Rate Jacking is a popular new term to describe the latest in a long line of unsavory business practices initiated by the credit card industry against consumers. Rate jacking is a sudden and dramatic jump in the interest rate on your credit card. The change in rate may be for no reason at all, or what many would consider to be a very flimsy reason. For example, if you have two cards and are late on one, you may have your rate raised on both cards if they are from the same issuer. Tens of thousands are reporting that with... Read more →

Several weeks ago, a friend of mine shared with me that he had purchased plane tickets for his family to fly up north during the Christmas holidays. He went on to explain how his wife had “refared” their tickets several times and as a result they had earned a substantial credit with the airline for future travel. What is refaring? The idea is simple; if you purchase a plane ticket in advance and find out later that the price of the ticket has been reduced, you can get a refund or a credit for the price difference. While there is... Read more →

I will spare you a lecture about why you should not borrow from your retirement plan. You know it is money set aside for your retirement, and you are an adult. Last year, 18% of retirement plan participants borrowed from their accounts. It is widely expected that the figures this year will be considerably higher once 2008 statistics are available. If you have run out of options, and are considering making the move to tap into your retirement funds, today’s blog is an overview of the process and how to avoid the pitfalls. The Basics Of Borrowing From Your Company... Read more →

On February 17, 2009 over-the-air television stations will be converting their analog signal to a digital signal. If you get your television signal through cable or satellite, you should not be affected at all by this change. If you are watching an analog television that is getting its signal through an antenna, you will not be able to pick up your local TV stations as of February 17. There are still about 15 million homes in America that do not have cable or satellite. But there is an unknown number of homes that may have cable or satellite on their... Read more →