Financial adversity is an unhappy fact of life — jobs are won and lost, savings stashed and spent, and investments gain and lose ground all the time. Certain reversals of fortune are within our ability to predict and prevent. Indeed, some losses may even be manageable. Others, though, are impossible for some to overcome. Apparently,... Read More

Getting an offer in the mail for a platinum credit card can be quite flattering. After all, a platinum card offers some major perks for cardholders, but they generally come with an annual fee. While not all platinum credit cards charge an extra fee, you’ll need to figure out whether the card’s perks are worth the... Read More

If some in the small business community thought to themselves, “better them than us,” after hearing that hackers had breached mega chains Target, Neiman Marcus and (possibly) Michaels, their bliss was short-lived. Reports surfaced last week that the cyber-intruders accessed Targets’ systems by first hacking one of their (comparatively) small regional contractors, Fazio Mechanical Services. Fazio,... Read More

There was a time that you could qualify for a mortgage with just a decent credit score and a self-reported, unverified source of  income. Since the housing crisis, banks are now double-checking everything and only giving the best rates to those with the highest credit scores. So now more than ever, credit card users need... Read More

The day you find out your divorce is final may either feel like one of the worst days of your life or a cause for celebration, depending on whether you wanted to stay or go. Either way, it may not be truly over. In fact, you may still have months — even years — of... Read More

Perhaps there’s a bit of irony in the name “student loan servicer,” considering the number of stories out there about the less-than-satisfactory customer service they provide. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau started collecting complaints about student loan servicers in March 2012, and the most recent annual report from the CFPB said the bureau had fielded... Read More

When David Marcus’ credit card was skimmed, cloned and used for an unauthorized shopping spree, he saw a business opportunity. That’s because Marcus is the president of PayPal, an Internet-based payment processing business that has been billed as an alternative to the tedious and sometimes insecure process of entering a credit card number when making... Read More

Are you planning on buying or refinancing a home this year? When it comes to your taxes, be careful. If you’re trying to save a few bucks when paying Uncle Sam, you might be doing things that could cost you your mortgage. When You’re an Employee First, let’s take a look at the tax moves... Read More

The question is as old as the first case of credit card fraud. “What can I do to protect myself?” I’ve been hearing that question a lot lately, as tales of leaked credit card data and other personal information mount. Target, Neiman Marcus…you know the list now. These high-profile hacks shined a light on a... Read More

Americans are continuing to finance more of what they buy with credit as the economy strengthens, according to a recent report from the Federal Reserve. Outstanding consumer credit — which includes debt on credit cards and car loans, for example — grew at an annual rate of about 6%, the same as last year. U.S.... Read More