Category Archives: Debt
Closing Costs Are a Garbage Heap of Junk Fees
Time marches quickly, and the youngest members of the workforce, most of whom live paycheck to paycheck even if they have a salaried position, hardly remember the housing market crisis of 2008 and the response that followed. The Occupy Wall Street movement of 2012 left two important effects, namely the formation of the Consumer… Read More »
Unfair Denials of Insurance Claims Could Be Making Your Medical Debt Worse
If you still live in Florida after so many hurricanes, you must be a relentless optimist. Therefore, the relentless optimist in you will look at the cost of your health insurance premiums and the amount you still have to pay after your insurance covers its portion and be glad that you have health insurance. … Read More »
Can Artificial Intelligence Help You With Personal Finance?
People depend on devices for almost everything these days. Artificial intelligence algorithms predict which news stories you would be most interested in reading, until you can’t imagine reading anywhere else. When you get into your car, your smartphone guesses where you plan to drive and how long it will take to get there, and… Read More »
FTC Orders Brigit App to Pay Refunds to Customers It Defrauded
Brigit is a personal finance app designed for working people who live paycheck to paycheck. Its “Plus” subscription service promises customers that they can access cash advances of up to $250 anytime they choose. It turned out not to be so simple, and enough customers eventually complained that the FTC issued refunds to customers… Read More »
Are Home Equity Loans Good Debt or Bad Debt?
At this point, any complaint related to homeownership sounds like a humblebrag. Your mortgage payment might be painfully expensive, but at least every payment boosts your credit score and your home equity. You are in a better position than people who pay an equal amount in rent, but the money only enriches the landlord,… Read More »
Can Your Screen Time Habit Be Beneficial to Your Finances?
People who are old enough to remember a time before the Internet became part of everyone’s everyday life will tell you that your device addiction is as bad for your finances as it is for your physical and mental health. Of course, even though you are young enough to be a digital native, you… Read More »
Debt Repayment Can Wait?
Despite what the Internet says, people under 50 aren’t spoiled or entitled. We are just pushed to the limit with stress. The only way we can survive is by focusing on the things that matter at the expense of everything else. We scrambled day and night until we realized that life is too short… Read More »
Is Bankruptcy the Best Solution to Medical Debt?
In more than half of all bankruptcy filings by individuals, the applicants cite medical debt as the main type of debt they are seeking to discharge and the biggest contributor to their financial hardships. Medical debt can strike almost anyone; only the wealthiest people can afford to pay a hospital bill in full when… Read More »
Facing Your Tax Debt After the October 15 Filing Extension Deadline
When you filed for an extension on filing your income tax return back in April, the new deadline, October 15, seemed like a lifetime away. You have been filing for extensions on your tax returns almost every year for as long as you can remember, and every year, you manage to put together the… Read More »
Inside the Underwater Car Loan Epidemic
This month, the CNBC website published more bad news about American consumers and their car loans. We already knew that vehicle prices are beyond almost everyone’s budgets, but good luck getting to work in Florida without a car. Likewise, we already knew that, even when we work around the clock, and our job and… Read More »