New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo got Citibank to agree not to implement its new monthly fees on formerly free checking accounts, at least for some customers. If you signed up for one of Citibank’s EZ Checking or Access Checking accounts between January 1, 2009 and November 5, 2009, the new monthly service charge will be waived until this time next year. If you’re one of those customers, there’s nothing you have to do–you’ll get a notice in the mail from Citibank. [More]
personal finance
"Move Your Money" Profiled On NPR
By 2.2.10
Last month, the Huffington Post launched a campaign called Move Your Money that urged people to support community banks. The idea is that by moving your money to a community bank, you can help put the “too big to fail” banks on a diet so that they get smaller, while at the same time help a local bank remain competitive. The NPR program All Things Considered took a look at the campaign over the weekend, and talked to some experts about whether it’s worth making the switch. [More]
Why Aren't You Haggling Yet?
By 2.1.10
Michael S. Rosenwald saved $15 on a pair of shoes at Macy’s, $3 on a steak at Giant, $6 on a DVD set at Best Buy, and $100 off his next Verizon bill (plus a 10% discount on future bills) during one week spent haggling. In this Washington Post article, he describes how it felt to switch from the habit of paying full retail to looking at a price tag as a “suggestion,” in the words of one expert he met with. The executives Rosenwald spoke with repeatedly said that bargaining is not standard practice, but that didn’t stop employees and managers from making deals in order to close the sale. [More]
Man Jailed For Threatening To Rob BofA After They Robbed Him
By 2.1.10
An unemployed 40-year old mechanic is in the clink after he threatened to rob Bank of America as revenge for an erroneous service fee. He’s in jail on $75,000 bond, which neither he or his 72-year old frequent surgery recipient mother can afford. The man he was arrested after he called a local news channel and told them to show up tomorrow as he was going to rob the bank. It was unclear how he planned on pulling off the heist. Maybe he was going to raise their APR without notice?
Man Infuriated By Overdraft Fee Jailed After Threatening To Rob Bank [Huffington Post]
Ally Launches Free Online Checking
By 1.29.10
Online bank Ally has launched a new free online checking account that looks pretty decent. Free ATM access, free online bill pay, free checks, with no monthly minimum balance or maintenance fees. And get this, insufficient fund fees are only $9. That’s not per item, that’s just $9 for every day you are overdrawn. [More]
Protect Yourself From Unexpected Fees At Medical Clinics
By 1.27.10
An anonymous reader wrote to us to ask what he should do about unexpected bills from a medical clinic. He chose the clinic precisely because he can’t afford hospital bills in the hundreds of dollars, and was led to believe that there’d be no out-of-pocket cost. It turns out there was. [More]
Kiefer Sutherland Roped Into $869k Bovine Ponzi Scheme
By 1.27.10
Actor Kiefer Sutherland has lost $869,000 to a con-man who roped him into a bum cow investing scheme. Shyster Michael Wayne Carr had a plan to buy cows in Mexico and sell them in the US for a profit, but allegedly never bought the cows and sold cows that weren’t his. [More]
Personal Finance Roundup
By 1.27.10
6 ways to get top dollar for your car [MSN Money] “Some sprucing up and savvy marketing can help you sell your vehicle for a lot more cash than a dealer would ever offer you.”
Headed for an Outlet Mall? Wear Your Thinking Cap [Smart Money] “Use these six tips for make sure you’re getting the best deal.”
Recessionomics 101: How to Make Extra Money [Wall Street Journal] “Fortunately, there also are many ways to earn extra cash even when full-time jobs and extra shifts aren’t an option.”
Giving to Haiti?
There’s a Tax Benefit, Too [Kiplinger] “Itemizers don’t have to wait until they file their 2010 returns, but some might want to.”
Beware the 4 new asset bubbles [CNN Money] “We’re now seeing the same signs that exposed the frenzy in real estate: prices flying far above their historic averages.”
The Debtor Debt Collectors Hate To Call
By 1.26.10
Craig Cunningham has made $20,000 from 18 lawsuits he’s filed against debt collectors for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In fact, it’s something a part-time job/hobby for him. To ensnare his first FDCPA-violating collector, with voice recorder running, he called back the number they left on his answering machine, and asked: [More]
Watch Out For These Tricks After The CARD Act Kicks In Next Month
By 1.25.10
The credit card reform bill will go into effect at the end of February, but that doesn’t mean you should stop paying attention to what your credit card company does with your account. There are lots and lots of loopholes, notes WalletPop. For example, your card issuer can still raise rates on future purchases any time and for any reason. In addition, there’s no limit to the number of fees that can be invented and applied to your account. The only way to make sure you don’t get screwed by a profit-hungry card issuer is to read every single thing that’s mailed to you, and closely review your statement for evidence of any changes that you may have missed. [More]
Experts Answer Credit Questions From Average Americans
By 1.20.10
Henry Unger at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has put together a multi-part series of questions and answers from readers. The detailed answers are provided by Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta, and the questions–which I’ve listed below–cover a broad spectrum of personal finance issues, including credit cards, mortgages, and credit reports. [More]
Paypal Rewards Dollars: Use 'Em In One Go Or Lose 'Em
By 1.20.10
The PayPal plus rewards card earns points which can be traded for vouchers which can be used like cash to buy stuff. You have to be careful, though, and make sure that the price is the same or greater than the voucher amount. Any unused dollars on the voucher get forfeited after the purchase. Tricky! Reads those terms and conditions close, folks. [More]
Personal Finance Roundup
By 1.20.10
Three Easiest Ways to Earn More Money [Free Money Finance] “Here’s how I’d rank the three easiest ways to earn more money.”
Why Haven’t You Donated to Haiti Yet? [Smart Money] “As economists and social scientists have begun to dig around in recent decades into people’s true motives when they give to charity, what they’ve found hasn’t exactly been in keeping with the flattering way we humans like to see ourselves.”
Gourmet Coffee Recipes: Make Your Own Starbucks Coffee Drink [The Digerati Life] “You don’t have to spend money on that $4 latte if you’re fine with the DIY approach.”
4 smart fixes for your 401(k) [CNN Money] “To move beyond square one, follow these four steps.”
How I Got Married on the Cheap — And Loved It! [Get Rich Slowly] “How do you plan a wedding for a dozen people on $3000?”
Prosper.com May Be Riskier Than You Thought
By 1.19.10
The person-to-person loan website Prosper.com has been talked about in mostly positive ways since it launched a few years ago. Mark Gimein at Slate’s The Big Money says it’s a lot less awesome than you’ve been led to believe. In fact, he says it’s just a microcosm of what happened in the real financial world: “Loans to unqualified borrowers; reliance on mathematical models that turn out to be a lot less useful than they seemed; failed hopes that high interest rates could make subprime loans profitable; sky high default rates [of 39%]—Prosper has it all.” [More]
Are Corporate Boards Ruining American Businesses? This Book Says Yes
By 1.15.10
The new book Money for Nothing looks at corporate boards: how they’re frequently hand-picked and ruled by the CEOs they’re supposed to keep in check, how they’re sidelined by various conflicts of interest and lack of accountability, and how the worst ones have massively screwed shareholders. [More]
Friday Is The Cutoff To Pay Estimated '09 Taxes Without Penalty
By 1.13.10
January 15th is the last day you can pay estimated taxes for 2009 without worrying about the IRS’s 4% interest penalty. For most people, you need to have paid 90% of what you owe for 2009 or have a good reason why you didn’t (e.g. casualty, retirement). Kiplinger notes that even if you can’t pay the full amount, pay whatever you can by January 15th to reduce the amount that’s penalized. [More]
4 Reasons You're Dumb With Money
By 1.13.10
Science has proven that you are stupid with money. Four recent experiments give insight into the irrational ways you use your money that could be chopping down your bank account. My favorite one involves how credit cards make you end up spending more than they normally would: [More]
Personal Finance Roundup
By 1.13.10
Are You Tracking Your Budget, Cash Flow, and Net Worth? [Dumb Little Man] “Tracking your net worth on some sort of regular schedule is a must for anyone serious about decreasing debt and increasing wealth.”
11 moves to supercharge your finances [Smart Spending] “11 steps you can take to easily improve your finances in the coming year.”
The Damage of Card Rewards [NY Times] “It’s possible that the poor pay subsidies to finance the rewards of the affluent.”
How Poker Can Make You a Better Investor [Kiplinger] “Learn to avoid emotional traps by playing a little Texas hold ’em.”
The Future of Plastic: 5 Credit Trends for 2010 [Smart Money] “If 2009 was the year of hammering out credit-card reform, 2010 will be the year consumers feel the effects of those changes.”
