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More Americans Falling Behind on Loans

Balances surge on bank credit-cards as Americans struggle to pay bills

(Newser) - Delinquencies on consumer and home-equity loans rose in the first quarter as unemployed Americans struggled to pay their bills, the Wall Street Journal reports. The number of borrowers at least 30 days late on their consumer loans, which include auto loans, rose slightly to 3.23% from the previous quarter....

Citi Jacks Up Card Rates on Millions of Accounts

(Newser) - As many Citigroup customers are already painfully aware, the lender has drastically increased rates on some 15 million credit card accounts, the Financial Times reports. Holders of Citi cards co-branded with retailers such as Sears saw their interest rates climb by as much as 24%—or 3 percentage points—between...

Credit Card Firms Cut Deals With Delinquents

Newly relaxed policies allow firms to settle for portion of debt

(Newser) - With countless customers running behind on payments, credit card companies are taking it easy on delinquents, letting them off the hook in exchange for partial repayments, the New York Times reports. The firms began easing up on their previous policies last fall, experts say; now they’re letting frontline workers...

Cities Saddled With the Most Credit Card Debt

Florida, California have credit problem, Forbes shows

(Newser) - The recession has many Americans tightening their belts, but some just can’t seem to put away the plastic. Forbes checked in with Equifax and compiled a list of the country's most credit card-happy cities. Conclusion? Florida might have a problem.
  1. Miami: Average household credit card debt: $9,797, or
...

Credit Scores Plunge as Consumers Twist in Wind

Average drops 6 points, likely to fall further

(Newser) - Consumers are caught in the credit crunch, and their scores are starting to show it, USA Today reports. The average TransUnion credit score fell 6 points between the third quarter of 2008 and the first of 2009, and the group’s financial services director expects it to fall even more...

Obama Signs Credit Card Bill Into Law

Prez 'has ushered in a new era' of consumer protections: Dodd

(Newser) - President Obama signed a landmark bill into law today limiting the fees and interest rates credit card companies can impose, the Washington Post reports. "Just as we demand credit card users act responsibly, we demand that credit card companies act responsibly too," said Obama at the Rose Garden...

New Credit Card Rules Could Trim $10B From Industry Coffers

Law dials back crucial fees, interest rates

(Newser) - A law President Obama is expected to sign today bringing new consumer-friendly rules on credit cards could cost the industry $10 billion in revenue, the Wall Street Journal reports. The legislation, which dials back various fees and interest rates, will devastate companies that target consumers with checkered credit histories and...

House OKs Credit Card Bill; Obama Up Next

(Newser) - Congress has sent President Obama a bill with sweeping new rules for the credit-card industry that will affect just about every American. The House approved the measure this afternoon, 361-64. The Senate OK'd it yesterday, 90-5. The new restrictions will protect debt-ridden consumers from many of the surprise charges common...

Senate Passes Credit-Card Bill
Senate Passes Credit-Card Bill
May 19, 2009 12:54 PM CDT

Senate Passes Credit-Card Bill

Measure to rein in rates, fees moves to House; Obama could get it by week's end

(Newser) - The Senate voted today to prohibit credit-card companies from arbitrarily raising an individual's interest rate and charging many of the exorbitant fees. The vote was 90-5. With the House on track to endorse the measure by week's end, President Obama could see a bill on his desk by the end...

Credit Card Companies Cut Perks for Good Customers

(Newser) - With revenues from high-risk cardholders dwindling, credit card companies are moving to impose stiffer fees on customers who've been accustomed to preferential treatment, the New York Times reports. Expect banks to bring back annual fees and slash reward programs, say industry insiders. And card holders who pay off their entire...

Obama Wants Credit Card Relief Bill by Memorial Day

(Newser) - Putting himself on the side of fuming consumers, President Obama is pushing for Congress to send him legislation by Memorial Day that would immediately reign in the credit card industry, he said in his radio address this morning. The House has passed a bill banning several predatory practices, but it...

House Approves Credit Card Reform

(Newser) - The House today approved legislation to protect credit card holders from hidden fees and sudden rate hikes, Reuters reports. Legislators voted overwhelmingly for the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights, a measure banks complain will tighten the amount of credit available and make holding a card more expensive. The Senate is...

Debit Cards Overtake Credit

 Debit Cards Overtake Credit 
Apr 30, 2009 8:35 AM CDT

Debit Cards Overtake Credit

A surge in debit-card usage reflects a shift from the days of easy credit

(Newser) - The recession has boosted the popularity of debit cards, the Wall Street Journal reports. In the last quarter of 2008, debit-card transactions processed by Visa were 50.4% of the company’s volume, surpassing credit cards for the first time. Rival MasterCard’s debit volume surged 13% last year as...

Obama Pledges Credit Card Reform
Obama Pledges
Credit Card Reform
Apr 23, 2009 2:44 PM CDT

Obama Pledges Credit Card Reform

Obama backs House bill limiting 'deceptive' practices

(Newser) - President Obama told senior executives of credit-card firms today that he supports congressional efforts to rein in some of their business practices, the Washington Post reports. Both the House and Senate are working on bills to codify new regulations by the Fed that restrict lenders’ ability to arbitrarily raise interest...

Schumer Wants Faster Action on Credit Cards

Rules on deceptive practices don't take effect until 2010

(Newser) - Sen. Chuck Schumer is putting pressure on the Fed and the Office of Thrift Supervision to enact restrictions on the business practices of credit card firms more quickly, the New York Daily News reports. The agencies have drafted new rules banning deceptive practices like hidden fees and retroactive rate hikes,...

White House Targets Credit Card Chicanery

Issuers coming under pressure to halt unfair, misleading practices

(Newser) - The Obama administration is throwing its weight behind congressional efforts to crack down on credit card companies, the Wall Street Journal reports. Lawmakers are pushing legislation to ban practices like arbitrarily raising interest rates on existing balances and the president is expected to take a hard line on the issue...

Debt Settlers Promise Relief, Provide Little

Cash-strapped consumers claim companies charge fees without reducing debt

(Newser) - State attorneys general are being overwhelmed with complaints about “debt settlement” companies that promise consumers relief from mounting bills but rarely deliver, the New York Times reports. The number of such companies, which often collect fees of 15% of the total debt to negotiate with creditors, has tripled in...

Credit Card Debt Spikes on Campus

(Newser) - College students in 2008 carried an average of $3,173 in credit card debt, a huge jump from 4 years earlier, USA Today reports. A Sallie Mae study, when conducted in 2004, revealed an average balance of just $2,169. When students “can’t get private loans, they turn...

Poll: Few Plan Splurges With Tax Refunds

More people than ever are just paying off bills

(Newser) - Taxpayers’ refund checks are starting to arrive, but this year the economy might not see much of a boost from that money, an AP poll finds. More people are planning to spend their refunds in some way, but 54% say they’ll pay off existing bills rather than go on...

Fee Hikes at Bailed-Out Banks Spur Investigation

Interest rates as high as 30% raise questions about program's effectiveness

(Newser) - Congressional overseers of the TARP program are investigating the lending practices of several of the banks they bailed out in response to complaints that the banks are raising interest rates and fees, the Wall Street Journal reports. Despite receiving billions in taxpayer dollars, Bank of America last week nearly doubled...

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