If you’re like the 40% of credit card holders the American Bankers Association refers to as “revolvers,” you probably carry at least some debt from month to month. And if you’re a typical American, according to Experian, you have an average balance of $5,897 , with an additional $2,044 on a couple of retail credit … Read more
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York just released two charts that show the trend of household debt. The most alarming trend here is the rapid growth of student loan debt since 2004. If we look at all debt and the types of loans that are 90+ days delinquent, you will see a big dip … Read more
Paying tuition with a credit card may seem like a fast tack to earning points, miles and sign-up bonuses. Plus, plenty of people are doing it — in 2018, almost 21% of tuition dollars were paid electronically with credit cards, according to a 2019 report by the National Association of College and University Business Officers. … Read more
Credit cards are a great way to spend your money, if you have the cash to back it up. In fact, many of experts advise using credit cards for day-to-day purchases because of their rewards. That’s because credit cards have better safeguards against theft. For example, if someone gets your credit card number, your liability … Read more
Six years ago, Jim Wang, a 39-year-old father of three, bought a new home in Fulton, Md. A high credit score helped him land his mortgage, but after the dust from the move settled, he was able to continue reaping the rewards of his financial prowess. “We knew that, eventually, we’d have to replace a … Read more
This week Damon Day and I talk about a wide variety of topics. Everything from why big TRS refunds spell trouble to what you really need to know about credit cards and debit cards. The advice is what you would least expect. As usual, the commentary is irreverent at times and we certainly don’t take … Read more
An interesting academic paper out which studies Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) complaint reporting found the reporting assisted both consumers and the credit card companies. The investigation looked at the results of public reporting of complaints and found “Consumers procrastinate in reporting exposed banks while rewarding exposed banks for their improved behavior with new accounts.” Most … Read more
Sep 29 2015 By Will Wade-Gery Did your bank recently send you a new credit or debit card with a shiny, metallic chip on the front? You may have noticed that some cards have this chip in addition to the standard magnetic stripe on the back of the card. Lately, we’ve received questions from people … Read more
For credit card customers who are burned out on the complexity of many credit card offers — in particular, costly and complicated fee structures and penalty rates — you might want to consider the simple credit card. Simple credit cards are just what the name implies: straightforward card deals with good interest rates and as … Read more
Photo via Shutterstock For a long time, we here at SmarterTravel have been recommending plastic as the best way for travelers to spend money: credit cards for big-ticket purchases, debit (ATM) cards for cash. But which cards to choose? Clearly there is no single best card. What’s best for you depends on what you want … Read more
Charges were announced last Thursday against seven members of an identity theft ring that allegedly used stolen identities of more than 180 people at major New York City retail stores including Home Depot, Sears, Kmart and Kohl’s, among others. The ring of fraudsters resold merchandise and gift cards for a profit after purchasing them under … Read more
For anyone who has spent more than a few minutes on the GetOutOfDebt.org site you easily come to the conclusion that it is primarily about getting rid of debt but getting out of debt is more than just about eliminating your bills. Getting out of debt is also about not getting into overwhelming debt. One … Read more
It was announced today that a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) action has banned a payment processor from using a new payment method to debit accounts after allegedly debiting millions from consumers’ bank accounts without their consent. Payment processors provide merchants with the ability to obtain customer payments for products and services via electronic banking. According … Read more
In early December, Carlton Lewis, a former Ph.D. student was sentenced to 70 months in prison for his role in an identity theft and credit card fraud conspiracy. Throughout the conspiracy, Lewis, who was enrolled as a Ph.D. student at the University of Georgia, provided credit and debit card skimming devices to waitresses working in … Read more
An identity thief was sentenced earlier this month to 12 years in prison for managing and east coast credit card fraud ring. Jonathan Oliveras, used counterfeit credit cards encoded with stolen account information up and down the East Coast of the United States and has been sentenced for this crime. In addition to his 12 … Read more