The Latest Breaking News from CFPB

8 Purchases Wealthy People Pay Cash For—And the Interest Math That Explains Why

People with substantial wealth do not automatically avoid loans. They often use credit strategically, especially when borrowing costs stay low or the money can remain invested. But some purchases make a very different kind of sense when the buyer can simply write the check, transfer the money, or pay the…

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 25

Your Credit Score Went Up—And That’s Exactly When Lenders Get You to Borrow Badly

A higher credit score can make borrowing cheaper and easier. It can also make borrowing harder to resist.

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 25

Job Worries Are Rising: How Many Months of Cash You Need Before Severance and Unemployment Kick In

A job loss can create a strange financial gap: the paycheck stops before the replacement money starts. Severance might arrive quickly, slowly, or not at all, while unemployment benefits follow rules that vary by state.

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 24

The Debt Husbands Forget to Mention—Until the Joint Mortgage Credit Pull Kills Your Rate

A joint mortgage application puts both spouses’ finances under the lender’s microscope, including debts one spouse may have neglected to mention. That credit pull can reveal credit-card balances, auto loans, student debt, missed payments, and other obligations that can change how a lender evaluates the application.

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 23

The “Safe Account” Call: Banks Never Ask You to Move Money — and Wire Losses Are Rarely Refunded

The caller ID shows your bank’s name, and the person on the phone already seems to know something about your account. There’s supposedly suspicious activity...

Saving Advice · Sep 22

What Happens If an Adult Child Keeps Using a Parent’s Credit Card After They Die?

Your mother dies on Monday, but her credit card is still sitting in your wallet because she made you an authorized user years ago. On...

Saving Advice · Sep 22

A Charge From a Company You’ve Never Heard Of Appears on the Card — What Should Happen Next?

A company name you do not recognize appears on a credit card statement, and suddenly a routine account check becomes detective work. The unfamiliar name might represent a legitimate purchase under a different business name, a subscription that slipped from memory, or a transaction nobody authorized.

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 22

Could the Website You Use to Pay a Bill Be a Middleman? The FTC Says It Has Happened

You type the name of your utility company into a search engine, click what looks like the right result, enter your account information, and pay...

Saving Advice · Sep 21

What Happens to a Car Loan When the Owner Dies?

When someone dies with a car sitting in the driveway and $12,000 still owed on it, the family may assume one of two things: the...

Saving Advice · Sep 21

Carrying a Small Credit Card Balance Won’t Improve a Credit Score

Carrying a small credit card balance from one month to the next will not improve a credit score. You can use a card, have activity reported to the credit bureaus, and build a positive payment history without deliberately leaving debt unpaid.

The Free Financial Advisor · Sep 21