R wanted to get started paying off her Capital One credit card but after missing one month’s payment she started a fee pigpile. She got overlimit fees, and then so many extra fees started piling on that she wasn’t ever able to pay them off enough to bring her balance back under her credit limit. R wanted to get started on debt reduction snowball method but could never get that first ball started because the fees were too high. Tugs at the regular customer service line to try to get some fees waived were fruitless. To untangle this Gordian Knot R had to pull out her mighty sword of executive customer service. Her story, inside…
money
Personal Finance Roundup
By 2.26.09
Certified used car worth more money [Bankrate] “A factory-certified preowned plan can add as much as 5 percent to the selling price of a used vehicle. You have to decide how much money more peace of mind is worth to you.”
Split A Sitter, Save A Bundle
By 2.25.09
Here’s a good way to save a bundle on your bundle of joy – share a sitter with a neighbor. By dropping off her 15-month-old at a neighbor’s place 4 days a week, Real Simple reader Maureen Dempsey says she saves ~$400 a month. The article doesn’t specify it but I imagine babysitter watches both kids at the same time for a little bit more but not as much as hiring two separate sitters. Plus Maureen’s kid also gets to interact with another kid at the same time. Surviving the recession is all about working together and splitting up costs. [via Real Simple] (Photo: Ordinary Guy)
Internal AmEx Doc On $300 Bribe To Zero Account And Leave Program
By 2.25.09
Here’s an internal AmEx doc with what customer service reps should say when people call up asking about the $300 to pay off and close your account program, or, as they term it, the “Balance Down Initiative.” The sheet was obtained exclusively by creditcarforum.com. My favorite part is the answer for if people who weren’t chosen to participate ask if they can join. The correct response is, “We apologize, but we can only honor this offer for selected cardmembers. However, if you’re interested in paying down your balance, I can help you with that.” Full doc inside…
Saving Money With An Entertainment Book
By 2.25.09
Hot off our discussion last week of how to save money by spending money, Free Money Finance lists ways to save using an Entertainment Book. His list of tips includes the following:
NYSE Thinking About Chucking $1 Rule
By 2.25.09
The New York Stock Exchange is thinking about getting rid of the pesky rule that your company’s stock needs to trade above $1 for it to remain listed. [Yahoo! Finance] (Photo: woodendesigner)
AmEx Pays Some $300 To Zero Their Balance And Leave
By 2.23.09
American Express is so desperate to clean liabilities off its balance sheet that it’s paying some customer $300 if they will pay off their balance in full and close their credit card. The offer is only good if you get a card in the mail from them about it with a 14-digit RSVP code. Thanks for playing, don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out.
CNN Explains: "Living Within Your Means"
By 2.21.09
In case anyone forgot how the global economy came to teeter on the brink of collapse, CNN recently needed to help a reader figure out the difference between “living within your means” and “living below your means.” Let’s see if we can’t constructively add to the conversation…
US Bancorp Blasts TARP As Giant Bait And Switch On America
By 2.21.09
U.S. Bancorp CEO Richard Davis took shotgun blasts to the TARP program for being a fat big lie. “We were told to take it so that we could help Darwin synthesize the weaker banks and acquire those and put them under different leadership,” Davis said. OMG – truth alert!
Save Money by Spending Money
By 2.20.09
With the economy in the dumper, saving money is back in style. Simply comparing the number of “how to save money on (fill in the blank)” articles this year versus a couple years ago, our informal research shows the relationship at 234,000 to 1. Ok, so we made that up. But it does seem like savings tips are all the rage these days. Unfortunately, the key is finding new money saving ideas…
Hot Cartoon Makes Understanding Credit Crisis Simple And Fun
By 2.20.09
This a freakin’ awesome cartoon that explains how the credit crisis began, played out, and exploded in our face. I know you’ve seen and heard a million of these by now, but this one is highly visually engaging and entertaining, enough so I could see it being used in the classroom and kids not getting (too) bored. Graphic designer Jonathan Jarvis. Especially good is how it explains leverage.
Your APR Is Now 91.29% – Yours Truly, Bank Of America
By 2.19.09
David’s effective APR on his Bank of America credit card is now 91.29%. It’s not a typo or a scam, it’s math.
Capital One Does Not Appreciate You Being Responsible, More Than Doubles Your APR
By 2.19.09
Beverly, who always pays on time and recently started paying off her balance in full every month, just saw the rate on her Capital One card more than double, from 13.9% to 29.4%. That’ll teach you to not help sink the economy, Beverly!
Get $4800 With The Earned Income Tax Credit
By 2.19.09
You could qualify for a maximum tax credit of $4,800 if you made less than $42,000 in 2008. Even if your salary was around $61,000 but you lost your job last year, you could still qualify. It’s called the “Earned Income Tax Credit” and you can find out if you can claim it by taking the IRS’ online EITC quiz. Your tax preparer, be they human or software, can you help determine if you’re worthy (One big one: you must be over 25 but under 65 at the end of the year).
Addicted To Debt? Take Our 15 Question Quiz
By 2.19.09
Are you addicted to debt? And I don’t just mean addicted like oh I’m addicted to curly fries, they’re so delicious, I mean addicted like a psycho-chemical need to keep slamming that credit card through the swiper. Maybe you know someone like this. Take this 15 question quiz, and if you answer “yes” to 8 more, you could be an addict.
Personal Finance Roundup
By 2.19.09
8 Lessons From the Meltdown [Kiplinger] “The financial crisis can make you a better investor — really.”
