Yesterday I received an unexpected surprise: a cashier’s check for $87.50. It was for a gig I played almost a year ago, and I had since practically forgotten about it. What was a bit unusual, though, was that the check didn’t have a recent date on it. The date was in September of 2010. The … Read more
Paying bills by mailing out checks was common when I was growing up (1970s and 1980s), but no longer. Now, most companies have the option to accept payment by credit card or ACH debit (and if they don’t, you wonder what’s wrong with them). Not only that, but you can make arrangements with the companies … Read more
I was forwarded an article about a local woman whose bank, Bank of America, foreclosed on the house she and her family lived in only three months after her husband drowned in the river adjoining the property. Meanwhile, in other parts of Bank of America, foreclosures are being halted all over the country to make … Read more
This post over at Basically Money (now a member of the new family of Stack Exchange sites) asks whether to refinance a mortgage. Here’s the question: I have a 5-year ARM at 4.5% APR. I can renew the rate at 3.25%. However, the cost of is going to be $800. The current loan value is … Read more
Fresh after posting on whether small credit card charges are shameful or otherwise to be avoided, I got a comment on that post. “Paul” asks: “Wasn’t a provision of the financial reform bill that passed this July that store owners are now legally allowed to not accept a credit card charge for less than $10? … Read more
Smithee, a staff writer over at Consumerism Commentary, gave his opinions on the positive opt-in that’s now necessary for banks and credit unions to enroll customers in overdraft privilege services. In a previous life as a Bank of America customer service representative, he had to tell customers that they couldn’t opt out of the overdraft … Read more
Thirty-year mortgages rates haven’t been this cheap in my lifetime. Considering this was the year of my 20th high school reunion, that’s a fairly long time. A fixed-rate mortgage costs more to obtain than an adjustable-rate mortgage of the same term because the lender bears the interest-rate risk. The means that the lender agrees to … Read more
Banking of late hasn’t been much to laugh about, but a couple of days ago I heard a term that gave me a pretty big laugh: frequent flier (n.): a credit union member who makes regular use of overdraft privilege on their checking account. Our credit union currently offers a couple of similar services: overdraft … Read more