personal finance

Personal Finance Roundup

Personal Finance Roundup

By consumerist.com 11.15.11

10 Questions You Should Never Ask in a Job Interview [US News] “Here are 10 questions that you should steer far away from.”

How a Financial Pro Lost His House [NY Times] “The process of making financial decisions is about more than building a spreadsheet to calculate the answer, because life rarely fits cleanly into a spreadsheet.”

15 Career Advice Sites You Should Know About [Wise Bread] “These sites can help you not only land a job you love, but do it better than everyone else.”

5 Financial Steps to Take as Soon as You Say “I Do” [Money Talks News] “Here’s how to make sure your new family gets off on the right foot.”

5 Money-Saving Holiday Strategies [Smart Money] “To get this year’s best deals, many shoppers are abandoning timeworn strategies.”

—FREE MONEY FINANCE

The New Sneaky Fees Banks Are Adding

The New Sneaky Fees Banks Are Adding

By Ben Popken 11.14.11

Just because the monthly debit card fee battle has been won doesn’t mean banks are gonna stop trying to squeeze more profit off basic checking accounts. Here’s a bunch of the recent fees banks have invented: [More]

BofA Says "Sorry" For Paying Your Real Estate Taxes Late

BofA Says "Sorry" For Paying Your Real Estate Taxes Late

By Ben Popken 11.14.11

Banks are happy to jump all over you and ratchet up the fees when you’re late. But when they’re late, not so much. [More]

Layaway Can End Up Costing More Than A Credit Card, Senator Schumer Warns

Layaway Can End Up Costing More Than A Credit Card, Senator Schumer Warns

By Ben Popken 11.14.11

Retailers are trying to push layaway this holiday season as a way to buy stuff you don’t immediately have the money for. For people without available credit, this can be a way to eventually get what they can’t afford now. But NY Sen. Chuck Schumer is warning that layaway fees can add up to be a much higher interest rate than any credit card would be allowed to charge. [More]

BofA Reaps Fees From Unemployment Benefits Loaded On Debit Cards

BofA Reaps Fees From Unemployment Benefits Loaded On Debit Cards

By Ben Popken 11.10.11

While Bank of America’s now-abandoned plan to charge debit card users $5 a month has received a halogen spotlight recently, far less attention has been paid to how it collects fees off the unemployed. In some states, unemployment benefits are issued via Bank of America debit cards. States save money by not using paper checks, but the unemployed lose out from all the fees hiding in the cards. [More]

Closed BofA Bank Account Mysteriously Reopened With 1 Penny Balance

Closed BofA Bank Account Mysteriously Reopened With 1 Penny Balance

By Ben Popken 11.10.11

Chris was one of the many in October who closed their bank accounts with Bank of America, and other similar big retail banks, in protest over planned fees for using their debit card. But last week she found it had been reopened for no apparent reason, with a 1 penny balance out of nowhere. [More]

How A Professional Financial Planner Lost His House

How A Professional Financial Planner Lost His House

By Ben Popken 11.9.11

I’ve always been fascinated by the old expression, “The Cobbler’s children have no shoes.” It refers to a person who is so concentrated on using their specific skill set to take care of others’ needs that they ignore their own. Carl Richards is a professional financial planner, a guy who people paid to manage their money. He shares how while in the middle of telling people what to do with their cash, he ended up buying way more house than he could afford and ended it up losing it all. It may be a long time before he and his wife can be homeowners again. [More]

New Wave Of Mortgage Defaults On Horizon

New Wave Of Mortgage Defaults On Horizon

By Ben Popken 11.9.11

Some of the crappiest mortgages ever made were issued in 2006, and right now those 5-year introductory teaser periods are expiring. That’s leading to a 300% increase in monthly payments for already strapped borrowers, and it’s what’s driving the first increase in delinquent mortgages since 2009, a banking expert tells Credit.com. [More]

Personal Finance Roundup

Personal Finance Roundup

By FMF 11.8.11

Car-Buying Help: 5 Smart Resources to Get the Right Car at the Right Price [Moneyland] “Here’s a list of helpful and informative resources of use to first-time buyers and experienced negotiators alike.”

Waiting for the cable guy is costing us $38 billion [CNN Money] “The vast majority of Americans, or 57%, say they spent the most time waiting for the cable guy.”

21 Frugal Ways to Reward Yourself Right Now [Wise Bread] “Wallet-friendly ideas to reward yourself.”

5 Things to Buy Used [US News] “Here are five categories where you can buy used items that are almost as good, just as good, or even better than what you can purchase brand new.”

More Year-End Tax-Saving Strategies [Smart Money] “Several ways to cut your tax bill, including selling investment losers and giving to charity.”

—FREE MONEY FINANCE

BofA Charges Man $39.23 On A $0 Balance

BofA Charges Man $39.23 On A $0 Balance

By Ben Popken 11.7.11

Bank of America charged Roger $39.23 in interest on his credit card, even though he had a zero balance. How could that be? [More]

While Getting House Financed, TWC Dings Score With Unauthorized Credit Report Pull

While Getting House Financed, TWC Dings Score With Unauthorized Credit Report Pull

By Ben Popken 11.7.11

Shawn is peeved. He’s in the middle of securing financing on a new house and the last thing you need during that time period are any surprise people looking at your credit report. These inquiries can bring your score down. But he got exactly one of those, a “hard” one, thanks to an unauthorized peek-a-boo Time Warner Cable decided to do on his credit report when called them up to ask about reducing his cable package. [More]

You've Got A Few Weeks Left To Win The Tax Year

You've Got A Few Weeks Left To Win The Tax Year

By Phil Villarreal 11.7.11

As the holidays usher in the end of the year, it’s easy to overlook the moves you could make to put yourself in a better position come tax time. Come April, you’ll either thank or curse your November and December 2011 self for making either savvy or stupid financial decisions. [More]

Video: Occupy Portlanders Open Credit Union Accounts On Bank Transfer Day

Video: Occupy Portlanders Open Credit Union Accounts On Bank Transfer Day

By Ben Popken 11.7.11

Saturday was the fifth of November, and many remembered to take a stand and shut down their big retail bank accounts, transferring their cash to a new credit union account. Here’s a video out of Occupy Portland covering what happened on Bank Transfer Day. Interviewees talk about why they’re switching to a credit union, and how this is just the beginning. [More]

How To Stop Wasting So Much Money On Food

How To Stop Wasting So Much Money On Food

By Phil Villarreal 11.7.11

Every time you throw out spoiled food, you’re retroactively tossing out misspent money. Add waste to overspending at restaurants and poor choices at the supermarket and you could find that food is taking more of a sizable bite out of your budget. [More]

Credit Card Bumper Crop Boasts Low Teaser Rates, New Snags

Credit Card Bumper Crop Boasts Low Teaser Rates, New Snags

By Ben Popken 11.4.11

After being such prudes for so long, credit card companies are raising their hemlines and lowering their standards. They’re actively deluging customers with credit card offers and using low teaser rates as a crooked finger. However, they’re also coming with new hidden baggage you need to watch out for, like cash back rewards that are high, but have to be opted in again every few months. [More]

Hundreds Of People's Tax Returns Found Dumped In Front Of Jackson Hewitt Office Because They Were "So Heavy"

Hundreds Of People's Tax Returns Found Dumped In Front Of Jackson Hewitt Office Because They Were "So Heavy"

By Ben Popken 11.4.11

A soggy pile of hundreds of old tax returns was found in front of an abandoned Jackson Hewitt tax prep office in San Francisco in late October. The papers had social security numbers, names, addresses, and phone numbers, a potential goldmine for any identity thief who got their hands on them. [More]

Here's An Idea: Credit Union Pays Members For Using Their Debit Cards

Here's An Idea: Credit Union Pays Members For Using Their Debit Cards

By Ben Popken 11.4.11

Instead of charging customers a $5 monthly fee for using their debit cards, one credit union is actually paying its members to use their debit cards. In a direct jab against the big banks, First Community Federal Credit Union is running a promotion that lets members earn up to $5 a month for swiping their debit card. [More]

Video Of People Closing Down Their Accounts At Big Banks

Video Of People Closing Down Their Accounts At Big Banks

By Ben Popken 11.4.11

Tomorrow is Bank Transfer Day. By this date, people all across America are shutting down their accounts at large, costly, name-brand banks and transferring their funds to new bank accounts at their local credit union or community bank. Here is an excellent video made in Portland that follows along with several different people as they close their bank accounts and give their reasons for doing so. One person wants to save money, another disagrees with the bank’s foreclosure practices, a third is mad about the bailouts, and the last is a union withdrawing its funds to show solidarity with holding Wall Street accountable. [More]

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