An action commenced in Massachusetts could have implications for the U.S. Department of Education’s efforts to shield student loan contractors from state oversight. A Superior Court Judge on Thursday refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed in August by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey against Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, a company that manages student loans and grants on behalf of the government.
Healey has accused FedLoan Servicing, of haphazardly handling two federal programs that encourage college graduates to enter fields serving the public good with the promise of loan forgiveness or financial aid.
The ...
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Supreme Court To Consider Challenge to Merchant Vendor Fees
Every time a consumer swipes his or her credit card, the credit card company collects a merchant vendor fee. Do most consumers know this? Probably not. This is because American Express policies prohibit retailers from educating consumers about these fees or giving consumers benefits for using lower-cost cards. Although retailers are fighting for the right to disclose these fees, credit card companies are determined to keep consumers in the dark.
Retailers are supporting an action that will be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday. The case, Ohio et al. v. American Express, began when the Federal Government and 11 states sued ...
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Job Polarization Forcing More Baby Boomers Out of Job Market
Men in their prime working years have left the labor force at an astonishing rate and they may never return if the state of the U.S. job market holds, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. This does not bode well for those approaching retirement and still carrying debt obligations. This may cause bankruptcy filings to spike in the 55-64 age group.
A decline in demand for middle-skilled work — a phenomenon dubbed “job polarization,” because more positions are concentrated at the higher and lower ends — has played a role in keeping prime-age men out of the job market an economist at the Kansas City Fed, ...
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Consumer’s Appetite For Debt On the Rise
Interest rates are on the rise, but that hasn’t curbed Americans’ appetite for consumer debt. If anything, consumers are borrowing more on credit cards or through auto loans than they have in years, and lenders seeking growth are happy to oblige them.
Recently, a male millennial said he signed up for more than five credit cards over the past year, from issuers including Capital One Financial Corp. and Discover Financial Services, after he received offers in the mail. He also took out a $36,000 loan to buy a new Jeep Grand Cherokee. This individual, who rents, said the offers have been arriving as his credit score has improved. He ...
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VantageScore – Credit Scoring Game Changer?
Various sources have reported that lenders are increasingly using VantageScore to determine credit worthiness. You need to know what it is and why it could be a game changer.
VantageScore is a credit scoring model that first emerged in 2006 as a joint venture of the big three credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — and now has the distinction of being one of only two scoring models lenders rely on to make lending decisions (the other being FICO). VantageScore currently claims about 10% of this hard-to-crack market for credit scores used in the lending industry, with the greatest adoption seen among the largest banks and ...
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Are Guarantees of Student Loans Changing The Retirement Landscape?
If you think student loan debt is a problem for the younger generation, think again. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), about 2.8 million people age 60 and older have outstanding student loans – four times the number in 2005. Most of the current student-loan debts of people 60-plus were incurred paying for college for a child or grandchild, and in the past decade, for the 60 to 64 age group, student-loan debt has increased eight-fold – to $38 billion!
“Americans in their 60s are now the fastest-growing age group facing student loan debt,” says Andrew Anable, a financial planner at Safeguard Investment Advisory ...
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Have You Been Rejected for a Mortgage? Get a Grip and Fight Back
How many Americans are rejected for a mortgage loan on an annual basis?
Data are scarce on the topic, but a Federal Reserve study shows that one in eight Americans were turned down for a mortgage in 2015 -- and overextended credit was at the top of the list of reasons lenders used to reject mortgage applicants. The Federal Reserve study pointed out that a high debt-to-income ratio -- i.e., the amount of money you borrow against the amount of money you make -- was a top credit-based reason for mortgage rejections.
If you've been turned down on a mortgage loan due to bad credit, get a grip and fight back.
Sure, the bad news is that ...
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Two Personal Finance Issues That Are Not Going Away in 2018
It's a new year and, unfortunately, many of us continue to grapple with financial issues that do not want to go away. Here are two to think about:
Not savings enough for retirement.
I have encountered countless clients who, although having worked for years, have accumulated little or no retirement savings. They have allowed debt to control their lives and have sacrificed savings opportunities in the process. This perspective must change.
Bankruptcy can be a first step toward achieving financial security. Did you know that retirement savings are fully protected from your creditors - even in bankruptcy? Whether you have one ...
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Investing 101: How the Stock Market Works?
A stock market presents a great opportunity for investors to earn a large return on investment (ROI). It is like a double edged sword. By investing in the stock market, you can earn double digit returns on your investments or more, but you also can sustain loses as well*.
In order to successfully trade in these financial exchanges, you need to learn the basics of stock market investing. The more you know about the stock trading and how it works –the more you can achieve the ability to make winning moves, and growing your wealth.
Stock Market: An Introduction
A stock market or stock exchange is a place where a company’s shares can be ...
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Tips for Maintaining Good Credit
There are many ways you can maintain a good credit score. One of the key points is to always be aware of your credit usage, credit score and your financial spending. Following these guidelines will help you maintain good credit and allow you to continue living a financially helpful lifestyle.
Control Your Spending!
This does not apply just to credit cards, but for everything you do. The temptations are always there.to overspend on that new pearl neckless or a new car, because it has options your current car doesn’t have. Be smart and money-wise. You never know when an unexpected financial emergency might happen that could change your entire ...
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