The newly formed government agency, U.S. Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, reports that the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD)Act has caused the U.S. credit card industry to revise policies while reducing and eliminating some penalty fees. Highlights of the report include:

• Over-limit fees have all but disappeared.
• Prior to the CARD Act, 15 percent of credit card issuers reset credit card interest rates annually, but now approximately 2 percent of issuers are resetting interest rates each year.
• Assessed late payment fees fell to $427 million in December 2010. This represents a decrease of more than half of the January 2010 amount of $901 million.
• Since the inception of the CARD Act, credit card late fees have fallen from an average of $35.00 to $23.00.

These developments are a step in the right direction toward helping consumers with debt management.

Read all post…

The federal government is advising senior citizens to be on the lookout for new Medicare scams that can separate you from your cash in no time at all. The focus is on three big scams that Uncle Sam wants seniors to be vigilant about – along with some tips to stop scammers in their tracks.

Here’s what the government is advising older Americans to watch out for:

1. The “Poser” Scam The government is on the lookout for scammers who pose as Medicare employees – and you should be, too. The fraudsters either call, email or send a letter asking Medicare patients for their bank account, Social Security or credit card numbers. The federal government will never call you on the phone or send you a note looking for your bank account number or Social Security number. Anyone wh

Read all post…

A family of four will pay up to 160 more for an overseas holiday after travel giants First Choice, Thomas Cook and Thomson announced hikes (see the Cheap Flights guide).

However, there is still time to beat the First Choice and Thomson (both part of the TUI Group) rises, which come into force on Friday. However, the Thomas Cook hike is already in effect.

Thomas Cook

It increased fuel surcharges from 15 to 40 per person for a return flight yesterday.

Short haul prices are up 15 per return journey (7.50 per flight), medium haul (flights of 3-7 hours) are up 25 (12.50 per flight) and long haul is up 40 (20 per flight).

The charges apply to all bookings from yesterday on Thomas Cook Airlines flight-only and package tours leaving the UK.

First Choice/Thomson

The pair have confirmed hikes will happen on Friday but they cannot yet confirm the exact rises.

Read all post…

Not everyone is cowed by a still-struggling housing market and banks reluctant to give mortgages. A growing number of Americans are buying houses with cash, according to a recent press release by the National Association of Realtors.

About 28% of home purchases were all-cash in 2010, up from 14% in 2008.  The trend is especially strong in cities hammered hardest by the foreclosure crisis. More than half – 54% – of all home purchases in Miami in December were entirely in cash. About 45% of homes in Las Vegas and Tampa were bought with cash, and 35% of sales in Phoenix did not involve a mortgage.

Cash buyers have an advantage. They

Read all post…

The Spanish giant is offering at least 3.15% interest on its Flexible Isa (issue 3) with easy access for a year, open to anyone (see the Cash Isas guide).

Savers are guaranteed to beat the base rate (currently 0.5%) by 2.65 percentage points for 12 months, meaning returns could rise if, as many economists expect, the official Bank of England rate rises this year.

At 3.15%, Santander pays 0.27 of a percentage point more than the next best deal that is openly available.

Santander current account, mortgage or investment holders will get 3.3% for a year in the Loyalty Flexible Isa (issue 1).

Read all post…

Although “good” is a subjective term, we can clarify positives and negatives related to using debt consolidation as a method for debt management. Debt consolidation functions in a manner similar to refinancing a home mortgage; you’re trading one or more debts for a single new debt, typically one offering lower finance charges. Potential benefits associated with debt consolidation include:

• Streamlining debt management: Dealing with a stack of credit card bills and loan payments each month increases your chances of missing a payment. Credit card debt consolidation can help by rolling several balances into one.
• Cleaning house, and your head: If you’re stressing due to debt, using debt consolidation can help you regain some feeling of control. Paying o

Read all post…

BMC Software Inc. (NYSE:BMC) announced the successful completion of a massive data center consolidation of New York City Health and Hospitals Corp. (“HHC”) that was facilitated through its information technology service management (ITSM) solutions.

New York HHC, an ace health care provider with 11 acute care hospitals and many other clinical facilities, consolidated its 11 data centers into 2. The consolidation was accomplished through BMC Software’s Remedy ITSM suite that created two applications, namely Service Management Office and Enterprise Service Desk, within HHC by joining multiple service centre configurations and forming a single point of communication.

New York HHC’s association with the Remedy ITSM suite started in late 2009. As of 2

Read all post…

The New York Times reports that Congress is gearing up to debate whether or not to increase the federal government’s debt ceiling. Hello? Isn’t it about time for our elected officials and so called leadership to start setting an example for we, the consumers? We are constantly reminded of the importance of financial prudence; meanwhile our government is spending like a fleet of drunken sailors. At some point, the government and debt-ridden consumers have to know when to say “when.” The government’s balance sheet is too big to tackle here, so let’s concentrate on reducing personal credit card debt.

Drowning in debt: Has this become America’s new favorite past time?

Recent reports of increased credit card usage among consumers seem to suggest a revival of consumer confidence, if not carelessness. Carrying credit

Read all post…