News

2008

November

03

• FCC could free up 'white space' for broadband. You've heard of Wi-Fi, WiMax and 3G wireless technologies. Add another (oddly named) wireless creation to the list: white space. White space is industry lingo for the unused airwaves that abut TV spectrum and provide…

• Huge shifts in bank deposits. The exodus of money from the stock market and troubled banks is reshaping the financial industry as quickly as any government bailout. Amid unrelenting economic turmoil, investors are pulling billions of dollars out of the…

• La crisis golpea a los ancianos. La crisis económica que vive Estados Unidos tiene un gran impacto en la población anciana, cuya situación, ya de por sí difícil, se agrava al tener que usar sus ingresos para pagar el alquiler, comprar…

• Compra sin dejar de ahorrar. ¿Te imaginas qué bueno sería ir poniendo desde ahora dinero en el nido que guardas para los estudios de tus hijos... cada vez que compras? Eso te lo ofrecen tres programas espectaculares que ya tienen…

02

• Mutual fund managers have to say, I'm Sorry. Being a stock market fund manager or strategist these days means always having to say you're sorry. Unlike other apologies, this is a special art form. When stock managers or strategists say they are sorry,…

• Shouldn't have to show 'em no stinkin' SSNs. For 43 trouble-free years, John Murray never left home without his American Express card. The retired data coordinator dutifully paid an annual fee every year and diligently paid his balance in full every month. When…

• Beware promises to scrub bad credit reports. With foreclosures, short sales and credit card defaults at record levels, an aggressive breed of firms has sprung up offering to power-wash consumers' damaged credit files and boost credit scores, thereby eliminating records of bankruptcies…

• 10 ways to protect your home investment. You flip the switch and the heat goes on. You make your mortgage payments and your lender is not threatening you. So all's right with the house. Or not. The furnace needs professional maintenance to…

• Women pay a premium on health insurance. Striking new evidence has emerged of a widespread gap in the cost of health insurance, as women pay much more than men of the same age for individual insurance policies providing identical coverage, according to…

• Opening the tap on home equity. Many homeowners who have taken out home equity lines of credit have learned in recent months that these loans are not as useful as they initially seemed. Lenders are struggling to minimize risk, and because…

01

• Home improvement shows skip drudgery. Thea Rudland knows how hard it can be to buy and sell a house, no matter what you see on television. She and her husband, Dave, closed on their new home in Frederick in late…

October

31

• Banks seek help to forgive some credit card debt. To head off surging credit card defaults, banks and consumer groups are lobbying regulators to make it easier to forgive a portion of struggling consumers' credit card debt. The proposal — and the unusual partnership…

30

• Groups seek credit card debt forgiveness. An alliance of financial industry interests and consumer advocates on Wednesday asked federal regulators to allow lenders to reduce by as much as 40 percent the amount of credit card debt owed by deeply indebted…

• Your credit card may be re-evaluating you. Don't throw out that letter from your credit card company. It may be notifying you of a reeled in credit line, interest rate hike or even an account closure. Read carefully any letters from your…

• Congratulations! You've just been ripped off. Imagine getting a letter from Publishers Clearinghouse that says you’ve won a million dollars. You might be so excited you wouldn’t even question if it’s legitimate. Con artists are counting on that. They’re sending these…

• Cutting the cost of child care. After the mortgage, child care is the biggest expense in most family budgets. And in the face of job losses, belt tightening and economic uncertainty, parents are looking for ways to reduce what they spend…

• College tuition could rise sharply. A report released Wednesday by the College Board showed that the average price of attending college rose nearly 6% this fall, but education officials warned that the widening economic crisis might push tuition bills sharply…

• Federal government may back revised mortgages. Federal officials moved closer Wednesday to guaranteeing as much as $500 billion in mortgages after they are modified to make them more affordable to homeowners, part of the multifront battle to resuscitate the country's flagging…

• Cuentas claras, amistades largas. La economía está difícil y a todos nos ha tocado apretarnos el cinturón y cuidar la billetera. A muchos les han recortado horas de trabajo, otros han caído en la fila de desempleados y hay…

29

• Poll finds consumers concerned about credit in current economy (Most Americans want to avoid taking on new debt in next 12 months, study says). A new poll released today by Consumer Action finds that consumers are beginning to feel strain in the current economy, and that many are changing how they use and plan to use credit.