This Huffington Post article puts a big spotlight on all of the money that credit card companies and banks are making by being the broker of donations to charities that support rescue and aid over in Haiti: About 97 percent of these donations will actually make it to the designated organizations — but the other … Read more
Makes me wonder: If I were to ask a New Yorker about the real estate collapse, they might tell me, “Real estate what?” Tough Money Love commented on Zaarath and Christopher Prokop’s postage-stamp real estate purchase: a 175-square-foot “microstudio” apartment, secured for the cool price of $150,000 plus a $700+/month maintenance fee. He didn’t really … Read more
I found out recently that our county is going to be entering the late-20th century in an important way: We’re getting a Walmart. This is important to us because it’s going to be built adjacent to a subdivision we’re considering purchasing a new house. But that’s a separate issue. The issue at hand for this … Read more
This article on MSN Money misses a bit in the title: Banks punish perfect customers The article is another one on how credit card companies are hitting otherwise conscientious users with annual fees. The users that are being targeted now are those who pay their bills on time and don’t carry a balance. These are … Read more
I got suckered into reading this article on MSN from the title: A $10,000 Social Security hit There was a stock photo of two obviously very depressed seniors right next to that headline. At first I thought, “Man, the other shoe dropped fast!” but the article revealed the context of the $10,000: no cost-of-living adjustment … Read more
Caught this in a tweet from Wise Bread: Latest bank fee is for paying off credit card on time every month The target of new fees for credit card issuers is people who haven’t paid them yet, among others. I mean, why should people who carry a balance, miss payments, or go over their limit … Read more
I tell you: It just doesn’t pay to be human anymore. Big or small. I’m well aware of how being fat costs money. But there are now rumblings on the possibility of the following: If an individual, or family, can reasonably afford health insurance, but does not get it, they face the possibility of being … Read more
Businesses need to do everything in their power to weather this downturn. It should be a great time for customers to get great deals because of this: they need to keep the cash flowing in. Customers should expect deals, and they should be treated with respect, because customers can go to a competitor. Some businesses … Read more