Bank of America Next Wikileak Target?

Archive for November, 2010

Bank of America Next Wikileak Target?

Tuesday, November 30th, 2010 | Comments Off

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange recently said he was soon going to release thousands of documents from a major US bank that will reveal the corruption style thinking prevalent in the offices of these giant financial institutitons. Reporters everywhere have wondered what bank this might be. However, in an interview last year Assange revealed that he […]

The Kardashians Sever Their Ties With Expensive Debit Card

Monday, November 29th, 2010 | Comments Off

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal announced that the Kardashians have severed ties with a bank that promoted a high-fee, prepaid debit card featuring their image. As we had earlier reported, Blumenthal also agreed with our analysis that the Kardashian Prepaid MasterCard had “outrageous” fees of all types. He also complained that the Kardashian Kard and […]

Switching to a New California Bank Account

Monday, November 29th, 2010 | Comments Off

People often put off switching to a new California bank because it seems like a chore. They know the new CA bank has better interest rates, no cost checking, great CD rates, and even better loans, but they put off the big switch. Perhaps the biggest thing is turning off the automatic transactions and getting […]

Your Credit Score

Friday, November 26th, 2010 | Comments Off

In terms of personal finance, a bad credit score can cost you thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars in your lifetime. Sometimes just one missed payment will knock 100 points off your score, which is used to determine the interest rate you get on loans. A high credit score means the best interest rates […]

True Confessions of an Honest Realtor

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010 | Comments Off

We don’t see a rebound in the real estate market for at least five more years. You have high unemployment, a recession, wage pressure, and people not qualifying for loans despite record low interest rates and the FED stuffing the banks with money (banks won’t lend to you). At the same time you currently have […]

Orange County Housing Prices Sink, Sales Drop

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010 | Comments Off

According to MDA DataQuick, the median price of an Orange County home dropped to $438,000 last month. The median price of an Orange County condo fell 11.7% from last year’s levels to $280,000, while the median price of a newly built home decreased 1.1%. Approximately 2,298 Orange County homes were sold in October, which is […]

ATM Machines Take a Bite Out of Your Budget

Monday, November 22nd, 2010 | Comments Off

Our Frugal Finance editor has a bit of advice for these had times: keep enough cash onhand that you don’t need to withdraw money at another bank’s ATM machine. Why all the fuss? On average, your bank will charge you around $1.32 to use another institution’s ATM, according to a Bankrate.com survey in 2009. Furthermore, […]

Turning Credit Cards into a Savings Mechanism

Sunday, November 21st, 2010 | Comments Off

If you carry a balance on your credit cards, you might want to look into PenFed’s Promise Visa or CapitalOne’s Platinum Prestige card. The PenFed’s Promise Visa has a one-time joining fee of $20 and charges annual percentage rates between 7% to 9%. CapitalOne’s Platinum Prestige card has no fees and an annual-percentage rate of […]

These California Cities Are Teeming With Underwater Mortgages

Friday, November 19th, 2010 | Comments Off

Zillow reports that 23% of mortgages are now underwater, meaning 23% of all home mortgages now have negative equity. When this happens, home owners often decide to simply get up and walk away, saying it is not worth continuing to pay for a home that has dropped so much in value. When people stop paying […]

The Kim Kardashian Prepaid MasterCard Debit Card

Thursday, November 18th, 2010 | Comments Off

What will they do next? Reality star Kim Kardashian has launched a new credit card called the “The Kardashian Kard. ” This is a prepaid credit card that seems aimed at youth because they cannot yet be approved for credit cards. In terms of card characteristics, it costs between $60 and $100 to activate the […]

Archive for November, 2010