- How will the new Dodd-Frank Reform Act help you? From paying interest on checking accounts to free credit scores, the new legislation could offer consumers more protection. The recently launched Consumer Finance Protection Bureau will take over consumer dispute duties and perhaps they’ll be more aggressive in protecting consumers when it comes to credit and lending. Read more on the top ways the Dodd-Frank Reform can benefit you.
- Mortgage rates have dropped but before you jump on that refi, understand the costs and benefits of securing a lower interest rate. Read more.
- Handling collection calls on a deceased person’s debts. Before you divulge any information to a debt collector, you may want to read a simple script of questions YOU should be asking HIM. You may or may not be responsible for the debt and its important to know the facts. Were you on the account, only an authorized user, who last paid? Read more on the collections call script.Expanding further on the deceased debts issue, the FTC has laid out new guidelines which go into effect next month. Among the rules and broader explanations are exactly what the rights of family members and friends are who may be contacted by a debt collector looking to collect a debt for a deceased person. While state laws vary, and other circumstances may apply, the new guidelines implemented by the FTC should make the rights and rules clearer for consumers. Read the new guidelines here (opens in PDF).
Not sure what the new CFPB is? The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau is your new “go to man” for credit and lending protection, complaints and information. The newly launched bureau is set to offer a much wider range of protection for consumers especially when it comes to complaints about the credit industry. Read more about what the new CFPB can do for you.
