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Survey measures stress of holiday credit card debt

With most of it over, we can now look back over the 2011 holidays, and ask: Was it worth it? Of course, spending time with family and friends is priceless, but the season as a whole comes with a big price, not least, for many, paying for it afterwards. Two November surveys revealed just how stressful the financial aspects of the season are to many Americans.

Credit cards taking the strain…

USAAs third annual holiday spending survey found that 48 percent of respondents were going to use their credit cards to buy holiday gifts (up from 42 percent in 2010), but surprisingly few consumers planned to clear their credit card debt immediately. As the organizations press release put it, Older is wiser when it comes to credit card management. T

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Tags: Card Debt, Credit Card, Credit Card Debt, Debt

Trust Deeds are a kind of insolvency, available only to people who live in Scotland. They’re basically a formal agreement between an individual and their unsecured lenders (unsecured debts are things like credit cards and unsecured loans – debts which aren’t secured against property). So a Trust Deed wouldn’t directly affect someone’s agreement with their mortgage lender, for example.

So a Trust Deed is an acknowledgement that the borrower can’t afford to repay their unsecured debts in the way they’d originally agreed to. The terms of the Trust Deed explain how they’ll repay the debt – or a portion of it, at least, since lenders will actually agree to write off the unsecured debt that wasn’t repaid in the time the Trust Deed was running (in most cases, three years) once in comes to successful conclusion.

On their side, the borrower will agree to make regular payments all the way through the Trust Deed. Full Post…

Tags: Trust Deed

Only it’s not a scene from some new blockbuster. This really happened. And It’s still happening.

According to the Wall Street Journal, hedge funds getting what would otherwise be called insider tips from lawmakers is not only legal, but increasingly common.

We avoid using the word “insider trading” here because that term, which refers to the buying or selling of commodities with information the average person couldn’t possibly have, is a punishable crime. For instance, in October, hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam was sentenced to prison for more than a decade after being convicted of bribing high-ranking executive friends for information to guide his trades.

But since 2009, more and more hedge funds have been finding out about Congressional decisions hours before they are publicly announced. Hedge fun

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Tags: Hedge Funds, Insider

Diners Club is a prominent name in the credit card world but not everyone knows how this brand relates to credit cards.

Launched in Australia in 1956, Diners Club is one of the most established and prestigious credit card providers around the world but unlike other independent providers, such as American Express, Diners Club does not offer credit cards through other banks.

In fact, this issuer offers only a select number of cards available for the following different categories:

1. Personal cards
2. Frequent flyer cards
3. Small business cards; and
4. Corporate cards

One of the most appealing things about these credit cards is that they cater for people who do not want to be limited with what they can spend.

Unlike credit cards from banks like ANZ, Citibank and NAB (among others), Diners Club offers no fixed credit limit so that people have flexibility to manage their finances according to what they know they can afford while also catering for changing financial needs.

Diners Club also has a highly competitive rewards program offering shopping vouchers to stores like Myer and David Jones, travel vouchers and an online catalogue of exclusive offers to choose from, so for someone who is good with money and wants more from their credit card, this option is worth considering.

Business Credit Card Options From Diners Club

Where Diners Club really stands out amongst other providers is in the realm of business credit cards, with the Diners Club Business Charge Card specifically developed to meet the needs of small to medium-sized businesses.

As well as no pre-set spending limit, this card offers ATO approved statements and flexible billing periods.

For businesses that want an easier way to prepare their taxes, the credit card statement consolidates monthly expenditure into one clear record and will group charges by expenditure type for easy reconciliation.

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Tags: Card, Credit Card, Diners Club

Credit card debt nightmare to return? by Peter Andrew

Its been a long and painful path, but most of us finally seem to be on top of credit card debt. But have we learned our collective lesson?

Credit card debt problems contained…

Two authoritative reports on card debt have been published in the last week, and both contained their share of cheerful reading. The first, from Fitch Ratings, show that charge-off rates (when credit card companies write off debts as noncollectable and pass them on to collection agencies) remain very low. In the third quarter, they averaged, for the top-seven card issuers, 4.53 percent which was down 363 basis points (bps) year over year. T

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Tags: Card Debt, Card Debt Nightmare, Debt Nightmare, Return

Did you know you can—and should!—be rewarded for using your credit card?

Whether you like the idea of getting free hotel stays, airline miles or cash back, rewards credit cards are where it’s at. But before rushing to apply, follow these steps to make sure you get the best card for you.

With CreditKarma.com, you can check your credit score for free as often as you like. But don’t just stop there. Go through your free credit report card to find out how each factor in your credit score is affecting your overall credit profile.

Check your credit report for errors with AnnualCreditReport.com. The three most common errors are outdated personal information, mistaken or fraudulent accounts and incorrect account details. If you find an error, fix it by following these steps.

Another quick way to improve your credit is to ask for a credit limit increase on one of your current credit cards. If you’

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Tags: Card, Credit Card, Rewards Credit, Rewards Credit Card

Despite the recent economic turmoil and bad image of the financial institutions a new survey shows that only a minority of U.S. citizens feel that their credit card company has treated them unfairly.

According to the survey, conducted by Consumer Report, only about 12% of the consumers surveyed had a negative outlook of their credit card company. The statistics are down from 2010, which showed that 15% of consumers were treated unfairly by their credit card company and down significantly from 22% in 2009.

With an extremely competitive marketplace, credit card companies have also been actively searching out new customers. According to the survey, only 14% of consumers were denied a credit card in 2011, which is significantly down from 24% in 2010.

“We have often pointed out to consumers that this is a great time to find credit card deals and consumers should take advantage of these opportunities,” said Charles Tran, founder of CreditDonkey.

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Tags: Card, Credit Card