Days Inn 的趣聞

由於要參加朋友婚禮, 開了6 小時終於到達LA.累死了! 晚上住Days Inn 已經11:30 了,我有事先預約,但他們好像睡覺了! 我就按night bell 把他們吵醒! 後來進去房間後,發覺要洗澡時為何沒有讓水從蓮蓬頭往下流的function! 那一個往上拉的東西為何沒看到啊!

試了半天不行,於是去問 front desk, 又按night bell 把他們吵醒 !他們一定氣死我了!他講解功能, 我才明白, 才恍然大悟!

我們已經習慣一種東西時就會依照自己思維去做,但是往往沒想到還有少見不流行的設備等著你!只不過這設備未免太濫了吧!

申請 H1B簽證的文件

我 H1B 已轉了二次, 一次是找律師辦理,一次是公司幫我辦理。當然二次費用都是我自己出。我那時第一次找律師辦理,平常件要 USD 2,900,快速件要加 USD 1,000 。律師和我說只要將申請書遞出去, 就可以工作了。只要不要離境,辦平常件即可。所以我選擇平常件, 我大約等了 2 個月才下來。第二次轉 H1B 是公司幫我辦理,費用 USD 2,190。後來我才知道若自己辦理 H1B 的總費用,不含快速件, 也是 USD 2,190。

所以得到一個結論是:若你去找律師,看律師費是多少。你的固定成本是USD 2,190。若公司幫你出這一筆錢更好,當然要看運氣。後來我有一位朋友她在 LA 自己申請 H1B 簽證,她用快件的方式,自己省了律師費!

申請 H1B 簽證的文件如下:

From the Employer:

1.Articles of Incorporation (Date of Incorporated)

2. Federal Tax Identification Number

3. Number of Employees

4. Company Brochures / Website Address

5. Recent One Year Total Gross Annual Income

6. Company Letterhead (5 sheets)

7. Person and Person’s Title and email address who is going to sign the petition

8. Company email address

9. Telephone & Fax Number

10.Company Name & Address

11. Job Position Offered and Rate of Pay

From the Employee:

1.Diploma

2.Transcript

3.Updated Resume (Saved in a disk, if possible)

4.Passport, Form I-94s, Form I-20s and Visa Page

5.US Address, Phone Number & Social Security Number

6.Address in Foreign Country

7.Last Three Months Earning Statements (if any)

8.Previous Form 1040 U.S. Individual Tax Return Statements (if any)

9.A copy of the previous H1B File, if any.

這是當時律師給我的文件清單。美國移民法常變。所以上述文件也會變動。若你要自己申請 H1B簽證, 應該要研究清楚。

延伸閱讀:
分享一些 H1B 簽證的消息
申請 H1B 應該自己辦理或找律師辦理?

向討債公司低頭

4 月底搬家, 超速被開罰單。也沒接到罰款通知!我也不知道要去法院。所以就忘記了。昨天大哥和我說有一封信: 法院已將 case 轉到討債公司(collection Agent)了。 今天打電話去討債公司, 費用已原本從 300 漲到 685 美金了!

今天特地去警察局問警察到底被開罰單程序如何: 原來是接到黃單時,不論是否法院有寄 notice 給我, 21 天內一定要去法院一趟。原本我是個 good driver 不用付錢, 現在不理它的結果就是和自己的錢過不去。

打去 LA 法院問看看。不想付給討債公司, 看法院能否算便宜一點。結果打電話去法院,等候很久,沒人接, 也耽誤工作時間, 但無收穫。 所以就請遠在 Florida 的 Inga 利用時間幫我花時間問。她真是聰明。節省我很多等候時間。 所以最後結果就是: 照付! 法院不再受理我案件! 所以以後真的要多加小心才是。

延伸閱讀:
不向 collection agent 屈服

第一次突然覺得H1B雇員有那麼多選擇工作的機會

7/17 早上六點多就起床了。 我要 10 點半抵達客戶所在地點 -Stockton， CA 。 但是開了一小時就到了。原本如意算盤是在 Starbucks 上網， 沒想到一不小心將咖啡弄翻了。 灑到我鍵盤，當場當機。後來覺得不行。只好先去上班。工作還可以勝任。全部都是老美，沒有東方臉孔。真是好啊。

但是一個禮拜居然在旅館住，開不了 Notebook， 無聊死了。又沒地方逛。 我中餐吃了三天麥當勞，二天 Quiznos 真是慘啦。 幸好今天電機系朋友幫我看 Notebook。 居然可以開機。真是高興。希望 Notebook不要再壞了。 期望下星期更好。

雖然我只做的是 contract job，但是對我而言，工作簽證不會再被終止掉了。而且又可高高興興選擇自己的工作。這一家公司也是 NASDAQ 上市公司。 沒有老中，真好。 至少也完成自己少年時代夢想。

自從當了contractor 之後， 第一次突然覺得 H1B 雇員有那麼多選擇工作的機會。 我覺得一句話很對:危機的背後總是有上天給的禮物。

H1B 雇員在美國的生存方式

這是我對 H1B 雇員在美國工作的想法。H1B 雇員享有 H1B 薪資下限保障, 但是工作卻也受到限制。

一帆風順型:

學生畢業後能找到一家公司願意幫你辦 H1B 工作簽證, 又可以同時幫你辦綠卡, 只能說你是祖上有德!恭喜你了。

忍氣吞聲型:

公司沒有前景, 老闆不好, 薪資被剝削。只好忍氣吞聲!待綠卡拿到後, 就可以說聲拜拜。 難怪有人可以在此公司忍氣吞聲 4-6 年。

命運不好型

公司狀況不好, 自己運氣差, 萬一真的被裁了, 身分就變不合法了。趕緊和老闆商量,叫他暫時先不要將你資料送給移民局。若是他執意送,也不要灰心。趕快加緊找工作。移民局心中自有一把尺。2 個月內找到轉換身份因不成問題!找不到就算你命運不好了。準備離境。

新興行業型

若是你的 H1B 可以被 consulting company hold 住, 原則上你是屬於他的員工,他發薪資給你, 但是他派你到其他公司上班, 你做個 Contractor, Contractor薪水很高, 但會被公司抽佣金。 做 5 個月工作可能是你在其他 H1B公司要做 8-10 個月的薪資, 又可休假。 沒有 Project 就沒有薪資可領。身分依然合法!

Contractor 薪水高, 較沒保障, 但是表現好 Project 一大堆! 不用擔心 H1B 再被終止掉! 日子也過的愜意。這種公司屬印度人最多, 華人公司少。

如果是你,你會選擇那一種?

延伸閱讀:
看派遣女王文章報導有感

若 H1B 雇員的實際年薪低於薪資的下限，那 H1B 身分是否有問題?

如何善加利用不同信用卡

以前到現在使用信用卡, 後來覺得最佳利用方式就是將每個信用卡的close date and payment due date 列出來!例如我有三張卡分別如下:

card	Close date	Payment due date	19-2	3-16 /4-20
American express	17 or 18	6	Use this card
chase	1-2	21		Use this card
Amazon	22-23	12		Use this card

Close date 到payment due date 通常有 20 日! 所以當你知你的 close date 時,例如8月19 日你要買東西時, 我就不會使用 Amazon card 作交易 !因為Close date 是8/22-23 日,因此我在9/12 需繳款! 我反而會利用 American express 作交易,因為它可以讓我 10/6 才繳款!經過信用卡的接力賽,可以使當月還款壓力降至最低 ,還可以用薪水的餘款讓我銀行利息變多點!

若2張卡 close date 太接近時,可以打電話給銀行請求更改close date, 已做到最佳分配方式 ! 這種方法學校老師並不會教吧!夠帥吧!

Balance Transfer Offers

在美國常會有信用卡公司促銷 0% Balance Transfer Offers ! 如果善加利用, 的確可以套利! 上次看到這一篇文章和我想法真是一樣! 真的是英雄所見略同!

Guide to Taking Advantage of 0% Balance Transfer Offers

Based on requests from visitors, I have decided to compile my own guide to taking advantage of the credit card companies' 0% Balance Transfer Offers. I hope this guide will help everyone understand how to maximize the value of these offers and help boost your earnings for the year. If anyone has additional suggestions or tips - please post them in the comments.

What is a 0% Balance Transfer offer?
Most of us frequently get these annoying solicitation from credit card companies trying to get me to sign up for their credit card. Infact there are probably some in the advertising on this web site right now. Most of these offers include some gimmick or promotion to entice you to sign up for these offers.

A typical offer I see is "0% APR on Balance Transfers until 2007!" where the date given is typically 8-12 months in the future. Also, keep in mind the longer the balance transfer offer lasts the more you can make. I typically wait until I receive an offer that is at least 0% APR for 12 months. This is a 0% Balance Transfer offer - read on to find out how you can take advantage of them.

Here is an example of a credit card 0% Balance Transfer offer:

How do you screen out the less attractive offers?
Once you have a 0% Balance Transfer credit card offer, you need to review the fine print to make sure there are not any catches with the offer. The biggest catch out there in a small "balance transfer fee" typically 3% (but varies with each credit card company).

You want to make sure there are no balance transfer fees other fees associated with taking out a balance transfer. (Note: You can still profit if some of these fees are in the offer, but since these offers are frequent, I would just recommend waiting for a better offer).

Here is an example of the fine print on balance transfer fees.

Notice this offer has a balance transfer fee of 3% ($5 minimum, $75 maximum). I prefer offers with no balance transfer fees at all, however if you can't find a no fee offer, one with a maximum may also work ok for you (just $75 less profitable in this example).

Now that I have an offer, how do I get access to this 0% balance transfer?
Fill out the application. I usually wait till I get the card in the mail so I know exactly what my limit is. When I call to activate the card, I begin the process of initiating a balance transfer. There are many techniques to choose from:

A) Ask for a check made out to you. I have done this for my Citibank credit cards. When you call to initiate a balance transfer I ask if I can get a check made out to myself. Its that simple. (Note: make sure you wont get a cash advance fee if you do this)

B) Apply the balance to other credit cards.

->B1) If you have a soon to be expiring 0% balance transfer then just ask that the balance transfer be used to pay off the balance on the old account.

->B2) Depending on how much you purchase every month on your credit cards, ask that the balance transfer be applied to you primary credit card to pay off your existing balance and any credit on you primary credit card account you can consume in future purchases. Instead of paying the balance on your primary credit card you spent, earmark those funds as your balance transfer funds.

->B3) If the first 2 options don't work, you can also consider having the balance transfer applied to a unused credit card account. When the transfer is complete you can call the credit card company and ask that a check for the positive balance be sent to you. (Note: I have heard from friends that some companies may not be willing to issue a check for the credit/positive balance so double check before trying)

C) If you have a HELOC have the balance transfer applied to this loan. Then you can write a check to yourself for the amount transferred.

D) If you have any type of loan, consider having the transfer amount paid to that loan. If you are planning on paying down/off the loan in the near future anyway you may be able to make a better rate of return by using the balance transfer to pay it off sooner rather than later.

I have used techniques A, B1, B2, and C all with great success to get access to the balance transfer loan.

Now that I have the 0% balance transfer, what do I do with it?
The whole reason you are doing this is to earn money, so this is a very important step. I always look for the highest-yielding risk free investment.

Here are some suggestions:

A) Online high yield savings accounts such as HSBC Direct, ING Direct, or EmigrantDirect.
B) If you have an outstanding balance on a HELOC or Line of Credit and you can pull back out money at anytime, consider paying down the HELOC or Line of Credit. You may make a better return on your money by saving on the interest payments.
C) Short term treasury bills on TreasuryDirect.gov.
D) Short term CDs such as a 6-month CD.

I have been putting my balance transfers in my EmigrantDirect and HELOC accounts.

How do I pay the balance transfer back?
Every month you should make the minimum payment on this credit card with the balance transfer. The minimum is usually somewhere around 2% of the balance. On a $10,000 balance transfer we are talking about a payment around $200 a month. I usually move the minimum payment amount from my savings account and try to pay the minimum payment as soon as I get the statement to avoid any risk of being late on my payment. To date, I have never been late with one of these payments.

I usually plan on paying back the entire balance of the balance transfer the month before the 0% APR expires. So if the offer expires in June 2006, I would pay the loan off in May to ensure I don't risk accumulating any interest on the loan. You can read the fine print of the credit card offer to determine exactly when the 0% APR expires and when the credit card company begins charging interest.

Other tips on 0% Balance Transfer offers
Taking advantage of these offers does lower your credit score. Its hard to tell how much, but I was surprised last year when my credit score fell significantly most likely due to taking advantage of several 0% offers. I currently have 2 0% balance transfer offers and my credit score appears to have recovered.

-Using balance transfers can help increase your liquidity. Having this "extra" cash in savings accounts with easy access to them, allows me to take my "emergency funds" and other short term savings and put them to work in more restrictive, but better return vehicles, like 1 yr bonds, or paying down some of my mortgage.

-Taking advantage of balance transfer offers can result in pretty significant returns. Last year I probably earned close to $700 in interest from money borrowed using 0% balance transfer offers.

-You typically cannot do a balance transfer from one credit card to another credit card offered by the same company.

-Read and re-read the fine print on the credit card. If you have questions call the credit card company and make sure they explain the fees to you.

Ready to give it a try?

You can start right now by checking out some of the advertisers on this web site. I bet there are a couple 0% Balance Transfer credit card offers on the right hand side of this web page.

延伸閱讀:

在美國用信用卡套利

在美國用信用卡套利

前一陣子卡神的消息轟動全台灣。我準備用美國信用卡好好效法卡神的精神，在美國牛刀小試一番。 其實美國銀行信用卡部門和銀行業務溝通不易。這次被我抓住機會了。

信用卡部門促銷: Balance Transfer 不用費用，促銷期 12 月，利率 = 0%， 每月付最低金額 55 美金。12 月一定要付清，否則利率會提高。銀行的 Savings Account APR= 4.5%

我只要將錢借出來存到我往來銀行，再將錢提出來存在這一家銀行 Saving Account 一年存款利息 450 美金。Balance Transfer 越高，利息就越高。12 月後在全部提出來，全部付清。

五鬼搬運法利害吧。夠簡單吧。但千萬要額外小心，一不小心就會被銀行扣手續費。記得一定要打電話問銀行。不可不慎!

延伸閱讀:
Balance Transfer Offers

免費個人信用報告網站

最近美國信用卡盜刷嚴重，若是你有社會安全號碼及常用的信用卡，美國政府規定一年可有三次可免費在下列網站申請自己的個人信用報告。即分別四個月後申請不同的機構。可直接上網申請，若最後 submit 不行的話， 只好用郵寄申請。

我郵寄申請過一次，網站申請一次， 還不錯! 常檢查自己的信用才是正確的。

你沒有辦法知道你的信用分數， 只能知道資料有沒有錯誤。 我曾經發覺資料有錯， 還上網 dispute! 有興趣的人不妨一試。

延伸閱讀:

在美國用信用卡套利

如何善加利用不同信用卡

介紹一個沒有價位的餐廳

這一次回台灣,和朋友前去大學同學所開的餐廳! 台北市林林種種的餐廳特別多,應該沒什麼好介紹的,但我大學同學所開的餐廳卻是沒有價位的餐廳!值得介紹一番!

在裡頭我和朋友都覺得菜不錯,設備很好,很有詩情畫意! 結帳時, 才發覺桌子旁邊有信封, 信封裡面有一張紙,裡面列出所有菜色, 讓你填寫你對餐點的評價和意見, 然後將你覺得這餐應價值多少錢, 然後放進信封內!

起初,我還懷疑,於是問我大學同學, 她不好意思說,請她員工說! 員工說:你覺得今天晚上的設備氣氛,服務及餐點價值多少!你就給多少!

我和大學同學及朋友都是大學念經濟系!我覺得她將經濟學發揮到淋漓盡致!她相信人是理性的,合理價格意謂著是無消費者剩餘! 如果您是她的話,您敢開店嗎!您覺得餐廳會有超額利潤嗎?您覺得價格是市場供需決定, 還是價格是人定呢?

有機會的話可至我同學餐廳走走, 資料如下:
心靈田園食坊,台北市仁愛路4段29-2號

這家店也提供其他服務,例如你要求婚或示愛,或其他事項,只要找我同學,一定會讓人有意外驚喜的! 如果您已去過,也不吝惜給我同學批評指教!

後記:
2007 年底和我同學聯絡,她向我說: 她的餐廳目前已經停業了,但是她還是很想重新再嘗試看看!希望她能早日捲土重來!