You’ve received an eviction notice even though you’ve never missed a rent payment. This dilemma is a growing reality for renters throughout the country who are being pushed out of their residences because their landlords have fallen behind on mortgage payments, reports the Associated Press (“Advice for Renters if Landlord Faces Foreclosure,” Dec. 26, 2008). (more…)

Popularity: 4% [?]

This holiday season some well-meaning friends may have missed the mark on a few of the gift cards they gave you: cards to a store you’d never step a foot in, to a store that’s not in your area, or to a coffee shop when you prefer to get your daily dose of caffeine from a soda. (more…)

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CompuCredit Corp. and its debt collection agency have agreed to repay consumers as much as $114 million to settle a lawsuit initiated this past June by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Trade Commission, which accused the organization of deceptively marketing and collecting on subprime credit cards to consumers (“CompuCredit and Its Collection Agency Settle FTC-FDIC Case for $114 Million,” Inside ARM, Dec. 22, 2008). (more…)

Popularity: 4% [?]

Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages have fallen to their lowest level in more than four years, averaging 5.33 percent, according to financial publishing company HSH Associates. (more…)

Popularity: 4% [?]

Homeowners in the United States are on track to see over $2 trillion in home values disappear by year’s end now that one in seven, or 11.7 million, homeowners are currently “under water,” owing more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, according to a report released by real estate website Zillow.com. (more…)

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Credit card companies will soon have to abide by new federal regulations meant to protect consumers from interest-rate increases and other unfair credit card practices, reports The Associated Press (“Regulators Adopt New Credit Card Rules,” Dec. 19, 2008). (more…)

Popularity: 4% [?]

Mortgage giant Fannie Mae — in what may be the first effort of its kind to provide relief for renters swept up in the foreclosure crisis — may soon become one of the nation’s largest landlords (“Fannie Mae Allows Renters to Stay,” The New York Times, Dec. 15, 2008). (more…)

Popularity: 3% [?]

We’re learning the hard way to reign in our spending and reduce our debt, and we’re not always responding well, says Gaetano Vaccaro, deputy clinical director of Moonview Sanctuary, a treatment center for emotional and behavioral disorders (more…)

Popularity: 7% [?]

The New York Metropolitan area is leading the nation in bankruptcy filings, outpacing the national average of 34 percent (more…)

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Knowing how your FICO score works is just the first step in learning how to improve your score. These five tips for healthy credit management may help you improve your score, whether it’s a low 300 or a mid-range 450, to an ideal 700 or a near perfect 800: (more…)

Popularity: 4% [?]