traps

Citicorp Deferred Interest Trap Springs Shut On Man Who Underpaid By $11

Citicorp Deferred Interest Trap Springs Shut On Man Who Underpaid By $11

I suspect some readers will say that Assefa Senbet is to blame for screwing up one of his final payments to Citibank on a deferred interest loan agreement. They’ll be right–it was his responsibility. But he didn’t skip a payment, and he wasn’t late. In fact, he frequently overpaid in order to pay it off early. Near the end of the loan, however, he sent in a check for $70 instead of $81. As a consequence, he’s now paying off $887 in deferred interest fees at a 30% interest rate. [More]

This Citibank Balance Transfer Offer Sure Sounds Dangerous

This Citibank Balance Transfer Offer Sure Sounds Dangerous

RP was just offered a transfer on his Citi card by a Citibank CSR, but the CSR was kind of vague on the details of the offer and could only repeat the benefits. RP looked online while the CSR pitched the offer, and found that there’s quite a big catch in the fine print–after six months, the interest rate jumps from 3.99% to 29.99%. [More]

Homeowner Says Bank Told Him To Skip Payments, Then Foreclosed

Homeowner Says Bank Told Him To Skip Payments, Then Foreclosed

When MC lost his second job he had trouble affording his $3,000 mortgage payment. He called his mortgage holder, Flag Star Bank, asking for a break, but the bank told him there was nothing it could do for him unless he skipped payments and submitted a loan modification package.

It's A Trap!

In Brooklyn, NY there’s a bike lane that directs cyclists onto the sidewalk — and into the waiting arms of the police. (Riding a bike on the sidewalk is illegal.) Whoops. [Gothamist]