You should be a millionaire. Seriously. Considering the fact that there are actually millions of millionaires in the United States, it stands to reason that they can’t all be the lottery winners, athletes and heiresses that we think about when we hear the term. Truth be told, a million dollars isn’t what it used to …
When Credit Is Safer Than Debit
Credit cards are evil! Cut them up! Burn them! Freeze them! (In water, literally.) The standard advice for people looking to get out of debt has always been anti credit card in a radical, fundamentalist way. But that ignores some of the real benefits of using credit cards as well as failing to point out …
Don’t Worry Get Scrappy
If you have more time than money then you need to consider more ways to be productive and make some extra cash to pay off debt. And it’s best when you can set your own hours, make a significant amount and stay within the confines of the law. If you have a vehicle with decent …
SavvyMoney Wants You to Be Debt Free
There’s no shortage of websites devoted to helping you manage your finances and get out of debt. The good news is that we catalog them as fast as we hear about them, and you can judge which (if any) have a sales pitch that you find appealing. The newest entrant is SavvyMoney. SavvyMoney keeps track …
Can You Live Without Cable?
To get out of debt you need to find every possible way to spend less money every month and use the savings to pay off debt. That means making sacrifices that you didn’t when you were piling on the debt. Unfortunately, in America we consider a high-def signal and 300 channels to be a right …
Get Out of Debt By Being a Jerk
It’s not quite that simple, but new research from University of California, Berkeley shows that wealthy folks aren’t as ethical as the rest of us. Using a variety of tests (e.g. measuring how often drivers of luxury cars cut off people compared to other drivers) they found a clear correlation between wealth and rude, immoral, …
Government Targets Debt Collectors, Credit Bureaus
A new draft rule proposed today would allow the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to supervise the largest consumer credit reporting agencies and debt collection companies in the same manner that the government supervises big banks. The director of the agency, Richard Cordray, issued a statement explaining the move, which is by most accounts the most …
Prepaid Debit Cards May Be a Good Play
Prepaid debit cards are hot right now, with all manner of celebrities attaching their name to what can often be a very questionable financial product. But despite the bad rap that prepaid debit cards have, they do serve a purpose for people who want to stop being debt broke and get out of credit card …
Feds Fine Naughty Debt Collector Millions
Score one for the good guys. The Federal Trade Commission is responsible for making sure that debt collection agencies obey the rule of law and not threaten or harass borrowers. Illegal and unfair activity by these firms contribute to the emotional toll of debt. But every so often the government makes the shady crooks pay. The …
Infographic: How to Boost Your Credit Score
As you already know (if only from those annoying commercials) your credit score can be a ticket to the good life of low interest rates and fast cash or the hell of crummy apartments and public transportation. But how do you take your score to the frothy heights of Equifaxian ecstasy? Look at this infographic …