by Virgin Media), the Code allows a single speed to be quoted, rather than a range. This is because cable speeds are not affected by the quality and length of copper telephone lines, which means more certainty about download and upload speeds for cable users.

Speed checks
In order to check if ISPs were following the rules, Ofcom organised 1,369 'mystery shopping' enquiries, both online and by telephone. These took place between 17 December 2011 and 19 January 2012.

This mystery-shopping exercise revealed that compliance with the Code has improved, but further work is also needed. Ofcom found that in 93% of telephone enquiries made by mystery shoppers, a speed estimate was given to consumers by providers. Almost three-quarters (72%) of the time, this estimate was given as a range.

In other words, only one in 14 calls (7%) failed to adhere to the Code, which is a pretty good result for what is a voluntary industry Code.

Could do better
Then again, Ofcom did find some weaknesses in sales processes.

For instance, some sales agents had to be prompted by mystery shoppers before they provided speed estimates. The Code requires that this information be 'volunteered as early as possible in the sales process', so some ISPs were not properly compliant with the Code.

Overall, unprompted speed estimates were given to the mystery shoppers in nearly three-fifths (59%) of mystery-shopping calls. Then again, this estimate masks a wide range of results, as the following table shows:

ISP	Unprompted pass rate	ISP	Unprompted pass rate
Karoo	76%	UK average	59%
Sky	72%	BT Total Broadband	48%
Plusnet	67%	TalkTalk	47%

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A new loan company is offering loans without credit checks or fees. The catch? You need to persuade someone who owns their own home to guarantee it.

Amigo Loans offers loans between £500 and £5,000 over a one- to five-year period. The loans come with a representative APR of 49.9% and there's no credit scoring, or any early settlement charges, fees, or late payment charges.

Source: Moneyfacts

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