Did you try Bankrate’s score estimator when it was featured on the Consumerist two years ago? I did and I wondered how accurate that 12-question quiz was. Answer? Not bad.
credit
Chrysler Financial Accused Of Turning Down Government Loan To Avoid Executive Bonus Restrictions
By 4.20.09
The Washington Post has just published a story accusing executives at Chrysler Financial of turning down a $750 million government loan because they “didn’t want to abide by new federal limits on pay,” and instead opted for more expensive private sector financing, “adding to the burdens of the already fragile automaker and its financing company.” Chrysler Financial denies the charge.
General Motors' Greatest Innovation? Not Cars, Credit
By 4.20.09
Sorry to disappoint all of you who think that the two-person Segway is the most innovative thing GM has produced in its long history — it seems that the company’s most important new idea was consumer credit. More specifically, convincing a nation of thrifty debt-averse tightwads that taking on debt was socially acceptable. Yes, it’s true. We weren’t always a bunch of debt junkies.
A Big-Ass List Of Student Loan Resources
By 3.30.09
It’s a tough economic climate to be graduating from school — and maybe an even tougher one for those of you trying to get financial aid. We’ve put together a list of some financial aid and student lending resources to help make things easier.
FICO Confirms: Reduced Credit Lines For Good Borrowers
By 3.29.09
A study from Fair Isaac confirms that even the best borrowers are seeing their credit lines slashed as banks move to boost profitability during the recession. 16% of Americans have seen their credit lines reduced by an average of $2,200, and of them, 11% had no late payments or negative marks on their credit report.
Why Do Lenders Want You To Use Your Debit Card Like A Credit Card?
By 3.25.09
A reader wants to know why Chase is pushing him so hard to use his debit card like a credit card when paying for things—they’re promoting a contest for people who do this, and on every insert or blank space in the paperwork that accompanied his newest card, they encourage him to always select “credit” over “debit” at checkout. Why?
Blog Gets Some Stupid Capcom Credit Card Fees Removed
By 3.20.09
It turns out that Chun-Li, of Street Fighter fame, does not want to charge you so many onerous fees on your Capcom credit card that attack over and over on your neck like that stupid bitch, Blanka. Just some of them.
GEICO Mastercard Slashing Everyone's Credit Limit To $500?
By 3.20.09
Dan wrote in to let us know his $8,800 GEICO Mastercard now has a $500 line of credit. “It’s not you, it’s us,” is basically what GEICO told him in their letter on March 12th. They also say they’re doing this to every one of their Mastercard holders. Dan notes, “Interestingly enough, this new limit is less than the 6 month rate GEICO was charging me for my two cars, meaning that I couldn’t even use their preferred card to pay their premiums.” You can read their letter below.
My Home Depot Credit Card Now Has A 25.99% APR
By 3.17.09
Reader Warren says that Home Depot raised his APR to 25.99% — causing him to cancel his account. Yikes.
How To Be A Sexy Borrower
By 3.17.09
and a plunging debt-to-income ratio that reveals a nice plump credit score. Here’s the new rules of credit-worthiness game:
How To Find Reputable Credit Counseling
By 3.9.09
If you’re having problems with your credit and need some help, consider calling a legitimate credit counseling agency for assistance. Here’s how you find a reputable one that won’t scam you.
Visa And Capcom Announce Street Fighter Hyper Fee Edition Card
By 3.5.09
Video game maker Capcom has partnered with Visa to offer a pre-paid debit card with so many fees that it will shrink your wallet from an E. Honda to a Dhalsim. The hurricane kick of fees, inside.
BoA: No Credit, Even For Rocket Scientists
By 3.4.09
If you have any lines of credit and you use them to manage your financial flow, you should evaluate your personal money matrix so you’re ready in case all of them get cut. They’re cutting lines of credit even for rocket scientists like reader Rocky. That’s right, he’s an engineer in the aerospace industry, has never overdrawn, never been late, never incurred NSF charges, and has 3 Masters and 2 MBAs. Overnight, they cut his four lines of credit. Apparently his only crime was simply having them. He called multiple times and got nowhere, only to be told to talk to a credit counselor. A credit counselor? Bank of America, he doesn’t have bad credit, he has no lines of credit because you just cut them all. His story, inside…
Here's The Math Formula That Ruined Our Economy
By 2.25.09
Now if your kids ask you why they have to learn math, you can tell them, “Because if you don’t, you could ruin the global economy, you little beast.” Wired has just published an article that traces the entire clusterfrak back to a formula published in 2000 by a mathemetician working for JPMorgan Chase. Bankers loved its simplicity but completely misused it—despite warnings from academics that it was flawed—to turn pretty much every security into a triple-A, no-risk fabrication.
DirecTV Owner Swoops In To Save Sirius From Bankruptcy
By 2.17.09
Liberty Media, the owner of DirecTV, has swooped in at the last minute to save Sirius from certain bankruptcy. Liberty will invest a $530 million in the form of loans to the satellite radio company, $175 million of which will go to paying debt that comes due for Sirius today.
California Man Barricades Himself Inside Foreclosed Home
By 2.17.09
Carson, California has over 1,100 homes in foreclosure according to its mayor, and barricaded inside one of them was Frank Torres, an oil-refinery worker who lost his home to foreclosure after work was scarce last year. Now he’s working full-time and he wants to buy his house back — but he says the bank won’t listen. That’s why he painted a message on the roof of his former home and held the building hostage for 5 hours.
Store Cards Turning Into A Nightmare For Retailers
By 2.10.09
Our eyes shoot fire when stores make their poor employees harass us about opening a store card, so we’re feeling a perverse sense of joy at the news that store cards are turning into a nightmare for retailers.
Capital One: Sorry, Due To "Extraordinary Changes In The Economic Environment" You Need To Pay More
By 2.9.09
Capital One apparently believes in “honest and open communications” (even though they’ve been accused of purposefully dicking their customers around in the hopes of generating more fees). How do we know this? Because they’ve written their “valuable customers like you” letters letting you know that due to “extraordinary changes in the economic environment,” everyone needs to pay a little more interest. Don’t worry, you haven’t done anything wrong. That’s just the Capital One honesty you’re feeling. Read the letter inside.
