Consumerist
too big to fail
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money meltdown
Government May Begin Buying Bank Stock Within Weeks
As it is now apparent that the credit crisis has spread to the global economy and has not been contained in any way, the Bush Administration is considering an option included in the $700 billion dollar bailout package that would allow them to invest directly in banks — buying preferred stock in exchange for a "cash injection." White House spokesperson Dana Perino said taking partial ownership of banks and other moves associated with the financial rescue plan would not be “part of [Bush's] natural instincts,” according to the NYT, but acknowledged that the situation has gotten sufficiently dire as to warrant a change of heart. More » -
predatory lending
Car Title Loans Are Liable To Leave You Taking The Bus
You surely already know better, because you're a loyal Consumerist reader, but stay far, far away from the form of legalized usury known as car title loans! CNN has published an overview of the industry, noting that APRs frequently exceed 200%, and that added fees and loan "rollover" options help keep borrowers in a cycle of debt. More » -
economy
Consumer Spending Will Shrink For The First Time In Nearly Twenty Years
Consumer spending, the engine that powers our economy, is probably going to shrink for the first time in nearly two decades, says the NYT — a move that will "all but guarantee" that the current economic crisis will deepen. More » -
money meltdown
Why Did Everyone Buy This Stupid Toxic Debt? No One Understood It
Marketplace has the answer to one of the most troubling questions of our time. Why did people who are supposed to be smart buy all this stupid toxic risky debt? Apparently, it's because they weren't that smart, and they didn't understand what they were buying or selling. More » -
Those of you interested in watching the bailout bill debate in the House can see it streaming on CSPAN, or read a liveblog on the NYT.
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money meltdown
The 10 Cities With The Most Crazy Expensive Loans
The Chicago Reporter took a look at some recently released mortgage data with an eye to how many successful refinances there were last year. In addition to concluding that people who most needed a refinance (those with crazy expensive loans) were also the least likely to get one, the Reporter also found that Chicago lead the nation in the total amount of high-cost loans for the fourth year in a row. High-cost loans are loans that are at least 3% above the U.S. Treasury standard. More » -
wall street meltdown
10 Things To Expect From The New Post-Apocalyptic Economy
Kiplinger's has put together a list of 10 things that you, fair consumer, can expect from our new post-wall-street-apocalypse economy. Should you be scared? Maybe. More » -
bank of america
Ex-Credit Card Bankers: "Every Customer Who Calls In Is A Mark. It's A Great Big Con."
CNN has an interview with two former credit card bankers who are admitting that their job was to get consumers to max out their credit cards and take on as much debt as possible, regardless of the customer's ability to afford it. They both worked for MBNA at their "sprawling consumer call center in Belfast, Maine." The bankers say that they were told to aggressively push cash advances, and were trained to convince consumers that they needed the maximum amount of debt at the highest interest rate. More » -
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wall street bailout
What Else Can $700 Billion Buy?
A while back the New York Times was concerned about the cost of the Iraq War and published some estimates of what else we could have bought with that money. We didn't find that very interesting at the time, but now, while trying to wrap our minds around just how effing huge the $700 billion proposed bailout of Wall Street really is, we decided to revisit that article. Here's what you can buy for less than $700 billion, according to the New York Times. More » -
credit card reform
House Passes Credit Card Bill Of Rights... But Senate Is Too Busy With The Bailout
The House of Representatives passed legislation that's commonly known as the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights today, but the bill is expected to be ignored by the Senate while they work on that whole $700 billion bailout thing. More » -
economy
Retailers Like Target May Be In Trouble As Consumers Run Out Of Money
Forbes says that Wall Street is starting to be concerned about Target because of an increase in the amount of delinquencies in its credit card operation. Uh oh... More » -
bailout
What Will The Largest Government Bailout Of Private Industry In US History Look Like?
A bailout of some kind is coming, but no one seems to know what it will look like and who it will help. The Wall Street Journal says that Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd of Connecticut has some ideas that might not go over too well with the Treasury Department. More » -
credit history
PRBC Helps You Create A Credit Score From On-Time Rent, Bill Payments
Payment Reporting Builds Credit (PRBC) is an alternative credit reporting agency that will record your payment histories for things like rent and utilities bills. PRBC says you can then use this verified credit history to supplement your FICO score and credit history from the big three reporting companies. It's meant in part as a way to help people who don't have extensive standard credit histories, or who have always paid monthly expenses on time but have other blots (like medical bills) on their official credit histories. More » -
We're not the only ones with a credit crunch. HBOS, Britain's biggest mortgage lender, is going under.
IN THE rolling credit crisis, more than £46 billion of the bank's shareholder value has evaporated into thin air. The collapse has hit pension funds, wiped out the nest-eggs of many investors – and added to the misery of staff, many of whom had built up substantial holdings of HBOS shares.
The bank is going to be rescued by a merger with another UK bank, Lloyds TSB. [Scotsman & MarketWatch] MORE » -
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mortgage meltdown
Facing Foreclosure? Buy A Second Home! Wait, What?
ABCNews says that more and more people who are facing foreclosure are just buying cheaper homes and then just walking away from their original mortgage. It only works for people who can afford the down payment on a new home and carry both mortgages until they're in the new home, but for some people whose payments are about to balloon, it's the most attractive option out there right now. More » -
credit card reform
Consumers: We're Mad As Hell And We're Not Going To Charge It Anymore!
Once upon a time, Peter Finch won an Oscar for telling us to go to our window, open it, and yell, "We're mad as hell and we're not going to take this anymore!" Now thousands and thousands of consumers are doing just that, but instead of yelling out their windows, they're yelling at the Federal Reserve in the form of a record breaking number of public comments about some proposed credit card reforms. Not as sexy as yelling like a madman, but far, far more effective.
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fdic
If Enough Banks Fail, The FDIC Could Run Out Of Money
Everyone knows that your money is safe in an FDIC insured bank because if the bank fails (Hello, IndyMac!) the FDIC will step in and repay your money (generally, up to $100,000.) But what if the FDIC runs out of money? It doesn't have an unlimited supply and enough bank failures could completely drain its fund, says ABCNews:
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