The next meltdown?
So what is the next meltdown? This article in MSN suggets it’s credit cards. Definitely a possibility ... , but how are people affording credit cards, student loans, and car loans? Much like foreclosures ... . First, the average debt of consumers is $16k when averaged over people who don’t have credit cards, pay [more...]
Date: 2008-11-06 17:42:46
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Need Help With Money
It’s normal for people to make mistakes when it comes to money, but with the economy being in the state it is in now, ... get access to auto loans, credit cards, mortgages, and student loans. Keeping your credit rating high ... you may need to correct some of your bad money habits to survive the recession. The most common [more...]
Date: 2009-01-16 01:57:49
How Young People Should Handle Credit Cards
This week I’m featuring a few guest posts. First up is an article from the Studenomist, who writes over at the new personal finance blog, ... .” It feels like an honour that someone is willing to loan you money and provide you with credit ... it is not even free. Chances are that if you are a college student credit card companies are literally [more...]
Date: 2008-12-02 11:00:23
Three Ways to Know When the Credit Crisis Hits Bottom
There is a growing body of data that suggests banks have recognized only a fraction of the overall potential losses - approximately $50 billion to ... t include the additional losses from secondary-prime mortgage loans, auto loans, credit card balances, student loans and the other credit-related flotsam and jetsam floating around in the debt markets [more...]
Date: 2008-12-08 13:42:23
Passing the Rescue Package Isn’t Enough
Center for American Progress ... avoids cutbacks in individual credit such as auto loans, student loans, and credit cards ... the problems in the credit markets and then dumped poorly thought out legislation on Congress under [more...]
Date: 2008-10-04 23:21:21
Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News
New acronym on the block... The government unveiled its newest initiative, called TALF, or Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility. The $200B facility will support consumer finance, including student, auto and credit card loans ... $20B of credit protection from TARP funds. This is the first time the Fed and Treasury have stepped [more...]
Date: 2008-11-26 12:14:47
In ‘Dear Graduate’ author Brett Handler explains to students and parents the perils of easy credit
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla — The federal government is clamping down on the Wild West of credit card issuing to young adults when tough new regulations go into effect in February 2010, and Brett Handler couldn’t be happier. Handler, author of “Dear Graduate” (ISBN-13: 978-0-615-29936-5, Dreamstar Publishing), the innovative new book and CD for young adults about financial responsibility, has been railing against credit card companies’ injudicious card issuing practices for years. [more...]
Date: 2009-09-17 15:07:45
My First Time…Using Credit
I managed not to accrue any debt coming out of college. One of the big factors? I didn’t have a credit card until a few months ago ... I might not be debt-free right now. I assumed having a credit card was the only way to generate ... my Student Visa with a $500 credit limit and let it get comfy in my wallet. The first time I busted [more...]
Date: 2008-10-02 21:55:19
That First Taste of Financial Success
wendy3 About a month after I hit bottom in terms of my debt, I sent in a large payment on one of my credit cards, ... off the rest of my credit cards, to pay off our car loans, to pay off my remaining student loans ... s been tasty all the way along. A lot of people like to criticize Dave Ramsey and his “Total Money Makeover [more...]
Date: 2008-10-21 14:00:52
Cross-Talk: Deleveraging the Consumer and the New Realities of a Pay-As-You-Go World
Margie and I were flipping through channels and happened to stop on financial guru Suze Orman making the case that we're now living in a pay-as-you-go society. Her point was that credit of all sorts--from credit cards to student, mortgage, and car loans--was going to be more difficult to come by and thus more expensive. In a world [more...]
Date: 2008-10-21 12:00:28
paying tuition to life
Have you ever loaned money to a friend or family member? Did you really loan it or was it borrow? ... student he ran up credit cards, drove a a fancy car, and took out student loans, etc. He was a ROTC ... my parents weren’t helping me, but had preached no consumer debt. Plus I had student loans. Anyway [more...]
Date: 2008-10-21 13:00:30
U.S. Launches New Assault on Consumer Recession, Backtracks on Toxic Mortgage Assets Bailout
The United States is now waging an all-out war against clogged credit markets and attacking each troubled artery head on. Earlier this week U.S ... to student loans, credit cards, auto loans, and small business loans. In the absence of a broad-based ... contracting economy by injecting funds into distressed credit markets where banks remain reluctant [more...]
Date: 2008-12-02 14:47:14
Sunday Money Roundup - Packing Again Edition.
As I mentioned earlier this week, we are moving again - after only 6 short months in our current house ... and we have a few weeks to transition, so it shouldn’t be that bad. But still - I hate packing. Ugh ... about college students handling credit cards. Four Pillars has an excellent article titled “How [more...]
Date: 2008-11-09 14:00:58
Holiday Cheer: Reality is Not All It's Cracked Up to Be
I am currently on blog holiday, and am re-posting some refreshing concoctions from Christmases past.Life. It's deep, right? ... surrounding (i.e. Shaolin), that credit card debt and those student loans aren't mundane, they suddenly ... told, cash ruling everything around me. These geniuses accomplish the impossible: they make Staten [more...]
Date: 2008-12-29 16:00:00
Bailout Gets More Costly Due to “Bipartisan” Deal; Foolish Limits on Foreclosure Should Be Removed
Liberal Congressional leaders have apparently reached a deal with the Bush Administration on the principal elements of a $700 billion bailout of the ... student loans, car loans, credit card debt and any other ‘troubled’ assets held by banks.” ... . Although it is being sold as a “bipartisan” — a buzzword often used to push bad policies – Republican [more...]
Date: 2008-09-28 20:34:55
Paulson Flails About With His TARP
Yesterday, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announced that the Treasury Department has altered the way in which it is going to ... non-bank institutions that securitize credit card, auto and student loans.” As Matthew Yglesias ... most effective thing we can do to help homeowners, the American people, and stimulate our economy.” [more...]
Date: 2008-11-13 21:30:53
Commercial developers lining up at the bailout window
Good Monday morning - I don't know how many people are reading out there, given the fact we're now squarely in the holiday season ... the market for car loans, student loans and credit-card debt. This money is intended to go directly to help ... Analytics LCC, $530 billion of commercial mortgages will be coming due for refinancing in the next three [more...]
Date: 2008-12-22 13:14:00
Ask an Apocalypse Specialist
Dear Dr. Farley,Should I be preparing a boat or a car? ... . For obvious reasons we cannot accept credit cards. However, student loans are available to qualified ... the former; horses can swim, and in a pinch can be eaten.Dear Dr. Farley,Is cannibalism really as bad [more...]
Date: 2008-10-01 08:47:00
Death of the original TARP program
#fullpost{display:inline;}Sort of old news by now but for those who may not have heard, ... companies that issue credit cards, make student loans and finance car purchases. As envisioned ... billion to expand the existing bailout of American International Group, the insurance conglomerate [more...]
Date: 2008-11-13 16:30:00
Financial Clarity: The First Step to Eliminating Debt
We hear about it all the time on the news, the economy is in a downturn, a slump, a recession, a depression. Job lost is at an all time high ... credit card debt, student loans, car loans, and the money you borrowed from Uncle Charlie last year ... . People are losing their homes. People are scared. Just writing about it makes me feel scared. Oh [more...]
Date: 2009-01-08 02:07:51
Bernanke Acts While Paulson Dithers
Today, in yet another transformation of the ever-changing Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) ... to creditworthy consumers,” by extending relief to holders of “auto loans, student loans, credit card loans ... to a plan being implemented by the New York Fed that is aimed at easing the current credit crunch. The NY [more...]
Date: 2008-11-25 19:26:04
The Debt Generation
Credit cards are hailed as convenient tools, a way to build credit and earn points or rebates ... loans and other education related debt make up a great chunk of that for many, credit card debt is also quite high and on the rise for young people-some high-school students even have their own credit [more...]
Date: 2008-09-04 22:13:09
Nouriel piles on
Has Nouriel Roubini ever been on CNBC? That question just came to mind as he rattled off the many reasons why financial markets are likely to get ... , it was prime, it was home equity loans, it was CDOs, it was MBSs, commercial real estate, credit cards, auto loans, student loans, leveraged loans, corporate bonds, muni bonds. You're liable to end [more...]
Date: 2008-09-15 04:00:00
In The News Today
"During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act" – Orwell Dear CIGAs, I am Outraged. This is simply too much ... to be funded under the programme are pools of credit card receivables, automobile loans and student loans ... for the first time under a landmark $200bn programme intended to support consumer credit. The [more...]
Date: 2008-12-22 17:17:41
Taxpayer Advocate’s Recommendation: Go Easier on Taxpayers Experiencing Economic Hardship
Nina Olson, the National Taxpayer Advocate, has released her Annual Report to Congress (PDF) ... their car loans, credit card balances, student loans, or medical bills probably do not realize ... -payment installment agreements, may be more effective at collecting liabilities from taxpayers [more...]
Date: 2009-01-08 02:37:42
"US Banksters Flip Flop On Bailout Rationale"
... expansion of the program into the markets that provide support for credit card debt, auto loans and student loans.Paulson said 40 percent of U.S. consumer credit is provided through selling securities [more...]
Date: 2008-11-12 23:52:00
Who Wins, Who Loses Under Proposed Bailout Plan?
WASHINGTON — The proposal to bail out U.S. financial markets to the tune of up to $700 billion creates a lot of potential short-term winners, ... winners, too, if the bailout works as intended: anyone soon trying to borrow money _ for cars, student loans, even to open new credit card accounts. Top executives at troubled financial institutions [more...]
Date: 2008-09-28 23:35:52
Paulson Says Focus Of Bailout Is Expanding
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said today that he was changing the focus of the $ 700 billion bailout passed last month from buying up troubled ... in such areas as credit card debt, auto loans and student loans. Mr. Paulson said 40 percent of the nation’s consumer credit was provided through selling securities that are backed by pools of auto loan [more...]
Date: 2008-11-12 17:14:08
Does Paulson Have Any Idea How to Spend Our $700 Billion?
Does anyone else get the funny feeling that we’re going to discover very soon that the $700 billion has been spent and no one is quite sure what it ... Express, now that it has been characterized as a bank, as well as into the credit card, auto loan and student loan industries. Of course there was that purchase of another stake in AIG [more...]
Date: 2008-11-13 21:43:44
More Issues With Ramsey
I'm going to see Dave Ramsey soon. My biggest beef with Dave Ramsey is his position on student loans, ... %, no exceptions, no credit card rule. It's just ridiculous for me. I get that Amex collectors were ... a dispute on over 1K in foreign hotel charges. I was overcharged about 20%, just sent a letter, easy [more...]
Date: 2009-01-17 15:40:33
How to Understand Credit Report
How to Understand Credit Report posted on January 8th, 2009 Now that you have obtained your credit report, ... the company name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line ... the first thing you need to do is read through it and understand what it all means. Don’t feel bad [more...]
Date: 2009-01-08 08:35:23
2 Out of 3 Ain't Bad, 7 out of 9 Is...
NEW YORK (AP) -- Average interest rates on most types of credit cards rose slightly this week, according to a report from CreditCards.com.Annual percentage rates on seven out of nine categories of cards -- business, instant approval ... Thursday. The APR on cards for people with bad credit held steady at 10.82 percent while rates on student [more...]
Date: 2008-11-14 17:47:00
Travel Tips
Someone pointed out a budget travel article to me sometime last year, but I didn’t care much for it, so I’m not going to link it here ... a month’s rent late. I diligently paid down my credit cards, paid my student loans on time, and banked [more...]
Date: 2008-06-26 13:28:45
Should You Pay Your Credit Card Bill Late? The Answer May Surprise You
One of our readers, Jay, sent us this question about debt negotiation: My wife and I earn $145,000 per year combined but have over $600, ... in student loans, over $8000 in 401(k) loans, over $18,000 in car loans, and over $93,000 in credit ... -interest credit card that will soon be paid off, our interest rates are pretty manageable. After [more...]
Date: 2008-12-09 21:00:39
Should You Pay Your Credit Card Bill Late? The Answer May Surprise You
One of our readers, Jay, sent us this question about debt negotiation: My wife and I earn $145,000 per year combined but have over $600, ... in student loans, over $8000 in 401(k) loans, over $18,000 in car loans, and over $93,000 in credit ... -interest credit card that will soon be paid off, our interest rates are pretty manageable. After [more...]
Date: 2008-12-09 15:49:26
Ctrl BG: A Shortcut to Financial News 11/29
Hope everyone is having a great Thanksgiving weekend and got some great bargains yesterday! ... facility to support consumer finance, including student, auto, and credit card loans and loans backed ... prices also dropped a whooping 17.4% from a year ago, a record decline. Along with this bad economic [more...]
Date: 2008-11-29 14:40:00
Fed Announces $800 Billion in Homeowner, Consumer and Small Business Aid
The U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury Department announced yesterday (Tuesday) ... -backed securities (ABS) – loans often taken for students, car owners, credit card holders and small ... directly into U.S. banks and insurance companies, firing off a flurry of takeover deals – [more...]
Date: 2008-11-26 13:05:07
A Plan to Be Debt Free in 2009
Considering the current state of the economy, it’s likely a smart thing to try and rid yourself of any excess debt right now ... out your latest credit card statements, auto loan statements, student loan statements, etc ... high interest debt. Mine comes in the form of an auto loan. What about you? Do you have plans [more...]
Date: 2009-01-05 16:10:27
Bailout homeowners first: expert
by Frank James The ever compelling Dr. Nouriel Roubini, ... loans, credit cards, auto loans and student loans) while their assets (values of their homes ... themselves of the bad debt they're holding, he also believes what the feds priority should be to put [more...]
Date: 2008-09-19 13:38:28
The Bad Paper Chase
The Bad Paper Chase November 26th, 2008 admin And the handout/buyout craze continues ... such as credit cards, auto loans and student loans. By all means, let’s just keep buying up debts from people ... Loan Banks. It also will purchase another $500 billion in mortgage-backed securities, pools [more...]
Date: 2008-11-26 07:37:00
Bailout Bandwagon Full…Please Catch Another
The bailout soup line is getting longer and longer. Heck, it is around the block ... billion the government set aside for car, student loans, and credit-card debt. We got ... “Pork” is Really Going to Cost Us! Mmmmm Pork. No not the kind you may find...The Fed: A Bad Game [more...]
Date: 2008-12-23 17:24:58
A Letter from Twenty Years into the Future
One of the nice things about maintaining a blog is that it creates sort of an online journal to track the major milestones in your life ... , this might be the best thing you ever did! You’ve been living credit card and student loan debt free [more...]
Date: 2008-06-16 19:48:37
Take Control of Your Finances Part 6: Get Out of Debt
Debt is like indentured servitude. You work and earn income, but you hand over that income to someone else ... as well. Good debt versus bad debt One comment you may hear is that mortgages and student loans are “good debt” while credit cards and car loans are “bad debt.” The philosophy here is that houses [more...]
Date: 2008-11-21 17:52:35
Gilbert AZ woman could make $94,000 “giving away” home
Gilbert AZ woman could make $94,000 “giving away” home by John Wake on December 27, 2008 OH… MY… GOSH! This is so wrong in so many ways ... , the State frowns on people setting up their own personal lotteries, anti-gambling laws ... . Of the $500,000 raised, $350,000 will go to Gray to pay off her home loan and some credit card and student [more...]
Date: 2008-12-28 06:41:31
Wall Street bailout plan to include more than bad mortgage debt: Feds to absorb unpaid bar bets, inadvertently laundered postage stamps, unredeemed soda cans and insufficient tooth-fairy disbursements
Totally absurd? Think twice: In the dark of night over the weekend when most people were snoozing, the Treasury dramatically expanded its bailout plan to include buying student loans, car loans, credit card debt and any other “troubled” assets held by banks. The changes, which were included [more...]
Date: 2008-09-23 06:05:06
Consumers deserve greed bailout
When a college student who has just run out of money and maxed out her credit card gets that bailout from dad, what's the first thing she does? ... its plastic on the table and said, "Put it on my credit card." Banks, you see, recently cried "Uncle ... to a depositor who dipped 78 cents into the red when buying a hamburger with a debit card. The same [more...]
Date: 2008-09-19 17:05:27
HEARTS AND MINDS
"Wasn't this kind of decline inevitable?"Home prices skyrocketed over the last eight years to unheard of highs ... in debt. That includes home, car, credit cards, student loans, etc. According to the same report [more...]
Date: 2008-12-30 18:05:00
Fed Announces $800 Billion in Homeowner, Consumer and Small Business Aid
The U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury Department announced yesterday (Tuesday) ... often taken for students, car owners, credit card ... directly into U.S. banks and insurance companies, firing off a flurry of takeover deals – [more...]
Date: 2008-11-26 15:26:47
TANSTAAFL - Ya gotta pay it sometime!
When TMEW and I spend more than we should, we end up paying for it later - by not buying much later ... more debt than they took on... Seasonally adjusted consumer debt -- including credit cards, auto loans ... 1990s. Nonrevolving credit -- such as auto loans, personal loans and student loans -- dropped sharply [more...]
Date: 2008-12-16 18:44:16
Fed Throws Fresh Lifeline to Financial System
By Mark Felsenthal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve threw a massive life-line to consumers on Tuesday with two new programs aimed at ... launched a $200 billion facility to support consumer finance, including student, auto, and credit ... making it easier for them to obtain loans for homes, cars and on credit cards. Under the new [more...]
Date: 2008-11-25 13:32:14
