June 2009

Consumers Opt For Debit Over Credit Cards (NPR)

Americans are now spending more money with debit cards than with credit cards, but the fraud protections for the two types of cards aren’t necessarily the same. Some consumer advocates say they should be.

Settling credit card debt :Paying only part of the debt has repercussions; check other options first. (South Bend Tribune)

NEW YORK — Pay a fraction of what you owe, walk away debt-free.

Reviving credit score takes time (The Columbus Dispatch)

Dear Debt Adviser: I am a single, 47-year-old female in the process of repairing my credit. I have bankruptcy in my history, from about five or six years ago. I have a 403(b) for retirement but no other savings. I make about $90,000 a year, and I continue to pay rent and on my debt.

UPDATE: Responding to McClatchy Debt Swap, Credit-Rater Raises Bankruptcy Specter (Editor & Publisher)

CHICAGO Reaffirming its belief that The McClatchy Co. has “an untenable capital structure” of large debt and shrinking revenue, Fitch Ratings on Friday downgraded the credit rating of the nation’s third-largest chain, and noted pointedly that other debt-encumbered newspaper companies are now iin bankruptcy protection.

Credit Markets: Junk debt in distress eases, S&P says (Market Watch)

Signaling some improvement in credit markets, the amount of speculative-grade bonds carrying yields deemed extremely high compared to Treasurys has declined to the lowest level seen during 2009, according to a Standard & Poor’s analysis.

Credit counselors help locals defeat debt (The Carrollton Leader)

It was a television commercial that set Dedra Coldiron on the path to debt freedom five years ago. “I was going through a divorce and I found myself stuck with all the debt. I had a perfect credit score from before,” said Coldiron, who recently moved from Carrollton to Flower Mound.

Settling your credit card debt: the ins and outs (Houston Chronicle)

Pay a fraction of what you owe, walk away debt-free. If the premise of credit card debt settlement sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is.

Settling With Credit Firms Can Cut Debt – at a Cost (The Lakeland Ledger)

By CANDICE CHOI The Associated Press Pay a fraction of what you owe, walk away debt-free. If the premise of credit card debt settlement sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is.

Settling credit card debt for less than owed not always good deal (The Desert Sun)

Debt settlement is when a cardholder agrees to pay a portion of a balance in exchange for the remainder of the debt being forgiven. The benefit for card companies is that they salvage at least part of a debt that otherwise could go uncollected.

Rep. Steve Scalise has big credit card debt, data show (New Orleans Times-Picayune)

Rusty Costanza / The Times-PicayuneRep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, waves to a crowd gathered at a Metairine restaurant in April 2008. Scalise, a touter of fiscal discipline, has big credit card debt. WASHINGTON — Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, an ardent advocate…

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