Banking Rates, CDs, Mortgages

Just a week after the President of the United States Barack Obama and the United States Congress have put forth a suggestion to slash federal aid and grants provided to cities a study reported that cities are the actual economic drivers of the country. In 47 out of 50 states, cities are responsible for the lion’s share in the total economic output of the states. The study was released by the Brookings Institution think tank.

The suggestion of cutting grants to cities is part of the ongoing attempt to reduce the federal deficit of the United States which has been projected to go above $ 1.6 Trillion in 2011. T

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When traveling, I do my best to stay in the cheapest hotel possible. As long as it has a bed and a bathroom, that’s all I need to be comfortable.

I understand, though, that many travelers enjoy a more polished hotel experience.

Names like Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt are synonymous with class, comfort and overall satisfaction. And each of these chains has developed its own rewards credit card for loyal customers.

If you stay at hotels often, these cards are great options for perks and free nights. <

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Europe’s ministers fear for a potential flare up in the Euro debt crisis when meeting next Monday as an increasing number of investors worry that they might not come up with an ample solution to the current economic decline.

Chief finance ministers from the 17 Euro nations are traveling to Brussels for an afternoon meeting. T

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Nothing says “I love you” like a prenuptial agreement, right? Maybe not. While a valuable legal agreement can protect your savings account and investments, some people actually view the prenup as a dealbreaker–the desire for one can be interpreted as lack of trust on the part of whomever requests it. So it can be pretty difficult to convince a potential spouse that having a prenup is a good idea when they have this attitude.

On the other hand, many couples consider signing a prenup to be just as important in preparing for marriage as reserving the church and registering for gifts. But w

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USAA Bank continues to push for their mid-term certificate of deposit offerings which have very attractive interest rates. We will focus on money in the bank super jumbo certificates which have terms of three years or shorter since these offers the best interest rates:

3 years 2.10% APY

30 months 1.91% APY

2 years 1.75% APY

18 months 1.65% APY

15 months 1.45% APY

To enjoy the top cd rates, the super jumbo CD requires a minimum depost of $175,000.

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Credit card usage has increased dramatically over the past two decades and lending institutions that issue credit cards have seen their profits soar into billions of dollars each year.  A great deal of the money earned by these lending institutions is from fees levied against accounts due to mismanagement by the account holder.  There are a number of actions that can trigger these fees, but knowing how to avoid them will keep your interest rate down and your payments manageable.

Late Payment Fees

Late payment fees are charged against a credit card account when the minimum payment due on the account is not paid by the due date on the credit card statement.  The fee for not making this payment in a timely manner can be as high as $35 and the fee will be charged each time a payment is not received on time.  To avoid late payment fees, your credit card bill should be paid as soon as you receive it.  This way, you will not risk forgetting the due date or mailing the payment late.

Interest Fees

Interest is charged to credit card accounts every month based on the balance of the account and the interest rate assigned to the account.  These interest payments can be avoided altogether if the balance of the credit card is paid in full every month.  A grace period of around 30 days is typically given to pay off new purchases without incurring any interest charges from the credit card company.

Overlimit Fees

Overlimit fees are added to the balance of the credit card account when a person charges more than the amount of credit available to the credit card.  This typically occurs when the person is getting close to the credit limit and makes a purchase or has an annual fee posted to the account that pushes them over the established limit.  The fee charged can be as much as $35 per transaction over the limit.  Avoiding this fee can be as simple as only using your credit card for emergencies and paying cash for everything else.

Unfortunately, more and more people are feeling financially squeezed, as government cuts, rising VAT and high street prices all impact upon the average family’s disposable income. Many people are struggling to live on their monthly earnings and levels of credit card debt are soaring. While spending on a credit card you cannot pay off in full each month is not a good idea, there are ways to ‘cheat’ the system by extending that interest free period so you are essentially only paying off what you have spent on the card. It is

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One of the biggest arguments in paying down credit card debt centers around the order that you should use when paying off your credit cards. Most personal finance experts agree that you should use a specific method of debt payment. This method of debt pay down involves ordering your debts, and then figuring out how much you can pay on top of the minimum. Then, you take that amount of money, and apply it to one credit card.

Photo: Shawanziea

If you have a credit card with a minimum payment of $25, and you can afford to pay an extra $200 a month, your payment on that card becomes $225.

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