Years ago, I learned a lesson I won’t have to learn again. It was that poignant. It was during a time when mortgage interest rates took a nosedive and we benefited by refinancing our high-rate mortgage. The transaction closed in late August with the first payment due in October. Rather than take a month off…

One of the easiest ways to get money when you need it right away is to get a payday loan. These loans are available in most places—and online—and they usually advertise how easy it would be to get one. A huge problem with these loans is that they often become debt traps for borrowers. Payday…

On May 1, First Republic Bank became the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history. Its failure is second to Washington Mutual (2008) and just ahead of Silicon Valley Bank recently. The result was another disruption in the banking industry. Trouble was on the rise in February 2023 when First Republic’s shares had a 98 percent…

During the 13 years it took for my husband and me to get out the horrible debt mess of my creation, I learned how important it is to deal with mistakes as they happen so they don’t morph into major setbacks. No one is perfect. You’re going to make mistakes, and when you do, you…

During a speech today for the 2023 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group in Washington, IMF director Kristalina Georgieva acknowledged that Africa is facing a “tremendous financial crunch” and is “being held back by unsustainable debt built over the years.” However, her solution to the problem is not…

Homebuyers shopping for a house in the current market can only daydream about the rock-bottom mortgage rates that were available during the peak of the pandemic. The latest Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index reveals that merely 17% of the general public considers it a favorable time to purchase a house. This is likely due…

One of the best things you can do for your finances is to have a good credit score. Having a good score will help you get some good deals on credit, but the best deals come to those with credit scores of 800 or more. Along with it, you can enjoy the 800 credit score…

Carvana Co. has adopted a “poison pill” to limit shareholders from raising their stakes and has reached an agreement to sell up to $4 billion of auto loans, the struggling used car retailer said on Tuesday. The company’s shares gained 6.5 percent to $7.47 in afternoon trade. Ally Bank and Ally Financial will buy the…

Book a flight or hotel room now, and pay it off later? It’s an increasingly common trend in travel spending. Companies like American Airlines, United Airlines and vacation rental website Vacasa now offer the option to make reservations now and pay it back incrementally over time with “buy now, pay later” services. Between 2020 and…

Commentary The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) cut the required reserve ratio (RRR) by 25 basis points (bps) for all financial institutions. The mouthpiece claimed a release of 500 billion yuan (or over 70 billion U.S. dollars) in just one cut, but if this had been the case, then the trillion-debt crisis would have been…