News

2010

June

26

• Foreclosure alternative gaining favor. Short sales have been the hot solution for financially stressed homeowners and their lenders for the past year, but here's another potent foreclosure alternative that's about to take center stage: deeds in lieu. Some of…

25

• Financial Reform spells a win for consumers. The U.S. House and Senate conference committee passed a final bill today that includes a bureau devoted exclusively to consumer financial protection. “Consumer Action has long supported a consumer financial watchdog that has both the…

• Banks can relieve mortgage crisis by giving homeowners a break. At what point do banks finally throw in the towel and accept that they've got to reduce people's mortgages if they want to ease the foreclosure crisis? A record 1 out of every 10 homeowners…

24

• Big job looms for new consumer protection agency. When he took charge of the new Environmental Protection Agency in December 1970, William Ruckelshaus wasted no time flexing his muscle and clobbering polluters. Nine days after the EPA opened its doors, the Republican official…

• Fannie Mae gets tough on homeowners who walk away. Taking aim at homeowners who are able to pay their mortgage but decide it's not worth it, Fannie Mae plans to go after them in court and to limit their access to home loans for…

22

• More dropouts in mortgage relief program. The Obama administration's marquee foreclosure-prevention initiative continues to struggle, as government data released Monday show that fewer homeowners are enrolling in the program and more are losing their federal mortgage aid. Lenders enrolled homeowners into…

• Thorny issues remain in financial overhaul. One evening late last week, as House and Senate negotiators wound down another marathon session hammering out details of a massive financial regulatory overhaul, Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) uttered what almost everyone else in…

20

• Cost of Fannie/Freddie keeps soaring for taxpayers. CASA GRANDE, Ariz. — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac took over a foreclosed home roughly every 90 seconds during the first three months of the year. They owned 163,828 houses at the end of March,…

19

• Credit unions beckoning with open arms. Everyone can join a credit union, but not everyone can join any credit union. This turns out to be a source of much confusion for consumers looking for a better checking account, a more generous…

• Reverse mortgage holders could lose homes if taxes aren't paid. Here's a sobering message for anyone who has a federally insured reverse mortgage or plans to apply for one: If you don't pay your local property taxes or hazard-insurance premiums, the risk of losing your…

17

• Consumer Action Anniversary and Awards. To mark its 39th year of education and advocacy, Consumer Action celebrates today with a party and awards ceremony in San Francisco.

16

• Lenders go after money lost in foreclosures. After the bank foreclosed on Fernando Palacios's Gainesville home in March, he thought he was done with what he described as the most stressful financial situation of his life. The bank sold the home for…

14

• Key issues as Congress finalizes financial reform. From big banks' exotic trades to the credit cards in people's wallets, it only takes a few of the most contentious issues to upend a careful political equilibrium as lawmakers try to blend House and…

• Financial-reform fight draws quirky crowd of lobbyists. Wall Street banks and financial services companies are hardly the only ones fretting provisions of the financial-reform legislation now awaiting House and Senate negotiators. Indian tribes, the Envelope Manufacturers Association and hip-hop impresario Russell Simmons…

13

• Vigilance is key to protecting your credit. If you're even slightly concerned about the privacy of your personal information, Jim Stickley is your worst nightmare. The chief technology officer of TraceSecurity, a risk management firm based in Louisiana, breaks into banks and…

• Study says math deficiencies increase foreclosure risk. If you can’t divide 300 by 2, should you qualify for a loan? That is one of the questions raised by a new study led by a Columbia University assistant business professor, Stephan Meier, who…

12

• Confusion over estate tax keeps advisors busy. The disappearance of the federal estate tax this year has created confusion and frustration among the wealthy, even among those who stand to benefit from it. And this has sent them in droves to amend…

11

• Lawmakers consider home tax credit extension. Homebuyers may get an extra three months to finish qualifying for federal tax incentives that boosted home sales this spring. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Thursday he wants to give buyers until Sept.…

10

• FTC wins Countrywide settlement, but celebrates too early. It's an all-too-familiar Washington story. Officials call a news conference to pat themselves on the back for righting a wrong they shouldn't have allowed in the first place. Meanwhile, the hapless victims are left to…

08

• Debt-settlement companies draw increasing criticism. The ads are ubiquitous, and for consumers awash in debt, nearly impossible to ignore: Reduce your credit card bills 50%! Avoid bankruptcy! The relief is real! Behind the ads is a fast-growing industry that barely…