Debt Consolidation, Help and Relief

Why You Should Consider Buying A Used Car Now

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  • Posted 11/29/11. by alison

Planning to buy a used car? Kelley Blue Book says you may want to do it before the end of the year. Used car prices are expected to increase by four to six percent in early 2012 which means you’ll get more bang for your buck if you shop for a car while you shop [...]

More Americans Traveling This Thanksgiving

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  • Posted 11/22/11. by alison

Hitting the road this holiday weekend? AAA says around four percent more people will travel 50 miles or more from home around the Thanksgiving holiday. That equals 42.5 million Americans, the first significant travel increase so far for 2011. AAA says the average distance traveled by Americans during the Thanksgiving holiday this year [...]

Retirees Feeling Increasingly Secure About Finances

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  • Posted 11/19/11. by alison

It’s been a rough few years for American retirees, but they are feeling more financially secure according to a study by Society of Actuaries, LIMRA and the International Foundation for Retirement Education. The latest part of this series of studies looked at financial recovery among retirees, polling 461 of them. The most recent responses show [...]

Financial Experts Reveal Their Outlook For 2012

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  • Posted 11/17/11. by alison

Positive thinking is a powerful tool. And a new survey shows the majority of financial professionals are optimistic about economic growth in 2012. Accounting Principals polled finance professionals about the coming new year and found most are thinking positively, but they’re still cautious.
Of those polled, 67% expressed that they believe their company will land new [...]

Holiday Budgets Meant For Breaking?

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  • Posted 11/10/11. by alison

Once again gift cards will be a hot gift this holiday season according to a new poll from TD Bank. More than half of consumers say they plan to spend the same this year as last year with the average being $670 for gifts. Of those polled, roughly two in three plan to buy gift [...]

Organization Helps Student Loan Borrowers Make Payments

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  • Posted 10/25/11. by alison

Nearly 1.6 million past due federal student loan accounts are getting some much needed assistance. USA Funds says they’ve prevented nearly $26.5 billion in defaults from student loan accounts during the last fiscal year. These were accounts where payments were reported to be 60 days or more past due. During fiscal 2011, USA Funds’ default [...]

Some Homeowners Delay Flipping On Heat Because Of Cost

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  • Posted 10/21/11. by alison

Temperatures may be dipping, but many homeowners are delaying turning on their heat. A new poll from MoneySupermarket.com  found that while half of households are turning on their heat, another one in four are resisting the move because of rising energy prices. Six percent of households say they can’t afford to heat their homes and [...]

Many Americans Getting Second Jobs To Cover Holiday Expenses

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  • Posted 10/19/11. by alison

Christmas may be a few months away, but many companies are hiring holiday help now. And to avoid the financial drain of the season a new CouponCabin.com survey found that more than one in five Americans plan to get a second job in order to be able to afford the holidays this year. Another 12 [...]

ATMs Now Dispensing Gold In China

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  • Posted 10/4/11. by alison

You can get cash at an ATM and even deposit your paycheck, but now in China you can buy gold. While here in the US it seems you can sell gold on every street corner, in China you can now buy it at some ATMs. According to WallStreetdaily.com the gold vending machine is imported from [...]

Mad About New Bank Fees? Consumers Union Says Complain

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  • Posted 09/30/11. by alison

Experts are warning consumers to keep a close eye on their bank account statements. This time it’s not because of the threat of crooks or identity theft– it’s because of added bank fees. According to Consumers Union, Bank of America has reportedly agreed on a $5 monthly charge for debt card transactions starting in 2012. [...]

Consumers Prepared To Spend For Halloween Decorations And Decor

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  • Posted 09/27/11. by alison

Retailers are hoping this Halloween shopping season won’t be too scary for their bottom line. According to PriceGrabber’s Halloween shopping survey, about half of consumers will spend $50 or less on a costume this year. One in five say they’ll spend $50 or more and 17 percent say they won’t spend a dime on a [...]

Two In Five Have Cut Spending Over Last Two Months

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  • Posted 09/22/11. by alison

It feels like you’ve been hearing about the importance of cutting spending for years, but according to a new poll from Bankrate.com, about 40% of Americans have actually been doing it over the past 60 days. Bankrate.com’s September Financial Security Index is at 93.9 and any number under 100 indicates declining levels of financial security. [...]

Study: Young People Facing Difficult Financial Future

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  • Posted 09/6/11. by alison

Young people are facing a difficult financial future, according to a new survey from The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. The study found that just 23% of 20-somethings label themselves as totally independent. Just 18% of those in their 20s whose adult lives began during the Great Recession say they’re confident they’ll have enough money [...]

National Suite Drive Helps Unemployed Americans

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  • Posted 08/30/11. by alison

Thousands of suits are being donated as a way to help provide a second chance for Americans facing joblessness. It’s the fourth annual National Suit Drive organized by Men’s Warehouse. They’re collecting gently used professional attire during the entire month of August.
The unemployment rate is sitting at about 9 percent. The US Bureau of Labor [...]

Fall Busiest Time For Scoring Scholarship Dollars

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  • Posted 08/24/11. by alison

We’re about to enter the peak time for applying for scholarships according to Scholarship America. Scholarship America is the  nation’s largest provider of scholarships in the country and says that its advising high school students and college students to be creative in their search for scholarship dollars because September, October and November are actually the [...]

Financial Headlines Helping Parents Teach Kids About Money

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  • Posted 08/16/11. by alison

You may feel like you’ve heard enough about the debt ceiling and the national debt crisis to last a lifetime, but for children it’s a great jumping off point to start financial education. According to a new CouponCabin.com survey, almost half of parents believe it’s important to teach their kids about being financially savvy. The [...]

UK Households Using Credit Cards To Pay Utility Bills

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  • Posted 08/9/11. by alison

A new study shows residents of the United Kingdom are using their credit cards to pay their utility bills at higher rates. Financial information company Markit published figures regarding the financial blunders of cash-strapped UK residents. The Markit financial index shows that roughly one in three in the UK have seen their financial situation get [...]

Beware Of Used Car Scams

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  • Posted 08/2/11. by alison

You can buy anything off the Internet these days– including used cars. But the Better Business Bureau warns consumers to be on the look out for scam artists who are using the web to advertise deeply discounted vehicles. Turns out they’re driving away with innocent shoppers’ money.
The scam works like this: the shopper pays, the [...]

2011 Sales Tax Holidays Save Consumers Money

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  • Posted 07/28/11. by alison

Back to school shopping can set parents back hundreds of dollars. Between notebooks and Nikes, there’s a long list of items that little boys and girls seem to need in order to be ready for a new school year. There are plenty of ways to cut costs on back-to-school shopping. And one of those ways [...]

Consumers Looking For Ways To Save Money On Groceries

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  • Posted 07/19/11. by alison

Americans are paying more, but getting less at the grocery store. That’s according to Deloitte’s new “2011 Consumer Food and Product Insight Survey.” Just under 90 percent of those surveyed believe food prices are jumping and about three-fourths feel the packages are getting smaller. That’s pushing consumers to buy lower-priced products including store brands.
High gas [...]

New Government Bureau Aims To Monitor Consumer Financial Products

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  • Posted 07/12/11. by alison

A new arm of the government is going into full effect on July 21, 2011. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s primary mission is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans. The office will help monitor consumer services including applying for a mortgage, choosing a credit card or any other consumer [...]

Americans Making Daily Changes To Save Money

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  • Posted 07/6/11. by alison

Americans may be losing some of their optimism according to a new poll. The study shows Americans are expecting the economy to get worse over the next year and they’re backing up their suspicions with their spending. More than 65% of Americans have begun purchasing generic brands as a way to save money. Back in [...]

Survey: 1 In 4 Americans Have No Savings

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  • Posted 06/28/11. by alison

Roughly one in four Americans have a six-month emergency savings cushion. Another one in four have no savings at all. These numbers come from a Bankrate.com study that also points out that 6.2 million Americans have been out of work for six months or more.
Falling somewhere in the middle are about 22% of Americans who [...]

Money Tips For Newlyweds

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  • Posted 06/14/11. by alison

June is wedding season. In fact according to TheKnot.com, one third of weddings happen during the summer months. And while couples may do a great job of preparing for their big day, they may not be doing so well at preparing for their financial future. According to The Wall Street Journal, these are some tips [...]

Survey: Half Of Americans Can’t Cope With $2,000 Emergency

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  • Posted 05/31/11. by alison

A new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found that half of Americans would not be able to easily come up with $2,000 in a pinch. In the event of an unexpected car repair, medical bill or home emergency 50 percent of Americans wouldn’t have the cash to pay for the need. About [...]

Stimulus Recipients Owe Millions In Back Taxes

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  • Posted 05/27/11. by alison

A federal auditor says that contractors and businesses that received federal stimulus money back in 2009 owe billions in unpaid government taxes. The Government Accountability Office says that as of last fall the total bill for unpaid taxes, interest and penalties was $330 billion. “We’ve known for some time that there’s a significant tax gap [...]

Americans Keeping Costs Low On Summer Travel

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  • Posted 05/19/11. by alison

Despite dank economic news and gas prices that make just about everyone cringe, Americans are taking steps to plan their summer vacations according to a new survey. Ally Bank says roughly one out of four people say they’re going to spend the most money on summer travel. “With so many Americans hitting the road [...]

Interest Rates Dropping, Mortgage Applications Increasing

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  • Posted 05/12/11. by alison

Interest rates dropped again for the fourth week in a row, which officials say is helping to increase the number of mortgage applications in the US. The Mortgage Bankers Association says the number of applications has increased at the fasted pace in two months and they say it’s because of dipping interest rates.
According to Reuters, [...]

Report Sees Signs Of Improvement For American Consumers

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  • Posted 05/10/11. by alison

By some accounts, things may be looking up slightly for US consumers. A new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows some signs of improvement. The organization studies consumer debt levels, delinquency rates, foreclosures and bankruptcies. When studying those things, they saw some signs of recovery for Americans. “We are beginning to [...]

Why Wealthy May Not Be Impacted By Higher Tax Rates

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  • Posted 05/5/11. by alison

There’s a big debate going on about whether or not to increase the tax rate on the wealthy. And if the super rich don’t seem that upset about it there’s a reason according to The Daily Beast. They talked to economist Bruce Bartlett who explained that higher taxes for the rich won’t really impact Mark [...]

Tuesday’s Twitterer To Follow: @Centsiblelife

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  • Posted 05/3/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about [...]

Pilot Program Recovers $247,000 In Unpaid Taxes

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  • Posted 04/28/11. by alison

Hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid taxes were collected in California through the use of an automated message delivery system. The Newport Beach, California company MessageBroadcast completed a four week Revenue Recovery pilot for California’s Franchise Tax Board.
MessageBroadcast sent messages to taxpayers with unpaid tax bills. They used voice, SMC, email, and broadband to [...]

Obamas Give More Of Their Income To Charity Than Bidens

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  • Posted 04/21/11. by alison

Now that Tax Day has come and gone numbers are being released about President Obama and his wife Michelle’s 2010 tax return. According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy, the first couple donated $245,075, or 14 percent of their income to charity last year. Their adjusted gross income reached $1.7 million in 2010.
In comparison, Vice President [...]

Tuesday’s Twitterer To Follow: @MSN_Money

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  • Posted 04/19/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about [...]

College Students Face Trio Of Problems

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  • Posted 04/15/11. by alison

College graduates are dealing with more debt and hiring slump– which is not a great combination. Nevada-based 8 News Now interviewed college student Raven Reid, who spends a lot of time adding up her student loans. “I wouldn’t be able to pay for books or anything. My mom’s a single parent, and she lives [...]

New Tool Helps College Grads Stand Out In Job Market

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  • Posted 04/13/11. by alison

Looking for a way to stand out from the crowd of millions of other graduating seniors flooding the job market? A new tool available for career-minded college students has just been released, and the good news is that it can be free. HireWired.com was recently launched as a way for college students and graduates to [...]

Will Prince William Have Kate Sign A Pre-Nup?

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  • Posted 04/7/11. by alison

Having Kate Middleton sign a pre-nup doesn’t elude to fairy tale happy ending. But British divorce lawyers say Prince William definitely should have the soon-to-be princess sign one. The Royal Wedding is set for April 29. “It’s an absolute statistical no-brainer that a prenuptial agreement would be highly beneficial in this case,” divorce lawyer [...]

Tuesday’s Twitterer To Follow: @LoveandCents

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  • Posted 04/5/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about [...]

Food Costs Grow And Grow And Grow

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  • Posted 03/31/11. by alison

Everything from chocolate Easter bunnies to a gallon of milk will cost you more– a whole lot more according to the Labor Department. Recently released numbers from the Labor Department show the biggest jump in food prices since 1974. According to their research, food prices jumped by nearly 4% in February alone. You can blame [...]

Finding A Place For Elizabeth Taylor’s Fortune

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  • Posted 03/29/11. by alison

Elizabeth Taylor was laid to rest and now comes the question of her fortune. According to Popeater.com the actress had a fortune of between $600 million and $1 billion. Fifteen year old divorce documents claimed the actress was worth $608 million back in the mid-1990s. Now the work must be done to figure out where [...]

Millions Watch March Madness During Work Hours

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  • Posted 03/24/11. by alison

Work seems to slow to a dribble during March according to a new report. American workers could spend more than eight million hours watching NCAA Tournament games from the office. March Madness may be putting a serious crimp in the economy and in the work flow of American workers according to global outplacement consultancy Challenger, [...]

Tuesday’s Twitterer To Follow: @360Finances

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  • Posted 03/22/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about [...]

Time To Spring Clean Your Finances

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  • Posted 03/17/11. by alison

With less than a month to go before tax season ends, it’s time to pull out those statements, receipts and 1099s. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Consumer Advocate Eleanor Blayney is offering up some tips for cleaning up your finances. “Your goal should be to get into those forgotten corners, deal with the [...]

Americans Earned And Saved More

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  • Posted 03/10/11. by alison

According to CNN, Americans earned more and saved more in January. Changes in tax contributions through Making Work Pay meant that people received more money in their paychecks. But rather than blow it all, many people boosted their savings. According to numbers released by the Commerce Department, personal income jumped by 1% in January. This [...]

Tuesday’s Twitterer To Follow: @MissMoneyBee

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  • Posted 03/8/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about money, [...]

Study: American Consumers Feeling Financially Fit

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  • Posted 03/4/11. by alison

A new study says more American consumers are feeling financially healthy as they emerge from the recession. The study, conducted for M&T Bank found that nearly 80% of consumers reporting have little-to-no debt or a comfortable level of debt. GfK Custom Research North America conducted the survey of more than 1000 randomly selected adults. They [...]

Kansas Parents Ask For Higher Taxes

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  • Posted 02/25/11. by alison

This story may contradict most reports out there of people pleading, arguing and debating for lower taxes. But 17 parents in a Kansas City-area school district actually want to pay more taxes to help their schools. Right now there are state property tax caps in place so they’re asking a judge to throw those out. [...]

Coffee And Chocolate Prices Expected To Jump

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  • Posted 02/24/11. by alison

Coffee and chocolate– two of Americans’ most popular addictions– are cutting deeper into our wallets. According to AOL, chocolate supplies will be down and costs will be up due to a ban on exported cocoa from Africa’s Ivory Coast. It’s the top source of cocoa in the world, creating more than one-third of the world’s [...]

Tuesday Twitterer To Follow: @GreenbacksGal

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  • Posted 02/22/11. by alison

Wondering who to follow in the big wide world of Twitter? There are plenty of great Twitterers out there tweeting about money, [...]

Pitcher Gives Up $12 Million Paycheck

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  • Posted 02/11/11. by alison

Could you give up $12 million you were contractually obligated to receive because you didn’t work for it? That’s essentially what Kansas City Royals pitcher Gil Meche did. According to The New York Times the player’s contract stated that he would earn $12 million in 2011 and with most baseball contracts, players get that money [...]