2 Jul, 2011
Watchdog Watchdog Regulation
We’re seeing it pretty often these days: federal watchdogs, under fire from Congressional Republicans and banking industry leaders for over-regulating, walking onto the banks’ turf and staring them down. First came Elizabeth Warren, the fiery de facto leader of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, telling the virulently anti-regulation U.S. Chamber of Commerce that she wanted new rules to strengthen American companies, not weaken them.
Now the Securities and Exchange Commission is stepping into the fight. Las
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2 Jul, 2011
Collegebound Students Students
It’s high season for prospective college students, as they and their families compare colleges and decide how to finance what is often one of life’s biggest expenses. After tapping savings and 529 plans (assuming parents or guardians have been contributing over the years) there’s almost always a shortage. And while some parents feel obliged to do all the financial heavy-lifting (with some foolishly tapping into their 401‘s), let’s remember that there are many more safe and affordable ways to fill the tuition gap. Here are
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2 Jul, 2011
Consumer Spending Spending
Today’s top news headlines feature significant declines in consumer spending and the top U.S. cities that may take years to recover from the recession. Plus, find out why more couples choose to live together without getting married.
Number Of Unmarried Couples Living Together On The Rise MSNBC A recent report shows that more couples – namely those without college degrees – are choosing to move in together rather than tying the knot. The Pew Research study shows cohabitation among those without college degrees has doubled over a 15-year period, while the marriage rate has fallen. Altho
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2 Jul, 2011
Bank New Bank
Plenty of people do their banking without a bank. They use prepaid debit cards. They send money using services like Western Union. They sign up for services promising to get them out of debt.
Now a government watchdog agency wants to patrol these companies too, making sure that people who bank without banks get similar protections as people who use traditional financial institutions. In an announcement last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said it may eventually regulate the largest companies in a host of industries.
“Historically, banks, thrifts, and credit unions have been subject to examinations by federal regulators, but other types of companies providing consumer financial services generally have not,” according to the bureau’s press release. “Toda
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2 Jul, 2011
Credit Union Union
Credit unions are known to be more stable than banks, and more generous when it comes to supplying customers with favorable interest rates on their deposits. They’re able to do this because, unlike traditional banks, they don’t rely on a fractional reserve system (meaning the bank reserves just a fraction of cash and other liquid deposits) when it comes to the possession of available funds. Instead, credit unions act as non-profit cooperatives, and all of the money deposited in a credit union stays within the institution for the sole use of its customers. In
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2 Jul, 2011
Cards Debit Cards
For people with debit cards, Wednesday is The Big Day. Finally, after a year-long, multi-million-dollar fight between big banks and big retailers, the Federal Reserve will announce its new rules for debit card swipe fees.
It could be the end of the debit card as we know it.
“This will be a game changer,” says Gerri Detweiler, Credit.com’s consumer credit expert. “Depending on what comes out, it could make a major difference for what our debit cards look like in the future.”
Every time you buy something with a debit card, the bank that issued the card gets a swipe fee, known as an “interchange fee” in bank-ese. Right now, th
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