If you are having trouble making your auto loan payments, recent data from the New York Federal Reserve suggests that you are not alone. According to the New York Fed, delinquent auto loans have reached levels not seen in over eight years.
Auto loan delinquencies of greater than thirty days or more reached $23.27 billion,
Borrowing
Changes are coming to your credit report – and this time, those changes may work in your favor. Thanks to some background work by the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion), public records to be included in credit reports must meet higher standards. That action should result in a boost in credit scores
Slower Credit Growth for the New Year Are you using more or less credit these days? If your habits track the latest data released by the Federal Reserve, your rate of consumer credit growth has slowed considerably.
The Fed’s release for January 2017 revealed that outstanding consumer credit rose by $8.8 billion to $3.77 trillion
Which Is True? The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent consumer and financial watchdog agency that offers advice to consumers and levies fines against financial institutions engaged in questionable practices.
The CFPB is an unchecked, poorly controlled agency that restricts the opportunity of financial institutions to operate within a free market and applies
By Tonya Rapley
Debt is killing us! It’s one of the main reasons I started a community movement to #BanishTheBalance. Over 60 incredible days, more than 4,000 participants paid off more than $200,000 worth of debt. The success of the movement led to a free e-course (you can sign up here) and is open to
Any proper discussion of methods for reducing debt load should begin with the following disclaimer:
Dealing with excessive debt is, in several ways, analogous to losing weight. You did not acquire all that weight/debt quickly, and it may take you even longer to lose it — and without changes in eating/spending habits, the weight/debt will
Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans are in the midst of controversy. Are they an effective way to incorporate more green energy into homes, or are they planting the seeds of the next housing crisis? Both statements may apply.
PACE loans are designed to finance home projects involving renewable energy and energy efficiency. While the
America may be in a continued economic recovery, but that recovery is not currently translating into more consumers paying their debts on time. At least that is the case with respect to auto loans and credit card debt in the third quarter of 2016, according to the American Bankers Association (ABA).
The ABA tracks delinquency
D-E-B-T has become a new four-letter word for many Americans who are struggling to pay off massive amounts of consumer debt in the form of credit cards, car loans and other types of consumer credit. The amount of aggregate consumer debt in the U.S. now tops $11 trillion (yes, trillion with a “t”), according to
According to a survey from AutoMD.com, 64 percent of
American drivers are riding in cars with more than 100,000 miles on the clock.
The reason so many odometers are rolling into triple digits is simple – saving
money. According to 81 percent of the drivers surveyed, the ideal lifespan of a
car is ten years
Getting out of debt can be challenging, especially if you have little experience in managing your finances and need support. Using a counseling agency can be a great way to get debt relief. The agency can possibly negotiate reduced interest rates for you to pay back all your unsecured debt. You then make a single
When checkout clerks ask, “Paper or plastic?” they are referring to the type of bags desired, but they could be asking about your preferred method of payment. In today’s digital society, cash purchases are increasingly rare, but that does not mean it is always preferable to “Charge it.” Many studies have proven that people who
“I could have done better.” With respect to mortgage lenders, approximately one-fifth of homebuyers felt this way last year, according to the 2016 J.D. Power US Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study.
The study found that 21% of all homebuyers and 27% of first-time homebuyers regretted their choice of mortgage lender. Discontent fell into two general
A report issued by the Pew Charitable Trusts in July 2015, stated that 80 percent of consumers in the U.S. have some type of debt. With auto loans and student loans both topping $1 trillion and credit card holders dealing with an average of more than $7,500 in debt, many are looking for ways to
The housing market has shown signs of strength recently, but momentum remains elusive. Will this be the year that housing breaks out? Expert opinions vary, but most see a moderating market that will continue to pose a challenge for new homebuyers.
Mortgage rates – Most estimates for mortgage rates suggest the post-election trend of sharply
You have agreed to terms with the seller for your new home, and are now preparing to enter the closing phase. Unfortunately, closing on a house is considerably more complicated than buying a new appliance, or even a car.
The closing process typically takes 30-45 days and requires several preliminary steps before the actual closing
Do you prefer not to do business with banks, even when it comes to your credit card accounts? Your local credit union may be able to help with a credit card that fits your needs perfectly.
Credit union credit cards operate in the same way as those provided by banks. Since credit unions are not-for-profit
With U.S. mortgage rates increasing, homeowners with variable loans will be the most affected at first. The rises will have a ripple effect across the sector, however, because experts expect more increases from the Federal Reserve.
News from the mortgage sector is that average rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage have now reached 4.38 percent
You have found the love of your life, but he or she is dealing with significant debt. The debt issue should be part of the overall financial discussion that every couple has – the smart ones, before they marry; the less-prepared ones as they fight about money that has already been spent.
Finances are a
Figures show that six million Americans are behind on their auto loan payments by at least 90 days. This delinquency is causing concerns for lenders. Researchers from the Federal Reserve Bank say that late payment levels are now at their highest since 2010, and pressure may increase for borrowers to prove their financial circumstances.
The
Many people might believe that to get a good credit score, they need a checking account. For households conducting most of their financial transactions with money orders and prepaid cards, it might seem essential. But financial expert Jeff Richardson says that having a checking account isn’t necessary.
Talking about the myth, Richardson said, “It’s probably
Recent research shows that as banks step back from offering risky loans, non-banking lenders have stepped in to fill the breach. Though banks once ruled the mortgage sector in the U.S, they now have less than a 50 percent share.
According to the latest figures, the amount of mortgage dollars offered by traditional banking institutions
Buying property is one of the largest purchases and biggest financial commitment that most Americans will make. With real estate values rising beyond inflation rates, this has become truer since the late 1990s. For borrowers, it’s important to take control of homeownership, including the costs involved. One of the most important factors lenders look at
A study shows that several people are unaware or unprepared for the reset that will be applied to home equity lines of credit (HELOC) in coming years. Of the 800 homeowners questioned, 43 percent will be affected by the change, with 23 percent admitting that they have no financial plans for handling the reset.
Conducting
The past few years have been tough for prospective homebuyers, with many finding it almost impossible to qualify for mortgages. However, several new programs have come into effect, helping creditworthy borrowers get on the property ladder. Over recent months, things have begun to ease. For example, some new terms now include a down payment of
In May, after calls for tighter payday loan regulations and fines levied against companies for deceptive practices, Google banned all payday loans from its search results. The ban went into effect on July 20, but more than two months later, the ban appears to have had little effect. Ads for payday loans and other high-interest
Federal Chief Judge Gloria Navarro has ordered Scott Tucker and the payday loan companies he owns, including Level 5 Motorsports LLC and AMG Capital Management LLC, to pay the Federal Trade Commission $1.27 billion for misleading customers.
Tucker’s companies routinely deceived those seeking payday loans, stating that they would pay a much lower finance charge.
Federal Judge Margaret M. Sweeney has ruled that the U.S. government acted improperly when it failed to release over 12,000 documents specific documents to investors in Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. These investors sued the government in 2013, following the seizure of profits from the two mortgage companies. Sweeney ordered the government to release the
The Fitch Group has recently released its U.S. RMBS Servicer Handbook for the most recent quarter. The handbook shows that many banks offering mortgages have halved the number of staff in their mortgage servicing departments during the last two years. The decision to downsize these departments is primarily the result of these lenders seeing their
It sounds like a Hollywood script. Thousands of employees at a major financial institution create false accounts in their customers’ names and shuttle money around temporarily to cover their tracks, all to gain larger bonuses and meet sales goals. These employees even go so far as to create fake PINs and contact information for these