If you’re like an average joe with little to no background in finance, news about recession and bankruptcy will scare and make you panic. My friend, Lala Rimando, business editor of Newsbreak Magazine, came out with this dummies guide to help you understand the credit crisis lingo.

Article from http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/business/09/26/08/what-subprime-dummies-guide-credit-crisis-lingo; Photo from http://politicalhumor.about.com

With financial jargons leaping from business pages to front page headlines, here’s a guide to understanding the current US financial crisis better.

SUBPRIME or SUBPRIME MORTGAGES

Simply put, they are called subprime since they are below prime status. These are loans lent to borrowers who, as some put it, are considered “NINJA” (no income, no job, no assets). In other words, high risk borrowers: they have tainted credit history or cannot prove their incomes.

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