Credit Union vs Bank? Consumers won a major battle against the banks this year when they forced them to retreat on their proposed debit card fees. But, they are nowhere near winning the war against the constant barrage of bank fees and charges. The banks, which are in business to generate profits for their shareholders, [...]
Continue Reading →Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for “green” energy, and a green economy. I would like nothing more than to fry up a batch of fries then pour the residue oil into my biofuel-fed car. I’d put up a wind powered generator if I could because, not only would it power my coffee maker, it [...]
Continue Reading →Thinking about changing banks? Take a minute to look and compare the most popular types of banks that offer unique service and features. The major banks have had a rough few years since the financial meltdown, and now it seems as though they are taking it out on us with additional and higher fees. Not [...]
Continue Reading →Don’t tell the 150 million smart phone users, but someone knows every move they make, literally. From their physical location to the exact key strokes they make on their phone, smart phone and credit card users are an open book to their phone carriers, their credit card companies and their banks. And short of tossing [...]
Continue Reading →Student loan debt has skyrocketed in the last decade growing at a rate of nearly 50% per year. Many graduates find themselves crushed under the weight of their college loans before they have had a chance to go out and earn the income needed to repay it. While future college students need to seriously consider [...]
Continue Reading →Tis the season for charity, but the economy has many people tightening their belts and even the most well-intentioned among us have been forced to rethink our charitable giving this year. For many people, that can dampen the spirit of the holidays. What if there was a way to turn your holiday shopping into a [...]
Continue Reading →It’s almost uncanny how this all works. The violence and debauchery of the misguided and self-indulgent Occupy movement has peaked just in time to draw all of the media attention away from the biggest problem both the 99% and the 1% face in the immediate future. Headlines of OWS miscreants terrorizing school children and throwing acid [...]
Continue Reading →Among the myriad of new financial reform measures mandated by the Dodd-Frank bill two years ago was the creation of the Consumer Bureau of Financial Protection, a watchdog agency with the responsibility of ensuring that financial companies are following the law in their lending practices. Specifically, it is tasked with ensuring that all financial companies [...]
Continue Reading →The American public, already under heavy debt siege, has reached another dubious milestone this year with total debt from college loans crossing the $1 trillion mark. That’s a nearly 500% increase in just the last decade, a period that saw all consumer debt rise at a rate of 90%. According to government reports, the average [...]
Continue Reading →It’s not hard to imagine him standing on his rooftop in Queens, screaming at the top of his lungs to nobody in particular and to anyone who will listen. Like the scrawny little kid taunting the big bullies on the playground, far enough away so they can’t catch him, but near enough to annoy them, [...]
Continue Reading →The one great thing about having a Republic majority in the House is we don’t have to see wide-eyed, former Speaker, Nancy Pelosi as much. Except for the reminder of what Americans abhor about the ultra-liberal ideology, is there anyone of any political persuasion that can honestly say they miss her dazed look as she [...]
Continue Reading →Unlike past economic recoveries that spawned job growth across the broad cross-section of industries, this one has been much more gradual and the real job growth is concentrated in certain industries. So, for people who suffered layoffs from jobs for which they may have had a lifetime of experience and training, the new reality may [...]
Continue Reading →How do balance transfers work? If you are suddenly seeing more 0% balance transfer offers in your mailbox, you’re not alone. Millions of Americans are beginning to see what, until just recently, has been a somewhat rare occurrence. Since the credit crisis of 2008, banks had virtually shut down their balance transfer offers except for [...]
Continue Reading →Why do European credit cards have a chip instead of a magnetic strip and how does this relate to safety and travelers? The newest chip-and-PIN technology for credit cards is just around the corner in the United States which, with its multiple layers of security, is good for consumers. But, if you’re a traveler in [...]
Continue Reading →The problem facing the movement is both one of perception and of perspective. As hundreds of people swarm the parks and town centers of cities across the country Tweeting their rants over their iPhones and uploading their photos on Facebook using their iPads, most Americans snicker at the hypocrisy of their stated disdain for capitalism. And, as they target their tirade at the very corporations that actually generate their jobs and make the products they utilize to promulgate their movement, the rest of the country is left to wonder if they truly understand how shallow their message rings.
Continue Reading →Wall Street Protest: Protesters’ Rage is on Target, but They’re Not Americans are struggling with just who these people are and what they represent. So, naturally, they are also questioning their true motivations.
Continue Reading →Advantages of Online Banking: Never Drive to Your Bank Again! It may be a nice ritual for some people: Gathering your deposit book, your checks for deposit, your keys, and then driving your car down to your local bank. Or maybe you are able to plan your trips to the bank around other trips to nearby shops.
Continue Reading →In the current economic malaise of high unemployment, rising food and gas costs, upside-down mortgages, and increasing uncertainty, a new demographic stratum has emerged in which people, through no fault of their own, find themselves chronically strapped of cash. And, it seems that the deeper people sink into the malaise, the more payday loan shops pop up. In fact, it has been recently reported that there are now more payday loan stores than there are McDonalds restaurants, and millions of Americans have been served.
Continue Reading →Balance transfers are a mechanism for credit card issuers to gain market share and, ultimately, increase their revenue. They generally target people with good credit who maintain balances on their credit cards. When a person receives an offer to transfer a balance at a low introduction rate, the terms usually include an expiration after which a new rate is applied to the transferred balance.
Continue Reading →Store Credit Cards. Yes, the offer is enticing, and, in the brief moment you have to decide, you need to be able to determine what effect that new store card will have on your credit status. While it may not do anything to immediately hurt your credit, there may be some long term consequences that could make that $30 savings turn out to be very costly.
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