While often viewed as “good debt,” student loans may be among the most toxic liabilities, according to a recent report by the Wall Street Journal.
Unlike credit card debt, student loans cannot be discharged through bankruptcy. Nor can they be foreclosed upon, as in the case of an unaffordable mortgage. Still, about 60 percent of federal and private student loan debt is in default or deferment, according to the report.
A 2003 graduate from medical school, Michelle Bisutti has watched $250,000 in student loans grow to about $555,000. Read more…
On Monday, the major provisions of the Credit CARD Act take effect, nine months after they were signed into law.
Many of these provisions will have a very positive effect on consumers, but the law has resulted in some unexpected fallout.
“The CARD Act has some very significant benefits for credit cardholders. The restrictions on interest rate hikes and the ban on over-the-limit fees are tremendous. Consumers have cried out for these protections for years and they are finally about to take effect,” says Bill Hardekopf, CEO of LowCards.com and author of The Credit Card Guidebook. “However, there are a number of unintended consequences that have resulted from the CARD Act.
More than a year after 100 million credit card numbers were stolen from Heartland Payment Systems, two industry experts disagreed over who was at fault.
This information is currently protected by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, which sets 12 specific goals to build and maintain secure networks. Compliance with PCI standards is mandatory for all companies storing or processing payment card identification. Heartland executives originally said they were compliant, but later disclosed that assessors incorrectly informed the company.
In a report by NetworkWorld, Lieberman Software CEO Phil Lieberman said improved payment technology could be used to prevent future security breaches, which can be devastating to consumers’ credit scores. Read more…
So far in this series you’ve learned how to evaluate your credit card needs, find credit card offers, and narrow down your credit card options. After narrowing down credit card offers to a single card that you’d like to use, it’s time to apply for that credit card. We’ll cover several ways you can apply for a new card, and why it’s a good idea not to send out too many credit card applications.
The Importance of Limiting Credit Card Applications
It might sound easier to just skip over the previous step in choosing a credit card — narrowing down the handful of offers you’re considering to a single card worth applying for. Why not just
12 Feb
Posted by Admin as Credit Cards
Though some consumers may be trying to avoid using their credit cards, a recent report indicates they may have also been more likely to get an offer for an account at the end of last year.
According to Synovate, a market research firm, providers of credit cards increased mailings by 46 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. In all, mailings amounted to 398.5 million offers, an increase from the 272.5 million seen the quarter prior.
Though the numbers of mailings were up in the last quarter of 2009, they are still lower when compared to the year before. During the fourth quarter of 2008, lenders sent out 668.1 million offers for credit cards.
One of the reasons that lenders have cut back on making card offers is because of the tightened credit market during the most recent recession. Read more…