1. E-FILE. When you e-file, your chance of getting an error notice from the IRS is significantly reduced. Besides, it’s faster. Your refunds arrive sooner. 2. Check your occupation. Your occupation must be consistent with your income and expenses. A waiter without tip income is inconsistent. So is an investor with no dividend income, real…
A DISABILITY insurance policy pays benefits when you are unable to work because of injury or illness. This allows you to meet your financial obligations, such as mortgage payments, or medical bills, while unable to work. Disability policies usually pay a fixed amount for a set period of time, such as five years or up…
It is a common situation specially within the Filipino community in California to listen to paralegal marketing about “Quick” Nevada divorces. Since there is no divorce in the Philippines, many Filipinos come to the US still married to their spouse in the Philippines. After settling in the US, some Filipinos in this situation end up meeting an American boyfriend or…
Question: I’m in deportation proceedings and somebody stated I can apply for Cancellation of Removal. Can you shed some light on this and what is required? Answer: The Attorney General may cancel the may cancel the removal of an Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) if he or she: Has been “lawfully admitted for permanent residence” for…
HOUSES may not be homes, but homes could certainly be houses people live in. What happened in this previous housing crisis taught us an important lesson. Economic and demographic changes may severely impact the value of houses when its time to sell. We live now in an “Ideas Economy” with a shrinking industrial base and…
There is something strange about the endearment and the magnetic force that attracts a child towards his mother compared to his father. The reason could be due to the biological relationship, literally from the umbilical tie that serves as a direct “line of connection” between them, having had sanguineous and mammiferous-based foundations. Mothers, generally, are…
There is something strange about the endearment and the magnetic force that attracts a child towards his mother compared to his father. The reason could be due to the biological relationship, literally from the umbilical tie that serves as a direct “line of connection” between them, having had sanguineous and mammiferous-based foundations. Mothers, generally, are…
WE all need guidance in our lives. We need wisdom to make right decisions, to act justly, and to live according to God’s law of love. For, indeed, there are times when we are at the crossroad of life, when we ask ourselves, “Am I doing the right thing? Will this bring peace, harmony, and…
In a previous column, I wrote that soft drinks, which I called “liquid candy,” cola or uncola, diet or regular, “are unhealthy for all of us, especially for children. Not only because the regular ones are loaded with sugar (high carb, super calories), but because of the other adverse effects all these soft drinks (without…
THE first day of May commemorates International Workers’ or Labor Day around the world. Contrary to popular belief, May 1 is not entirely dedicated to today’s workers and their demands. This day is meant to remember those heroes who struggled, fought and even died, for the rights of workers that we enjoy today. As the…
SO, the latest question hanging around these days is: Are you Team Gretchen or are you Team Claudine/Inday. Sadly enough, a (showbiz) family in feud is almost one of the best piece of news in town. It all started with Twitter, with messages bouncing back and forth supposedly between the two older Barretto sisters, Gretchen…
“In making an application for adjustment of status, an applicant must also prove that he is not “inadmissible” to the US. Certain grounds of inadmissibility may be “waived”during the process, such as prior criminal convictions or immigration violations.“ THE US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit granted a joint motion to dismiss a case…
Remember, the I-94 is a long form, and CBP tears off the lower portion of the I-94 and staples it to your passport. The longer portion is retained by CBP, and the information is entered in their database. Recently, a young person came to my office, brokenhearted, because she had filed for Deferred Action for…
San Francisco city officials led by Mayor Edwin Lee, along with Asian American community leaders, kicked off the month-long celebration of May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with a briefing held at the Mayor’s Balcony in the 2nd Floor of the San Francisco City Hall on May 1, 2013. Along with the ever-growing street…
COME the May 13 elections, we should be in the process of recovering from the assaults that were inflicted upon our senses. These assaults include the jingles that haunt our eardrums as they set camp there for the sake of recall. How about the primetime commercials with their taglines, scenes “in-action” and “here’s what I’ve…
Free presentation at the SF Public Library on May 5 SIX days, 80 miles, under the searing heat of the sun—that was what made the Bataan Death March a treacherous journey. Although history books will tell to say that that approximately 2,500-10,000 Filipino and 100-650 American soldiers prisoners of war died before they reached their…
THE other night, a retrospective on the Watergate scandal that resulted in the resignation of President Richard Nixon was aired on US television. Among the interesting commentaries was the role that social media could have played in exposing Nixon and his White House cohorts much sooner, had the Internet phenomenon been available at the time….
THE United Nations (UN) estimates that more than 70,000 people have died since the Syrian government started battling a rebellion two years ago. The international community has condemned the Assad regime for the violence it has perpetrated against its own people. Pleas for greater international assistance have been mounting, especially from the United States —…
LAST month, we discussed how unpaid wages were sought in a class action lawsuit filed against Dole Food Company by employees who claimed they were not paid for the time they spent putting on mandatory protective and sanitary clothing. Other companies had similar practices where off-the-clock work was not paid. Best Buy, for instance, required…
I HAVE recently been following this website called, SellYourHome.com it has a lot of interesting topics about the real estate industry including a certain topics about homeowners in need of Mortgage Salvation thru Loan Modification. Now days, here are my thoughts on how our housing crisis is unfolding. To observe the crisis we have been…
CAN real love exist in a community where people are related not by blood but by common faith and beliefs? Can neighbors genuinely care for one another without sacrificing privacy? Can strangers become instant friends? Can a friendship of two persons endure despite a long absence from each other? To all these questions, I say…
LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles City Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was recognized on April 24 by nonprofit organization Peace Over Violence (POV) on Wednesday for his efforts in raising awareness about issues surrounding sexual assault and abuse. Villaraigosa was the first city mayor to declare Denim Day in any city, and went on to preside over…
SOMETIMES parents put their children’s names on title to their residence even if the parents intend to keep the residence as their own as they continue to pay all expenses connected to their residence. The usual reason is for estate planning purposes of the parents. A major problem arises when the residence has a lot…
THE Beverly Hills Country Club was the perfect venue. It’s where tradition, elegance and memories met in a night of music, accolade, drama, dancing and the much-vaunted “celebrity roast” of prominent members of the community, who came for a charity roast to support the Fil-American Press Club of California. Rapid repartees, quick comeback, stinging barbs…
DID the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) miss out on an opportunity to prevent the Boston Marathon terror attack from happening? This was the question raised by CBS, when it broke the news that the FBI was able to interview Tamerlan Tsarnaev (one of the two bombing suspects, the other is his brother, Dzhokhar A….
THE scheduled week-long investment roadshow by a topnotch business delegation from the Philippines has officially begun. The 2nd Investment Roadshow was organized by the Philippine Embassy with the Philippine Consulates General in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York (sponsored by the Phil. Trade and Investment Center, in cooperation with the Council on Trade and Investment…
ON MARCH 4, 2013, CNN reported the incredible news that a baby was cured of HIV, as announced at the 2013 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta. The baby girl from Mississippi is the first child to be “functionally cured” of HIV. Filipinos the world over will be proud to know that a…
On April 17, 2013, a bipartisan group of senators filed the “Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act” bill in the U.S. Senate in an effort to start the process of reforming the nation’s immigration system. The bill’s broad scope and sensible approach are impressive. However, since the bill is a compromise proposal that…
Multi-awarded Nora Aunor, now residing in Los Angeles, will celebrate her 60th birthday on Tuesday, May 21. La Aunor, internationally known as the one and only Superstar of the Philippine entertainment industry, was born in Iriga, Camarines Sur. She was the grand champion of the Darigold Jamboree Singing Contest at that time. She represented her…
The head of the SBA, Karen Mills, has announced her resignation. During her four years in office, the 98% of Asian American-owned businesses that are small received very few loans and close to zero technical assistance. President Obama, however, has a unique opportunity to ensure that the SBA is truly a small business agency that…
