Get to know the woman behind the patterened jackets: NYTM had an incisive profile of personal finance guru Suze Orman last weekend. At one point, she eats six hot dogs in a row. [NYTM] (Photo: pynchonoid)
money
BankUnited Fails, Gets Sold
By 5.21.09
BankUnited FSB, a Florida-based bank with $12.8 billion in assets and $8.6 billion in deposits, today became the latest bank to fail, thanks to its massive undercapitlization. The Office of Thrift Supervsion closed it, the FDIC was the receiver, and a group of private-equity firms bought its remains. The dour news had no effect on the companies website, which remained a cheerful display of sunny beaches and palm trees. An online poll asked customers, ” Memorial Day is next weekend. What is your favorite way to celebrate? A. Cooking out in the grill B. Going to the beach C. Getting away for the weekend D. Chaining the doors shut and getting a direct flight to Anguilla.” What happens when a bank fails and what do you need to do? 60 Minutes has the answer.
Jobless Guy Buys Facebook Ads To Land Microsoft Gig
By 5.21.09
Eric just graduated from an MBA program Monday and landed smackdab in the middle of our job-shriveling recession. So what did he do? To try to land a job at Microsoft, he bought Facebook ads that specifically targeted employees at the companies he wants to work for. It cost him less than $50, and he got over 20 Microsoft employees to contact him offering their help. Here’s how he did it:
What The Heck Is An ETF?
By 5.20.09
f you are making regular contributions over time – say, investing a certain dollar amount each week or month – buying an index fund is more cost-effective. If you are rolling over a lump sum, however, you might choose an E.T.F.
Video: Watch Shopaholic's Range Rover Get Reposessed
By 5.20.09
Watching this clip of a high-rolling lady who has to remove all her bags of designer clothing from her fancy Range Rover before it gets repossesed made my day. Schadenfreude so good. Even when I learned that Operation Repo is a faux reality show where they do re-enactments of real repossesion stories, it’s still all good, especially because of when the real reposesser says that if it weren’t for his kind, no one would be able to afford a car. Food for thought.
Credit Scores: How Do They Make 'Em?
By 5.20.09
A three-digit number that creditors use to quickly evaluate whether to give someone a loan and how favorable the terms should be, the credit score remains something of a mystery to many. How is it figured out? What matters, and what doesn’t matter? The exact scoring system is a proprietary secret of the Fair Issac corporation, but there are 5 general categories, each weighted differently, that determine where you sit on the range from 300-850. In easy-to-read outline form, let’s take a closer look.
Credit Card Reform Bill Passes With Guts Intact
By 5.19.09
NYT: It sounds like most of the good stuff stayed in the Senate Credit Card Reform bill:
Personal Finance Roundup
By 5.19.09
Travel full-time for less than $14,000 per year [I Will Teach You to Be Rich] “Here are my secrets [for saving on travel.]”
Bankers Threaten To Punish "Good" Cardholders If Reforms Pass
By 5.19.09
NYT: Bankers are warning they’re going to have to “mean up” credit cards if the reforms expected to get voted on today go through. Among the ways people who pay off their bills in full every month and always follow the rules might get dinged:
Debt Collectors Mess With Your Head To Get You To Pay More
By 5.18.09
Santana had actually already sought permission from the bank to settle for as little as $10,000. It’s an open secret that if a debtor is willing to wait long enough, he can probably get away with paying almost nothing, as long as he doesn’t mind hurting his credit score. So Santana knew he should jump at the offer. But as an amateur psychologist, Santana was eager to make his own diagnosis – and presumably boost his own commission.
Credit Card Reform And Guns Are The New Peanut Butter And Jelly
By 5.15.09
If the government decides to reform the credit card industry, you may be able to celebrate by bringing a gun into Yellowstone National Park and firing some celebratory shots into the air.
Credit Card Reform Act Could Let You Pay Less If You Use Cash Or Debit
By 5.14.09
A Wall Street Journal story highlights one potential amendment to credit card reform legislation, which could allow vendors to charge different prices depending on how you make your purchase. Under the Durbin-Bond amendment, if you pay with a credit card, you’ll also have to fork over the fee the business will have to pay for accepting your transaction that way. Pay by cash or debit card and you’d get a discount.
Bankers' Letter To Senate Against Credit Card Reform
By 5.13.09
The American Bankers Association sent a letter to Senators yesterday to voice their opposition to the credit card reform act. Their big thing is they say the bill will make it so there’s less credit available, and it will cost consumers more. Definitely something worth bringing up when we interview Austan Goolsbee, senior economic adviser to Obama, in DC tomorrow. Here’s the letter:
800 Number To Get Your Senator To Vote For Credit Card Reform
By 5.13.09
Now that you’ve checked out what the Credit Card Reform Act is all about, if you think it looks good and would like to see it passed, Consumers Union’s CreditCardReform.org has set a toll-free number that directly connects you to your Senator’s office so you can urge them to vote in favor of S.414. The number is 1-800-944-6762. They also have an online form you can use. The Senate is expected to vote next week.
What's The New Credit Card Reform Bill All About?
By 5.13.09
Guess what? There are a lot of pro-consumer changes in how the credit card industry will have to treat you if Chris Dodd’s Credit Card Reform bill goes through. Going through the questions you sent in and left as comments, it turns out that a good number of what you’re asking for are in this bill. So then, let’s check out the latest version bill out and see what changes are in store. I know Alex linked to this as a PDF but these are so important I wanted them posted front and center.
Credit Card Company Threats Don't Scare Consumerist Readers
When we wrote earlier about credit card companies’ threats to treat customers even worse in light of Congress passing credit card reform legislation, it ignited a righteous firestorm of consumer rage in the comments. Inside, our favorites.