Credit Repair Texas: October 2009

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Credit Cards Canceled

Citi is canceling credit cards. Let's take a look.

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Citi closes Gas linked credit card without warning.

Shannon Burdette tried to pay with her Shell Mastercard after filling up her gas tank this weekend but found the card rejected. Confused, she called the customer service line on the back of the card, issued by Citibank, and was told the account was closed because of something that appeared on her credit report. But when the Sykesville Md., resident got a copy of her credit report online, the only negative thing she saw was "closed at credit grantor's request" on the Shell MasterCard account.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-creditcard1020,0,1649893.story

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Saturday, October 24, 2009

Consumer Protection 2010

let's take a look:

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.....................The legislation, known as the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act of 2009, .............. will take effect in February, but portions of it are set to come into play in the coming weeks.
But while advocates say the legislation does offer consumers some protection, it has led banks to get creative in finding new revenue streams to replace those put in jeopardy.
“The issuers are finding new ways to secure income before the February deadline when their hands will be somewhat tied,” said Gail Cunningham, Vice President of Public Relations at the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. Cunningham compared the legislation to a boardwalk game of “Whac-A-Mole,” where a new furry critter pops up each time you smack one back into its hole....................
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/personal-finance/lifestyle-money/consumer-debt/credit-card-fees-rising-consumer-protection-act-blame/
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Friday, October 23, 2009

Credit continues to tighten

Citibank is canceling members cards and hiking rates on others. Let us take a look:

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...................."I received two letters by mail from Citibank yesterday. One said that because I always paid my account on time and that I was such a great customer they were increasing my credit limit. The next letter I opened stated that Citibank was raising my interest rate from the current 18.99% to 29.99%.

I had two choices either I accepted the rate hike or Citibank would honor the current interest rate until the expiration date of my current card, which fortunately was 8/31/2011, and at that time they would close my account, but I was still expected to continue to make payments until the account was paid in full. I have been a cardholder with Citibank for 20 years and was told that due to the current economic downturn the company was forced to raise interest rates regardless of credit scores and payment history. My husband and I have good credit and are making a genuine effort to get out of debt by purchasing next to nothing on credit.".................

http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-customers-reach-out-to-us-2009-10

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Auto Sales Down

Let's take a look.......

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..................U.S. auto sales had averaged 16.4 million annually this decade through 2008, when sales plunged to 13.2 million. Rates continued to drop this year, hitting 27-year lows before appearing to bottom out. Analysts now are forecasting several years of gentle increases.

In the meantime, low sales and high cost structures sent all three Detroit automakers scrambling to restructure. GM and Chrysler did so under government-sponsored bankruptcy, while Ford has restructured within its own resources. Ford reached a tentative agreement this week with the UAW to bring its costs in line with those of its Detroit rivals.

The companies are now poised to profit at new sales levels. For instance, the government says GM's restructuring will eventually make it profitable in a 10-million-unit sales environment.............

http://www.autonews.com/article/20091016/ANA02/910169973/1176/FRONTPAGE

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Saturday, October 17, 2009

Warehouse store sales up nearly 50 percent!

This is a must see graphical representation of changing shopping habits. Let us take a look.

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Shoppers’ Shifting Priorities

Last year, consumers pulled back on spending and the retail sector suffered. But not all retailers are faring worse than they did a few years ago. Against a baseline of spending levels in 2003, sales in computer stores have continued to rise. Restaurant and liquor-store sales are at much higher levels, and purchases at warehouse stores are up nearly 50 percent. Still, in major retail divisions like home furnishings and clothing, sales faltered in 2007 and are now below their levels of 2003.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/10/03/business/metrics-retail-sales.html

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Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Rosenberg: “The U.S. is going to be grappling with a consumer who’s going to be downsizing”

David Rosenberg is one of the guys that has been getting things right on the economy for quit a long time. Let's take a look at what he is saying.....

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“Right now the economy is being held together by very strong tape and glue provided by the Fed, Treasury and Congress,” he says. Rosenberg sees gross domestic product stalling in the current quarter, growing at an annual rate of no more than 1 percent in the first three months of 2010 and no more than 2 percent for all of 2010."

.............U.S. Sales of new cars and light-duty trucks dropped 40.9 percent in September from the previous month after the government’s Cash-for-Clunkers program ended Aug. 24, according to data from Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey-based Autodata Corp. Tax credits for first-time home buyers -- which helped boost sales of existing single-family houses 13.5 percent since January -- will expire Nov. 30. The Fed will end a $300 billion program to buy Treasury bonds at the end of this month and wind down purchases of $1.5 trillion in agency and mortgage-backed securities in the first quarter.

Take that stimulus away, and there’s little to boost growth out of the recession that began in December 2007, Rosenberg says. The recovery will resemble the so-called jobless recovery of 2002, when the economy grew just 1.8 percent.........

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=axnCbWZ33aEU

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Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Oregon's Minimum wage to drop?

Oregon's Minimum wage to drop? Oregon's minimum wage is tied to CPI. CPI drops so this should drop minimum wage. Let us take a look...

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DENVER – Colorado will become the first state to reduce its minimum wage because of a falling cost of living.

The state Department of Labor and Employment ordered the wage down to $7.24 from $7.28. That's lower than the federal minimum wageof $7.25, so most minimum wage workers would lose only 3 cents an hour.

Colorado is one of 10 states where the minimum wage is tied to inflation. The indexing is thought to protect low-wage workers from having flat wages as the cost of living goes up.

..........Other states with minimum wages that rise with inflation are Arizona, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington........

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091013/ap_on_bi_ge/us_minimum_wage_drop;_ylt=AkVnUDk_Sf6nlYnWF_1DOnSs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNqcWJ0dHFyBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkxMDEzL3VzX21pbmltdW1fd2FnZV9kcm9wBGNjb2RlA3JhbmRvbQRjcG9zAzcEcG9zAzQEcHQDaG9tZV9jb2tlBHNlYwN5bl9oZWFkbGluZV9saXN0BHNsawNjb2xvcmFkb21pbmk-

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Oregon Tax Revenue Down Year over Year

State tax revenue 2nd quarter year over year.

Let's take a look.

2nd Quarter y/y State Tax Revenue

State	Total 2009 tax revenue (in dollars)	Change in total taxes from 2008	Change in sales taxes from 2008	Change in individual income taxes from 2008
U.S. Total	199,725,107	-17%	-9%	-27%
Alabama	2,130,092	-13%	-10%	-24%
Alaska	596,754	-87%	N/A	N/A
Arizona	2,562,395	-27%	-27%	-44%
Arkansas	2,103,330	-5%	-8%	-13%
California	33,544,129	-14%	-10%	-33%
Colorado	2,333,248	-24%	-14%	-30%
Connecticut	3,618,740	-20%	-9%	-27%
Delaware	773,047	-25%	N/A	-36%
Florida	8,228,366	-12%	-13%	N/A
Georgia	4,178,469	-17%	-11%	-19%
Hawaii	1,145,002	-16%	-8%	-34%
Idaho	922,192	-21%	-14%	-29%
Illinois	7,697,097	-12%	-10%	-24%
Indiana	4,106,673	-10%	-5%	-18%
Iowa	1,827,461	-9%	6%	-16%
Kansas	1,911,819	-15%	-2%	-17%
Kentucky	2,555,914	-8%	-3%	-17%
Louisiana	2,613,195	-18%	-11%	-16%
Maine	1,151,649	-15%	-7%	-27%
Maryland	4,896,343	-17%	-9%	-27%
Massachusetts	5,420,143	-19%	-9%	-27%
Michigan	5,768,785	-7%	12%	-23%
Minnesota	5,009,478	-13%	-5%	-24%
Mississippi	1,831,891	-9%	-8%	-10%
Missouri	2,752,244	-17%	-9%	-25%
Montana	729,607	-18%	N/A	-22%
Nebraska	1,063,323	-13%	-9%	-15%
Nevada	2,367,012	-6%	-18%	N/A
New Hampshire	484,865	-10%	N/A	-31%
New Jersey	9,359,609	-15%	-9%	-27%
New Mexico	1,077,605	-31%	-15%	-59%
New York	14,079,442	-22%	-9%	-31%
North Carolina	5,380,022	-22%	-8%	-36%
North Dakota	612,734	-16%	-4%	12%
Ohio	6,822,340	-15%	-9%	-25%
Oklahoma	1,902,249	-22%	-5%	-18%
Oregon	2,025,638	-27%	N/A	-30%
Pennsylvania	7,904,008	-13%	-8%	-20%
Rhode Island	771,955	-9%	-6%	-17%
South Carolina	2,261,527	-21%	-14%	-29%
South Dakota	279,699	-1%	15%	N/A
Tennessee	3,097,435	-11%	-10%	-26%
Texas	12,293,040	-12%	-6%	N/A
Utah	1,600,094	-16%	-9%	-27%
Vermont	1,209,578	2%	-6%	-29%
Virginia	4,748,221	-15%	-10%	-20%
Washington	3,996,157	-8%	-9%	N/A
West Virginia	1,273,875	-4%	-2%	2%
Wisconsin	3,904,648	-24%	-34%	-32%
Wyoming	801,968	-5%	-13%	N/A
Washington D.C.	1,369,161	-5%	-9%	-25%

Source: Census Bureau

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Saturday, October 10, 2009

Oregon Public Pension in trouble 2011

Oregon's public pension fund down nearly 20% last year. Moving forward payments into the fund are scheduled to soar. With unemployment growing, tax revenues down where is the money going to come from?

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Payments to Oregon pension system to soar in 2011.

Oregon schools and governments are confronting a big increase in pension costs because of last year's meltdown in the financial markets.

The Public Employees Retirement System fund lost 27 percent of its value last year. The losses mean that the funded status of the system — the percentage of liabilities covered by the system's assets — declined from 98 percent at the end of 2007 to 71 percent at the end of 2008.

To help put the system's funded status back in balance, state and local government agencies, school districts and municipalities will have to devote a higher percentage of their payroll rates to pension obligations.

Contribution rates differ by employer. But systemwide, payroll rates to fund pensions will jump from an average of 4.7 percent of payroll to 13.1 percent starting July 1, 2011, according to a new report from the pension system's actuary.

News of the forthcoming increase comes at a time when government budgets are absorbing recession-related cuts.

http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D9B2GBO81.html

Is the stock market a bubble?

Interesting take on the markets by Lakshman Archuthan of ECRI: let's take a look:

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"The error of optimism dies in the crisis but in dying it gives birth to an error of pessimism. This new error is born, not an infant, but a giant. That giant error of pessimism is still running rampant, and will keep most people mired in gloom, long after the Great Recession is history."

http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/article/351455/The-Pessimists-Are-Wrong:-No-Downturn-Anytime-Soon,-ECRIs-Achuthan-Says

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Reverse Mortgage Abuse

Reverse Mortgage Abuse. Apparently the same incentives in the mortgage market have lead to abuse in the reverse mortgage market as well. Let us take a look.

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Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Reverse mortgages may be the next subprime crisis, according to the National Consumer Law Center.

Some of the same U.S. lenders that helped drive the real estate boom with loans to home buyers who couldn’t afford the payments are now targeting seniors, the center said. Brokers, who are given financial incentives to sell the loans, may be making misleading claims to potential customers, according to a report titled "Subprime Revisited,’’ that was released today by the Boston-based NCLC.

“This market is designed to serve seniors, so when we find abuses cropping up and migrating from the subprime market to the senior market, that sounds an especially loud warning bell,” said Rick Jurgens, an advocate at the National Consumer Law Center, who contributed to the report.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aBbWil.iMQW0

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