Banking / Loans December 2008 Archive

Do you have a debit card? If so, it probably has a logo from MasterCard or Visa on it. That means you can use it as a debit card (where ... Read More

A lot of bank robbers seem to pick the worst papers to write their robbery notes on. On Friday a man handed a teller a note written on the back of ... Read More

Credit is important, but what factors affect credit? In a credit crunch, it gets harder and harder to get a loan. Good credit makes things a little easier. Unfortunately, ... Read More

Checking accounts generally don't pay much - if anything - but things are even worse now than they used to be. Bank accounts such as ING Direct's Electric Orange Checking account ... Read More

Regulators passed laws last week that make it harder for credit card companies to make a bundle off of consumers. The new rules, under "The Credit Cardholder's Bill of Rights Act ... Read More

There's a lot of hype out there about low interest rates. Mortgage rates have fallen to levels we haven't seen in years, and many are refinancing. It's probably time to ... Read More

Reviewing your finances as we wrap up another year? Make sure you have everybody you want as a beneficiary on your accounts. Look back and see if there ... Read More

Bank failures, ponzi schemes, market crashes.... what's next? With all that's going on these days you might wonder if your money is safer "under the mattress". For some people, they ... Read More

The mortgage crisis proved to be too much for Bernard Madoff’s ponzi scheme. In something similar to a run on the bank, his house of cards came down last ... Read More

Want to send money directly to somebody else's debit card? How about if you provide your phone number and people make payments to you with just that information? Washington Mutual's Send Direct ... Read More

That's almost enough people to fill a baseball park. After gobbling up several financial institutions punished by the mortgage crisis, Bank of America is planning to "eliminate redundancies" by consolidating ... Read More

Mortgage rates have fallen to levels not seen in years. Government actions have paid off for some, and refinancing activity is heating up. It may be time to ... Read More

Banks are cutting credit limits and freezing lines of credit for some borrowers - including responsible borrowers who've never paid late. According to Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel, this is bad ... Read More

Do you have available credit? Maybe you're not using your credit cards, but you keep them around just in case cash flow gets tight - like if you're laid ... Read More

Is peer to peer lending a type of security? The SEC thinks so. Prosper.com recently paid $1 million to settle securities law violations, and they may have more trouble ahead. ... Read More

The FDIC released a study showing their disapproval of overdraft fees - the $20-$30 charges they ding you with every time you spend more than you have in your checking ... Read More

With the evolving financial crisis, lenders are especially vigilant about your credit. What can you do to make sure they don't cut your credit lines and leave you hanging? The ... Read More