In 2019, $28 might be enough to cover a fancy steak dinner, a haircut, a pile of lottery tickets — or, if you’re not careful, a first-time late fee on your credit card bill. Starting Jan. 1, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will nudge up the permissible maximums for credit card late fees by … Continued
When you’re struggling financially, keeping up with your student loan payments might feel like you’re stuck on a runaway train — and student loan forbearance, which allows you to pause these payments temporarily, might look like a soft landing. But watch out: Although forbearance is undeniably quick and easy to set up, its high costs … Continued
It’s a dilemma many 20-somethings face: You badly want to travel the world. But if your bank account could talk, it would say, “Are you kidding?” When you’re just starting out, even a weeklong vacation might seem like a one-way ticket to credit card debt — especially if you have a modest income or lack … Continued
Getting your first credit card is like moving into your first apartment: It’s exciting, empowering — and, once you get used to it, pretty underwhelming. Your first time out, “you’re not going to have a credit card that is going to have a high limit,” says Paul Golden, spokesman for the National Endowment for Financial Education. … Continued
In college, establishing credit felt about as pressing as an optional homework assignment. But now that you’ve graduated, it’s suddenly at the top of your summer to-do list, with a deadline of ASAP. And for good reason. Good credit is your ticket to an easier and more affordable postgrad life. It could help you qualify … Continued
When first-time renter Angelica Fattu-Logan, 20, started applying for apartments, she braced for rejection. But those rejections never came — in part because she had good credit. “I applied to about three or four different apartments, and they all accepted me right away,” says Fattu-Logan, a drugstore manager and college student from Peoria, Arizona, who … Continued
When it comes to credit cards, you might think of yourself as a low-key rock star: You always pay on time and in full and maintain excellent credit. Compared with others, you’ve mastered the basics. And yet you — yes, you — might be using credit cards to spend too much. Don’t let your good … Continued