After several missed payments on a credit card or medical bill, your creditor might hand your account to a collection agency. And that then paves the way for a company that you’ve probably never heard of, calling and quoting a balance higher than you r…
Category: Financial Education
Yes, you can get cash with a credit card, but it’s usually a cash advance, not a regular purchase. That distinction matters. Cash advances often include added fees, a separate (and lower) limit, and interest that may start building right away.…
In nearly all cases, you can’t close a bank account with a negative balance until you’ve paid back what you owe. If you ignore the account, hoping it’ll just go away, the bank may eventually close it on its own, but that doesn’t erase the debt, and it …
Just got paid or received a check? Of course, you want your money fast. But what happens if your own bank is across town, or worse, you don’t have a bank account at all? You might find yourself standing in front of a random branch, wondering, “ca…
When you pay a credit card bill, you may notice a charge on your statement that is beyond the amount of money you actually spent. That’s a finance charge. It’s the cost of borrowing, expressed as a dollar amount. This article explains how to calculate …
You can buy a car with a credit card, but whether a dealer will let you is a different question. Most dealerships restrict credit card payments to a portion of the purchase, and those that accept more will often add a surcharge. What Dealers Actu…
When you need quick cash, pawning or selling some of your belongings can both be viable avenues to consider. However, there are significant differences between them that are important to understand before moving forward. This guide will help you unders…
When you borrow money, interest increases the amount you repay over time. When you save or invest, interest helps your balance grow instead. In both scenarios, how that interest is calculated depends largely on whether it’s simple or compound. In this …
Getting calls or letters from a collection agency can raise a lot of questions. One of the most common is how do debt collection agencies make money when they weren’t the ones who issued the loan. In many cases, lenders hire collectors and pay them a p…
When most people take out loans, they don’t think they’ll have trouble repaying them later. Unfortunately, circumstances can change. And when they do, they sometimes cause major financial problems. Forbearance may help you get back on your feet. But wh…