Foreclosure is a frightening scenario currently affecting as many as one out of every 300 homeowners. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers this advice to avoid a foreclosure (and offers it by state, too). Talk about it now. Speak with your lender. Also, foreclosure prevention counseling services are provided free of [...]

A debt-troubled economy knows no age: The average elderly American in the low- or middle-income bracket is carrying about $10k in credit card debt, which is a 26 percent rise from 2005 figures. In this Banktime article, older Americans are increasingly turning to either re-employment or continued employment to supplement their Social Security. The story [...]

Consumers could see a surge in co-signing loan activity, since the upcoming CARD Act will now require those under 21-years of age to recruit a “co-debtor” if their income does not qualify them for a credit card. Co-signing for a credit card or car loan has traditionally been a way for parents to help their [...]

The new Financial Fraud Task Force, composed of senior-level officials from 25 government agencies, is aimed to combat mortgage, securities and corporate fraud. The FBI is currently investigating more than 189 cases of corporate fraud and 18 of which had losses greater than $1 billion. The US Securities and Exchange Commission state in this press [...]

You said this holiday shopping season was going to be different. You said you weren’t going to slap Christmas expenses on plastic and deal with it in the New Year. Yet holding those last-minute gift items in your hands at the checkout line long after the Christmas budget has been blown equates to one thing: [...]

Data from this survey on buyer and agent confidence show professionals in the real estate field are feeling slightly less secure about the future, but overall remain optimistic. The Real Estate Confidence Index that conducted the survey is produced through a monthly survey of real estate professionals across the country who are asked to rate [...]

Bank of America might have recently made a plan to payback TARP money to the government, appearing to be a classic “Rob Peter to Pay Paul” move. The corporation recently reported a $2.24 billion bank loan loss due to consumers struggling to pay bills as covered in this Huffington Post article. This figure adds into [...]

The San Francisco Examiner offered a couple great credit card debt consolidation tips to help make sure consumers weren’t being taken to the cleaners while cleaning up their own credit. Surprisingly, there are many pitfalls to rolling your debt into one big payment. Understandably consumers are often in a state of emotional despair when the [...]

‘Tis the season to give, and to give we often need to spend. Holidays inspire many family traditions and one of them could be sharing in the art of responsible seasonal shopping. Whether your kids are old enough to shop on their own or need closer guidance, the Universal Protection Service offers these security tips [...]

Credit cards can seem like helpful little elves around the holidays, with as many as 8.6 pieces of magic plastic in your wallet. The Experian credit agency put out a report in 2007 that revealed 1 in 7 Americans have more than 10 credit cards, with a typical household possessing around 12 cards. The average [...]